Funny/interesting thing happened at the Not My Fault daughter's soccer game this past Saturday: coach called in sick. That's not the funny part. The funny part is that the team, which is comprised of 9th grade girls, refused any help from interested and willing parents. At least two of these parents are nationally licensed soccer coaches, and so pretty much know what's going on. The girls were having none of it. An injured player served as a kind of "sideline manager", watching the clock and calling the subs. The girls themselves agreed who would play where and for how long. There was absolutely no griping nor any hint of any negativity whatsoever. And of course they won handily and comfortably, against a bigger, older, more experienced team.

As the game was winding down I had to reflect on just how many soccer games a 9th grade premier player would have played in, and I figured it to be something like 500 competitive matches. For each girl. So really, what would anyone have to tell them during a match anyway?

Later, I remembered something I've always instinctively known: players play better when they play for each other.

You know who else doesn't need a game coach? These guys...