Week Five: Smart Play

The highlights for me in each of the games this week were the moments when our teams showed some real "soccer I.Q." playing heads up on defense and cooperating smartly on offense.

For the Spiders it was Noah and Brennen leading the way with both of them playing very intelligently off of the ball. As Brennen's Dad put it after the game, you could see them "cutting off the angles" and anticipating where the ball was going next. That kind of thinking on defense always generates opportunities on offense and so we had a handful of goals again. Everyone else played well too. Xavier and Lucas really turned it on in the last quarter and Jill, again, was very close to having a shot on goal at least twice. She's improving very fast lately.

The key for the Seals was, as always, discipline. Our older U6 players are becoming very accustomed to playing the field as a team, working their positions and making great passes. Owen's goal this game was off a beautiful pass from Alex. Kaleb was solid in goal again and had great help on defense from Justin and Luke. Luke had one of those "I.Q." moments when he dropped back into defense as the other team was making a run along the wall. Rather than go directly to the ball Luke circled around to get in front of the oncoming player and was able to easily take the ball away and send it back into the other teams side. That was a really heads-up play. Kendall and Mac both had some good chances for shots on goal by being in the right place. Next time I just need to be sure that they are watching the ball.

The Bullets were, again, uneven. As with last week's game they seemed frequently to be playing in a panic on defense, sometimes chasing the ball wildly, sometimes standing frozen. Our offense, on the other hand, was very strong. I was really happy to see them running hard to get in position and, as I keep telling them, "taking their chances". Avery had both of our goals and the first was off of a perfect pass from Braden. The best part of that exchange was that Avery was calling loudly to Braden that she was open and he found her with the pass at just the right time. Avery also showed some very creative ball handling moves in the second half which demonstrated her incredible endurance. Erika and Lauren also played great in offense and I think Erika had at least four shots on goal, all of them well struck. Lauren took several hard spills and kept getting up and was even jawing at the opposition like an old veteran. "This isn't football, you know" she yelled at one boy who had bumped her hard. I love that.
Erin was our field general again, directing the ball into our offense and on several occasions sneaking up to take a shot when she could. Jake played courageously in goal again and even attempted a punt. I admire his chutzpah. Kyle D. was in as keeper in the second half and played very well and was especially smart on his throws and kicks.
Katherine played with great energy in defense and is still working hard at learning the game. David got to move up the field from fullback to midfield and he attacked the new position with great energy. Nicholas played both forward and fullback in this game and played both positions with impressive urgency. On offense especially, Nick was doing a good job of trying to stay in open space rather than chasing the ball. Jordan was great in defense, especially in the first half and, following Erin's lead she played so aggressively up the field that she seems to be begging to go in as a midfielder.
Helen had some great plays out of the defensive end and on two occasions took the ball out to the half line herself before passing. I'd love to see more of that. I'd love to see them all playing a little looser, enjoying the game as they play it. Parents, let me know if the kids think I'm too hard on them. It is a rec league after all and we're just here to have fun playing a game that they all already basically understand. My job is just to help them play it better if they want to, not demand that they get me some wins. I hope they all get that.