When I was younger I played 7-a side football for Billericay Town FC. One session a girl came along and asked if she could join the team. Our manager was very old fashioned and believed that football was a mans game and thought there was no place for woman in football. He agreed to let her join in with the session to see how she was but he was not giving her equal opportunities. For most of the drills he told her to sit on the side as there were too many people for her to join in. When she was let in the manager was hinting not to pass the ball to her but to pass it to another boy. Although the girl was a very good footballer she did not have the chance to show her ability and as results of the session she decided not to come back. This made the manger very happy however some of the players in the team were disappointed as she could have been a good new member to the squad.
As Assistant Sports Development Officer I would find this very concerning. It is extremely important that all coaches are trained well ethically. This man is clearly not and he is not aware of equal opportunities. He needs to be taught that everyone should deserve a chance to join a team and by singling someone out it is classed as discrimination. He is stereotyping that all girls are bad at football and not giving this individual a chance.
It is important that this coach is taught not to stereotype as this can lead to sporting myths which are not true. After making sure he understood the ethics and values that are required in a good coach I would go back to another one of his sessions where a girl was taking part and see if he has learnt how to teach and encourage all of his participants. I would be looking to see if he was singling them out and giving them equal amounts of encouragement and opportunities as everyone else. It would be useful to send this person on a course on ethics and values so he could learn that everyone deserves equal opportunities and it is not pleasant when they are not being given to you. I’m sure if it was the other way round and he was trying to join a club however he couldn’t. Purely based on his gender he would have something to say about it. A coach should never intimidate an athlete or make it seem they are above them.
This will only make the athlete lose respect for their coach and this is not a good bond. The Equal Opportunities Commission and the Sex Discrimination Act 1986 are bodies that ensure everyone is treated equal whatever their background. The Equal Opportunities Commission was established under the Sex Discrimination Act. This statutory, independent body works towards eliminating discrimination and promoting equality of opportunity between the sexes. I strongly support these groups and will help them with their views every step of the way. This coach should always support and motivate everyone whatever their background.
The main aim of a coach is to bring the best out of all their athletes and not single some out to others. Coaching is extremely important to the industry of sport and it needs to be taken seriously and professionally. Sport England state that “By 2012 the practice of coaching in the UK will be elevated to a profession acknowledged as central to the development of sport and the fulfilment of individual potential” It is important that coaching is acknowledged as a professional job so that coaches can get the recognition they deserve. However it cannot be taken seriously until these coaches such as the one above is taught how to deal with their athletes in the correct and professional way.
The way in which I would monitor the effectiveness of the way in which ethics and values are maintained in this sport situation is to use a questionnaire. Once every month I would ask all members of the football team to fill out this anonymous questionnaire and hand it in. By making the questionnaire anonymous it gives all players a chance to get their true feelings off their chests and get to say what they really want to say. In this questionnaire I would have questions such as how the training sessions are going, if they think the coach is behaving correctly in terms of ethics and values and if they think they are learning any new skills and techniques.
By creating these questionnaires it gives a chance to get regular feedback from the participants. This is vital as the feedback is coming from the people taking part in the sessions and it is important they are happy. I would also hold regular conversations with both the participants and their parents. This would give everyone a chance to get any of their problems across as well as things they are happy with. I think these ideas would help benefit both the manager and the participants and in turn the club and the community.