Honoring the Game
Sportsmanship may seem like an out-of-date concept today when professional athletes and coaches act in ways we would not want our children to imitate. We intend to reverse this trend in our league by “Honoring the Game.”
Honoring the Game gets to the ROOTS of the matter, where ROOTS stands for respect for
• Rules,
• Opponents,
• Officials,
• Teammates, and one's
• Self.
• Rules: We don't bend the rules to win. We respect the letter and spirit of the rules.
• Opponents: A worthy opponent is a gift that forces us to play to our highest potential. We try our hardest to win, but not at the expense of demeaning our opponents.
• Officials: We treat officials with respect even when we disagree.
• Teammates: We never do anything that would embarrass our team.
• Self: We try to live up to our own standards regardless of what others do.
Here’s how you can help:
1) Let your players/children know that you want them to honor the game. Discuss the meaning of each element of ROOTS with your athletes.
2) Be a good role model. Honor the Game when you attend games. Cheer both teams when good plays are made. If, in your opinion, an officiating mistake is made, be silent! Use this as an opportunity to think about how difficult it is to officiate a game perfectly.
3) Encourage other parents to Honor the Game.