RESPECT yourself, RESPECT the team, RESPECT the game, and RESPECT the opponent enough to play your best
Players and Coaches must respect the game that you are playing. Playing a game without respecting it can lead to injury and no enjoyment. The game will outlast all players and coaches, so no one is above the game. The game will adjust and change with the culture of the world, but it will never be undone by any single coach or player. Remember if you choose not to respect the game – it will not treat you right.
- Caring about how you win as much as winning. The rules of the game are there to ensure everyone can be on the same page and understand how the game should be played. When players or coaches choose to disrespect the game by ignoring rules for eligibility or attempting to gain an unfair edge that dulls the wins. Now that does not mean that you don’t work hard to gain every fair advantage within the rules. If the rules allow you start practicing on a certain day and you start working at 12:01 AM of that day to gain an advantage, that is fine. It is when you start picking your team a month before tryouts so your good players can start working together before practice officially begins is when you run counter to the rules.
- Respect the officials. It is known that in most sports officials were brought in by the players to help officiate the game. Before officials the players were calling their own fouls and it made it very difficult to properly judge the action. So why is it common place to argue and get mad at the officials. I have never met any official that wanted to get a call wrong. They are working hard to get every call right but even at the highest levels of sport – officials miss calls all the time. So I ask you – why in the world would people expect officials in high school and below levels to get every call right? So if players and coaches know going in that there will be blown calls – handle them with respect for the game.
- Care about the future of the game. As we have stated earlier the game will outlive all players and coaches, but it is the responsibility of current players and coaches to grow their replacements. Give your time and expertise to younger players and coaches – help them grow in the game. Every player or coach has people in their past that taught them the game – so why would you not continue the thread by teaching others? Even if it is only to gain fans of the game. Some of the most passionate fans of teams never played for that team. So their love of the game was not won by playing but won by learning from others. Pass it on.