Who Am I?

The basketball game

March 20, 2007

We are back from the game..have been for a bit but I just got everyone settled into bed and babysitting kids out the door. 

Where to start....the game went well enough I suppose.  There was so much back and forth with the ball that I lost track..there were lots of baskets made on both teams..if I had to guess I'd say they won but it was within 10 pts..or less...unlike last time where they won by 30...and considering we've beaten both other teams by at least 20..I'm guessing they mopped the floor with them.

The coach from the other team plays very much to win...which means sometimes he's just fine with not playing fair...snatching the ball, personal fouls...substituting players midplay so the girls were confused on who was guarding who....letting his players wrap around the person they were guarding instead of only having their hands up...NOW..please remember this is 3rd and 4th grade..not high school...even then...I wouldn't care if everyone was playing by the same rules...but the coaches ref and our coach said nothing..our girls, this time..gave back as much as they got.  They were yanking the ball back, made a few of their own fouls..wrapped their arms around people..etc...while I don't like it...it's not what they've been taught to play...sometimes you have to fight to prove you can...

That said..there are three girls on that team that C has had problems with...both in school and on the court.  One of the was her guard tonight and vice versa...they totally frustrated one another (and the other girls coach) time and time again...C is tall for her age..this girl is just a hair taller.  That she smacked my baby, elbowed her in the stomach, and tripped her up a couple of times honked me off.  But C stood her ground, made a few baskets, one of them the first of the game...and did her best for the most part.  She got very frustrated a couple of times and just didn't move much..but she did well.

She was voicing her anger in the car...Especially one of the girls she's livid at...she'd like to do her bodily harm.  They give her problems at school, are starting rumors (nothing major yet...thankfully)  and have even gotten physical a time or two (this I find out tonight...)  The rumors are not so much...just that she got suspended last year for hitting one of the girls-which she did not..and I told her my response would be to look at the girl and say"If I got suspended for hitting you last year, then why are you stupid enough to mess with me again?"  Or something to that affect.  But all in all...she knows she's not allowed to start a fight.  I think I also got my point across that if she was defending herself she would not be in trouble...as long as they threw first....I don't want it to happen...she's a good kid, who has never been in trouble...but at some point she has to stand up for herself...and she's tried ignoring and turning the other cheek.  This is year 2...next year they all move to middle school and it will all get worse. I've also told her not to be intimidated, not to let them get to her...to just laugh at them...then come home and talk to me and be upset and get it out...but when they know they got to her, they win (this is an ongoing discussion we've had for years)  It's sad to say..but I almost hope she does get into a fight..and I hope she makes her point...I don't even care if she's suspended....still I should probably talk to her teacher and let her know there may be issues...thankfully they aren't in the same class...but stilll..ugg..it's such a difficult place to be.

The other issue of the night is this other coach. He was wrong to have them play that way..and let me tell you ...he saw C was going to be power tonight and sent them her direction...he plays to win no matter the cost.  I know this for fact....I say this with concern....he was her assistant softball  coach last year...and he's an awesome coach....he will be her softball coach this year and that concerns me...not that he'll take anything out on her because he won't...he likes her and has alot to teach her...she has potential, he sees that..and we asked for him to pick her...he got their team back (the coach from last year moved)  My problem is I don't want her playing dirty.  I want her team to win...but I want it to be by the rules.  We had one issue last year with him..in the very begining...because he told them that if there was ever a question of whether they were on base or had been tagged that it didn't matter what happened..they always were to play it off and say they'd made it to the base, they were never tagged....to lie.  I blew up..I was not happy..the coach didn't hear it..but we talked to her...It was never repeated again, she felt he was teasing...I'm not so sure....and of course this is one of the reasons that I'm a hands on parent and one of us will be at every game and practice, and we've talked to her about that conversation..because she was not happy about it...and she was a bit upset at the way he let his players play tonight...because they broke the rules and this is my black and white child...it is what it is..the rules are the rules...

Anyway...no easy answers...score wise, I think we lost...but we fought a good fight and we played well...that makes them winners.

blessings and hugs
Vicky

I'm guessing by the fact that no one has a comment on my previous entry that I made some uncomfortable...I apologize if that was the fact...that wasn't my intent...I'm just being me...