Fall sports have just about been completed and the 2008 season has been a tough one for players and fans of Oak Harbor and Coupeville high school athletics.

Both schools had a number of key players, particularly players on the football teams graduate, and the respective records of the purple and gold and the red, black and white reflect how young and inexperienced both squads are.

Every now and then such a situation comes about at a school and in 2008, it has happened to both schools at the same time.

That’s what makes things so difficult for me in my position as a sports editor.

With the exception of the Coupeville volleyball team, that appears to be peaking at the right time just before the district tournament, the Oak Harbor swim team that has a very good chance of advancing several athletes to state competition and a couple of jet-propelled cross country runners, the other Wildcat and Wolf Pack teams have struggled this year.

The Oak Harbor football team is out of the playoff picture and the Coupeville squad hasn’t won a game.

Ditto for the Wildcat volleyball bunch, no district tournament this year, and the Coupeville and Oak Harbor soccer teams have a combined record of three wins, a tie and a whole bunch of losses to show for a season of hard work.

As a reporter it is paramount that you remain positive in your writing no matter what the score or how bad the team played.

Above all, and most importantly, you must never, ever, analyze, second guess, or criticize players and coaches under any circumstances, in any form of media.

As a former coach who had his share of young teams during his career on the sidelines, I understand exactly what the coaching staffs at both schools are going through.

No matter how hard you try, no matter how well you think you have your team prepared, you still get beat.

For the players, they hit the field or the court with all the desire in the world and the will to win and it just doesn’t happen for them.

Little mistakes made by inexperienced players pile up and like my father used to say, “It’s sort of like turning on a water faucet. Sometimes it’s hard to turn on but once it’s on, it gets doggone difficult to turn off.”

When you have experienced players on a particular team you can usually overcome mistakes and fight right back.

But with young kids, a mistake here and there that eventually leads to an easy touchdown for the opposition, or a key goal on the soccer field, or a five-point rally to take the lead for keeps on the volleyball court, can break a team’s back in a hurry and they never seem to be able to recover.

That’s what hurts.

If you think I’m wrong, take a close look at the players’ faces when something bad happens. You can see it in their eyes, “Oh, no, here we go again.”

Coaches have to remain a little more stoical in their demeanor but believe me, you die a little bit inside wondering if you could have done something differently when your game plan goes south and the score piles up.

The one positive thing to look forward to is the fall season in 2009 is going to belong to us!

Oh, yeah. We’ve taken our lumps this season, but both schools will have a ton of players returning next season with a year of experience under their belts.

Experienced players who have learned from mistakes, know how it feels to lose games and are sick and tired of it, and know what kind of dedication and determination it takes to be winners.

Fans, hang in there, it’s going to get better. Above all, keep the faith and keep supporting your favorite teams.

As far as I’m concerned, I can’t wait until next fall.

Take it from me, it’s a whole lot more fun writing about winning teams.