I continue to be extremely impressed with the soccer skills our boys are displaying on the field. This was evident in both individual skills and team play. We also had to overcome an early goal, which can definitely change the mindset. Improvements in this game over previous: 1) I saw several left footed shots / passes; 2) we had even more overlapping runs (through balls) with players communicating well; 3) we covered for each other and did not bunch up nearly as much. We also did a nice job on the corner kicks--the defense did not cover our short drop pass to Dylan on the corner, allowing us to move the ball into the box through a series of passes, and on the corner we did cross Gideon made a nice volley that he directed on target. That is a fantastic play requiring great coordination. We had a number of shots on the keeper that didn't have enough power to get across the goal line before the keeper could intercept them, but this will come. It is more important to be where we are now by making opportunities with great passing and dribbling. We also took a couple dangerous shots from outside--the most memorable in the first half was a lob by Jackson W that was dropping fast but still just cleared the crossbar. Dylan also connected on a ball that dropped in on the keeper. The more shots we take from outside the 18 the more the defense will have to spread out to cover this, leaving our strikers better opportunities for runs into the box. We had numerous well-played balls inside their penalty box.
We were generally strong on defense, but gave them an early gift on a goal kick down the middle of the field--our players need to move to the wings and provide the keeper with targets--better to give the other team a throw in vs. a break away 1 v 1 down the middle. The good news is we tied up the game on a nice curving free kick by Jackson H just outside the 18. He's been helping us out significantly this season with Logan sidelined. It was still good seeing Logan on the bench again tonight and he tells me the bones are healing well.
Our second goal came after a series of beautiful passes, starting with Trent controlling and moving the ball from the middle to the right wing, where a blond kid made a great cross to another blond kid who finished the ball low and hard into the net. The latter kid was Ethan, who had informed me before the game that he was going to score today--what I really liked is that his goal came off of such a nice assist (Tate or Dylan?) Tate also released a rocket across the face of the goal from the same right wing and he just missed the far post. We kept up pressure trying to add onto the lead, while exhibiting great composure on defense--Gideon gave the bench and fans a demonstration of how to stay cool under pressure with a series of 3 or 4 pull backs then winning a throw in by kicking it off the opponent. I really like that our defense does not panic and just boot the ball out of bounds when pressured. Kyler provided us with continued strong, heads up defense and I rotated other players in and out of the other fullback position. Our opponents did well to earn a late tying goal. We got bodies in front of the ball, but that was a powerful kick. We'll need to work on denying our opponents entry into the penalty box.
I think our most memorable moment was the "shared" header between Nick and "Big Hobbs" (aka the brutesquad). There is a soccer drill where two players must balance a ball between their foreheads as they move in a concerted direction--I think Hobbs could have won that battle, but Nick wins the dribbling contest and he definitely put on a display of footwork as we battled out the last minutes trying to find a winning goal. We had a couple opportunities, but had to settle with a hard fought tie. No complaints there, and we have secured ourselves a slot in the upper bracket for our final three games. Last season we finished as "Top of the Bottom" with three strong wins. We'll get a chance at "Top of the Top" this season. We still have one more game against Idaho (directions below) before the three game tournament.
Thanks again to the parents and fans--our bench is great at supporting the kids and filling their emotional tanks without yelling out for the referees to make calls or otherwise complain. Our opponents have a bit of a reputation and I heard a few remarks from their side, but overall they were good (one of their fans even remarked to me afterwards that he was happier with the behavior from their side this game than in previous encounters). I'm very appreciative of our players and fans--its hard not to get excited when watching the kids play so well!
Cheers,
Coach Dave
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