Although every participant has to pay the same dollar amount to join community athletic programs, the favoritism continues.

These leagues are designed to train children in the art of the game and also to teach them camaraderie and sportsmanship.

It seems a few coaches use these teams as an ego lift for personal gain. So far this season, I've seen one particular coach of a JV squad lie to another coach about not having any players to fill a line position; all the while he had three healthy and excited kids who want to play who were left standing on the sideline.

When confronted by assistant coaches about letting other players in the game when the score is already out of reach, his quote was, "We are going for the shutout, not just the win."

Who benefits from this kind of coaching? Rules are continuously broken, going back at least three years, where kids have lied about their age to play in a learning league.

Some other children have been so uncontrolled, but unsportsmanlike conduct and hitting after a play is over have gone unpunished, and it seems that it is the preferred way to play, even if it is in a practice, and not a game, situation.

What will it take to have proper coaching for the kids? How can we weed out the ego-seekers who seem to think someday they may actually coach a professional football team?

Teaching is more than just winning or saving a shutout; these are little kids, not grown men.

Grown men don't cry when they fall down or fail to score a touchdown, but on at least one team this is the way they are taught.

Players can slander a coach, use vulgar language toward a coach, quit the team and be allowed to come back and start the next game, play with a cast on an arm (which would be considered a weapon in some cases), beat on smaller players, taunt teammates and do whatever they feel like doing, as long as the coach gets his win.

Is this really what we want our children to learn? I don't know about others, but I'm done watching my grandchildren taught to play sports in this manner.

If the coaches want prime players, these leagues should be open for tryouts and not just filling a roster of "of age" boys.

I agree totally with those who say, "Let all the kids play."

Maybe a few coaches could learn from them.