Attention soccer coaches, players, parents

[Guest blue1]

On the football board there is a thread in which football coaches are complaining about soccer using the school athletic field. They claim that soccer doesn't help maintain the field therefor they should not be alowed to use the field. I encourage all to go to the football thread and defend your programs. Tell what you do to help with field and stadium maintenance. If you are not helping shame on you.

[jamal25]

who cares if they complain anyway?

[shaggyJ]

board has already been locked up

[samz0red]

In my school, at least, they make the field perfect for football season, and let it die after, so we have to play on a really nasty hard field. The school should fix the freaking field for us if they want us to give a crap about it. It's already dead and barely has any grass, what more can soccer do to it?

[Seldon]

So what else is new? Football players/coaches/fans will always denigrate soccer. They don't understand the game and refuse to acknowledge it as being a great sport. In addition, a lot of the high school coaches are upset that many of the good athletes in their schools are opting to play soccer rather than football. Until the schools can generate the interest and revenue to construct soccer-only fields and stadiums, this conflict will continue to exist.

[Yankee0697]

Whether you want to face it or not, but high school sports bring revenue to their school. The more revenue a sport brings the more focus the school will put on it. Unfortunately soccer crowds are quite sparse compared to football and basketball. The only fans in the crowd for soccer games are parents and a few friends. What the soccer players need to do is encourage their friends to start attending the games. But I agree the soccer fields need to be kept up better. My son played his first year of high school soccer at Spring Hill. Four hours before the first home game we had to cut the field with push mowers. It needs to be a two way street to some degree.

[Doggamatic10]

Yeah, well when you get as much money as football teams get... i think they can afford to take care of the fields more so than the soccer teams who have to do all of their fundraising on their own... We get screwed again!

[mtnman]

I think it depends on who is primarly responsible for the field. If coaches are, then it comes down to who spends time on it. If it is the school maintenance department then there are definantly inequalities. I know soccer coaches that spend alot of time on the field keeping it nice or rallying parents to help keep up the field. If you are going to use it, you need to take care of it. Don't just depend on the school to take care of it. If you get out and do some work you will earn more respect.

 

They were also talking about soccer wearing out the middle of the field. That seems crazy. I know the keeper box gets worn out but soccer is so spread out that the middle of the field should not be effected.

[soccer21]

This year we have played a long schedule both home and away games, I have to admit the condition of several fields were unbelievable. In our school, Smyrna High School, we have one of the best fields around the area. The way we work things around here is like it should have been in all schools. We are ALL working together to make the field look good. Why does the football coach need to take care the field? They only play 5 games at home anyway. Soccer plays about 8-9 home games for each boys and girls. The total is 18-20 home games a year so as soccer coaches we need to put the blame on the football coaches and the football teams? I don't think so, it is the responsibility of the soccer coaches to make sure the field is in good condition. I have asked for help (when i needed) from the football coaches and here at our school they helped out. I don't expect them to cut the field, line the field, pick up trash around the field, cut the weeds etc. I do all the stuff because as a coach my responsibility is not just to coach, i need to find time to take care of our school facility which in our school everyone uses. Is that wrong? Not at all. Don't get me wrong, i don't do all the work around, the football coaches do a lot too but as a team we have made our field looking like a proffessional type of field. It looks better than the Titans field. We have overseeded the field with pre-annual rye and we have green grass out in the middle of winter, was it just for looks? Nope. We did it to protect the bermuda from freezing when the weather is below freezing, that helps it grow when the weather gets warmer again.

Anyway, I don't want you to be bored by this my point is that if the soccer coaches get of their rear end they can have nice fields so don't blame the football, we don't, we take care of our facilities.

[mtnman]

My point exactly. Your hardwork earns the respect of the football coaches and administration.