Players who play for their Parent who Coaches

[NJZoo]

Like all things in softball, it depends.

I coached my daughter 1 season of 10U and 1 season of 12U...I think we're both happier now that I'm not coaching

I was much harder on her than the other girls, it just wasn't a good fit for her to enjoy the game. We've been on teams that have paid coaches and parent coaches, and actually have had better experiences with parent coaches for what it's worth.

 

[Chilixa]

Bold isn't always what it's cracked up to be...

Probably very true. I would imagine my daughters would agree that they don’t want all of my coaching focused just on them!


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[uncdrew]

I coached rec and one year of travel. And was done.

Parents were jerks, didn't understand the game (the rules, the strategy, etc.) and thought they were experts. There's enough drama as a parent. I can't deal with the drama coaches get - I'd kick most everyone off the team if left coaching long enough. It's not the job for me.

 

[Orange Socks]

I coached DD1 in Soccer, some Basketball (I sucked), and Softball. When she tried out for a legit 14U TB organization I stepped back, but got drawn back in to call pitches after some incompetent dad and his DD left the team and of course DD was the Catcher. That summer DD told me that she didn't want me to coach her teams anymore.

I stepped back again and focused on the recruiting side and being a parent advisor/helper to the coaches. After DD finished her TB career I came back in to help with coaching and recruiting. Team fell apart because of Covid. DD2-I didn't coach as much because doing double duty was very difficult. I did my best to coach the coaches so they could coach the next year. I know DD2 was jealous of the time I spent with DD1 and I feel horrible about it, but DD2 wasn't serious about sports. She just played at it wasn't interested in putting any work in. Soph year she decided to play softball again after a 4 year hiatus.

 

[HunterMO]

I coached rec and one year of travel. And was done.

Parents were jerks, didn't understand the game (the rules, the strategy, etc.) and thought they were experts. There's enough drama as a parent. I can't deal with the drama coaches get - I'd kick most everyone off the team if left coaching long enough. It's not the job for me.

DS is playing 10u "competitive" hockey. We haven't even played an official game yet (just wrapped up declaration games where they place teams based on overall skill level) and I already overhear parents talking about how the coach isn't doing this or should be doing that. I helped coach DD1 in softball for three years (one of 10u, two of 12u), but will likely never coach in hockey. [Hockey] parents are crazy.

 

[_MIA_]

[Hockey] parents are crazy.

Boys sports are worse for sure….

 

[clemenslee1]

I've did it for 2 yrs with my DD. It can get rough at times because without realizing it the conversations between the 2 of us were nothing but softball if that makes sense. Since my DD quitits actually been really nice, enjoying other things, see what her other Interests are. It can be really tough to take the coaching hat off and put the dad hat back on.

 

[Vertigo]

Boys sports are worse for sure….

Being the only umpire for my ds’ LL game when the only other choice was to cancel the game was definitely an experience…….

 

[cvsoftball]

"I'm not your dad, I'm your coach." This was team practices and games and worked well. Now, practices with just her and me, yeah, unicorns and rainbows.

 

[DryHeat]

Well, for DD1, she has had a pretty easy ride as far as DaddyBall.

I only ever just helped out as practices in wreck ball. She was on a team for several years that had a non-parent HC, with a couple AC's that were parents but there was really no favoritism. Once DD1 went to club, it was all non-parent HCs and a few parent ACs.

DD2 is a different story. First wreck ball team was truly a wreck. Daddy AND MommyBall (husband/wife). Their two DDs were little tyrants and I'm sure didnt last much longer on sports. The next season the league needed coaches so DW and a friend (our DDs are/were besties) volunteered and coached for a season (2nd year 8u). Their schedules were tight, so I and the other dad took the team from there up until Covid. We had to switch leagues after. I was hoping to just sit back and watch, but they needed an AC for a semester and then a HC for another semester.

At that point DD2 was tired of playing with newbies and lower-skilled players, so we took her to club ball, at which point I happily retired. The first team was parent-coached, but it was their DD3, so they knew the ropes and were pretty cool. We had to move to 14u and they didnt so we went to another team in the org. Unfortunately there is some DaddyBall going on here. HC's kid is the worst player on the team. Uh-oh. But she still gets the start at 2B all the time. Really no other place to put her. 2 AC's, their kids are good, one is the #1 pitcher (deservedly so) but she is getting overused. In the 4 games last tourney, she pitched 3 of them. DD2 got a single inning. . At least she plays SS and OF when not pitching and rarely sits. We will see where this goes...