Managing a junior team is a season-long juggle of people, times and places. This checklist breaks it into four stages so nothing slips through.
Stage 1: Pre-season
- [ ] Confirm your grade, game format and any junior game-time rules
- [ ] Get your player list and parent contacts from the club or school
- [ ] Set up your team in one app and invite parents
- [ ] Send a welcome message: training times, what to bring, how to report absences
- [ ] Ask for a parent volunteer to help as manager or assistant
- [ ] Check uniforms and gear
Stage 2: Weekly rhythm
- [ ] Fixture confirmed in the app early in the week
- [ ] Availability requested by midweek
- [ ] Training plan ready (one skill focus is enough)
- [ ] Lineup drafted once numbers are known
- [ ] Game-day reminder with arrival time and venue
Stage 3: Mid-season check
- [ ] Review game time across all players — is it balanced?
- [ ] Check in with parents informally
- [ ] Refresh training with new drills so kids stay engaged
- [ ] Thank your volunteers
Stage 4: End of season
- [ ] Organise a wrap-up or prizegiving
- [ ] Recognise effort and improvement, not just results
- [ ] Collect feedback from parents
- [ ] Hand over notes to next season’s coach
Making the weekly rhythm easier
Stage 2 is where most of the time goes, every single week. Squaddie handles the repetitive parts: fixtures live in the app, parents mark availability, and lineups are generated fairly from whoever’s available. The drill library and AI coaching assistant help with training plans.
Download this checklist, then set up your team free at squaddie.app.
