High school sports are always going to be competitive, but what happens when the fun of the sport is lost?  Sometimes coaches seem to get in the way of having fun.

Anyone who plays a sport knows that there is always going to be competition within the teams. Yes, coaches should start who they feel are the best players, but they should not forget about the rest of the team. Whether it is due to ignorance or immaturity, coaches can sometimes get caught up in the game and forget about the bench.

Players cannot play to the best of their abilities for the entire game. So why leave a player on the field that is exhausted, when there are a bunch of eager players on the bench ready to go in?

If the coach never allows the players on the bench to get a shot on the game court, then they can never show how much potential they have as players. Coaches should be more forgiving and open-minded when it comes to making substitutions and trying new things.

Not only does this apply to sports, but it applies to everyday life. If someone is never given an opportunity to shine, that person can never show how much talent and potential they have.

Part of life is proving yourself. If you are never given the opportunity, then your life is almost incomplete. Going up in the ladder of life is exciting and everyone deserves the opportunity to do so.

When players sit on the bench game after game, they begin to lose hope, not only in themselves, but also in the sport as a whole. Coaches sometimes do not even realize the psychological damage they cause by sitting the players for such long periods of time.

It breaks the players down not only emotionally, but also physically. At least in my case, I found myself going through the motions at practice, not really even wanting to try because I knew I was just going to sit the bench. What was the point?

From time to time, the player can even question why they even play the sport. A number of players who have been playing their sport since they could practically walk start to question their abilities as players and can even lose the motivation to play the game they love.

It gets to that point players start to wonder where the fun went, which is the point of playing the sport in the first place.

High school as a whole is supposed to encompass some of the most exciting years of your life. No one wants to remember the hell they went through trying to get just a few minutes of playing time on the field. So that brings me to the question: is it really worth the win if it means losing the bond of the team?

Coaches sometimes seem to be stuck in their own ideas of how the team should run. They are too scared to play the bench, thinking they will lose, but no one ever said playing the bench would mean losing the game.

Being so close-minded can prevent great things from happening and new talent from being found. By not trying new ideas, coaches can hurt the team.

Let’s say you do lose. News flash: it is not the end of the world.

Coaches have to remember that when they played the sport, someone gave them a chance, so they should return the favor.

“The main ingredient of stardom is the rest of the team,” John Wooden, legendary basketball coach, said. So trusting the bench can bring not only stardom, but also a team bond that can never be broken.