It's fair to point out that I do not pick DS up from chess, so all this is secondhand. I think it's reasonable to say that I can't know whether the coach is just excited to see young talent (and wants to make sure we understand that there IS talent--my DH is laid back and does not exude tiger parent in any way) or whether he is eager about the idea of adding DS to their team. I can tell you that my DD spent a year in this club and the coaches never spoke to us once.