I was looking through training videos on youtube and came across this. Check it out. The kid has some nice skills. Not saying he's a future pro, it's just fun to watch a kid who has clearly put some effort into developing his talents.
Monday, December 26, 2011
Sunday, December 18, 2011
Week Eight. End of an Era.
What a great final game. Both teams played so beautifully. The Sharks were all grace and power and the Bears were all tenaciousness. The highlights of the game are here.
I went back through the old posts here trying to find the first appearances of Sam E., Jackson, Austin and Elizabeth. This Saturday was their last game on the U6 team and seeing how far they'd come I wanted to have a look back at where they started. In that final U6 game they played with a team unity that was too graceful to simply be called "cooperative"...it appeared choreographed. These four play with energy, even exuberance and yet also with calmness and assuredness, dominating the play, and they also lead their teammates in subtle (and in Jackson's case, not so subtle) ways and have, over the last few sessions, introduced new players on the team to the Sharks' signature style.
I would describe that "style" in one word: "fearless". You'd assume that by fearless I meant their willingness to crash into other players for the sake of getting the ball. Certainly every player on the team has that quality. But what I'm thinking of is a fearlessness when trying new things, when daring to use a new move or learn some new skill or trusting your teammate to play his position while you play yours. In short, they don't fear failure. They take chances and risk stumbling over their own attempts to expand their skills all for the sake of getting better at the game they love, and it seems that for them, for these four players, that has always been their natural attitude. If the Sharks have a style it is "fearlessness" and the foundation of that style is joy. Like Ernie Banks, the Sharks would always say "let's play two."
So, looking back I found the earliest mention of Sam E. in a post from January 10th of 2010.
Jackson, Elizabeth and Sam Atkins joined the U4 team in the Spring of 2010 and jumped right in, showing their quality immediately and immediately beginning to form a team-bond with Sam E. That was a great session and then it was on to U6 and their first session as the Sharks. Austin, I think, started playing with the team in that next outdoor session, Fall 2010. What a transformation he's made. In that first post that mentions Austin I noted that his powerful kick would be effective once he got the hang of keeping his head as to where the goal is. Now, I'm sure, he could find the goal with a blindfold on.
A post from this past May shows the Sharks beginning to reach their potential as a team in terms of working across the field in a unified attack. That game, looking back, really set the bar. From then on we all wanted to see them working like that and they just kept getting better and as new players came on, like Diego and Samuel, they just had to get with the program because that's how the Sharks play. Now Sam E., Jackson, Elizabeth and Austin are going to make the jump up to U8 and I know that what will happen is that they will, as a group, challenge their new teammates to get better by continuing to set the bar high. Here we go!
I went back through the old posts here trying to find the first appearances of Sam E., Jackson, Austin and Elizabeth. This Saturday was their last game on the U6 team and seeing how far they'd come I wanted to have a look back at where they started. In that final U6 game they played with a team unity that was too graceful to simply be called "cooperative"...it appeared choreographed. These four play with energy, even exuberance and yet also with calmness and assuredness, dominating the play, and they also lead their teammates in subtle (and in Jackson's case, not so subtle) ways and have, over the last few sessions, introduced new players on the team to the Sharks' signature style.
I would describe that "style" in one word: "fearless". You'd assume that by fearless I meant their willingness to crash into other players for the sake of getting the ball. Certainly every player on the team has that quality. But what I'm thinking of is a fearlessness when trying new things, when daring to use a new move or learn some new skill or trusting your teammate to play his position while you play yours. In short, they don't fear failure. They take chances and risk stumbling over their own attempts to expand their skills all for the sake of getting better at the game they love, and it seems that for them, for these four players, that has always been their natural attitude. If the Sharks have a style it is "fearlessness" and the foundation of that style is joy. Like Ernie Banks, the Sharks would always say "let's play two."
So, looking back I found the earliest mention of Sam E. in a post from January 10th of 2010.
"Will and Sam, attacked the ball tirelessly."Not very portentous. But by the next game it had become apparent that Sam was going to be a player. In the post from January 18th of 2010 I quoted Sam as saying that he wanted to play "that run around with the ball everywhere game". That, in retrospect, is a portent given how disciplined his play was this past Saturday. He was making beautiful passes, seeing the whole field, and of course still throwing in a jaw-dropping move here and there. At one point in this last game Sam made a spin move and the Referee, who is a varsity player herself, said to me "did he just do a Maradona?" I thought "yes, but he probably made it up himself." I also found this (now) ironic quote from Sam in a post from August of 2010, one of his first U6 games:
"Coach, I'm never gonna score a goal."
Jackson, Elizabeth and Sam Atkins joined the U4 team in the Spring of 2010 and jumped right in, showing their quality immediately and immediately beginning to form a team-bond with Sam E. That was a great session and then it was on to U6 and their first session as the Sharks. Austin, I think, started playing with the team in that next outdoor session, Fall 2010. What a transformation he's made. In that first post that mentions Austin I noted that his powerful kick would be effective once he got the hang of keeping his head as to where the goal is. Now, I'm sure, he could find the goal with a blindfold on.
A post from this past May shows the Sharks beginning to reach their potential as a team in terms of working across the field in a unified attack. That game, looking back, really set the bar. From then on we all wanted to see them working like that and they just kept getting better and as new players came on, like Diego and Samuel, they just had to get with the program because that's how the Sharks play. Now Sam E., Jackson, Elizabeth and Austin are going to make the jump up to U8 and I know that what will happen is that they will, as a group, challenge their new teammates to get better by continuing to set the bar high. Here we go!
Week Eight. Bears and Sharks One Last Time.
The skillful play of the Sharks was a pleasure to watch and we saw an organized attack that was the culmination of all the work the team has done together over the last two sessions. Sam and Austin played with perfect spacing most of their time in and always seemed each to know where the other was. Thanks to that organized play Karolyn was in position to get her first goal of the session off of a beautiful pass, from Elizabeth I think. And among the younger players Jagger was a real stand-out too, playing some of his best soccer yet. He was playing more "heads-up" than ever before.
It was great to have Trey back and he seemed to be playing "heads-up" too. Of course, he did get caught off guard by the blast off his shins from Jackson that resulted in an own-goal. Jackson's grin and shrug after that incident was priceless.
The Bears aren't yet able to manage the kind of team-attack the Sharks have but what they do have is tenaciousness and determination. In the third and fourth quarters especially they played just brilliant defense against the best the Sharks had to offer. Micah pitched a shutout in the third and then Zyckik was rock-solid in the fourth. Ava and Maddox were chasing the Sharks out of their goal repeatedly and smartly turning up field for runs toward the Shark goal. Carson had a great game too and he and Ashley both had their moments of ball-control grace but just couldn't penetrate the Shark defense. I was thrilled to see how un-intimidated the Bears were compared to their previous matches with the Sharks and especially given that in this game the Sharks were more effective than ever before. That was a great game for both teams.
I've said this at the end of sessions before but I have to say it every time. It's an honor to work with your kids. When I see them play well and really enjoy themselves, really give themselves to the joy of the game, I feel grateful for having had the chance to work with them. Thanks.
It was great to have Trey back and he seemed to be playing "heads-up" too. Of course, he did get caught off guard by the blast off his shins from Jackson that resulted in an own-goal. Jackson's grin and shrug after that incident was priceless.
The Bears aren't yet able to manage the kind of team-attack the Sharks have but what they do have is tenaciousness and determination. In the third and fourth quarters especially they played just brilliant defense against the best the Sharks had to offer. Micah pitched a shutout in the third and then Zyckik was rock-solid in the fourth. Ava and Maddox were chasing the Sharks out of their goal repeatedly and smartly turning up field for runs toward the Shark goal. Carson had a great game too and he and Ashley both had their moments of ball-control grace but just couldn't penetrate the Shark defense. I was thrilled to see how un-intimidated the Bears were compared to their previous matches with the Sharks and especially given that in this game the Sharks were more effective than ever before. That was a great game for both teams.
I've said this at the end of sessions before but I have to say it every time. It's an honor to work with your kids. When I see them play well and really enjoy themselves, really give themselves to the joy of the game, I feel grateful for having had the chance to work with them. Thanks.
Sunday, December 11, 2011
Sharks, Week Seven.
Something strange happened before this week's game. As we were warming up Sam E. asked me who we were playing. I told him it would be the green team and his response was surprising. "Aw, this'll be easy." He didn't say it in a bragging way but rather with a tone of disappointment in his voice. The Sharks like winning but they've become so dominant against their competition that some of the kids are feeling a bit restless. I don't think our four goal keepers had more than six touches on the ball combined in this game.
Obviously the Sharks are a team with several very talented players up and down the line-up. Certainly we have players who can completely dominate a game when they are in, combining great ball skills, drive and field awareness. But beyond our team's individual talents what makes the Sharks so formidable is their teamwork. On offense the foundation of that teamwork is the team's general understanding that they need to stay spread out and trust each other to handle the ball. At the beginning of this game the threesome we had up front were bunching a bit but you expect that early in the game as the kids are so anxious to play. By the final quarter they were spreading the field beautifully and Sam looked like a Beckham back there in fullback distributing the ball to Elizabeth and Jackson on the wings. Even in the first quarter they had their tempo by the end of the period and Samuel and Diego were both keeping their distance from Sam and then dashing into position for shot opportunities. Samuel had a two goal day, in fact. The extent to which these kids "get it" already is remarkable.
more after the break
Despite all the goal scoring fireworks though it is on defense that the Sharks really control the game. That defense begins with the offensive front which, whoever the personnel are, never concedes the ball. Sam, Jackson, Austin, Elizabeth, Samuel, they'll all chase the ball back into midfield to recover. Then there is our midfield line, usually manned by Austin, Samuel, Mckenzie, Jagger or Karolyn. Every one of these players has a good fundamental understanding of how to maintain position between the ball and the goal and how to then get the ball out of our end and up to our strikers. You see it over and over again, the other team's fast break rejected easily, their attackers caught bunching in one corner by one of our defenders smartly switching fields.
I'm thinking about all of this right now because I know that after a game like this one it might be easy to assume that what made the difference was the overwhelming physical talents of some of our players. Certainly the parents of the other team might see it that way. And yes, Sam is graceful and powerful, Elizabeth is surefooted even when surrounded by defenders, Austin has a light touch and incredible speed and Jackson has the field awareness of Aaron Rodgers. But when you watch the game closely you see that what is really amazing is the extent to which all of our players are anticipating. That is the most important skill any of them can develop. I coach one U8 team and help out with another. I watch all of my daughter's U12 games. And in both situations you can't believe how many kids still only react to the action when it's already too late to be effective. They still don't know how to anticipate.
One specific game highlight I wanted to note was a new head-fake that Samuel has developed. I saw him use it early in the game and didn't really see it as anything intentional. He looked right while running with the ball and then cut left while still staring to his right. But when I saw him do it again in the final quarter I realized it was intentional. He was looking the defender off to the right, deceiving him with his eyes and then cutting left. Awesome.
Jagger was cracking me up too as he made some slick moves out there and then in each case he looked either at me or his Dad for acknowledgement. As I laughed at that the first time I was also calling to him, "why are you looking at me?" He's a hoot. Great game Sharks.
Addendum
Austin, Sam and Jackson played for one of my U8 teams Sunday evening. They were completely at home on the field and in some ways dominated the game. They certainly showed some of my U8 players how it's done. All three of them had excellent chances at goals and all three played with tireless energy. What a great game. Thanks to my son Owen and his teammate Bain for going out of their way to welcome the new players.
Obviously the Sharks are a team with several very talented players up and down the line-up. Certainly we have players who can completely dominate a game when they are in, combining great ball skills, drive and field awareness. But beyond our team's individual talents what makes the Sharks so formidable is their teamwork. On offense the foundation of that teamwork is the team's general understanding that they need to stay spread out and trust each other to handle the ball. At the beginning of this game the threesome we had up front were bunching a bit but you expect that early in the game as the kids are so anxious to play. By the final quarter they were spreading the field beautifully and Sam looked like a Beckham back there in fullback distributing the ball to Elizabeth and Jackson on the wings. Even in the first quarter they had their tempo by the end of the period and Samuel and Diego were both keeping their distance from Sam and then dashing into position for shot opportunities. Samuel had a two goal day, in fact. The extent to which these kids "get it" already is remarkable.
more after the break
Despite all the goal scoring fireworks though it is on defense that the Sharks really control the game. That defense begins with the offensive front which, whoever the personnel are, never concedes the ball. Sam, Jackson, Austin, Elizabeth, Samuel, they'll all chase the ball back into midfield to recover. Then there is our midfield line, usually manned by Austin, Samuel, Mckenzie, Jagger or Karolyn. Every one of these players has a good fundamental understanding of how to maintain position between the ball and the goal and how to then get the ball out of our end and up to our strikers. You see it over and over again, the other team's fast break rejected easily, their attackers caught bunching in one corner by one of our defenders smartly switching fields.
I'm thinking about all of this right now because I know that after a game like this one it might be easy to assume that what made the difference was the overwhelming physical talents of some of our players. Certainly the parents of the other team might see it that way. And yes, Sam is graceful and powerful, Elizabeth is surefooted even when surrounded by defenders, Austin has a light touch and incredible speed and Jackson has the field awareness of Aaron Rodgers. But when you watch the game closely you see that what is really amazing is the extent to which all of our players are anticipating. That is the most important skill any of them can develop. I coach one U8 team and help out with another. I watch all of my daughter's U12 games. And in both situations you can't believe how many kids still only react to the action when it's already too late to be effective. They still don't know how to anticipate.
One specific game highlight I wanted to note was a new head-fake that Samuel has developed. I saw him use it early in the game and didn't really see it as anything intentional. He looked right while running with the ball and then cut left while still staring to his right. But when I saw him do it again in the final quarter I realized it was intentional. He was looking the defender off to the right, deceiving him with his eyes and then cutting left. Awesome.
Jagger was cracking me up too as he made some slick moves out there and then in each case he looked either at me or his Dad for acknowledgement. As I laughed at that the first time I was also calling to him, "why are you looking at me?" He's a hoot. Great game Sharks.
Addendum
Austin, Sam and Jackson played for one of my U8 teams Sunday evening. They were completely at home on the field and in some ways dominated the game. They certainly showed some of my U8 players how it's done. All three of them had excellent chances at goals and all three played with tireless energy. What a great game. Thanks to my son Owen and his teammate Bain for going out of their way to welcome the new players.
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