Just a quick note on one of the best games I've ever seen the girls play. We were short a couple of players today and we were facing the Flyers, one of the two toughest opponents in the league. We played with no sub the entire game but my girls were skillful, tough and tireless. Despite getting down 4-7 in the first half they managed to collect themselves and hold the Flyers to only one goal in the second half while pouring in another six goals themselves for a thrilling 10-8 win.
Ava was the star of the game with an impressive hat trick of goals, every one of them hard earned. Her touch on the ball was beautiful today and she was especially effective using her first touch to get well into space before anyone could close on her. But if you only saw the goals she had then you missed the real brilliance in Ava's play today. She broke away from the ball and got open in space for passes or looped back off the attack to cover in defense so many times that she had really gotten the other team's coaches' attention by the end of the game. Late in the first half I could hear the two coaches on the other bench remarking on Ava, saying how amazing it was the way she was breaking so smartly off the ball and reacting to the run of play. She looked like a seasoned pro, an attacking center back who is always annoyingly involved in the attack, giving the opposing defense one more player to mark. Then just when the other team gets away on a break, there's Ava, exasperatingly goal-side of the ball when they thought they were in the clear. She was really fantastically poised and in control the whole game and she brought that against a team that's capable of some very physical play.
Everyone else on Girl Power felt that sort of physical pressure from the Flyers too. High elbows, shirt grabbing, palms in the face and plenty of two-handed leverage on the walls. I even saw a few "picks" being set! But Girl Power just took it all in stride and put their faith in their skills. That's what I always want to see from them. Their skillfulness and their confidence in what they can do gives them a fairly cool attitude as a team and when they face pressure I want them to respond by being even cooler. I was so proud of how they came out in the second half and played the way they know how to play.
This game saw all of the girls picking up their field awareness and except for a few lapses late in the game they all were moving smartly around the field, attacking then covering, without being rooted in any one position. Ava's the leader in this regard as I noted but we saw so much great total field play from everyone else too. Zoe in particular brings a level of energy and toughness to protecting the goal and then combines that with a fearless willingness to dribble out rather than kicking.
Ashley was playing with as good a touch on the ball as I've ever seen from her when facing a tough opponent. She was getting her foot up on top of the ball for more control and softer touch and it paid off in goals and chances. Eileen put on a clinic showing us all how you dribble out of trouble, including one amazing sequence where she took on four defenders in a row, all within a space of about ten square feet, beating them all to get into the open.
Olivia was holding down the defensive duties for us in the first half, no instructions from me. In the second half she stayed high in a striker position, floating up and back along the right side, again with no instruction from me. The girls had simply agreed on their own at half time to rotate positions. They figured it out. Olivia found herself then in the position to have multiple shots on goal and put one of them in.
Abby came out in the second half on fire and played with more of a punishing sort of intensity than we usually see from her. Most games she's like Christen Press; effortless skill, cleanly zig-zagging, almost un-foulable. Today she was like Abby Wambach; imperious with lightning quick finish.
Finally there was Hailey, standing on her head for a near shut out in the second half. And the punts!? Wow! She nearly booted one of them to the attacking line in the other team's half! Her touch on the ball while in the field in the first half was fabulous and on one run she made just the most graceful little step over move, not so much a fake but as a sudden change of direction. Just beautiful.
It was great game technically but it was also a real statement for the team in terms of their heart and determination. They were in a tough spot and they came out and imposed their will on the other team, staying true to their style of play. Well done Girl Power.
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