Team sport provides students with opportunities to develop discipline, mental toughness, cooperation with others and the satisfaction of achieving personal goals. It also helps students become socially and culturally relevant (Coakley, 2017).
Participation in team sports among high school students is higher than in most aerobic activities and individual sports such as golf, tennis and bowling (Coakley, 2017). This suggests that including team sports in the curricular offerings of physical education is important for fostering student interests in health and fitness.
To include team sports in the curriculum, educators must understand how to best utilize team sport activities to meet the needs of students and provide them with opportunities for self-expression. Teachers can use these activities to teach students about the skills and values that are emphasized by team sports.
Norms of effort and performance: Group members agree to work hard in order to achieve their team goals. They are expected to report to practice sessions and follow the instructions of their coaches. They are also expected to work together during competitions.
A sense of belonging: Young athletes must feel included in a training group that is supportive. They must feel that their team is their home and will support them in all situations, regardless of their performance level (Evans, Eys, & Bruner, 2012).
It is therefore important to consider how to foster group cohesion and inclusion in team sports training. It is preferable to avoid early segregation based on skill levels, as such practices may lead to feelings of isolation and competition between teammates (Evans & Eys, 2015). Practitioners should utilise descriptive data to plan training for team sports, putting plans in place to target external load at the right time and volume in the training cycle to assist in training adaptations and injury risk reduction.