What's a parent to do?

So what do you say to a kid who's trained since they were 4, to play a sport that they love so much, that they worked so hard to be part of the team - shown up for each & every practice, never complains, but is benched pretty much the whole season, without being given a reason???



How do you encourage them to keep trying, to not give up? How do you restore the self-esteem that coach has taken away from them over & over again.



What do you tell a kid who's tried over & over to talk to a coach to find out what he needs to do to earn more playing time, only for the coach to shut him out and refuse to talk to him?



Of all that he's been throug in his life & all the tough battles he fought, why does this seem like the toughest?