Re: MS 7th graders playing on 7th and 8th grade te
Warriers,
You are very lucky to be in a school district where (at least at the Jr. high level) teachers are not offered the coaching jobs first (or if they are, no teachers want them).
In our district, and many others, the teachers get the first option at the coaching positions and if they don't want them, they are up for grabs. If that were not the case, it would be great to be a school sanctioned team, but as long as teachers get the first option at coaching positions (whether they are qualified or not), I'm all in favor of the club ball option. It may not always be perfect, but it's better than the alternative.
We also have excellent equipment (top quality catchers gear, bats as well as training equipments mostly owned by the coaching staff). The only problem some will say we have is that yes, the coaches have kids on the team. However, these coaches kids are not guaranteed positions or playing time and they have all taken their turn on the bench in order to give all kids fair playing time. It doesn't matter if we're winning or losing, part way through the game, the non-starters are going in for the starters - sometimes in the in-field, sometimes in the outfield - it just depends on the players on the bench. Of course they want to win, but as coaches, they are also trying to develop all of the girls. If you only play 9 all the time, how many kids will they have come back next year?
Nothing is perfect and I'm sure there are the usual parents who don't feel their little Suzy is not getting enough playing time, but most of them probably don't know what little Suzy is up to when mom and dad aren't around. Note to parents - If you don't believe your Suzy is getting enough playing time, talk to the head coach - don't complain to everybody that will listen, don't sit in the bleachers and scream about the other kids who made a mistake, don't tell your little Suzy that she should have been in the game instead of "so & so", etc. That only creates animosity between the girls (inlcuding your Suzy because you know she is telling her teamates what mom/dad said). In talking to the coach, you may also discover that Suzy has told the coach that she doesn't want to play (insert position here), or that she only wants to play (insert position here), or maybe she complains excessively about one thing or another (stomach aches, headaches, sore arms, sore shoulders, sore ankles,etc....). You may be surprised.
Oh well, I'm stepping down off my soapbox now....
Middleschool/Jr. High programs are great, regardless of how they're organized. Whether it be school sanctioned or club - it's a great opportunity for a lot of kids to get some playing time in the spring.