Sport rage prevention pilot, Blacktown

Background

A sport rage prevention pilot for soccer took place in Blacktown, NSW, during the 2004 winter season. It targeted the parents, coaches, referees and club administrators of U/9, U/10 and U/11 teams.

The project was developed in partnership with NSW Sport and Recreation, Soccer NSW and the Blacktown District Soccer Football Association to trial strategies to prevent and deal with sport rage with the view to developing this website.

Strategies

A number of sport rage prevention strategies were trialled, including:

• Slogan competition - Families were encouraged to participate in a competition to create a catchy positive behaviour slogan. The prize was a family holiday. The winning slogan 'Be a sport, just support' was displayed on signage at fields during the 2004 season.
• Sport rage prevention booklets - Coaches, administrators, referees and parents for the 2004 season received booklets containing information about how to prevent and deal with sport rage.
• Good Sport awards - Special awards were given to the teams that led the way in positive sideline behaviour and good sporting behaviour. The award was for the parents and spectators as much as the players.
• Promotion days - Several fun promotion days were conducted during the season to reinforce the positive behaviour messages contained in the kits.

Highlights of the pilot

Parents, coaches, referees and administrators were encouraged to sign an ‘anti-sledge pledge’ which is specifically tailored to each group and based on the various Australian Sports Commission codes of conduct. For the first time, parents, coaches, referees and club administrators were on the ‘same wavelength’ regarding their rights and responsibilities relevant to sport rage. These ‘anti-sledge pledges’ can be found in the pilot booklets.

Outcome

During the 2004 season, 218 people (including coaches, parents, players and administrators) were surveyed with the aim of evaluating the effectiveness of the program.

Behavioural changes were also measured by using the number of red and yellow cards given out in previous years in comparison to the numbers given out while the pilot was running. The results are as follows:

Blacktown District Soccer Football Association under 9, 10 and 11 years age divisions games statistics (2001 – 2005)

Cautions	0 in 2005 0 in 2004 14 in 2003 41 in 2002 38 in 2001
Send offs:	0 in 2005 0 in 2004 1 in 2003 3 in 2002 0 in 2001
Sideline reports	2 in 2005 0 in 2004 2 in 2003 2 in 2002 1 in 2001

The survey results and feedback from the pilot groups have contributed towards the creation of the information on this website.

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