Tryouts: Open or closed?

[Judgeandjury]

Tryouts: Should tryouts be opened to the parents or closed to the parents and why?

[MoveYourFeet]

Keep all the evaluators (hopefully they are outside of the association and good at evaluating talent) away from parents and coaches. Drop the kids off and drive away.

Definitely will be better for everyone. Parents always use the coaches (if parent coach) kid or "#1" player as and evaluation tool of course and this will eliminate the "my kid played better than Susie/Tommy". Kids can talk to the parents about it after.

to coin a phrase, silence is golden and duct tape is silver. I love tha one!

[Educator29]

What are you trying to hide by closing them??? Just be HONEST and have evaluators that know that age group of Kids. Do not have 17 - 20 year old kids evaluate. What do they know about Youth Hockey ?

[inthestands]

If you asked the kids a simple question, the issue could be resolved.

While parents are not in plain sight, ask the players if they would prefer their parents be present or gone during tryouts.

You may be very surprised at the answer. Nothing leading as far as questions.

Kids understand the process better than we do.

[Daulton911]

What are you trying to hide by closing them???



I agree with that statement. sorry to say, but there are alot of dishonest people running local association tryouts.

[muckandgrind]

If an association wants to close a tryout, then the membership (parents) should vote on it. Like others have said, too many times have there been dishonest dealings taken place at tryouts both in the open and "behind closed doors".

When someone tells me that I can't watch, instantly I WANT to watch. Maybe it's that voice in me that constantly tells me to question authority....

[inthestands]

What are you trying to hide by closing them???



I agree with that statement. sorry to say, but there are alot of dishonest people running local association tryouts.

I don't run them, and I wouldn't be trying to hide anything. I am saying in most cases parents add tension to the situation with out knowing it.

If there are problem people in decision making capacities in your association, they should be voted out and replaced with better people.

I understand the want and need to be involved, I also understand that sometimes, it's not the best thing for the kids.

[nahc]

In an ideal situation where evaluators do their job and there is 0 behind the scenes activities, then absolutely closed tryouts would be the way to go. In my experience though, this does not even come close to happenning.......evaluators are chosen by the head coach or director, "evaluations" are conducted, and lo and behold, certain kids make the teams.......this happens EVERY year.........at all ages and levels.....My real view is to have open tryouts. Nothing is hidden and everyone gets a good look at the actual skills/scrimmage sessions. Might the evaluators take some heat.........yep, comes with the territory......be an adult, open the tryouts and keep everything as above board as possible.

[nmnhockeydad]

We as parents, I believe are the worst judge of our own kids talent versus other kids. Leave the tryouts closed. The best will make the "A" team. Open or closed you will always have conflict about the bubble players but with a closed tryout you hear less of how did your kid make it and not mine.

[inthestands]

nahc, in an ideal situation all parents would be reasonable and not expect a lower level B player to make an A team.

Similar scenario with the questionalbe evaluators and shaky decisions made surrounding who makes which team.

It would be great if the selection process was clean and free of BS. Probably not going to happen since most every spot is filled by a volunteer, and many times an inexperienced parent going through things for their first run.

Smaller communities don't have options of hiring non parent coaches, but many do find evaluators not tied to the players in any way. That is a good decision, as long as they aren't influenced by people with ties. 20 years from now this same discussion will be floating around with people on both sides. Hopefully the kids continue to put the selection process behind them no matter which team they play on, and have fun with the game.

[dogeatdog1]

Keep them open, if the Board of the association can't deal with the few nutcasses that think jimmy or jilly should be on the a team you will lose credibility. Besides those parents that think their kid gets screwed will have another crutch to stand on... something is happening behind closed doors. The kids and board members are going to get it from those few bad apples no matter what the process is and as long as you get board members and coaches that actually care about kids your association will be fine

[netminder.net]

So is this problem due to the fact that parent's are not allowed to watch the tryouts, or is it based on the fact that parent's have little faith in the evaluation process.

What are you trying to hide by closing them??? Just be HONEST and have evaluators that know that age group of Kids. Do not have 17 - 20 year old kids evaluate. What do they know about Youth Hockey ?

and

In an ideal situation where evaluators do their job and there is 0 behind the scenes activities, then absolutely closed tryouts would be the way to go. In my experience though, this does not even come close to happenning.

It seems that far to often the arguement that "secret dealings", and intentional snubs would be avoided if parent's were allowed to watch the tryout process. We, as parent's for the most part are poor judges of talent when it comes to our children. This is a very general statement, and does not apply to everyone, but we watch with a bias because of our closeness to the situation. We love our kids, and want them to have sucess, and in very rare situations, live through their successess and failures. These traits will be benificial as we raise them, but they make for poor evaluators.
By saying that if we were able to watch, we would see the problems, and covert mistakes made in the selction process, we are also saying that we would make better evaluators than the people we put in place to do just that. (I use the word we here as describing the members of the association)
I contend that many of the problems (perceived, or genuine) would not be solved if the tryouts took place in the Metrodome, in front of thousands.

If you asked the kids a simple question, the issue could be resolved.

While parents are not in plain sight, ask the players if they would prefer their parents be present or gone during tryouts.

You may be very surprised at the answer. Nothing leading as far as questions.

Kids understand the process better than we do.

and

Keep all the evaluators (hopefully they are outside of the association and good at evaluating talent) away from parents and coaches. Drop the kids off and drive away.

Definitely will be better for everyone. Parents always use the coaches (if parent coach) kid or "#1" player as and evaluation tool of course and this will eliminate the "my kid played better than Susie/Tommy". Kids can talk to the parents about it after.

I agree, I think the players do, for the most part, like it better when mom and dad are not allowed to watch. It takes some of the pressure, much of which is heaved on by us, away from the situation.
Ultimatlly, I think the association needs to find quality evalautors that are allowed to do their jobs. I think coaches, especially at the "A" levels, should be allowed some (2-4) coaches pick's (within a range of scores, ie. players 12-20) In the instance that the "A" coaches have been around awhile, they will tend to know many of the players anyway, this would allow them to put together a "team" that they feel can accomplish thier goals. And under no circumstances, are parent's of players in that level tryout, allowed to evaluate.

The best reason I can see to keeping tryouts open;

When someone tells me that I can't watch, instantly I WANT to watch. Maybe it's that voice in me that constantly tells me to question authority....

This one I agree with

[Judgeandjury]

I love it! Pay $1200+ to play on our community based hockey association organized by parents of players but you cannot attend tryouts. What message does this send?

Board members / coaches- Please remember if you volunteer to be a board member or coach there will ALWAYS be parents that disagree's or has questions. If you do not want to interact with parents or answer simple basic questions then do everyone a favor and don't volunteer.

[SECoach]

Virtually every response centers around what is best for me....the parent....our own egos hidden in what is best for my child. Only when we take our own egos out of the decisions will they begin to truly expirience the greatness of youth sports. Right now it very often does more damage than good.

Before you throw it out there Muck, J&J..you always do...who are we to tell you what is best for your kids? We are the people that are hired, payed or unpaid, to make decisions about what is best for all. Your job is to believe what is best for you kid. It's pretty hard to function if everyone makes individual decisions.

"It's about the kids"....cliche? Only if you hide behind it. Most associations that close tryouts are not hiding anything. They are trying to create the best expirience they can......for the kids. Should they take into consideration how much you pay and whether that gives you the right to watch? Yes. But in the end they should make a decision based on whether it is good for the kids....and not if it's good for dad.

[inthestands]

SEC hits the nail on the head once again.

What we pay for fees at the youth hockey level gives our kids the ability to play the game. Nothing else.

If people want more, they should volunteer for a decision making spot, and really learn what it's all about.

[Doglover]

SECoach nailed it!! Agree completely.

[play4fun]

I agree with SECoach.

Also, I agree with the sentiment that volunteer coaches and board members should expect to answer parents' questions and that some will disagree with decisions that need to be made. HOWEVER, it's also up to parents to realize that unless YOU'RE the one volunteering, YOU don't have final say. So, be respectful and decide whether YOU have the mettle to put up with the questions and differing opinions -- or not. If not, be prepared to receive an answer that YOU don't like, and move on, and act like an adult about it. You might just be setting an example for a kid?

[muckandgrind]

Virtually every response centers around what is best for me....the parent....our own egos hidden in what is best for my child. Only when we take our own egos out of the decisions will they begin to truly expirience the greatness of youth sports. Right now it very often does more damage than good.

Before you throw it out there Muck, J&J..you always do...who are we to tell you what is best for your kids? We are the people that are hired, payed or unpaid, to make decisions about what is best for all. Your job is to believe what is best for you kid. It's pretty hard to function if everyone makes individual decisions.

"It's about the kids"....cliche? Only if you hide behind it. Most associations that close tryouts are not hiding anything. They are trying to create the best expirience they can......for the kids. Should they take into consideration how much you pay and whether that gives you the right to watch? Yes. But in the end they should make a decision based on whether it is good for the kids....and not if it's good for dad.

If there weren't so many examples of dirty pool associated with tryouts, then I wouldn't have any issue with parents wanting to close them. But I've been around long enough to see and realize that's not the case. We voted our own coordinator out just last spring because he got caught fudging the rankings in order to benefit certain players who were the sons of friends of his. So you tell me how I am supposed to just trust everyone working the tryouts when kids (not mine) have been burned already?

I don't have any problem with keeping the parents away from the evaluators, and if possible, out of the rink if there is glass they can vew from above.

And I also just flat out disagree with you that all or most kids don't want the parents to watch. I'm sorry, but I don't. Sure, maybe a few feel the pressure..but most probably don't even realize mom or dad are there watching. I went through the tryout process when I was a kid and it never bothered me or my friends..I've asked my kids, it doesn't bother them. It should be up to each parent to find out if their kid doesn't want them there...if they don't, then don't watch.

Christ, most kids I know are so focused with what going on the ice, they don't even notice parents cheering during a game.

Another thing, quit presuming to think that this is all about the parent's "ego". You don't know me, and I don't know you. I would never presume to say something like that about you. This has nothing to do with "ego". Personally, I like to watch my kids have fun on the ice, whether it's a tryout, practice, or game and I know for a fact that my kids enjoy having their dad watch them on the ice just as I enjoyed my dad watching me play sports.

[play4fun]

Christ, most kids I know are so focused with what going on the ice, they don't even notice parents cheering during a game.

[inthestands]

And I also just flat out disagree with you that all or most kids don't want the parents to watch. I'm sorry, but I don't. Sure, maybe a few feel the pressure..but most probably don't even realize mom or dad are there watching. I went through the tryout process when I was a kid and it never bothered me or my friends..I've asked my kids, it doesn't bother them. It should be up to each parent to find out if their kid doesn't want them there...if they don't, then don't watch.

Christ, most kids I know are so focused with what going on the ice, they don't even notice parents cheering during a game.

That is part of the issue. If the kids feel pressure from home, the parent is the last person they are going to tell to stay away. That is a naive way of looking at things.

I agree that during games the players can block most everything else out, but that is once the tryout process is done and behind them. Big difference.

[muckandgrind]

And I also just flat out disagree with you that all or most kids don't want the parents to watch. I'm sorry, but I don't. Sure, maybe a few feel the pressure..but most probably don't even realize mom or dad are there watching. I went through the tryout process when I was a kid and it never bothered me or my friends..I've asked my kids, it doesn't bother them. It should be up to each parent to find out if their kid doesn't want them there...if they don't, then don't watch.

Christ, most kids I know are so focused with what going on the ice, they don't even notice parents cheering during a game.

That is part of the issue. If the kids feel pressure from home, the parent is the last person they are going to tell to stay away. That is a naive way of looking at things.
I agree that during games the players can block most everything else out, but that is once the tryout process is done and behind them. Big difference.

It must be your opinion than that most families are dysfunctional and parents and kids can't communicate with each other. I'm sorry, but I don't think that way. I think most parents and kids have good relationships and if a parent were to ask their kid if they want them to stay away while they tryout, the child would give them an honest answer.

I know my boys aren't afraid to tell me to "get lost" when they want to be left alone with their friends (and girlfriends)...

[jancze5]

Open or closed it DOESN"T MATTER, the evaluators and coaches are still going to pick the players they think fit the mold of the team they are trying to build. PERIOD.

Parents miss the issue that yes, a kid may look super, but the coach may already have 3 other snipers and wants a grinder or a just a bigger kid that my be slower but does other stuff...there are many things that go into building a team for a single year.

Deal with it either way, just support the kids on your team

[inthestands]

It must be your opinion than that most families are dysfunctional and parents and kids can't communicate with each other. I'm sorry, but I don't think that way. I think most parents and kids have good relationships and if a parent were to ask their kid if they want them to stay away while they tryout, the child would give them an honest answer.

No I don't think most are that way, but enough to make it a bad deal for some of the players out there.

For the rest that communicate regularly, and participate in their childs lives, being in the arena at tryouts most likely isn't high on their priority list.

If there have been issues with past tryouts, which we've all seen, I can see the problems there. It's too bad we still have problems like this today, but I don't see them going away any time soon.

[seek & destroy]

Parents miss the issue that yes, a kid may look super, but the coach may already have 3 other snipers and wants a grinder or a just a bigger kid that my be slower but does other stuff...there are many things that go into building a team for a single year.

Deal with it either way, just support the kids on your team

I totally agree! I personally think that kids would prefer to not have parents there but, on the other hand, then they have to deal with the million questions from dad on the way home. The only way that you improve the situation is if parents can actually step back and just let things happen without all the questions and just support the team once it is formed.

Ultimately though, no matter if they are open or closed, there will always be people complaining that the teams are wrong and that there is politics and favoritism going on. Why? Because there almost always is a tiny bit of politics and favoritism and there usually is one kid who could have made it over another...the system is never going to be perfect but it generally gets close. The problem is that the complainers ALL feel that their kid was that one kid.

[muckandgrind]

Parents miss the issue that yes, a kid may look super, but the coach may already have 3 other snipers and wants a grinder or a just a bigger kid that my be slower but does other stuff...there are many things that go into building a team for a single year.

Deal with it either way, just support the kids on your team

I totally agree! I personally think that some kids would prefer to not have parents there but, on the other hand, then some have to deal with the million questions from dad on the way home. Oneway that you improve the situation is if parents can actually step back and just let things happen without all the questions and just support the team once it is formed.

Ultimately though, no matter if they are open or closed, there will always be people complaining that the teams are wrong and that there is politics and favoritism going on. Why? Because there almost always is a tiny bit of politics and favoritism and there usually is one kid who could have made it over another...the system is never going to be perfect but it generally gets close. The problem is that the complainers ALL feel that their kid was that one kid.

Fixed it for you.....

I agree...there will always be parents complaining about what team their kids are on, and closing tryouts won't do anything to prevent that.

Another way to improve the situation is make sure the evaluation process and selection of teams is transparent to the parents. This will go along way to take the politics and favoritism out of the process. What is so horribly wrong with being open and honest???