All sports players know that feeling of walking towards the field or court being the brand new player on the team. This feeling, the one in your gut making you more nervous than ever. Many people don’t know what to do with being the new player, it can be intimidating.

I experienced this same feeling my sophomore year of high school. They called my name and my heart dropped with being excited, but also very nervous. The nervous feeling of thinking am I ready for this, can I do this? What if the team hates me?

All these things running through your head is scary and nerve racking, but you have to remember they called you for a reason. You were meant to be on this team. Getting through the mental part of that is harder than the part of being scared of the team. Know one’s going to bite, they are all a team that you can rely on and be a part of their family now.

For me when I was new I tried to reach out to some of my new teammates, ask them questions and try to make conversation with them. I was lucky enough to know some of my teammates from my club team which helped them be friendly and take me under their wing. The club situation won’t always be the case, but they know you’re a young player and still adapting to their level so they will be patient with you.

One thing to make sure of is to not be cocky since you’re so young on this older team. No one enjoys a cocky teammate who thinks they are better than everyone. It was important for me to know these guys have my back now no matter what. It was really amazing for me once I was able to settle in how much of a family this team became to me.