Going to register for teeball tonight and need to tell them NOT to give us same coach

[NanceXToo]

as last year. I hope they don't mind this or automatically see me as a "problem parent" because of it or anything.

 

Last year was my son's first year with teeball and the main problem was that the coach was just HORRIBLE about communicating with the parents.

 

1) There were a bunch of rained out practices and he was ALWAYS saying to the parents, "I'm going to call you guys this week about scheduling an extra practice," and then he'd never call.

 

2) There was a 4th of July parade listed as starting at X location on the paperwork and the start location got changed to somewhere else. He never called the parents to tell them. Granted it was listed in the newspaper, but we don't get that, and he could have given the parents on his team a heads up. I only found out because my mother saw it in the newspaper and randomly happened to mention it to me, or I'd have gone to the wrong place.

 

3) The straw that broke the camel's back for me. The paperwork they handed out at the beginning of the season listed the end of the season pool party being "tentatively scheduled" on such and such a date. So it's nearing the season's end and I see I had this "tentative" notation on my calendar. I happened to have the league president's email in my contacts (the coach never gave us one), and I was at my computer, so I emailed the league president and said, "Hey, I have this tentative date written down on my calendar, can you confirm if this is definitely the date." He wrote me back and said, "No, it was changed and we already HAD the party. Your coach should have notified you." And he never did. We had NO opportunity to attend the end of season pool party for all the teams because our coach never bothered to inform us of the new date. That was SO disappointing.

 

I'm going in a half hour or so to register for this summer and there is NO way I'm going to allow them to put my son back on that guy's team, I can't deal with another frustrating season of his lack of communication and potentially missing out on another end of the year party because he doesn't bother to let the parents know what's going on and couldn't care less if his kids make it over to the party and so on. No way.

 

What do you think, can I just tell them straight up we don't want him and why without raising eyebrows and making it seem like drama?

[elfgivas]

missing out on things, or almost, is disappointing, and such an easy thing to fix that it is frustrating.

 

this seems like a communication problem, and perhaps a "good intentions but bad follow thru" problem as well.

 

that said, if he was otherwise a good coach, i'd count my blessings and say nothing. if he was dreadful with the children/drunk at games/attacked other coaches, etc, that would be altogether another thing.

 

we finished year 1002 of soccer last year (well, it was only 18 years and 4 children, but you catch my drift), and a communication problem is something i would rather work with than a whole host of other things i've seen (some of which i listed above). volunteering to be the team mom can solve it all at once.

 

:grouphug: team sports can be so fun (except when they aren't)

ann

[NanceXToo]

Well I saw the league president there and did say something to him (he already knew the situation anyway after those emails). As it turns out, that coach moved up to minor league with his daughter so it's a non issue. :D

[bettyandbob]

In our league coaches are volunteers. Unless the man is abusive, exhibits poor sportsmanship, favoritism or other trait counter to the activity I'd try not to be mad. He volunteered. If he didn't volunteer the league would be scrounging for someone else to "volunteer". Some of these volunteer coaches are really good with the kids, but lack organizational skills. When that happens someone else on the team needs to step up and ask to help him with tasks like maintaining and email list to send schedule messages to the parents.

[NanceXToo]

Betty,

I get that. But, still, he's a grown man capable of knowing when he needs help and of handling his responsibilities. When the league president tells him the party has been rescheduled, let your team know, it was absolutely his responsibility to let his team know, or to ask someone else to let the team know. One or the other. Dropping the ball entirely so kids had to miss out on the party was not acceptable no matter what.

[scrappyhappymama]

I just signed my son up for baseball for the spring and there was an option to request to NOT have a particular coach. I thought that was pretty cool.

 

Personally, I wouldn't have a problem with requesting not to be assigned to a particular coach. For me, it wouldn't require an abusive situation. Sometimes there are just personality or philosophical conflicts.

 

I did notice that only ONE coach was allowed to be listed. To me, that sounds like an acknowledgement that occasionally it might be for the best, without catering to parents who are being overly dramatic or sensitive.

[Cricket]

Betty,

I get that. But, still, he's a grown man capable of knowing when he needs help and of handling his responsibilities. When the league president tells him the party has been rescheduled, let your team know, it was absolutely his responsibility to let his team know, or to ask someone else to let the team know. One or the other. Dropping the ball entirely so kids had to miss out on the party was not acceptable no matter what.

 

:iagree: I'm on the board for our local Little League. This would not be okay with any of the board members. And we would make sure this coach understood he needed to shape up or step down. All coaches have to be approved by the board and if we kept hearing complaints of this nature and the coach didn't deal with the situation, he would not be allowed to coach again. This is why each team needs a Team Mom (or Dad). They are supposed to handle this stuff because the coach is busy. If the coach can't delegate, then he should only be an assistant coach.

 

To your original post, requesting to not have a particular coach is perfectly fine (even without all the things you mentioned) and you would not be labeled a trouble parent in our league.