Your rules on sportsmanship?

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Saw one thread on team sportsmanship. http://www.thesoftballzone.com/vb3/general-softball/44660-opinions-sportsmanship.html

I'm sure there are others.

Read a Facebook post that talked about sportsmanship among teammates along with other things.

Talked about player attitudes on my DD's team that touched on sportsmanship.

Coaches, parents or players, do you have any sportsmanship rules you've set in place? Do you adhere to them?

 

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I'll start by adding the following as my basic rules. As a parent.

My girls are not allowed to say anything to disparage another player. My house rule is never to show disappointment in anyone else's failings by gesture or word. That is for the coaches to deal with in an appropriate manner.They are only allowed to show displeasure of their own actions. My girls are only allowed to encourage a player after a mistake or say nothing. My daughter is allowed to ask a question of coaches or make a statement but similar rules apply and proper tone of voice and being respectful are expected. All rules for me change if personal safety are affected.

I'll say I have seen my daughter slam her glove on her bag when returning to the dougout after a bad play or shove her bat into the fence after failing at the plate. I don't say anything to her in that regards. I recently watched a pitcher miss a come-backer and when the inning was over she approached the infield foul line nearest her dugout and threw her glove into the dugout exclaiming something about "that floppy thing!" I thought that was poor sportsmanship. That young lady's display was not directed at someone else but she was blaming something other than her own failure on that play and it seemed geared towards grabbing attention. If my daughter did that I would appreciate a coach saying something to her. I think that is a coachable moment. I didn't see any interaction between the coach and player after that. Maybe it depends on the individual in question but I think the coach missed an opportunity to affect the person not just the player.

 

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I think both players are in the wrong. There is no place on or near the field for that type of behavior. The display of negative or improper behavior sets the wrong example for all who are involved. As they say, "Someone is always watching."

 

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Sportsmanship starts at home. Poor sports are not born they are taught. Everyone or most everyone has displayed a lack of sportsmanship once in their life. Everyone can and will make a mistake. However when the act is repeated over and over it is a problem. Our team has played this one team a few times and every time there is an issue with a coach or the parents of this team. This team is a very good team and the manager is a very quite and respectful person. But the parents and some of the girls of the team were rude and yelled on to the field negative remarks the entire game. And also every game we've played them. We run our team including parents to only cheer for our girls not make a remark about the other team. I won't even let our girls say cheers about opposing pitcher. The only cheers that are aloud from out dugout are positive toward our team.

But like I said everyone makes mistakes but when it's a pattern it's a problem

 

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Sportsmanship starts at home. Poor sports are not born they are taught. Everyone or most everyone has displayed a lack of sportsmanship once in their life. Everyone can and will make a mistake. However when the act is repeated over and over it is a problem. Our team has played this one team a few times and every time there is an issue with a coach or the parents of this team. This team is a very good team and the manager is a very quite and respectful person. But the parents and some of the girls of the team were rude and yelled on to the field negative remarks the entire game. And also every game we've played them. We run our team including parents to only cheer for our girls not make a remark about the other team. I won't even let our girls say cheers about opposing pitcher. The only cheers that are aloud from out dugout are positive toward our team.

But like I said everyone makes mistakes but when it's a pattern it's a problem

Cmon Matt....when it was itb extra innings your girls were just as loud and
Obnoxious as ours. Give it a rest bud. You won, fair and square, hell of a game. But don't call out our girls. If you have issues with the parentS that's one thing. But lay off the girls. They said nothing and I mean nothing derogatory toward your girls! Pm me if you wanna talk about it if not just let it go. Your grasping at thin air. Maybe we should change our name, that seems to be the way to go?

 

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Cmon Matt....when it was itb extra innings your girls were just as loud and
Obnoxious as ours. Give it a rest bud. You won, fair and square, hell of a game. But don't call out our girls. If you have issues with the parentS that's one thing. But lay off the girls. They said nothing and I mean nothing derogatory toward your girls! Pm me if you wanna talk about it if not just let it go. Your grasping at thin air. Maybe we should change our name, that seems to be the way to go?

I don't have issues with your parents or your girls. I just think better choices could have been made on both sides.

You have a great team and I love playing you guy's. Keep playing hard. Good luck next week and at your nationals.

Matt

 

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Larry, you do realize that, if you hadn't said anything, 99% of the people here would have had no idea that Matt was referring to your team?

 

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here's ours...

Lady Bombers Fastpitch

some are performance rules, some are sportsmanship rules, and some are general behavior rules. as with any rules though, they are useless without repurcussions for breaking them.

 

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If your a middle-aged man between the years of 45-55, you shouldnt be in the dug out screaming at the top of your lungs leading your team in cheers......That was just weird yesterday...... not illegal, not unsportmanslike, just weird......

 

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crystlemc.... do you realize larry bowman has to comment on 99% of all posts on OFC .....

 

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crystlemc.... do you realize larry bowman has to comment on 99% of all posts on OFC .....

Its all about the thread count. :lmao::lmao::lmao:

 

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Sportsmanship covers a wide range of areas. First and foremost, I agree with the earlier post that no cheering should ever be derogatory towards another team ... in fact, I am personally opposed to any cheering about the other team altogether ... the only cheering in my mind should be positive cheering for your own team. Once you start addressing the other team at all in your cheering, you take the risk of someone taking it the wrong way especially if its done at the wrong time. Coaches need to be careful not to cross this line as well, especially if they are within earshot of the other team.

Sportsmanship in my mind also covers basic respect for the game ... respect for the other team, for your fellow players, for the girls' parents and fans, and for the umpires. It also means not piling on the other team when they are down ... it may mean subbing in your bench players, quit stealing bases, stretching extra base hits, etc. It's unfortunate that sometimes bracket seeding encourages some teams to run up scores, but personally I will resist that temptation. Once I'm up early in the game a spread that is in the vicinity of the run rule, I turn off the floodgates. If that ends up costing us a slightly more favorable seeding later, then so be it ... at least I can live with myself that I didn't contribute to humiliating a child on a team that I was coaching against. If you need a selfish reason, then just know that someday the table may be turned or you may be looking for a favor, and someone will remember how you treated them earlier.

 

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Sportsmanship covers a wide range of areas. First and foremost, I agree with the earlier post that no cheering should ever be derogatory towards another team ... in fact, I am personally opposed to any cheering about the other team altogether ... the only cheering in my mind should be positive cheering for your own team. Once you start addressing the other team at all in your cheering, you take the risk of someone taking it the wrong way especially if its done at the wrong time. Coaches need to be careful not to cross this line as well, especially if they are within earshot of the other team.

Sportsmanship in my mind also covers basic respect for the game ... respect for the other team, for your fellow players, for the girls' parents and fans, and for the umpires. It also means not piling on the other team when they are down ... it may mean subbing in your bench players, quit stealing bases, stretching extra base hits, etc. It's unfortunate that sometimes bracket seeding encourages some teams to run up scores, but personally I will resist that temptation. Once I'm up early in the game a spread that is in the vicinity of the run rule, I turn off the floodgates. If that ends up costing us a slightly more favorable seeding later, then so be it ... at least I can live with myself that I didn't contribute to humiliating a child on a team that I was coaching against. If you need a selfish reason, then just know that someday the table may be turned or you may be looking for a favor, and someone will remember how you treated them earlier.

I agree with everything you said.

 

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Simple gestures such as making your team shake the umpire hand after the game go a long way in showing what sportsmanship is all about.

 

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Good Sportsmanship should start with the Organization as well. A good organization should spell out expectations in terms of good sportsmanship starting not only with the girls and parents, but the coaches as well.

I have witnessed some unsportsmanlike conduct from coaches recently and can’t help but wonder “What are we teaching our children”. Especially at the 10u level, a child should not be treated poorly by the coaches after leaving an organization for personal reasons. Cheering “Extra loud” when your pitcher strikes out a player that left your team is not acceptable as a coach. And shame on you for teaching your players that this is acceptable behavior. The team looks to the coaches for more than just softball skills. They are observing the coaches behavior on the practice field and the playing field. Especially at 10u, they are still learning how to behave from the adults.

As a parent, I can only encourage my child to be the bigger person so much. But when it is an adult/coach demonstrating this behavior towards my child, I start to question the integrity of the organization. Just as the girls represent your organization every time they step out on the field, so do the coaches.

 

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Larry, you do realize that, if you hadn't said anything, 99% of the people here would have had no idea that Matt was referring to your team?

I'm not worried about who knows. I'm gonna stick up for the girls.on my team regardless.

 

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Its all about the thread count. :lmao::lmao::lmao:

I gotta say that's funny right there.

 

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Over the weekend in one of our games we had a girl from the opposing team get called out by home plate umpire because of unsportsmanlike conduct. Makes you wonder if situation turned into teaching moment or was just brushed off by the coach because they won. Kinda like no harm no foul.

 

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If your a middle-aged man between the years of 45-55, you shouldnt be in the dug out screaming at the top of your lungs leading your team in cheers......That was just weird yesterday...... not illegal, not unsportmanslike, just weird......

I agree but I would go one step further.....I dont think any coach should be joining in the actual chants no matter how old...I do realize it may just be that fun for some that do but those tend to be the most immature arguing coaches too....

 

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If your a middle-aged man between the years of 45-55, you shouldnt be in the dug out screaming at the top of your lungs leading your team in cheers......That was just weird yesterday...... not illegal, not unsportmanslike, just weird......

Frank didn't suddenly lose his marbles did he?