NSC Cup (Blaine, MN)

NSC Cup U14 Girls “A” Flight

My idea behind competing in the top U14 flight at the NSC Cup this year was to continue to find the girls some tough opposition as we prep for regionals in late June.  Though we’ll have a number of U14 Premier League games before we travel, the earlier I can look to address individual and team strengths and weaknesses, the more time I’ll have to try and fine tune the team prior to competing in what is sure to be one of the toughest events the girls will experience playing at their own age group to date.

My goal was to give a detailed synopsis of each game, and like I have done for all our games this year, I took notes during each game.  However, I failed to bring my own notebook and was forced to find blank sheets of paper in my backpack for each game.  These blank sheets happened to be the back side of the 6 roster sheets that my manager had given to me on Saturday, and I needed to turn one of these in to the refs prior to each game.  The thought never even crossed my mind that I was turning in rosters that had game notes on the back of them, so suffice it to say that I was a little surprised last night when I looked to begin typing in the game details that I only had notes for the final game.  Brainfart.  Guess that’s what happens when I’m dealing with multiple teams at an event (U10s, U11s, and U13s), in laws in town for the weekend, an 8 month old baby girl, and a wife who is I’m sure, during these busy soccer months, questioning my choice of profession.

Regardless, here is what I remember from the games this weekend.

Game #1 vs St Croix Crush

The fields up at the National Sports Center were lush. I don’t know what type of grass is grown up there, but whatever it is, it is sticky.  That’s the best way that I can think of describing it. It makes it tough to pass balls on the ground, especially for the younger 11v11 girls age groups, and it is very difficult to dribble on.  If it’s not the grass, they must fertilize it with stick em.  I can’t count the times one of our girls tried to dribble or take a touch in one direction, only to wipe out as their body momentum took them forward but the ball didn’t move an inch.  Anyway, this is not an excuse as both teams played on the same field. Just an observation.

St Croix was big and athletic we a couple of dangerous players.  They caused us some trouble in the opening 10 minutes with long balls over our defenders that I think Mudd (GK) thought would bounce or roll to her.  In the NSC grass though, these balls hung up and forced her into some 50/50 challenges that were unexpected.

Sting went down with a knee injury in the opening minutes.  She hobbled off the field and slumped down on to the folding bench next to me.  She was obviously in some pain andtold me she had been trying to turn with the ball and a St Croix defender had run into her plant leg while she was twisting on it.  I know knee injuries are a not-so-rare occurrence in the girl’s game though I had yet to see one with the teams I’ve coached.  I hoped Sting’s injury was nothing too serious, though she didn’t feel she could play again in the game.

We were down to 15 players (Jilly missed the weekend due to family commitments) which was more than enough for a game but would leave us a little shorthanded for a weekend tournament.

Other than the first 10 or 15 minutes, St Croix did not threaten our net much.  We created some good attacks after getting used to the field conditions a bit, but the half ended 0-0.

We got on the board early in the second half off a corner kick.  Scratch (RM) was playing sniffer (the girls we put in front of the GK) as Bidi served in the corner.  The St Croix GK stepped in front of Scratch to attempt to catch the ball, but she was only able to get her fingertips on it.  The ball’s path was deflected a bit and Scratch was caught off guard as the ball headed straight at her head.  She ducked reflexively and the ball ricocheted off her back and into the goal.  Just like it was drawn up!

The game ended 1-0. Good start to the event for the girls.

After the game, a couple families and I headed over to the stadium field to watch the Minnesota Lightning's home opener and give our support to our assitant coach, Megan Almanzo (current Lightning player).  It was a fun game that saw the Lightning end up victorious 2-0 over the Chicago Gaels.  It was neat for the girls to watch Meg play, and doubly rearding to see three Tsunami girls combine for the Lightning's first goal.  Second half sub Sheri Eckstrom (BTFC U17 Blue team) found U17 teammate Tamara Strahota on a great pass out to the right flank from the center midfield area.  Tammy streaked (not literally) down the right wing and found Caroline Smith (BTFC graduate) with a great cross.  Smith finished cooly and the Lightning were on their way.

Game #2 vs Dakota Gold Flames (SD)

Though not as strong as St Croix, Dakota Gold came out and at least tried to knock the ball around.  However, they happened to catch us in prime form as we put together one of our best performances as a team this year.  The Tsunami girls were sharp, played with more composure than I had seen in many previous matches (even through State Cup), were solid in the back and dangerous in the attack.

We went up 1-0 on a great goal.

The ball started with Soph (LD).  Soph played around the back to Hannah (CD) who continued the switch of play out wide to Getch (RD).  Getch took a touch forward and found Nash (CM) checking to in midfield.  Nash played a one touch ball our wide to Bidi (RM) who looked up and slotted a ball into to Ripper’s (RF) feet.  Ripper rolled her marking defender, played a quick give and go with Macky (LF), battled past another defender and sent in a high floating cross into the box.  We had two girls in the box battling for the ball after the GK got a hand to it but failed to clear the danger area.  Brownie (LM) came streaking in, pounced on the loose ball and volleyed it into the back of the net.  The goal exemplified a number of coaching points we’d be focusing on in our games this spring – changing the point of attack, getting the ball out wide, finding feet with passes, quick combination play, and reading your teammates and getting numbers in the box when we have good crossing opportunities.

Macky (LM) got our second goal off a corner kick.  Blondie (RM) or Nash (CM) I can’t remember which one, sent in a well stuck ball that sailed over the GK into the far post area.  Macky came streaking in on the dead run and headed the ball home.

Hannah put us up 3-0 right before half with a well struck free kick from about 30 yards out that sailed over the Flames GK’s head.

Macky (LM) went down early in the second half when her left-footed follow through after an attempted cross saw her collide knees with the defender who was looking to block the shot.  Now I’ve known Macky for 4 years.  She is a truck out on the field and has no fear of physical contact.  She has seen her share of knocks in the run of play and I know she would only come off the field if she was really hurt.  The only other time I’ve ever seen her leave the field was when she broke her hand in a fall.  This was after she continued to play with the injury for another fifteen minutes.

Needless to say that when I saw her limping and looking to come off the field I knew something was up.  Down to 14 players now, we battled on.

Becs put the game beyond doubt in the second half with a nice volley from the top of the box.

2-0-0 heading into Sunday afternoon with potentially 3 subs.

Game #3 vs Bartlett Ladyhawks Green (IL)

The Ladyhawks were a very physical team.  They were quicker and more athletic than the Dakota Gold team and thus caused us a bit more trouble.  Mudd was forced to make a few saves, but still not tested much as our back four defended well.

On the attack we hit a total of 6 posts in the game while the Ladyhawks GK played out of her head, making some excellent saves to keep the game tied.

In the end, we ended up with a 0-0 draw in a well fought game.  The girls were a bit disappointed with the result, but we knew we were already through to the semis as the group winners.

Semifinals vs Bangu Tsunami 92/93 Green

I was looking forward to a good game this morning against our U14 Green team.  I knew they’d be decent and would provide a good match up for us.  I believe we have more overall talent but they have some dangerous players who could cause us trouble.

The girls came out and continued to play well, looking to knock the ball around yet direct more times than not.  Maddie (LM) got our first tally, again off a corner kick.  Nash, Blondie, and Bidi had all been hitting the ball well this weekend making us dangerous on these set pieces.  I believe Nash (CM) hit the ball into Maddie at the far post.  Maddie has scored some great header goals for us this year and this one was no different.  She attacked the ball with confidence and hit the header back towards the near post (as she should).  The ball was hit well but bounced off a Green team defender who, IMO, was simply trying to duck out of the way from the rocket-like projectile aimed purposefully (I’m sure she thought so at that moment) at her face.  The ball ricocheted up towards goal and off the crossbar up into the air.  Maddie settled herself nicely after the initial header, located the ball in the air, and headed the ball a second time into the net.

We went up 2-0 in the second half off another well-worked goal.  Lily (CM) played a great diagonal through ball from the center of midfield to the right corner for Millie (RF).  Millie got to the ball first, turned, dribbled by her marking defender and passed the ball back to Lily who had followed the pass to offer support close to the corner of the penalty box.  Lily took a control touch and then hammered a ball into the upper left side netting.

2-0 at the final whistle and off to the championship game vs Wayzata.

Championship vs Wayzata Rage

A lot of soccer “experts” had written off Wayzata this year as a team that would struggle to hang on to their Premier status.  I was not in that camp.  Though the Wayzata team had lost two key players last fall (one to Bangu Blue and one to Eden Prairie), I knew they had a solid core group left intact with some talented and physical athletes left in the mix.  Moreover, I regard their coach, Tony Peszneker, as one of the premier coaches at any level in this state.  His teams are always organized and disciplined, and he has the ability to put players into roles on the field that best allow for favorable results.

The girls came out and played well.  Wayzata was fast and physical in the back and had a couple of very fast forwards.  It was difficult for our forwards to get a hold of the ball and difficult for us to find a good rhythm.

We got on the board about 10 minutes in when Bidi (RM) found Ripper (RF) on a nice little diagonal ball.  Ripper’s marking defender made the mistake of appealing for an offsides call with her arms raised AND stopping her play looking for the call.  The linesman’s flag stay down, and Ripper took a good prep touch and struck a low hard shot into the far post.  I couldn't tell if Ripper was offsides or not, but she finished well.

Blondie (RM) came close to putting us up 2-0 a few minutes later as she Wayzata’s left defender and rocketed a ball off the crossbar.

1 -0 heading into half time.  I don’t know whether I could sense the game changing and if this had a subconscious affect on me, but half time was all about praising their effort and attitude, regardless of the game’s outcome.  Win or lose I told the girls that I was proud of them and of how they had played this weekend.  I knew the girls had given everything they had and their efforts needed to be recognized.  I also knew this statement would be lost on many of them after the game if we ended up losing, and wouldn’t be as meaningful if we won, thus the timing of the speech at halftime.  I encouraged them to go out and continue to play hard, enjoy the competition and atmosphere, and be confident in their play.

To Wayzata’s credit, the majority of the second half was theirs.  They came out harder than us, more aggressive and more purposeful on the attack.  I could tell that the Tsunami girls’ legs were tiring, especially in our midfield, and this was leading to more and more pressure on our defense which would undoubtedly lead to more breakdowns.

Looking at it now, to try and help secure the 1-0 lead I should have dropped one of our forwards back into midfield and changed to a 4-5-1.  We would have likely been able to shore up the center of midfield and help alleviate some of the pressure on our back four.  Learning experience for me.

About 18 minutes into the half, Wayzata had their best chance to equalize.  The scrum in the box (I can’t remember how it came about) saw the ball drop to a Wayzata forward left alone about 8 yards from goal.  Time seemed to slow.  OK, 1-1 I thought as the Wayzata defender got her shot off.  However, Mudd made a fantastic diving save and parried the ball out away from goal.  The deflection bounced straight out to another Wayzata forward who was quicker to the rebound than our defenders, and she swung at the ball from about 5 yards out.  OK, now it’s 1-1 I thought.  Yet again, Super Mudd somehow got to her feet and dove to save the next shot as well.  The ball bounced straight out again to the top of the 6 yard box and all I remember seeing was a streak of yellow as yet another Wayzata attacker got to the loose ball.  OK, it can’t possibly not be 1-1 now I thought.  However, the Wayzata forward proceeded to volley the ball over the net and into the creek behind the goal.  How did we survive that?!?!  I remember seeing our parents all jumping up and down on the sidelines recognizing the stellar play of our GK, and the skill was not lost on our girls on the field as they all surrounded Mudd high-fiving and hugging her.  All this happened in 6 or 7 seconds.  Time then returned to normal.

A few minutes later Wayzata finally broke through and got the equalizer that I believe they deserved.  A Wayzata forward broke through our defense and struck a low, hard shot that bounced off the inside of our left post and out across our goal.  Our clearance wasn’t far enough out of danger and fell to a wide Wayzata player on their right flank.  The wide player served in a low, hard cross past three of our defenders in our box to an unmarked Wayzata forward at the far post who had all the time in the world to finish.

The goal sparked our girls into action and we pressed the attack for the remainder of the game. 1-1 at the final whistle and on to extra time.

Extra time and potential PKs pose interesting coaching situations.  At the higher levels of play in similar situations, coaches most assuredly play their top 11 players for the short (2 x 5 minute periods) overtime.  For me, again in what I feel is in the best interest of overall player and team development, I wanted everyone to experience an overtime session in a what the girls surely feel is a “big” game.  My most important concern was having the girls who were confident in taking PKs on the field at the end of the second period, so this is what dictated my lineup.  I started the first OT with many girls who indicated that they were not confident in hitting a PK if it came down to it, substituting in the more confident girls at halftime of OT.

Not much happened in the ten minutes of OT so we were off to PKs.

As Tony and I were chatting together on the sidelines just prior to the PK shootout, he mentioned that it was good for the girls to go through this experience in a game that didn’t mean much of anything.  I’ve known Tony for a long time and he’s as competitive as I am.  However, we see many things the same in terms of player development and were both on the same page here.  Win or lose this would be a good learning experience for the girls involved.

We shot first and our first three kickers (Lily, Millie, and Maddie) all converted their spot kicks.  The first three Wayzata players also made theirs with solid shots.  Mudd got a hand to the first, which was a high, hard shot up the middle, but could not redirect the ball enough to prevent it from going in.  Nash, our fourth shooter, hit the left post, and Wayzata's fourth shooter made her shot.  It came down to our fifth shooter, Hannah, and the Wayzata GK made a diving save to win the match. 

It was a tough way for any team to lose after a hard fought game, but it is good to get this experience now in the event that we face similar situations down the road in bigger events.