Keeping Track of the Real Score in Youth Sports:
The Youth Evolution Scoring System – Track Real Results

As the clock ticks away this weekend at your child’s basketball, football, and soccer game or the last out is recorded in baseball, do everyone a favor, and shut-off the scoreboard. Yes, shut it off or simply ignore it.  A final score in youth sports is completely useless, and most often takes our attention away from the most important results that occur during any youth competition. Many victories and losses in youth sports are not indicative of the numerous accomplishments and mistakes that are made during the course of competition.  Yet as adults we leave every youth game either elated or disappointed due to one factor, the final score. 

What type of message does it send to kids, when after a loss we don’t celebrate all the great accomplishments they may have achieved (executing fundamentals correctly as individuals and as a group) or when the progression of improvement in their play goes ignored, due to a final score?  Many times in youth sports, a loss or win is totally out of a child’s control.  A poor officiating call, a fluke play or bounce of the ball, can all result in a misguided interpretation of a final score.
 
Kids like to keep score, and that’s fine.  As a parent or coach your responsibility is to redirect their attention to the things that will help them improve and gauge their progress.  By redirecting their attention by keeping score in a different way, that is actually a fairer representation of their play, will excite kids and allow them to enjoy the entire journey of a game and season. 

Kids will quickly gravitate to a different scoring system that deemphasizes the traditional final score. This is due primarily to video games.  Kids find video games entertaining when scores are continuously tabulated for accomplishments executed during the course of play. Video game bonus points that are added to final scores or applied to open up new games and challenges are designed to keep kids interest and attracts them to play the game multiple times.  The same technique can be applied to youth sports, and will ultimately keep more kids interested in wanting to continue to play and improve their fundamentals.
Let’s face it; if you think the final score should be the main focus, it’s more about you being entertained and receiving satisfaction rather than emphasizing the improvement and development of every athlete. The final score of any youth athletic competition should be a by-product of the entire experience.

I can best relate this to golf.  If I shoot a round between 95 & 100 rather than my typical high 80’s or low 90’s, yet I had three birdies on the toughest holes on the course, I’m fairly satisfied and happy with myself, not totally dejected due to my higher than normal score.  I can find reasons to want to keep practicing and coming back to play.  The same applies to kids.  If a child loses a game yet he achieves things that he has struggled with in the past or he experienced improvement, he should be allowed to focus and celebrate on that rather than feel he has failed or his accomplishments are less important because he lost.  Remember over 75% of all kids quit organized sports by the age of 12; the overemphasis on final scores and winning is a major reason why.

Over the next several weeks we’ll provide a scorecard template that will allow you as a coach or parent to track the execution of fundamentals during any type of organized sport.  This week we will focus on soccer.  Over the next several weeks click on the specific sport icon found on the top of the home page to receive your sport-specific scorecard by position.

YOUTH EVOLUTION SPORTS SOCCER SCORECARD

This particular scorecard can be adjusted to focus on specific fundamentals other than ones outlined in the following scorecard. Feel free to customize a card that fits your objectives and needs. 

How to Use the Scorecard:

During the course of a game have someone track and mark down each time one of the fundamentals is achieved.  Simply designate a mark under each execution and count the total number of marks at the conclusion of the game and multiply by the designated points assigned to fulfilling each fundamental.  For example if a player successfully takes a ball away from an opponent (worth 2 points) 3 times during the course of a game place three marks in that box and multiply by 2 for total score of 6 points.

The scorecard serves not only as a way to provide more excitement and sense of accomplishment during each game but it also provides a way to gage progress from game to game in the execution of specific fundamentals.  By using this system of tracking fundamental executions over the course of an entire game and season you will find that not only do kids begin to focus more on their fundamentals, but you’ll be able to more accurately provide feedback in the correct areas.

Click here to download the Soccer Defense Scorecard >>
Click here to download the Soccer Goalie Scorecard >>
Click here to download the Soccer Offense Scorecard >>