Rivalries are a great motivating factor in sports. Rivalry will keep fans coming to high school sports decades after they have graduated and may not even have kids or grand kids in school. Coaches use rivalry to motivate their players and extract every last drop of effort kids have in them for that contest.
This is a good thing.
However, I have witnessed a very bad example from a "coach" this season regarding a heated county rivalry. During our county meet a "coach's" actions were deplorable and unacceptable in my opinion. During the course of the dual it became apparent that his school was winning key matches and would win the county title. He began to scream at our wrestlers and our coaching staff "Never!!! Never!!! Never again will you beat us while performing a gator clap with his arms and hands. He was also pointing and screaming directly at our kids and coaches at the same time. This went on for at least ten minutes off and on. He also refused to shake our kids hands after each match and at the end of the match. This disdain and blatant hatred reared its ugly head again this weekend at sectionals. This "coach" would not sit in the chair during any matches between our kids so he would not have to shake their hands afterward. He would return to the chair against other opponents and leave the chair when we were facing off.
When a person takes on a coaching position that individuals action and attitude are usually taken on by the kids they are instructing and teaching. Because even in idle moments we are teaching. What are you trying to convey to these young kids? What traits, attitudes, mindsets, and core values are being instilled into these kids by this "coaches" actions?
We did vindicate ourselves at sectionals. However, none of our coaches or our kids or parents said a word to this "coach" though it was brought up.