192ft2

Coventry/HMMS Recaps

A couple solid wins see us heading to the state semi-final this weekend.  Two goals against in 180 minutes of 8v8 soccer isn't too bad.  10 goals in three games is a good scoring clip as well.  A few thoughts, and some themes that we've been working on all year which got highlighted came up the past two games:

The Coventry Goal

A turnover in our half, a lack of ball pressure following the loss of possession, an excellent pass across the width of the field where our midfielder was too close to the wide attacker, allowing the ball over his head and into the space behind; that space was too big for the GK to cover - the ball wouldn't have gone deep enough into the 18 anyway - and it became a simple footrace which Cole lost.  The finish was very good, leaving Henry little chance of saving.

A good goal for Coventry...they worked the situation nicely.  But the turnover, lack of transition speed of thought to defend, the very slight mis-positioning of Cole, and the boys could see how important these details can be.



The Quick Boys Response

All three subs touched the ball en route to CJ's tally; Danyal took on defenders and made them miss, Marc swung a fine cross in to the near post where Cole had run all the way to from the far side of the team, and CJ made himself an easy option for Cole to pass to then did some heavy lifting himself to find a gap to shoot through.  Within two minutes, the team found the best possible response to conceding first.

The starters who had come off shortly before the two goals were scored showed some eye-rolling on the bench as all three subs contributed in some way to conceding.  A player who shall not be named here and I had some pretty frank words about team ethos.  Each of the boys, and this is a theme these days too, especially as we enjoy a little run of successes, must understand that the teammates they have are all the teammates they'll get.  Perhaps U13 will bring changes, but until then, in Rummy's finest rhetoric, we go to war with the army we have.  Being condescending, snobby, or arrogant has, in fact, never made a team better.  They're young, they're highly competitive, and they are keenly aware of differences...but the very diversity of personalities and skill sets within the team may very well be what makes us a tough team to beat. Accepting that none of us are perfect, even while we strive for perfection and demand accountability, will tighten the bonds of the team.

I would also offer some acknowledgement that CJ, as our main central striker, is to be forgiven for having the most turnovers on the team.  His job quite simply demands it.  Max and Franny, as the central defenders, must be far more conservative and stingy with their loss of possession.  Different jobs have very, very different standards, and it is a grave mistake to criticize a teammate based on unequal criteria.

The HMMS Goal

A turnover in our half led to a hopeful shot (perhaps it was intended to be a cross?) lofted near-perfectly to the top corner of the back post; nothing Henry could be expected to do.  Given the score at the time, and the relative comfort the QBoys were playing with, it was a non-event, really.  However, the turnover in our half, a relatively rare occurrence, is clearly to be avoided.  We can be quite content to play long clearances into the opposition's half, or even into touch, in the event that we cannot find a way to play out of pressure.

This highlights the increasingly difficult nature of the game; as the players get better, each possession matters more.  While we can limit damage by clearing balls and defending, the players will play with ever-greater confidence and try to play out of situations with slimmer margins of error.  So the gray area between a simple clearance and a decision to pass and dribble out of pressure becomes very small.  We must keep the ball to have offensive chances, to rest the back line, and to tire the opponent.  But we mustn't lose the ball in our half trying to over play.  And the difference is the decision-making skills of a very young person!

Technical Notes

In both games, the opening minutes were tense and evenly played.  There is a period of time in every soccer match where the teams must evaluate the game plan versus the game realities, and make adjustments.  Players must be empowered to change the plan, to adjust and decide things for themselves.  More on this in a moment.

As the QBoys eased through these early moments in both games, their technical skill rose to the forefront of the contest, and few teams have the team-wide technical ability of ours.  This in no way makes us unbeatable, but it gives us a chance with any team.  Weathering that storm is an important skill to acquire.  Survive, don't concede and pay attention.  Then, if the right adjustments are made, and the tunnel vision clears up, the players can be themselves and start problem solving in a proactive fashion.

For what seems like the thousandth time, a wind-aided, or in the case of the girl's team (read up on their outstanding effort in the spring PAGS league here) a sloped pitch assisted in making the difference.  With a size four ball, skinny little legs and an incomplete repertoire of long-ball options (at an individual, technical level) these environmental conditions make a difference.  Consider the Bayern Munich approach on the 23rd versus Barcelona; the center circle was a puddle...and it hadn't rained in Munich for a couple days.  The grounds crew soaked the center of the park and made the famous Barca passing game just a step slower, and easier for the Bayern defense to catch up to.  Even more than that famous case, U12s who don't pass to feet well will struggle playing up hill or up wind.  For our part, if we defend with that advantage, those aforementioned long ball clearances to remove threats from our half of the field are that much easier.

In the HMMS game, the main gist of the half time talk was simply that if we made a few more passes, the team defensive concept of HMMS wasn't tight enough that our players couldn't pass through them.  But they did also seem comfortable leaving three and even four players at midfield as we attacked their back 3.  This meant that if we lost the ball in front of the back 3, the counter was on, and Franny and Max, mainly, were left to sort out a 2 v. 4...which they did well, but it's still asking a bit much, even of those two boys!

There's a lack of either confidence or knowledge in the team...in the sense that we ought to regard ourselves as capable of getting a scoring chance we truly want, versus settling for the half-chance the defense gives us. A bit more composure, a couple extra passes, and we can fashion scoring chances that are higher percentage, and possessions that end behind the back 3.  This is crucial for the above reason that so few teams defend with the whole team and so a ball lost in front of a defender becomes an instant counter.  A ball lost behind a defender forces that player to face his own goal to recover the ball, allowing a far more effective press to be applied by a QB, if not the entire team.  This snuffs out the counter, and forces teams to attack us slowly, which doesn't favor anyone not in LMSC colors.

At the end of the technical notes, I offer this thought: players must be capable of evaluating and problem-solving on their own.  This is why the shouting from the sideline is so abhorrent to knowledgeable soccer people the world 'round.  Coaches and parents who instruct from the touchline cripple the ability of a young player to both make decisions and mistakes in the game.  Sure, a shout of "man on" or "time" is useful...but "shoot/pass it" serves only to panic a kid, and removes their responsibility in the process of learning the game.  It all sort of makes me wonder what a math test would look like if the parents could sit next to their kid while he or she took the exam....It is a player's game, unlike most others.  Confident, empowered players are effective players.

The few folks who hang around training may claim I do enough yelling at training to take Saturdays off, but careful observation ought to find that I holler about technical events more than tactical (decision-making) events.  For one, tactics are useless if a player isn't technical enough to execute the plan.  But also, a player's skill is his ticket to freedom.