Our Last Horrah!

It was a great turn out for our last game, and therefore a coaches nightmare!  How do you make sure every player gets equal pitch time?

It's been great to see the boys maintain a really positive outlook throughout the season, and for a few fleeting moments in this game it looked like we were going to be rewarded for all our great teamwork. We actually went ahead 1-0; the first time this season we have been ahead in any game!

Brilliant!

The boys excitement was palpable! I was thrilled!

But it's often said that an early goal isn't always good!  It gave the opposition plenty of time to rally and rally they certainly did!  They came back very strongly, but we managed to stay with them for much of the game and it really wasn't like the score line suggested. We had our highest score of any game this season and Ander's strike for the second goad was superb!  Totally unstoppable.

So well done boys!  I am proud of how you conducted yourselves over the season.  you always smiled and had a good time.  You were always keen to chase the ball and look to press for a goal.  It was a pleasure to be your "Gaffer"!

Exhausted!

Easter is not a good weekend to schedule a game! 

I was really proud of the boys for competing without any subs against a very well drilled team. They ran their hearts out and were exhausted by the end of the game. I trust everyone had a reasonably quiet Saturday night!

I think we matched the opposition well but tiredness took its toll.  And although the score was something like 6-2 we should take encouragement from the fact that we scored 2 goals; the last in the final seconds of the game. Again we played hard until the end and we were rewarded!

Man of the match: All of you - well done boys!

Improving...

I think we replayed some of our earlier opposition on Thursday evening. And judging from their faces at the end I think they expected to do rather better than they did!

We did well against a very much better team. Our second half performance in particular was terrific and I think we pretty much matched the other team. Once again the score didn't really reflect how well we did. 

We are now giving other teams much less time on the ball; we hustle and put them under pressure when they have the ball and they then make mistakes! 

Nicolas scored a great goal from a free kick and Henry caused their goalkeeper all sorts if problems by blocking his view. We must do more of that!

Jack Dobbs got a good goal. He read the play well and was in the middle of the box when Ander crossed the ball. His finish was cool!

So well done everyone. We're getting closer to that "W"!

Man of the match: Henry for his pressuring of the goalkeeper at free kicks and for his constant support of both the offense and defense. 

We really are getting better!

We had a couple of good games this weekend.

On Saturday the opposition kindly lent us some players and with their help we put on a really good show!  I think we are finally starting to get to grips with the indoor game and are getting to understand our positions and the way we play together.

I was particularity impressed with our play on Sunday. And the opposition coach even came up to me afterwards and said he couldn't believe our record as we played so well.  You should all be proud of how we did.

Time and again we looked to pass the ball, we used the wall well and we hustled the opposition hard (but fairly) for the ball.  Our tacking was clean and we were not afraid to get involved and look to win the ball. Well done boys!

Man of the match:  Everyone. It was hard to single out an individual so I won't!

Is this further evidence that the mid-season break is beneficial?

I missed writing a report about the last game before spring break.  But perhaps that wasn't so bad as we had a torrid experience and lost very heavily to a good team that really didn't show any class or sportsmanship.  Still, that is now water under the bridge, or so they say.

So this week we returned to the Soccerdome, refreshed after Spring Break. Well at least the kids appeared to benefit from the break. There were several parents watching who looked like they needed a further "staycation" in STL to recover from some very long drives.  I feel your pain people. I arrived back in Kirkwood at 7pm last night after driving up from Florida.

And I believe we did benefit from the break.  Alright, so we lost again, but this was by far our best performance as a team. We used the walls, made some great tackles and were committed throughout! Jack Lester made some great saves in goal and we really enjoyed his big clearances down field. We want more of those! Our forwards played and hustled hard and our efforts were rewarded as both Nicholas and Easton scored. Our defending was stout too. Everyone played their part and it was terrific to see!

If we play like that again we will start to win games I have no doubt!

Man of the match: AJ Wallach. For his anticipation and reading of the game, his awareness to make the right tackle and knowing where his team mates were to pass to. Well done AJ!

We scored!

Oh dear! It happened again. We lost by letting in more than we scored! Actually quite a lot more as it turns out. I think the final tally was 11-1 which has a rather ugly symmetry about it.

But at least we scored.  Well done Ben Axlerod for the goal and Matthew Ewing for the assist!  I think the reason we scored was that we showed persistence in attaching their defenders and goalkeeper. We hustled them and put them under a lot of pressure and they made a mistake. Matthew hit the ball against the wall and across the goal and after a couple of missed clearances Ben scored.  I think if we cross the ball in front of the goal and use the walls more often we will score more! It was an excellent move!

But we still need to "show up" when we tackle. What do I mean?  Well, too many times we make a half hearted attempt to get the ball. We often turn our backs into a tackle. It's like we're somehow afraid of the ball!  Be strong! Watch the ball not the player and use your foot to get the ball. That's the only way to tackle! You don't do it with your back or backside!

But full marks and well done to everyone. I'm proud of the way you really enjoy yourselves and have so much fun on the pitch/field. 

Man of the match: Ben Axlerod for a great goal!

The Official Scoreboard said 7-0

Yes, the opposition was good. Some might say very good!  But did they really score seven? Erm...  yes, and probably more than that!  But let's not be downhearted!  On the plus side we clearly enjoyed playing today. Yes, Ander, I did see you curled up on the ground in a giggling heap at the end!

But where can we improve?  In a word DEFENSE! We let (at least) seven goals in, so it seems quite clear that we need to improve at the back. We were outnumbered too many times and we didn't defend high enough up the pitch. 

What do I mean by that? 

Well, firstly, the opposition often had three players attacking against our two defenders.  When the opposition have the ball our midfield players must run back and help out our defenders and our attackers must run back to help the midfield.

Secondly, we all need to make sure that when we do have to tackle or challenge a player we do not "jump in" too early. We should try to make the attacker slow down and try to move him towards the walls. Don't allow him to move to the middle of the field where he can pass or shoot.

Finally, the defenders should move up the field more. If we do this we do not give the opposition players so much time on the ball and we force them to make mistakes early. But if they do get past us we must run back try again.

But the most important thing about today is that we had fun and we enjoyed ourselves. We tried hard right up until the final buzzer and we thanked our opposition who were very good sports!

Well done everyone!

Man of the match: Everyone! For enjoying yourselves despite the score!