Explaining Soccer

Don't let the door hit you...

There was a nice little player on my younger daughter's team last spring who got promoted to the top team for the fall. Sorry to see the girl go, she was fun to watch. 

However, I am absolutely ecstatic that her parents are moving up with her. They are the loudest, most obnoxious, unrealistic people I've ever met. Good riddance. Watching a game with them on the sidelines was a horrible experience: Shouting, complaining, whining, coaching. They made each game--which are supposed to be fun experiences no matter the outcome--a gut-wrenching nightmare.

I can't tell you how happy I am they'll be gone. Oh wait, yes I can: I am VERY happy!

Buh-bye loudmouths!!

#5 Ball: Wow, that hurts!

OK. My oldest player has moved into #5 ball territory. She seems fine with it. But to me it seems like a big, round rock. We went to the park to kick around for about an hour the other day and I was sore the next day. Who woulda thought...?

No Winter Soccer League--Feels Really Weird

We switched to the local megaclub this past season, as I believe I've mentioned a while ago, and its philosophy is for players to rest a lot and train sparingly thru the winter. This is very different from past clubs we've been on, and it feels really weird. Past clubs trained a ton and played in indoor leagues. My players don't mind the time off, and they've been spending the extra time focusing on swimming. Seems like other clubs with a more aggressive winter training approach may gain ground and be better prepared for the spring. Or maybe their players will be on tired legs and our players will run circles around them.    

Our new club has a tremendous record of developing players, so I guess I'll accept what they say. But it sure feels strange...

In soccer what is advantage and how does it work?

I'm sure you've seen it happen, just like I have, a zillion times: Your player has the ball, is dribbling upfield and all of a sudden they get knocked over or pushed aside and the ref does nothing! And then, a few minutes later, your player commits a similar offense and the ref blows the whistle. What gives??

Well, let's assume it's not bad officiating (which it certainly could be, especially in youth soccer games). Instead, let's give the ref the benefit of the doubt and assume he or she is using the soccer concept of "advantage."

In soccer, referees don't just look at a foul in isolation. They look at what happens immediately after the foul, as well. If the "victim's" team retains the ball after the foul and is still on the attack (if it still has the "advantage," in other words), the ref won't (or shouldn't) stop play. They are supposed to let play continue so the attacking team doesn't lose a chance just because the opponent commits a foul. 

If the victim's team retains the ball for a few seconds and then loses it, the ref can still call the foul and bring the ball back for a restart. If the team retains the ball for a while, then the foul just sort of goes away and is never called. That lag time is very subjective and varies by ref.

Now, if the "offender's" team gets the ball right after the foul, the ref will (or should) stop play and the victim's team will restart play.

And if a foul is really, really egregious, the ref usually calls it right away no matter what.

There are concepts like "advantage" in more traditional American sports. In basketball, a player can still score after being fouled if they are in the process of shooting when the foul is committed. In football, if a penalty is committed during a play, that play continues and a team can decline the penalty if the play on which the infraction occurred gave them a better situation than accepting the penalty would.

So, knowing this won't make it any easier to see your player knocked down and the offender go scott-free, but at least you'll understand what's going on.   

Big Club v. Small Club, Part 1

I may have mentioned previously that we have been involved with small clubs and big clubs. There are positives and negatives to both, but here's one positive of a big club: Medical training.

My U12 pulled her hamstring in a tourney--which was run by our big club--over the weekend. The people at the training tent were great. The club's Head Trainer has called and e-mailed numerous times checking up on my player and providing treatment advice, as has her coach, and they also set up a free injury screening at a local sports training facility.  

The small clubs we've been in--as great as they have been--couldn't have touched this level of service. 

It's not the size of the dog in the fight...

As my players get older--the oldest now in U12--it's becoming shockingly clear that kids hit their growth spurts at different ages. There are girls barely 4-feet tall on my U12's team and others well past 5-feet. So, is there a correlation between size and how well a player does? It doesn't appear to at the younger age groups, but we'll see as the players get older. 

The tiniest player on my daughter's team has always been one of the most tenacious, speediest and most skilled. In talking with her parents, they say they knew early on she wasn't going to be one of the biggies, so they focused on getting her extra work to improve her skill. She already had the speed and tenacity.    

Up until U11, the little dynamo's size hasn't been a disadvantage, though it sure would have been fun to see a 5'3" U11 with her tenacity, speed and skill. It will be interesting to see, however, if as the other girls hit their growth spurts and the little dynamo doesn't whether she'll start to fall behind. The game definitely becomes more physical.

The little dynamo's parents are both on the tall side, but both say they grew late and expect their daughter to do the same. I'll definitely keep track of this player to see how she does when she's 5'8" with all of her other excellent qualities in tact. I hope she stays in the game and doesn't get discouraged if the big girls push her around for the next couple of years....

Of Soccer and Pierced Ears

My daughter wanted to get her ears pierced for her birthday this summer. I left the yes/no decision to my wife, who decided it would be OK. I did have input on the process, however, as I insisted they go get her ears pierced at least six weeks before the first tournament this season, which will be in mid-August.

Why? You can't take out the starter set of earrings for at least six weeks or the holes will close up, I'm told. At the same time, referees won't let players play with earrings in. I've seen on more than one ocassion players--and moms--break out in tears when given the order by refs to remove the earrings from freshly pierced ears.

I know this is a weird one, but here's the tip: If your player wants her (or his, I guess) ears pierced, do it right after the spring season ends. That way you avoid any unpleasantness on the pitch.

Earmuffs!!

Hey all, as most of you probably know YouTube is an awesome resource for finding great soccer clips. You can find training advice, drills and, most fun of all, unbelievable clips of amazing moves by the best players in the world. 

Watching the game is an essential part of learning the game, but most younger kids don't have the patience to stick out a whole game. So, YouTube clips are a great way to get them to watch. Just the right length to keep their attention.

However...a bit of advice learned the hard way: Keep the sound down when watching the clips. I'm appreciative of all the people who take the time to produce those really slick videos, but they often pick music that, well, isn't appropriate for young kids to hear. 

I am not complaining one bit; I'm long-time First Amendment guy. They do the hard work and can express themselves anyway they want. I can easily turn the volume down. All you need is the video, anyway. Just an observation... 

I can squeeze you in at 4 p.m. ...

When I was a kid in the Midwest no one played soccer. Baseball, football, basketball, sure. But about the only time I saw a soccer ball was once a year on International Day in gym class. We played the "American" sports constantly, however. After school, after dinner, all day during the weekends and summer. Just a bunch of kids heading to a field. That's how we got good at the sports and learned to love them.

That doesn't happen nowadays, at least not where I live. Kids just don't simply head to the park with a ball and a bunch of friends anymore. There are many reasons for this and they will no doubt be the subject of another blog entry. But as a parent I have to say most are valid. 

Everything is scheduled these days, even soccer and it is one of the easiest sports to just go out and play. Luckily, in my area some clubs are recognizing this and scheduling summer "play" time. Kids just go (or more accurately, parents just drive them), the coaches split up teams, get out of the way and the kids just play. It ain't the way it was in the old days, but it's getting the kids lots of no-pressure touches on the ball, and that's a good thing.

How are things done where you live?

Got volunteered--again!

I just spent an hour sorting through uniforms, warmups and backpack for one of my daughter's teams. I was apparently vounteered to be the team admin. That's OK. I complain, but actually I love it.