# Unsanctioned tournament scenario question



## soloyosh (Jan 12, 2018)

Senario:  A coach of a U11 club team selects 8 players from her 12 player roster and asks the parents of those players to attend an unsanctioned youth tournament.  The other 4 players/parents were not contacted and were kept in the dark.

The parents are instructed to be evasive about where they are going when asked and told not to post anything on social media about it.

The club has a clear expectation that tournament attendance is to be club board approved.

Someone slips up and posts some pictures on Facebook garnering a lot of “WTF” type questions from the board and the parents of the players that were not asked to go.

The coach, once put on the spot, says “This was nothing official and was just a bunch of parents that got together to do this.”  Her child is on the team and is one of the players that attended.

The social media posts clearly show her and her asst. coach on the sideline coaching the team of 8 players and two guests.

Neither the players or coaches wore their regular club gear to this event as they were instructed not to by the coach.


How should the club board handle this?

How would your club board handle this?


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## 46n2 (Jan 12, 2018)

what IF your club knew, the plot thickens.....
sucks if they used your month dues too pay as well....


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## MyDaughtersAKeeper (Jan 12, 2018)

It was unprofessional.  If you have to tell the parents to be evasive (or you are a parent and being told to be evasive) then you know what you are doing is shady.  As for how the board handles, if I am on the board I am asking the following questions: 

Does the contract with the coach prohibit this?
What was the purpose of taking a select group of kids to a tournament? 
Was permission from the club provided in advance (I assume no)?
Is this in the best interest of the club?
Is this in the best interest of the girls?
And as a final question I would ask the coach where they will be coaching next year, because it wouldn't be with this club (joking - kind of).


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## soloyosh (Jan 12, 2018)

MyDaughtersAKeeper said:


> It was unprofessional.  If you have to tell the parents to be evasive (or you are a parent and being told to be evasive) then you know what you are doing is shady.  As for how the board handles, if I am on the board I am asking the following questions:
> 
> Does the contract with the coach prohibit this? (Small club, coaches are volunteers, no contracts other than adhering to the bylaws of the club.)
> What was the purpose of taking a select group of kids to a tournament? (Hasn't been asked or stated)
> ...


See above in red.

As to your final question, that's why I asked.

Me personally? She had the contact information for these players because she coaches with the club.  She was able to choose which players to take because of her role as the coach.  Though, to be honest those line can be pretty blurry.  If I was a board member, I would vote to remove her.  I wouldn't want the appearance of anything shady around the club if I could help it.


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## Striker17 (Jan 12, 2018)

U11 so they are 10 and these are basically AYSO coaches who don't get paid and volunteer?


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## soloyosh (Jan 12, 2018)

Striker17 said:


> U11 so they are 10?


Yes


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## timbuck (Jan 12, 2018)

Are those 4 players not returning next year?


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## Striker17 (Jan 12, 2018)

Sounds like a community coach who wanted to do something with a core group of kids and potential new four. It was not sanctioned so it can be seen as "off time". 
I can't imagine the board doing anything about this. I also think this is one of those moments where the parents of the four need to ask why they were not invited- skill, attitude, bad Behavior of parents? 
Why is this shady? She coached a non sanctioned tourney with a new group of kids. It's shady if you were four that were not included but ask why?
With all the club teams we have been on there have been at least 2-3 things per year that some of us were invited to, and some not. This is par for the course in bigger clubs and it becomes a funnel the older you get.


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## soloyosh (Jan 12, 2018)

Striker17 said:


> Sounds like a community coach who wanted to do something with a core group of kids and potential new four. It was not sanctioned so it can be seen as "off time".
> I can't imagine the board doing anything about this. I also think this is one of those moments where the parents of the four need to ask why they were not invited- skill, attitude, bad Behavior of parents?
> Why is this shady? She coached a non sanctioned tourney with a new group of kids. It's shady if you were four that were not included but ask why?
> With all the club teams we have been on there have been at least 2-3 things per year that some of us were invited to, and some not. This is par for the course in bigger clubs and it becomes a funnel the older you get.


While I see your point here, the fact that the parents that went were told not to say/post anything about it says something.  If the coach had gone to the team and said, "these players are better, so we are going to do something on the side" it is hard to argue with.  The other path colors the coaches character a bit in my eyes.  What else is she not being truthful about?

I am not involved in this, just something happening in town and was wondering what others thoughts were.


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## soloyosh (Jan 12, 2018)

timbuck said:


> Are those 4 players not returning next year?


They would have to, it is the only U11 team in town, unless someone decides to try to form a new team.


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## Josep (Jan 14, 2018)

soloyosh said:


> They would have to, it is the only U11 team in town, unless someone decides to try to form a new team.



Soloyosh,

Not sure how long you’ve been in the soccer game, but I’d say I’ve been a part of this and it’s fairly common.  The reason I say that is your statement “they would have to...”.   Finding 4 players is easy and from the sounds of it, they’ve identified their core 8 and they’ll move on next year without those 4 kids.  

They weren’t wearing club gear and as long as the funding for the tourney didn’t come out of team dues, it seems kosher to me.   

It’s post Thanksgiving and clubs and coaches are just as shifty at loading up for the new season as parents.    

If you’re among the 4 kids, accept that your time is likely up with this team and start shopping around.  

I know everyone likes to think of their team as a happy family, but when push comes to shove, you’re out of your kid can’t cut the mustard.  Sure, they may linger a season or two longer than they should have, but it will always catch up with them.  

And the notion that a kid “has to be around next year” for whatever reason is a little blind.


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## MWN (Jan 14, 2018)

Its not unusual for "Clubs" and their leaderships to have grudges against other Clubs/DOCs, etc.   Because tournaments are essentially fundraisers for clubs, you also have competing clubs from a community refuse to attend the tournaments of the other clubs.  What happens next is coaches that want to attend the tournament for selfish reasons (such has assisting the kids in developing and having a fun tournament experience) are put in positions of asking for forgiveness, rather than permission.  Not saying that is what happened here, but just another potential motivation.


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## soloyosh (Jan 14, 2018)

So it came out at the board meeting that this was done last year as well. In that case 6 players were not informed and all involved were told by the coach to not tell anyone. The board president mentioned that the coach mentioned she could not attend a club function (assisting a rec league coach) due to illness. Instead she took players to an unsanctioned  tournament.

When I say unsanctioned, these are not USYSA or USClub events.

My boy plays for a U14 team for another club in town. That club does not have any other teams than the U14B. Just relaying something interesting that I’m hearing through the grapevine.


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## Josep (Jan 14, 2018)

It’s another example of the shady within club soccer and it comes from all sides, club, coach, parents, kids. 

Good thing you’re not caught up in it!


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## MyDaughtersAKeeper (Jan 14, 2018)

Josep said:


> Soloyosh,
> 
> Not sure how long you’ve been in the soccer game, but I’d say I’ve been a part of this and it’s fairly common.  The reason I say that is your statement “they would have to...”.   Finding 4 players is easy and from the sounds of it, they’ve identified their core 8 and they’ll move on next year without those 4 kids.
> 
> ...


It was a chickenshit move by the coach.  When you are told to not say or post anything about the tournament you know it is shady.  
Yes, coaches, parents, DOCs and clubs all do shady crap, but it wasn't "kosher." Justify it all you want but it was a dick move. The fact that this stuff happens all the time doesn't make it right.


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