Coach by Mary Robison
"Coach" by Mary Robison presents a slice-of-life narrative centered on Harry Coach Noonan, who is preparing for his role as the freshman football team coach while navigating the complexities of family life. The story unfolds as he interacts with his wife, Sherry, and their daughter, Daphne, amidst the ordinary yet significant moments of their day. Coach's character is portrayed in the midst of personal and professional challenges, such as dealing with a misleading newspaper interview that frustrates him and his attempts to support his family while pursuing his own aspirations.
The dynamics of Coach's family are highlighted, with Sherry seeking her own creative space for painting and Daphne grappling with her academic challenges. The narrative captures the tension between Coach's professional ambitions and his familial responsibilities, including his efforts to reassure Daphne about their family's stability amidst her concerns about potential separation. The story also explores themes of communication, identity, and the expectations placed on individuals within family and societal roles, framed within the everyday context of domestic life. Overall, "Coach" offers a nuanced exploration of the intersection between personal fulfillment and family commitments, inviting readers to reflect on the complexities of modern relationships.
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Coach by Mary Robison
First published: 1981
Type of plot: Domestic realism
Time of work: The 1970's
Locale: Pennsylvania
Principal Characters:
Harry Noonan , the CoachSherry , his wifeDaphne , their daughterToby , a college news reporter
The Story
Harry Noonan dries breakfast dishes as he waits for a college reporter to arrive for an interview. He has been hired to coach the freshman football team. His wife, Sherry, asks him to rent a studio for her, where she can do her painting. Their daughter, Daphne, is looking in the refrigerator for something to eat. She wants to stay for the interview, but Coach says no. He remembers a fall night seven years earlier when he set Daphne on a football field during the half-time ceremonies; she was dressed in a football uniform with the number "½" on her back. Now, Daphne asks him for help with her algebra. He declines, so she asks her mother, who says forget it.
After the reporter, Toby, arrives, he asks only a few questions and takes no notes. He then engages Daphne in conversation. Afterward, Daphne remarks that Toby was nice and Coach tells her that she would be wasting her time on him—like "trying to light a fire with a wet match." When the newspaper interview appears the next day in the Rooter, it is full of inaccurate information, making Coach furious. Trying to console him, Sherry says that Daphne liked it.
Coach takes Daphne out for ice cream in order to explain why he is renting an apartment for Sherry. He denies Daphne's suspicion they are separating and tells her about Sherry's five-year plan for self-development. Coach is distracted from the conversation when one of his new players drives up with his parents. Upset that he cannot remember the boy's name—Bobby Stark—Coach mockingly chastises him for eating ice cream, aware that Bobby's parents and other people are grinning.
When Coach begins his football practices, he learns from Bobby that he has a good chance of coaching the varsity team next year. When he goes home, excited with this news, he is disappointed to find no one there. Sherry has left a note saying she is at "her place" and Daphne is with "Toby K. someplace, fooling around." Coach grabs a beer. While he showers, Daphne comes home. Hearing sounds, Coach goes to the bedroom, expecting to find Sherry, but is surprised to find Daphne dancing and posing in front of the mirror. When he mocks her, doing "the Daphne," she is embarrassed. Coach begins telling her his good news, but she only says "let me out, please."
Back in the kitchen, Coach drinks more beer and begins constructing a "dream team" roster of former players. Daphne comes downstairs, wearing a team shirt with Go on the front, Griffins on the back. Pretending to be Daphne, Coach apologizes to himself for her being rude to him upstairs. Conciliating him, she asks Coach about the prospects of his team this year. He offers her a beer. Sherry comes in with a few groceries. Daphne grabs the Oreo cookies. Sherry asks for a beer and says that she cannot paint. Coach reassures her, but she adds: "An artist? The wife of a coach?"