Dear Editor:
This Sunday I attended a lacrosse game of a close friend whose nine-year-old son plays for Burnaby. It was at Harry Jerome and having never been to a game, I took my nine-year-old son with me.
Burnaby was playing a North Vancouver team and we hadn't been there for more than 20 minutes before a father (of the North Van team) sitting near us absolutely exploded in rage. He started yelling "just once!" repeatedly at the top of his lungs and then took himself down to the players' bench and started yelling at the coach. The reason for his fury appeared to be that his son had not been played enough, or had only been on the floor once.
The dad returned to his seat and began to continue to yell and scream. At that point, I told him to "relax and calm down." He didn't take too kindly to that and I reminded him that I had a nine-year-old sitting beside me who didn't need to hear his tirade.
Eventually his son, whom I believe was benched by the coach, came and joined his dad in the stands. As they were leaving his dad continued his "mantrum" creating a scene the whole way to anyone who would listen. He started yelling out the name of one child in particular whom he felt had been given too much playing time. Maybe the coaching wasn't fair, I don't know, but what I do know is that a little boy had to hear his dad go off like that and suffer the consequences of his dad's poor behaviour.
What I cannot get over however, is the level of rage this man possessed. I was instantly reminded of the hockey coach who tripped a player, breaking his wrist some months back, or the dad in Massachusetts who punched another dad after a hockey game, which ultimately resulted in the man's death. I mean these are nine-and 10-year-old kids we're talking about. It is a game, right? Are there millions in endorsement deals I don't know about?
As a North Vancouverite my whole life, I felt embarrassed by this behaviour and what the Burnaby parents must have thought of the sportsmanship in North Vancouver.
North Van ended up losing the game, but I can't help thinking it's those little boys who lost the most today. The right to go out, have fun, play fairly and most of all feel safe.
Amy Millar, North Vancouver
