The Other Half by Joshua

The Other Half by Joshua - January 2017 Scholarship Essay

“Winning is only half of it. Having fun is the other half.” -Bum Phillips

While coaching a soccer team full of 10 and 11 year olds, I had one girl on my team who was playing soccer for the first time. She was not the most athletic kid and it was clear that her dad was making her play.

I felt bad for her as her dad was intense- yelling instructions to her from the sideline every game. He even came and watched every practice.

During our last game of the season, she came off of the field crying because she thought she was playing awful. I tried my best to calm her down and explain that I did not care about how good she was, I just wanted her to have fun.

The second half, I played her at striker to give her one last chance to score. After a long season, it finally happened. The goalkeeper dove to block a shot and she tapped the rebound into the open net.

She was so excited that she ran off the field and hugged me and got high fives all around. After the game her dad came over with a big smile on his face. We had lost the game but it was by far the most memorable game of the season.

Coaching children of such a young age was a huge challenge but a very rewarding experience. Throughout the past three years of coaching, I focused on keeping kids engaged at practice and having fun. If I am having fun with it then the kids are going to have fun as well. I remembered having coaches that were far too serious and focused on winning when I had played recreational soccer years earlier. However, many of these children are trying soccer for the first time and if they don’t have a fun and positive experience they are not going to want to play again. I began to find coaching inspiring as I had a platform to be an example and make a difference. People will remember childhood sports moments for the rest of their life. I’m sure that the girl on my team will remember scoring her first goal for years to come.