Thank God my coaches awarded me the team captain position. I was really worried that they would give it to someone who doesn’t care nearly as much about our performance and growth. Seems like they know a little bit more than what they lead on. I’m so excited because our team has a lot of talented incoming freshmen, and almost all of the bad influences are gone now! Now I just have to get the girls who took a few steps back, back on track! I am so inspired to restore our team values, so we can win next season’s championship game- we have the talent, we just need the commitment. I expressed to Coach Rachel about how I plan to keep track of our team’s growth, both individually and on a team level, and I have been brainstorming some ideas. Coach said she is going to support me no matter what I decide.
Here’s what I have so far:
Public Record of Attendance: Each week, a chart will be posted online and on the front door of the soccer locker room showing each players attendance. Attendance is mandatory unless there is a legitimate excuse that needs to be communicated beforehand.
Girls who don’t show up to practice will NOT play in the next game.
The Extra Mile: The whole team is required to run an extra mile per girl missing at practice.
I hope this will make people feel more responsible for each other and their effort to attend practice for the respect of the team.
Goals:
Public vision board with team and individual goals posted at the beginning and throughout the season.
Ex: Each girl should work on decreasing their mile time by 30 seconds by the end of the season
Team Culture: Team dinners after every game; Monday meetings to go over what to expect for the following week, express concerns among teammates, and general social time
I feel like it’s necessary to have some goals set in place, so things don’t go the way they did last season. I’m extremely optimistic, and I will keep you guys updated on our progress!
