Join WSPN’s Jane Tardif and Jillian Mele as they talk about the importance of having strong youth sports programs.

You’re headed to practice after losing yet another game. On the way there, you wonder why your team is failing to hold its own against the other teams in your division. There might be skilled athletes on the team, but something fundamental is missing. That fundamental, missing puzzle piece is, in fact, the lack of a youth sports program. Youth sports are integral to the progression of any athlete and helps the community as a whole. Without youth sports, high school teams would struggle. Youth sports like soccer, dance and baseball are common activities that many kids participate in. But there needs to be more of a push to have more youth programs offered to all kids.

Learning how to play a team sport at a young age helps kids learn many life skills. As kids grow older and they are introduced to new sports, the skills they learned before will translate over and can significantly help them with their training.

While the process of forming a strong youth sports program takes much preparation and time, the community that it creates has positive effects. For instance, a strong community increases the sports participation among students, which in turn benefits high school teams. When freshmen are coming in and having large participation numbers, it translates into better teams.

Being truly invested in a team requires building social connections that have positive effects on kids to help make each individual enjoy the sport they are a part of.

Having an emotional connection with your teammates creates a much stronger bond. These friendships build trust and act as sources for motivation when working together. By introducing youth sports programs, kids are able to progress as a program throughout the years. Overall, these benefits lead teams to succeed even through high school.

The most important aspect to creating a strong youth program is dedicated coaches. Having supportive and passionate coaches that are willing to lead youth teams can make or break a sports team. A great coach is one who makes the program fun and light-hearted, while also seeking the best for each player. Finding a coach who upholds these values is crucial to both individual and team success. Many young kids don’t have a drive to be an athlete or play sports, so making practices and games fun motivates kids to continue playing. Oftentimes, these youth programs can develop a passion for sports in kids who weren’t as enthusiastic before.

We have grown up playing lacrosse since kindergarten. Wayland Youth Lacrosse in particular has had a very strong youth program. The program hosts fall ball, winter training sessions and a full spring season with weekly games. The methods that our youth coaches used created a competitive environment that allowed us to grow as players. Going into freshman year, we had a large number of players that strengthened the varsity and junior varsity teams.

Because our youth program prepared us as both players and teammates, our high school team was consistently strong. Players that are passionate for the sport and have put in time and effort make the team better. Setting a good example of a team who generates success then further inspires the youth program to try and do the same.

The benefits of a strong youth sports program shapes the character of those living in Wayland and attending the high school. Those who are given the opportunity to start sports young are bound to have success when time and effort is demonstrated. However, without youth sports programs, success becomes far more difficult.