My friend is a Laxh*le
Laxholes want the best for their kids. While this might be debated---that they are just reliving their glory days through their kids, they have unfinished business in sports, or they are simply highly competitive individuals who see their kids as an extension of themselves, I disagree. I think that the majority of laxholes love to watch their kids play, but overestimate their positive influence on the outcome.
My friend made a comment that of his two kids, his son "needed" him to attend the games. Without him, he said, his son wouldn't be ready for the game, and wouldn't perform as he could, or should. I think his son is a good player who plays really well. Not sure the extra encouragement is needed, and could certainly get in his head.
Games now are the result of the practice and preparation---they are going so fast that any help we could possibly give as parents is pretty worthless. But, that doesn't stop us from trying. We've all screamed "look out!" when a defender comes out of the box behind an offensive player, or "it's behind you" when a ball gets dropped or checked out.
But to scream mechanics at a goalie, "Step to the ball!", or "Don't go early!" to the face off kid, or "Scoop through the ball!" to a scrum of players chasing a ground ball is ridiculous.
The laxhole changes sides of the field not to get a better view, but so their kid can hear them better. My favorite are the guys who stand at the end lines screaming at their attackman sons giving them advice on dodges or shot selection. We have all now learned that we can get some extra access if we "film" the game. The filming was a good first step for me toward leaving my laxhole self behind, because I had to concentrate on keeping my kid in the shot. Thankfully, I can't yell and film at the same time. Still didn't help me from offering to show a few refs my "instant replay" for a missed or questionable call.
My friend asked me what his son was doing wrong in a game the other day. I was filming, but could see the issue and mistakenly told him. It was nothing he was going to be able to change without practice. My friend literally yelled fixes at his son for the next 10 minutes. My own son came off the field after the game asking if he had lost his mind, since it was distracting.
When I confessed to "helping", he rolled his eyes and said, "well, at least YOU are quiet nowadays".