Canada Mercy Rule

n Ottawa children's recreational soccer league has pulled back from a controversial mercy rule under which any team that outscores its opponent by more than five goals is declared the loser.

The Gloucester Dragons Recreational Soccer league had put the rule in place earlier this season in an effort to do away with teams running up the scores, said league chairman Sean Cale in a statement to parents and coaches on Wednesday.

Cale gave the example of one game in the 2009 season that ended with a score of 18-0.

But parents, coaches and players had complained that the rule took the fun out of the game and forced better teams to pull back and hold the ball until the end of the game if they had a five-goal lead.

In response to the feedback, the league decided to get rid of the rule, which will be rescinded starting June 14

Mercy rules have been around for a while. The goal is usually tied to time limits with a goal of ending the game if it gets out of hand. However, I have never heard until this law of a team actually being penalized for running up the score. What is the coach supposed to tell the players? What does that team the kids on the losing team? I remember many a wrestling match or baseball game growing up where I got my butt kicked (or as Obama says my ass kicked). Should they have told the guy wrestling me to let up - let Spoorts get a takedown or two to make him feel better? Or the baseball game where I am pitching and getting tattooed to strike out a little so Spoorts can feel better? It is part of life. Kids need to know how it feels to be overmatched. There will be multiple times in life where you will feel over your head. How you respond determines your character. This is the ongoing pattern by cracker jack psychologists of entitlement. When will it stop?