OUR MISSION STATEMENT

Mission of Saint Patrick's CYO Basketball League: Join young people together in the spirit of athletics and competition under the sponsorship of the Catholic Church.

Mission of the Coach: The volunteer coach has a crucial role for motivation, for improvement and criticism. Be aware of the very important emotional needs of players, such as: CONCERN, PATIENCE, and UNDERSTANDING. The mission of the coach is to be a role model, friend, mentor and teacher to the children entrusted to their care. It is our hope the values imparted upon these children are instilled for a lifetime. The job of a coach is to provide good memories

Never use FEAR as a motivational tool. Young children learn values through the development to nurture their individuality relating to their ability. Be aware of how each player responds to instructions. Learn to listen as well as talk to your players. Children need clear guidelines and instructions - not hostile and degrading criticisms. Children are aware of failure. There are many who may have a slow learning ability. When everyone participates, children respond on a positive note. A good coach is aware of his player's potential with CONCERN, PATIENCE, AND UNDERSTANDING. If everyone participates, players are less inhibited in their efforts.

Our society has a mentality for "win for award and lose for failure." We should strive to return to fun and socialization during the early years of learning all sports. Later on, the concept of winning becomes an aspect of sports competition. Success is relative at the young age. Everyone succeeds in some aspect of the involvement. Fun should be the product of skills. Your job is to teach skills so the youngster will have FUN in the sport. During practices, start out with light stretching. Youngsters will learn drills quicker because they are not hindered by fatigue. Endurance drills should be at the end of your session.

Drills should be diversified. Have the players touch the ball many times. Change is healthy. Don't lock a player into one position. You should have 5 or 6 different ways to accomplish the same drill. By varying the drills, you will find the youngster's energy level rising. Again, have FUN. Encourage and incorporate more than one player in your drills.

When speaking to the youngsters - be BRIEF - their attention span is short. If you have spoken more than 2 minutes, you have spoken too long! Remember the saying:   I SEE, I REMEMBER; I DO, I LEARN . . .. Try "positive reinforcement" when coaching. The youngster worries about "don't" rather than "do" Instead of yelling "don't lean back" (negative) try "lean forward" (positive) instead.

Mission of the Family: The mission of the family is to support their children in the spirit of good competition while encouraging good sportsmanship. The support of family during competition heightens the sense of pride within a child. Furthermore, the child has the support of family members through victory and defeat as well as good times and bad. The family unit is our hope for the future.

Vision: Sports is a component of comprehensive youth ministry which enables the partnership of parents, coaches, and adult leaders to manage and support a sports program that allows youth to grow in their relationship with God and come to better understand themselves and the Catholic faith.

Perspective:  Sports have become a major force of influence in our society. This significant capacity to influence has led to a greater need for examination of the power of sports as either a life-giving or life-draining force in the lives of athletes, their coaches, their parents and the entire institution that sponsors the programs.  Sports have the capacity to greatly enrich the body, mind, and soul of the athlete, as well as enhance the life and spirit of the community. We view sports as a healthy and holistic activity, and as a wonderful vehicle of spreading faith through gospel values

Summation:  St. Patrick's CYO Basketball League's main objective is to provide quality competition in a Christian arena while taking into consideration the needs of our children. It is our hope to provide a Christian atmosphere that will offer the joys of competition with the support of family.