Originally Posted by Anonymous
I am the one whose post BOTC Decided to comment on. Allow me to rephrase. Coaches should discuss with the player, first & foremost, their expectations of that individual, what they envision as being their "role" on the team, and how they can improve and possibly earn more playing time. A coach however cannot and should not discuss playing time specifically with a player/parent before the season because what if things change? What If other girls skills have improved more and she takes on a lesser role?? But to say that a parent should have input is completely the wrong route to take, will cause got severe headaches, and tells me you have probably never coached a sport before.
You would be incorrect. I actively coached soccer for more than a decade taking both boys and girls teams to the Region One Premier Leagues, the highest level of competition available at the elite level; our teams competed on a National Level with travel throughout the United States. After my most recent girls team transitioned to their collegiate teams (2009), I hung up my whistle.

The secret to our coaching and national success was our keeping the parents and players informed on our team philosophy, our seasonal goals for each of the teams and players, and our budget. As a result, we placed more than 40 players with teams at the NCAA Division I, Division II, and Division III level.

Make no mistake, the head coach is the ultimate decision maker for the team, but that does not make the team experience a monologue as opposed to a dialogue. Parents can give their input, but that input does NOT make for a decision unto itself.

Regarding your point on playing time changing during the season, we agree that this is a dynamic number. However, a player getting 3/4s of a game should not be demoted to getting 1/4 of a game without having several discussions regarding work ethic (practice effort) which is typically at the root of the problem.