Latecomers are a nuisance in every sphere of life, but with sports the
problem becomes all the more potent because, for one – it’s indiscipline
which is anti-sports, and two – it’s a waste of everyone else’s time and can have a domino effect on tightly scheduled
student-life. If your team
suffers with this problem and you’ve been looking for a way out, we have some tips that may help.
1. Clearly define
rules regarding indiscipline and late-coming. Let the team sit and deliberate
on the consequences, such that there is better understanding, agreement and
acceptance of these rules.
2. While scheduling a
practice on the InstaTeam app, do mention show-up time, warm-up time and
practice time very clearly, and define consequences for those who miss the
show-up time.
3. Instead of harsh
consequences, think of softer consequences, latecomers get to warm-up on the
side, or latecomers need to clear the ground after the practice. Think of a
variety of consequences, it will not only bring in a little fun in the practice
but also, habitual latecomers will not get accustomed to the drill of the same
consequence every time.
4. Like latecomers
have consequences, on-timers and punctual players should have some reward too
which would serve as motivation for other kids.
5. Do not entertain
reasons. Late is late. Miss is a miss. Doesn’t matter how hard you tried.
Because ultimately, that’s the life lesson that kids need to learn from sports.
6. Before scheduling a
practice on a holiday or a special day, send a survey or attendance seeking
message on the InstaTeam app. When kids or parents mark their attendance, you
will know how many people can make it to the practice, likewise if it would
make sense scheduling or not scheduling the game.
7. Do not disparage or
single out the latecomer. Make the exercise more fun than daunting, you
wouldn’t want to scar a child’s brain.
8. If there is a
habitual latecomer, it would probably be a good idea to understand their
situation. There might be something you can do to help, or a situation that
might need a concerning adult’s situation.
