Super Coach and his Super Mum!

Super Coach and his Super Mum!

Flash (8) has been playing soccer since she was 4 years old, and she just loves it. She is a natural runner and delights running up and down the pitch. The problem is that soccer has a ball!! Flash’s ball skills are…how can I say…. not great! And when the coach puts her in goal, she appears to have no idea where the ball even is!!....not that she knows that I think this mind you. For her, I sit on the side-lines and smile, clap and do the thumbs up whenever she catches my eye. If, in the event of an extremely rare successful goal scoring attempt, the first thing she does is flash me her special smile that I know is just meant for me!

This year flash has played outdoor and indoor soccer in a team of school friends in the local competitions. The coach of this team is a 16 year-old boy who also attends the same school. This boy is amazing. He is patient and kind with the kids. He has earned all the kids trust and respect and that of their parents. All the kids look up to him, in a kind of almost worshipping way. I think they would do what ever he asked of them just to please him! I have recently nominated super coach for a Junior coaches award and this is part of my nomination

…..Supercoach has as done an outstanding job of teaching individual soccer skills to the players and also how to play as a team. This has been reflected in the team results for this year as the quality of the games has improved enormously over the course of the season and the team now expects to be both competitive and win their games.

Importantly, Supercoach is an exceptionally fair coach for the team and ensures that each player experiences a turn in goal and as a substitute, regardless of individual ability.

Supercoach has demonstrated a remarkable level of commitment to the team for a high school student. Supercoach has organized personalised club shirts and kit bags for each member of the team and attends training sessions with all manner of training equipment. Supercoach also organized for the team to compete in the Young Lions Soccer Carnival where the team finished fourth. Supercoach organized and ran extra training sessions on the week-end and during school holidays well beyond what we expected to help prepare the team for this competition. All members of the team consider his training sessions and match days as essential, fun, and not to be missed, parts of their weekly routines.

Supercoach has been a fantastic role model our daughter and for the team. His impeccable manner and behavior, his dedication, ability to balance his coaching role with academic and other sporting commitments have all directly influenced our daughter to enthusiastically embrace soccer as part of her lifestyle……

Behind this boy, who I have called supercoach, is his mum, who will be known as Supermum. This Supermum is the most supportive parent I have ever met. She is always on hand to drive Supercoach to wherever he needs to go. She has supplied him with all the coaching equipment he could ever need. She organizes the team uniforms and matching kit bags, invites the entire team to her house in the school holidays for a ‘fun day’ and bakes cupcakes for team snacks. Supermum even compiled a scrapbook of photos she had taken of each of the children and presented one to each member of the team at the end  of the season. She is always present and supportive at each of Supercoaches team’s games, his own soccer games and those of his brother and sister (and also the team that supercoaches brother coaches). I am simply exhausted by writing it all down and I just don’t know how she does it! Supermum is also extremely supportive of all Supercoaches academic endeavors and is very active within the school.

Supercoach gives the kids in his team somebody real, honest and mature to look up to. They are truly lucky to have a coach of his ability and character. He has given me hope that my children may also transform into  mature and trustworthy teenagers (most of the time!).. I honestly believe that the unwavering support that supercoach has received from his mum has helped to mould him into the self assured young adult he is today.

I should add here that last year, Flash’s team was assigned two coaches also from the school. These girls practically spent the entire season drinking coffee’s and texting or talking on their phones. I also never saw their parents, not even once!

I will try my very best to have a supportive and loving role in my children lives similar to the supermum. She is my coach, a person I look up to and admire. I will be there to love my children, support them in every possible way, and to catch them when they fall. Just like Supermum!