Since the last time we played them, Coach Eric's team has improved quite a bit. Their best player, Nathan, has really stepped into the leadership role on that team and it's made a huge difference in the quality of their play as a team. But in the meantime the Sharks have gotten better too. With the way they've been playing lately I thought it best yesterday to work with Coach Eric to mix things up a bit so that all the players would get as much as possible out of the game So, after letting the Sharks play as a unit for the first quarter we mixed the two teams together in an effort to have a more balanced competition and that was good for both teams. With our players having to face each other in some situations they get a better test of their skills. For Coach Eric's players it meant that whichever side they ended up on they would feel they were in the game. That's really important as we often see players who are actually making great progress in practice sort of check-out of games where the competition is much stronger. We've even seen that with the Sharks on occasion. So with yesterday's set-up we were able to put all the kids in a situation where they would play hard the whole game. I know that for some of the Sharks it was a little confusing and maybe even a little disappointing (they like winning) but overall it was a good game.
It was nice having time prior to the game for a little practice and I was really pleased to see so many of the Sharks put the new move we worked on into use right away. We'll keep working on those skills as much as we can.
Monday, December 10, 2012
Monday, December 3, 2012
Sharks Classic!
First thing...I'm sorry I had to miss the Shark's game prior to Thanksgiving. I was at a soccer coaching certification class that weekend and Jackson's mom was kind enough to cover for me with the Sharks. Thanks Coach Sharon! I hear the team had a great game including a goal for Mckenzie which I'm pretty sure would have been her first in U8. I wish I could have seen that.
As for this week's game, it was the match I'd hoped it would be as the Sharks faced Coach Dropic's team. I also coach what's called a U9 academy team which is a sort of entry level club team and many of the players on Coach Dropic's team are on that academy team too so I was pretty sure that what we would see Sunday would be a skilfully played game and I wasn't disappointed. The Sharks were working their moves in where they could and generally playing with good control, always trying to move with the ball rather than just kicking it away. Coach Dropic's players did the same and the result was a beautifully played game with some fancy footwork and a lot of scoring.
I had Jackson for two goals, one a solo effort that he made after very patiently taking the ball to within ten feet of the keeper before shooting and the second off of a beautiful crossing pass from McKenzie. It was perfect. Along with her assist I also scored McKenzie for a half a goal as there was one that seemed to go in off her foot and Sam's at the same time. Half of that one for Sam gave him two and a half total! It was an amazing game for Sam as he came back into the game late in the first quarter after suffering a dislocated thumb while playing keeper at the start of the game. He dealt with the whole thing with amazing composure, barely complaining about it. Once his thumb was back in place (thanks Dr. Amanda!) he got right back in the game and went on a scoring spree.
Of course Elizabeth was the leader on the field in so many ways. She jumped in to play keeper when Sam got hurt then when back on the field she was communicating with her teammates constantly. At one point I even heard her complimenting one of the other Sharks on a play. Zachary was trying hard to use his moves in this game and he had some very good runs at the goal and some great tackles on defense. Lillian did her best too and was playing with a cool head the whole game. Wyatt really picked it up in the second half and made great strides in playing with more confidence in his skills.
Great game to watch.
As for this week's game, it was the match I'd hoped it would be as the Sharks faced Coach Dropic's team. I also coach what's called a U9 academy team which is a sort of entry level club team and many of the players on Coach Dropic's team are on that academy team too so I was pretty sure that what we would see Sunday would be a skilfully played game and I wasn't disappointed. The Sharks were working their moves in where they could and generally playing with good control, always trying to move with the ball rather than just kicking it away. Coach Dropic's players did the same and the result was a beautifully played game with some fancy footwork and a lot of scoring.
I had Jackson for two goals, one a solo effort that he made after very patiently taking the ball to within ten feet of the keeper before shooting and the second off of a beautiful crossing pass from McKenzie. It was perfect. Along with her assist I also scored McKenzie for a half a goal as there was one that seemed to go in off her foot and Sam's at the same time. Half of that one for Sam gave him two and a half total! It was an amazing game for Sam as he came back into the game late in the first quarter after suffering a dislocated thumb while playing keeper at the start of the game. He dealt with the whole thing with amazing composure, barely complaining about it. Once his thumb was back in place (thanks Dr. Amanda!) he got right back in the game and went on a scoring spree.
Of course Elizabeth was the leader on the field in so many ways. She jumped in to play keeper when Sam got hurt then when back on the field she was communicating with her teammates constantly. At one point I even heard her complimenting one of the other Sharks on a play. Zachary was trying hard to use his moves in this game and he had some very good runs at the goal and some great tackles on defense. Lillian did her best too and was playing with a cool head the whole game. Wyatt really picked it up in the second half and made great strides in playing with more confidence in his skills.
Great game to watch.
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