Team places third, coaches burn trophies

The New Canaan (Conn.) 8th Grade Black youth football team placed third in its division this season. It's not the championship-level finish the team is used to. New Canaan has won the division each of the last five years. Still, it's not the end of the world. Right? Like most youth leagues, New Canaan Youth Football issues participation trophies even for the kids who don't win the championship. Well, the eighth grade coaches took the team's finish pretty hard. After the postseason banquet in late November, the coaching staff took the kids to a nearby park and told them to throw their trophies into a pile. Coaches then poured gasoline on the trophies and set them ablaze.

Yes, the coaches set the kids' trophies on fire. The picture above shows the charred remains. This is honestly one of the most imbecilic, asinine, and completely irresponsible things an adult could do. Forget the trophies for a moment - these geniuses started a fire in a public park using gasoline with children present.  Our number one responsibility as adults is to keep kids safe. I don't care what motivational tool your're trying to use. Setting a fire doesn't effectively convey the point. Getting back to the trophies - why would you destroy anything that belongs to a child? I know there's contingent of people who think giving every kid a trophy is a mistake and encourages mediocrity. 

Participation trophies are similar to citizenship and attendance awards in school. Why do kids get attendance awards when the law states they have to go anyway? The same thing goes with citizenship. We all expect our kids to behave well and be good citizens. The purpose of these awards is to build kids up and encourage them. Participation awards tell a kid that while you didn't win the championship, you're still a winner and we appreciate your hard work and attitude.  These coaches also ruined the last experience the kids will have in youth football. They're all going to high school. They can't comeback and avenge this season's disappointment. This is just an all-around failure by the coaching staff.

Fortunately, next year's eighth graders will have a new coaching staff. The New Canaan board accepted the resignations of the current coaches and subsequently banned them from coaching any team in the future. Two points from the booklet A Standard Higher Than Victory are appropriate here related to coaches:

• Coach for the love of the game and the love of the athlete.
• Put the welfare of your athletes above winning.

(Note: Copies of A Standard Higher Than Victory are included in the Cardinals Care Package which you can receive for free at sportsmanship.org).

People always remember experiences more than events. The kids in New Canaan probably won't remember they placed third 10 years from now, but they will remember the trophy-burning. Make sure your kids have positive experiences that will help them realize their full and limitless potential. Until next time...

Be a Good Sport!

-Sol

Related link(s): Youth football coaches resign from board after trophy-burning incident - acorn-online.