Integrity Issue - Should it Matter?

[rainbow_unicorn]

Nope, but its a fundamental thing that coaches and parents don't understand. Also no coaching if the ball is in play. Plenty of time to coach at practice during the week. Overcoaching is the worst problem in American youth soccer. AI can articulate it better than I can.

Why Post-Game Instruction Can Be Ineffective

• • Emotional Overload: Right after the whistle blows, players' adrenaline and emotions (excitement, exhaustion, frustration, or disappointment) are running high. They cannot process detailed tactical feedback in that state.
  • Decreased Receptivity: Lengthy post-game lectures or scoldings turn players off, causing them to tune out rather than learn.
  • Missed Context: Analytical corrections are far more effective when delivered calmly with concrete examples during a structured training session later in the week, rather than on the spot. [1]

What Coaches Should Do Immediately After a Game
According to guidance from organizations like the U.S. Soccer Learning Center, the immediate post-match period is best used for:

• • Emotional Support: Offering positive reinforcement, celebrating effort, and providing consolation in defeat.
  • Perspective: Reminding players that the match is just one part of a broader development journey.
  • Logistics & Health: Promoting hydration, hygiene, checking on safety/injuries, and letting them know details for the next training session.
  • Brief Check-ins: Keeping remarks short, upbeat, and saving deep tactical analysis for the next practice field. [1, 2]
  
  My experience, ask a kid what did the coach say after the game and most will answer with "I don't know".

AI says you can give "short remarks" after the game. "No coaching while ball is in play"...that's a tough one depending on the level of the team. I agree that overcoaching can be a problematic in soccer. But if you see something that can be corrected with a few words to the player in-game are you going to wait and tell them later?

 

[watfly]

AI says you can give "short remarks" after the game. "No coaching while ball is in play"...that's a tough one depending on the level of the team. I agree that overcoaching can be a problematic in soccer. But if you see something that can be corrected with a few words to the player in-game are you going to wait and tell them later?

100% yes. What possibly could so important that a kid needs to be distracted while the ball is in play to be given instruction? In the heat of the game what are the odds the kid will even retain that instruction? I know, slim to none. The best teacher of the game is the game itself.

 

[rainbow_unicorn]

100% yes. What possibly could so important that a kid needs to be distracted while the ball is in play to be given instruction? In the heat of the game what are the odds the kid will even retain that instruction? I know, slim to none. The best teacher of the game is the game itself.

So if you're trying to possess the ball and your player constantly boots it, you should just let them continue to boot it all game and not say anything until practice a few days later? Not coaching in game sounds nice in theory, in reality it is needed at times. Ask any coach.

 

[Gunners > Spurs]

So if you're trying to possess the ball and your player constantly boots it, you should just let them continue to boot it all game and not say anything until practice a few days later? Not coaching in game sounds nice in theory, in reality it is needed at times. Ask any coach.

A proper coach won't be shouting when a player's actually on the ball. He'll wait till the game dies down a bit, then give them a quick word. Far too many coaches trying to joystick for a win.

 

[Carlsbad7]

A proper coach won't be shouting when a player's actually on the ball. He'll wait till the game dies down a bit, then give them a quick word. Far too many coaches trying to joystick for a win.

Sometimes the joysticking can work specifically when players are young. But eventually they'll start playing teams with players that are just as good as they are but without a coach joysticking. When this happens the team that isnt being joysticked can react faster and make plays faster which generally results in wins.

So joysticking isnt always bad. Just usually bad. Either way you want to get your kid away from it if they're going to play at the highest levels.

 

[Jamisfoes]

Have you ever noticed, it’s always the same kids getting joysticked? At some point joysticking stops, they won’t even play anymore. Some kids are just dumb or I should say stubborn.

 

[watfly]

So if you're trying to possess the ball and your player constantly boots it, you should just let them continue to boot it all game and not say anything until practice a few days later? Not coaching in game sounds nice in theory, in reality it is needed at times. Ask any coach.

Not remotely what I'm claiming. There are plenty of stoppages in play or on a substitution to tell a child not to boot the ball. The absolute worst time to tell a kid not to boot the ball is as it's rolling toward them. You've just illustrated why US youth soccer coaching sucks, if any coach will tell you that they need to coach while the ball is in play.

Here's how that coaching should look like at a play break, substitution, halftime. Hey Johnny what happened when you booted the ball, was that a good result? Was that what we practiced? How on god's green earth do you have that conversation when the ball is in play?

 

[watfly]

Sometimes the joysticking can work specifically when players are young. But eventually they'll start playing teams with players that are just as good as they are but without a coach joysticking. When this happens the team that isnt being joysticked can react faster and make plays faster which generally results in wins.

So joysticking isnt always bad. Just usually bad. Either way you want to get your kid away from it if they're going to play at the highest levels.

Yeah, joysticking can have some very short term results, if those results are to win the game. Otherwise they just delay development.

Have you ever noticed, it’s always the same kids getting joysticked? At some point joysticking stops, they won’t even play anymore. Some kids are just dumb or I should say stubborn.

Not as dumb as the coach that is doing the joysticking.

Joysticking is a lot like training wheels. A kid will never, or at least it will take much longer, learn to balance on training wheels. You have to take the training wheels off for a kid to learn. Give a kid a balance bike and they will learn to balance in a couple days.

 

[Jamisfoes]

I know a new coach fresh out of coaching courses who got fired because he doesn’t say anything in the game.

This is what happens. Parents of kids who do dumb things, don’t want you to yell. Parents of kids who don’t get yelled at, want you to yell at those kids who do dumb things.

Do you want to please parents of better players or parents of worse players?

 

[watfly]

I know a new coach fresh out of coaching courses who got fired because he doesn’t say anything in the game.

This is what happens. Parents of kids who do dumb things, don’t want you to yell. Parents of kids who don’t get yelled at, want you to yell at those kids who do dumb things.

Do you want to please parents of better players or parents of worse players?

Parents pay to have their kids coached. They think that if a coach is quiet during the game that the coach isn't doing their job. It's the coaches job to explain to the parents why he/she remains mostly silent during the game. Most parents won't buy into what the coach is saying because they're use to "set-up" sports like baseball and football where coaches take a very active role in the game.

Another problem with "coaching" during the game is that most often it's not actual coaching, but correcting. This inhibits players from taking chances and relying on their own decision making to actually learn, as opposed to delegating that decision making to the coach. Soccer is ultimately a decision making sport. You can have all the skill and physical ability in the world, but if can't make quick and quality decisions, your physically ability is virtually worthless.

 

[jasportsdad]

In U13 and below on the girls side, some of the top teams in Socal (and thereby, in the country) have coaches that yell instructions all game. Not saying it's right or wrong, but it's something I've noticed.

 

[Jamisfoes]

Parents pay to have their kids coached. They think that if a coach is quiet during the game that the coach isn't doing their job. It's the coaches job to explain to the parents why he/she remains mostly silent during the game. Most parents won't buy into what the coach is saying because they're use to "set-up" sports like baseball and football where coaches take a very active role in the game.

Another problem with "coaching" during the game is that most often it's not actual coaching, but correcting. This inhibits players from taking chances and relying on their own decision making to actually learn, as opposed to delegating that decision making to the coach. Soccer is ultimately a decision making sport. You can have all the skill and physical ability in the world, but if can't make quick and quality decisions, your physically ability is virtually worthless.

Joysticking is different than correcting though. I don’t think I have ever met a coach who joysticks. The coach who got fired took what he learned in the coaching courses literally and paid the price.

 

[watfly]

The coach who got fired took what he learned in the coaching courses literally and paid the price.

Unfortunately, I'm not surprised.