There have been some great posts on this topic and I want to add my two cents. A lot of parents view their child's lack of playing time as mistreatment. It is sad that sometimes they can not see what everyone else does, that maybe their child does not need to be playing. No one understands just how tough a job coaching really is. You are balancing teaching classes, keeping up with a budget, watching film, game planning, public relations, child psychology, time management, game strategy, and anything else I might have left off. Several parents are only concerned with how much there son or daughter is playing, and whether you win or lose. Winning or losing is an important part of it, but not the only part. Coaches, for the most part, are spending more time with the kids than the parents. So by that assumption, the coaches are teaching these kids the skills they need to be successful at life. Parents who gripe to coaches about playing time are really missing the big picture. Are they going to go to their kids' jobs and gripe at their bosses. They are doing a lot more damage than good by doing that.