Youth sports development programs provide an opportunity to reach young people in diverse communities with mental health and wellbeing programs. However, ensuring that mental health and wellbeing programs can be integrated into sports programs in a sustainable and engaging format for young people can be challenging. Embedding mental health and wellbeing content within on-field sports activities that can be delivered by local volunteer coaches may overcome some of these barriers. This study examined the perceptions of volunteer coaches delivering on-field mental health and wellbeing workshops within a junior rugby league development program and whether more coaching experience influenced coaches’ perceptions. Of the 48 volunteer coaches recruited, 28 coaches completed the survey: 12 (43%) with more than 10 years coaching experience; 16 (57%) with less than 10 years coaching experience. Compared to less experienced coaches, those with more coaching experience reported significantly more benefit in terms of coaches learning, enjoyment, and engagement from delivering the on-field workshops and having more confidence in completing some online post-workshop protocols. All coaches, regardless of coaching experience, reported high levels of benefit, acceptability, and credibility of the workshops for players. Assessing volunteer coaches’ experience in coaching youth sports may be important for determining their understanding and engagement in delivering mental health and wellbeing programs within youth sports programs.
Sluis et al. (Sat,) studied this question.