Boys U10 #1 Finds Missing Mojo!

     The U10 Boys #1 team had a brilliant return to form Saturday morning and despite the final score I could not have been happier with their performance.  There is no way to sugar coat what we saw in their game Thursday evening of the past week.  That was some poor soccer with an ugly combination of panicked, disorganized play and, frankly, lazy play.  Drew's five goals was an impressive achievement but other than our guest sub, Karolyn L., he didn't have much real help on the field.  Following that game we were able to put together a brief scrimmage and that seemed to me a good way to wash away the bad taste of a poor outing.  Just play.
     On Saturday they showed up ready to go and played with real energy and intelligence the entire game and we saw much more of the sort of all-out effort that has made these players so effective in the past.  We're still walking back into defense a bit or even getting caught ball-watching, but overall the players were more mobile and loose throughout the game.  There was also more commitment to using their dribbling skills and they did so to great affect.  It's strange though because the team we played Saturday was just as aggressive to the ball as the team we played Thursday.  Oh, well.
     In any case, even though we didn't come out on top in terms of score the boys were clearly enjoying this game more and they finished feeling very upbeat despite the loss.  They know they played better and I'd say that an important element in the return of their confidence as a team was the combined performances of Connor and Braden.  Returning to play after missing Thursday's game due to a cold, Connor was once again earning his new nickname, "The Blender", by trying to spin his way past every defender and in this game he combined that great ball skill with a new-found ability to strike into the open space that he creates for himself.  He was pressing the other team's last defenders repeatedly and had plenty of very good chances.  It was great to have him back.
     When Braden got out into the field after a first half stint in as keeper he wasted no time in taking the ball right into the other team's goal box on an amazing solo run that started at midfield.   As the half went on he had several more great runs and while he did make a very pointed effort to throw in one "stop-hop-and-play" move he was generally making his way up field using a very simple sort of shielding dribble to keep possession of the ball in tight spaces.