Old Soccer Guy has a post up about his U18 parents being model soccer parents. If you’re curious what a soccer coach looks for from parents, especially at the select/travel soccer level, he tells you. But even for those of you with kids in Recreational soccer, many of these things are important. So to his list of on time ready to play (ball, cleats, shin guards, water), disappear until game time, and cheer don’t coach, I’d add one thing. Soccer is not babysitting. While coaches don’t want you interfering with what they are doing, you should care enough to stick around for most practices, especially if your child is on the hyper side. Talk to any Recreational coach in the U8-U12 levels and they’ll probably tell you the hardest thing is keeping the ADD kids focused and preventing them from disrupting practice. We try our best, but sometimes it takes a parent stepping in to lay down the law. There’s only so much we as coaches can do. So when the coach asks for your help, don’t just roll your eyes – actually help them keep your child focused on the task at hand. Because every minute the coach wastes trying to get your child’s attention is hurting the entire team.