"why don't the winners bow to the losers after every game"

I was thinking of a "beer summit" myself ...

And that generation will be prepared to whine, shirk adversity and be all around good democrats.

Give the effeminant, feel-nice lobby what they want and start cheering to lose. Jerseys that brag about being the best loser might just penitrate their kindergarten level brains.

Our enemies -those evil people who since the beginning of time have been seeking weakness in their fellow man, that they might do harm to him safely -love this crapola!

Wasn't the country all up in arms about how poorly their country just performed at the Olympics? This is an excellent first step in preparing the next generation to step up their game! I can't wait to see it spread and see their national hockey team drop their sticks stand around whenever they get up by 4 over another team.

Unbelievable.

What the heck do we expect? It IS "soccer" after all . . . remember the Massachusetts kids' league which just stopped keeping score a few years back? Six games into the season, someone noticed . . .

This game is siphoning our nation's vital bodily fluids, and must be stopped at all costs!

"They should be saying anything is possible. If we can get five goals really fast, well, so can the other team," said Kevin, 17, who has played in the league for five years. "People grow in adversity, they don't really get worse.... I think you'll see more leadership skills being used if a losing team tries to recuperate than if they never got into that situation at all."

I say Palin/Kevin in 2012. At least we can probably know more about Kevin's background - high school transcripts and all - than we did about the current president's when he was running.

Good grief. When did "good sportsmanship" no longer mean "doing your best"?

So the team should go 4 goals ahead and then lay down on the field until the other team scores. Then they score another goal and then lay down again.

I coached youth soccer (13 and 14 year olds) for several years and since I excel at everything I do I of course drafted dynamite teams. We always had outstanding players and we won most of our games.

Anytime we took a large lead I naturally would bring in the second string and give them game time. We ended the season on top three years running, but with 75% of our players having scored goals at some point during the season.

But bringing in my weaker players also served to level the playing field.

It sounds like Ottawa is trying to encourage sportsmanship through the rule books. They'll have better success by selecting better coaches.

That's really helping the kids get ready for 'the real world'.

When adversity knocks you down...just stand there and cry.

It figures that the one thing Lee-boy is good at is soccer.

My answer to this latest idiocy would be to wait until the end of the game, when you're down 5, and score an own-goal.

Socialism for soccer...why not divide all the points at the end of the game and declare a tie?
Isn't that what our government plans for our economy?

How would you guys react if the league enacted a rule that required all the kids on the team to play at least one quarter? Seems to me the point of a children's soccer league is not "win at any cost" but rather "have fun, be competitive, and get some exercise." If one kid is an admittedly poor player but is always sitting on the bench, he's not having fun or getting exercise.

Probably the biggest irony here is that Gen. Y spoiled brats won't even be able to grasp the irony.

Easy way to win at soccer in Canada: Kick the ball into your own net six times.

Seems to me the point of a children's soccer league is not "win at any cost" but rather "have fun, be competitive, and get some exercise."

It's called a life lesson, which is the real point of sports.

I always thought slaughter rules were a good idea, for example I think our rule in the baseball league between little league and high school was 10 runs. You get up by 10, game's over (with a chance for home team last ups of course). And you win. This is the worst possible twist to that - get up by too much and you lose. What on earth is that teaching anyone? All it's going to do is drive out the good kids who won't be challenged. I can see some rules like not keeping score for like 4-6 year olds...but doing this to 18 year old kids??

"And that generation will be prepared to whine, shirk adversity and be all around good democrats."

Fortunately, as a baby boomer, having this unemployable generation follow me keeps me employed. It's amusing to watch the "there are no wrong answers" generation mature and enter the workforce. In the real world most answers are the wrong answer. In many cases every answer is the wrong fucking answer and I lose yet another job to India. So I move on and find another company with Generation Y'ers that need babysitting.

You got the order screwed up: it's be competitive, get exercise, have fun. The kid sitting on the bench the whole game has failed at 1. He doesn't get to do part 3 until then.

High-school sports, fine. There, you're competing for the gold or the pennant or what have you. But in the "real world" of intramural sports, adults agree to certain rules to make sure everybody has fun and has a chance to play the game.

High-school sports, fine. There, you're competing for the gold or the pennant or what have you. But in the "real world" of intramural sports, adults agree to certain rules to make sure everybody has fun and has a chance to play the game.

In the real world, play is an activity children do to learn skills that they will need as adults. Just as a kitten playing with a piece of string is helping it to prepare for hunting mice, play for kids is necessary for them to become adults. Adults who short-circuit this with the notion that kids play for play's sake are doing kids harm, and frankely not making that play much fun at all.

"The rule replaces its five-point mercy regulation, whereby any points scored beyond a five-point differential would not be registered."

Oh, I see the logic. So its kinda like any jobs created by the $700 billion over and above the first $100 billion stimulus funds will not be reported? In our case of course they never existed to report but it makes us all warm and fuzzy to know how much Barry cares.

This liberal idea of course is easy to understand..

Just when you think you've won and get to excel in success, Government comes in and takes what extra you earned and doesn't let you enjoy your God given talents.

Yep, sounds like it would be more fun to be on the losing team and be entitled to imperviousness from an ass whippin..

"...an Ottawa children's soccer league has introduced a rule that says any team that wins a game by more than five points will lose by default."

The RULE, which is what we are discussing says nothing about 'making sure everyone gets to play'. It's all about not hurting 'self-esteem'.

They're all about 'self-esteem' in Kalleefornia schools. Promote to the next grade level, despite non-performance at the current level. Don't want to hurt Johnnies feelings. So Johnny finally 'graduates', can't read, can't do simple arithmetic, sure as hell can't think logically. Sounds like a prime candidate for the Democratic Party.

Thank you, Garand, for taking us back on topic, although I was interested to hear thoughts on the "everybody gets to pley" concept as well.

The auto-loss rule for 5+ point victories is a patently ridiculous expansion of the rather sensible "mercy rule" that purveys any number of adult and children's sports hobby leagues.

Sounds like a prime candidate for the Democratic Party.

Well, a voter anyway.

Over the years, with two of my own involved in team sports, I was amazed at the level of "adult" interaction. The good coaches make it an enjoyable experience for everyone. It's the bad with their 'win at any price, stack the board with the highest score' that ruin it for everyone.

Unfortunately that provides a 'crisis' for the feel good crowd to jump in 'and level the playing field'.

People who fail at things, learn the most. I imagine that after 4 years, Obama will have gotten quite an education.

If you dont go through little failures as a child than you get set up for the bigger failures later in life. Unfortunately when that happens you look around for someone to pick you up, kiss your boo boo and tell you it will be alright. As an adult that is a losing proposition.

THat is one of the reasons we have people defaulting on loans, not paying bills, and being unemployed for 2+ years. They are still waiting for someone to make the bad scary man go away and wipe their tears away.

Dems want to be that nanny and be the boo boo kissing mother. Republicans are saying help yourself and we will provide an opportunity for you to suceed.

I don't remember the exact quote, but it was something to the affect that people learn more from their failures than they do their successes.

"people learn more from their failures than they do their successes."

Oh my! Just think of all the learnin going on inside Barry's skull..

James H
I think everyone here including you agree that the above rule is B.S.

Yes there are different levels of play and different approaches all with their plusses and minuses. IMO at the very young level everyone should play but hesitate at passing a rule that everyone must play an equal amount of time. Reason that everyone plays is one you never know who will develop into what in the later years. Two to allow all kids to have some fun and experiences at playing sports.

However they should get a small taste of competitiveness. As they age the importance of being competitive should gradually go up. Also especially at the very young age there are kids who simply don't want to play very long or are able to. Then there is the matter peer pressure. For example if you are not very good but rules say you must play just as much as someone who is, you often will feel pressure to quit so others can play and you don't drag down the team. The list goes on. In the end coaches should have some flexibility. Is it perfect? No but it is better than passing a bunch of inflexible rules that ruin the whole experience.

When I was a kid we were taught to callous up and not cry if we lost. I think they called it being a good sport. Nor should you gloat if you win. (Of course we were taught not to pound our own chest or do a little dance if we did something good. Right, NBA & NFL? - hahahahaha - grown men babies.)

What satisfaction is there in winning if the other team quits trying to win? Kids will notice this, yes?

While I'm at it - what's with professional baseball players congratulating each other on their own team after a victory rather than shacking the other team's hands and saying, "good game"? High school and college teams don't do that do they?

BluesHarper, you're obviously referring to that asshole Peyton Manning who didn't shake hands after a Super Bowl, or Jeremy Shockey, who is an utter cock, or Dirk Nowitzki, who is always pounding his chest, or Larry Bird, who talked so much shit his breath still smells. Ever seen a Premier League soccer player score a goal? They literally tear their shirts off as they run down the pitch in celebration.

And what about NASCAR drivers? Biggest bunch of arrogant sociopaths of any "sport" that I can think of. And hockey players: ever seen Alex Ovechkin score a goal? Or any goon beat the shit out of another team's goon, and then skate by the opponents' bench with a smug grin on their blood-covered face? Remember Randy Johnson and Roger Clemens celebrating animatedly after big wins or strikeouts? Did that bother you?

But no, single out the NBA and NFL, for some reason, because every single other sport is characterized by humility and grace and good sportsmanship. Oh no, wait, they're not: they're just sports that aren't dominated by people of colour. At least, not yet.

Face it, you don't mind the celebration and the arrogance and the showmanship: you just don't like black people acting superior in situations when their actions demonstrate that they are, in fact, superior at what they do.

Yes matt. It must be because he's racist and not, say, simply citing the next two most watched professional sports leagues in the US.

You can tell he's racist because he approvingly cites the sportsmanship of the college teams the professional leagues draw their players from. Lilly white, those are. Yessirree Bob!

"Face it, you don't mind the celebration and the arrogance and the showmanship: you just don't like black people acting superior in situations when their actions demonstrate that they are, in fact, superior at what they do."

Actually speaking for Me, I miss the old glory days of the NBA and NFL when it was an all out war to see who won. These days the pussy downed fairness police AKA liberal's take the enjoyment out of eveything, including breathing the air, cause it's all polluted and stuff.

Bring back the win or lose fight to survive mentality and flush D.C. political correctness B.S. down the shitter!

Basketball is more popular than baseball? Okay, you win because you have the facts on your side, Mr. Schuler. Hyuk.

In professional sports, I expect my hometown team to lose. I live in Washington, I'm used to this by now. (See: Washington Redskins, Washington Wizards, Washington Nationals, Washington Capitals (until this past year)).

But if I'm playing in the Inter-Office Summer Softball League, the calculus changes. First off, I'm not going to risk a broken leg or worse for the Inter-Office Softball trophy. Second, I'm not necessarily there to win. I'm there to swing the bat, catch the ball, and have fun with co-workers outside the confines of the cube farm. If somebody's focused on beating the Tulsa office at all costs, quite frnakly, it's a turn-off.

914: do you really miss watching Bill Laimbeer stomp on someone's broken foot? And yes, would have been cool to see Maurice Richard score a goal in the playoffs on a broken leg, but then he was the same guy who swung a stick at an opponent's unprotected head. And going even further back, I would have refused to play if I looked at the other team's dugout and saw Ty Cobb filing his cleats into razors and grinning at the second baseman, whose kneecap he intended to shred to hamburger.

The ideal athlete: Albert Pujols. Knows he's the best (possibly of all time), will candidly admit his greatness, but--unlike A-Rod or Manning or Michael Jordan--respects the history of the game, his opponents, and gives credit to his teammates (even though he has carried that team for the past decade almost singlehandedly).

Have to say, though, that that reformed lunatic Ron Artest is growing on me, not that I had a huge problem with him punching out that fat fuck in Detroit however long ago. Never has anyone wanted so badly for his teammates and fans to like him as Ron Artest over the past three months. It's endearing.

Yes, it surely is entertaining. And you could be on the right end of a huge lawsuit as well. Heh heh heh. Its a fun game to play though. What a workout.

"Face it, you don't mind the celebration and the arrogance and the showmanship: you just don't like black people acting superior in situations when their actions demonstrate that they are, in fact, superior at what they do.""

Damn I read this and thought Lee Ward had spewed the contents of his rectum all over the blog again.

Hey retired_military, being old isn't an excuse for being really, really boring. Piss off, rectum fetishist.

"you just don't like black people acting superior in situations"

Wow. li'l matt's a racist POS.

Basketball is more popular than baseball? Okay, you win because you have the facts on your side, Mr. Schuler. Hyuk.

Yes matt. It must be because he's racist and not, say, simply citing the next two most watched professional sports leagues in the US.

Highlighted the qualifier for the illiterate morons in the thread.

This rule is called the Incompetent Goalie Retention Plan. The last kid picked will now become the rising star of the soccer field.

I can't find any printable thing to say about this stupidity. I'm gettin' mah rifle and a-headin' north to whup dem pointy-heads inta shape...

Human children play for the same reason animals do: it's how they learn important skills - including how to lose and how to accept that things aren't always "fair" either. It is also a great life lesson to learn that the guy who doesn't really have the skills to compete on the field in a league game, but who hustles in every practice and cheers his mates on from the bench, is an important part of a team's success.

"Everybody plays" is a great goal for kids' leagues - coaches should get the subs and scrubs in when the game gets out of hand either way - but not as a "rule" because the most important thing to teach the team in a close game is that we want to do our best to win, and we will, but after the game is over it was just a game.

But if the nanny-state liberal "oops did Mumsie's little Man get a boo-boo?" crowd wants to ruin a sport, it might as well be soccer. They're already raising those kids to be Euro-trash (without the body odor) anyway.

Does that rule mean that at the end of the season the team with the most losses gets the 1st Place Trophy?
HEY! We already do that here, we got the biggest loser elected president.