U15 Premier League Game #3 vs Coon Rapids

I wasn't looking forward to this game.  Coon Rapids was a big, strong, physical team.  Not a group I wanted to see prior to our State Cup final game on Wednesday.  We've been playing so well, apart from a decent but not-spectacular-as-our-last-5-games showing against NL yesterday.  I was a bit worried about us picking up an injury today that would throw us out of sync for Wednesday.

I was tempted to forfeit the game today.  I've said it all along, our standing in our local Premier league is the least important of my concerns for this team this year. 

I didn't want to tell the girls to be careful of injuries in this game, for if they went into tackles thinking about not getting injured, that was a sure way to GET injured.  Instead, we talked a bunch about keeping the ball moving.  We'd avoid the 1v1 physical battles if CR couldn't get close to the ball.  If a player would hang onto the ball too long, they invited a tough tackle from an opposing CR player. 

It didn't help that Blondie was sick and not in attendance, and Lily had a school commitment and was also missing.  With Maddie still nursing a back injury, we had 3 subs for the game.  I would have no chance to rest some players for Wednesday, and the increased fatigue the girls would feel due to our low numbers on the night could lead to increased injury potential.  Not ideal.

I wanted to lighten the mood prior to the game with a fun warm-up.  Again, trying to minimize the focus on this game and on getting a result today.  We played Rugby for a good 15 minutes, with the girls whooping and hollering around the field, enjoying the lively warm-up game.  We finished with some fun shooting and the girls were ready.

 Last year, we had lost and tied this CR team.  We were the better soccer team in each of those encounters, but CR's size physicalness had been the great equalizers to our skill.  I told the girls last year that as our physical presence caught up with CR's in the coming years, our technical abilities would see us get the results.  I've been with younger play-up teams since 2001 and witnessed this "catch up" with my old Woodbury Inferno team.  We got beat by a Cottage Grove team 6-0 a couple times as U11s and U12s, mainly because they had one player who could run by all of us.  The rest of their team was physical and our strength was no match for them.  Then, in our U13 year, the games all of a sudden became much closer.  The following U14 year, there was no comparison between the two teams - with the Woodbury group showing complete dominance as the physical gap had been narrowed.  I know this is due in part to roster changes, but let me make my point.  Take the Woodbury team vs the CG team now at U16, and I bet it's close to double digits in the end result.

My Check Tire Pressure indicator had popped on right as I arrived in the Bielenberg parking lot.  I called someone to come and check it out, not wanting to drive more and risk damage to a rim to to a semi-flat tire.  The help arrived right as the game kicked off, so I spent the first 10 minutes or so in the parking lot with the Ford Roadside Assistance crew.  I couldn't see much of what was happening in the game as all the play was down at the far end of the field.  This was a good thing though as that was the end we were attacking :)

As I finished in the parking lot and headed back to the bench, I heard a cheer go up.  Apparently, we had scored a great goal, a quick little Give & Go between Millie (LF) and Jilly (RF), ending with a good strike by Millie to give us the lead.

I settled onto the bench and begun watching another simply fantastic performance by the girls.  We were on absolute fire.  Composed and relaxed on the ball, sharp and creative in the attack, solid and tough on defense.  CR had some very fast players, but our back three, even without Blondie, were up to the task.  It was a joy to watch. 

Our pressure finally paid off just past the 30 minute mark as Macky (RF) headed a CR goal kick back into the area.  Bidi (RM) raced to the ball, colliding with the CR GK as she slipped the ball into the net from 6 or 7 yards out. 

Again, like I like it, not much to change or correct at halftime.  The girls were playing some fantastic soccer.

8 minutes into the second half, we got the all important 3rd goal as Millie (RF) was hip checked in the box by a CR defender.  She converted the PK with a hard shot to her left.

Another 10 minutes later, we got our fourth.  Ripper hit a free kick from about 35 yards out.  It skipped right in front of the CR GK and squirted past her into the net.  Not a high percentage shot, but not an easy one for the GK either with the wet surface and pace on the ball.  That took any wind left in the CR players' sails out of them, while giving us additional though unneeded confidence.

We then proceeded to put two more in in the span of the next 4 minutes.  If we had a Top 10 Best Goals, these two would likely be in there.  Both involved too many sequential passes to list all the players involved here. 

For the first, the ball got to Nash (LD) about 15 yards in our half right in front of our bench.  She played a 20 yard ball up to Macky (LF), following her pass and demanding Macky hold the ball ("Hold it!), triggering the overlap combination.  Macky chose to use the overlapping run as a decoy, turned inside the field on her right foot and served a ball to Millie (RF).  The ball was cleared out to Korky (Def Mid) at the top of the cirle.  Korky took the ball out of the air well and ran right at the defenders, forcing someone to commit to her.  As the CR central defender stepped up, Millie pulled away from her to create a passing lane for herself, and Korky found her with a slotted through pass.  Millie took a touch and hammered the ball home from about 16 yards out.  Lots of great coaching points in this goal.

A few minutes later we had another terrific passing sequence that must have seen 7 or 8 players involved.  The ball eventually was played to Bidi (RM) on our right flank, 20 yards from the endline.  She used her patented Stop & Go move to create some space, then served in a driven cross to the near post.  Getch (Att Mid) got there on the run and flicked the ball into the net with a volley.  

Cook and I, in bad taste in some hindsight, couldn't help LOLing.  The goals were so pretty, so well worked, so cooperative.  It was just fun to watch.  

6-0 on a team we have never scored on until this year.  Are we 6 goals better than them?  No, but we were today.  Could they beat us next time.  Of course they could.  But we play better soccer.  More importantly, we are playing excellent soccer at the right time of the year for our other desired team goals. 

And no one got hurt :) 

State Cup Semifinal vs Northern Lights

Our semifinal State Cup game against the wild card winner, Northern Lights.

I came into the game a little nervous.  We were playing well.  Very well.  But I had no idea what to expect from NL.  I had seen them play a few minutes against Wayzata, then another few minutes against Wings earlier in the tournament, but didn't get much from the games.  They had some athletic girls but were no match for us technically.  However, a less technical team could find a way to bunker in and make scoring difficult for us.  0-0 into PKs and anything could happen.  

Sunny but Chill May morning in Coon Rapids.  I arrived early so that I could grab the side of the touchline that had small bleachers.  For us shorter guys on a field with a big crown, I preferred to be elevated during the game if I could.  Hannah was there early as well, so we left the cars to practice her PKs.  Hannh, right footed, preferred to strike the ball with the inside of her foot to her right.  She wasn't able to get a lot of power behind the shot though.  Not that that is needed, but when nerves hit at crunch time, I prefer that the girls step up and strike the ball with some pace. 

So we worked to change her PK shot to her left, and she proceeded to hit 5 or 6 in a row to the lower left corner.  With really good pace.  Nice.  Hopefully we wouldn't need it.

My challenge to the girls pre-game was for them to get themselves warm-up well to try and get an early lead.  For teams like NL who are somewhat intimidated by a team like ours, an early goal would be a huge advantage for us.  How do I know they are intimidated by us?  Because I know their coaches were calling around asking others how they could possibly beat us :)   

We came out in our 3-5-2 formation that had seen us play some of our best soccer over the last 4 games.

We got on the score sheet 12 minutes in as Millie (LF) beat two defenders at the top of the penalty box to the left of goal, and fired a low, left foot shot far post.  Good start.

We had chance after chance to find our second.  Our wide mids were finding a ton of space weak side (when the ball was on the other side of the field) but we struggled to finish off long diagonals and crosses.  We finally capitalized in the 30th when Blondie (LD) hit a long diagonal from about 40 out that bounced behind the NL defenders and Nash (RM) finished on the volley at the far post.

A few minutes later, Soph (LM) served a ball in that Millie (LF) did a good job of fighting for in the box, to the left of goal near the endline.  She pulled the ball back to Jill (RF) who took her chance well for our third.

3-0 at half.  We were playing OK.  Just OK.  Nothing brilliant, nothing flashy, but nothing bad either.

No changes at halftime, just encouragement to the girls to take some pride in their play, clean up our touches a bit, and look to make better decisions when in possession. 

2 minutes into the half, we half cleared a ball to a NL player about 30 yards out from goal.  She took a touch and hit a high, looping shot that sailed over Zazu and dropped under the crossbar, hitting the far post side netting.  I could feel the slight momentum shift now as the NL team started to believe that they were in this.  I could hear their coaches cheering and yelling out to their players that they now had the wind behind them and to keep shooting, as if that was the difference in the first half. 

It took some time for the girls to settle in again after that goal.  We lost a bit of composure on the ball and the game got ugly for a spell.  However, 10 minutes later we regained our 3 goal cushion.  Getch (Att Mid) received a pass near midfield, in front of our bench at the left side of the field.  She cut inside and began dribbling to the center of the field, looking to spring Bidi (RM) with a diagonal.  She cocked her leg back to hit the long ball, but a NL forward stuck her leg between the descending foot and the ball, and Getch kicked the ball and the leg at the same time.  The girls went down and the ball squirted to Ripper (Def Mid) a few yards away.  Ripper took a touch and played a through ball to Millie.  Millie raced onto the ball past the NL lights defenders to goal, and I saw the AR's flag on the far side of the field go up.  That's not offside I screamed - in my head.  I began to shake my head but the whistle never came.  I snuck a peek at Millie as she finished her breakaway at the near post, glanced to the lineman with her flag still raised, and then looked at the ref, who was heading back to midfield to look after the injured NL player who was still down.  We might have just caught a break, I thought.  It wasn't offside in the first place, and I'm not just saying that.  I was right there and I know the rule.  But that hasn't stopped refs from blowing the call in the past (I use "blowing" here as a double entendre).

The AP eventually put her flag down (put her flag down!), and the game went on.  I would eventually  overhear the AR talking to the ref after the game as we were walking off the field.  "Bangu's 4th goal was offside.  I had my flag up but you didn't see me.  I would have made a bigger deal about it if the goal had mattered more."  Hmm.  Mattered more, huh?  I always tell my players that a 2 goal lead is the most dangerous lead in soccer.  The next goal is always huge.  If the team that is behind gets it to make it a 1 goal game, it sets up the rest of the game as a tough contest.  If the leading team get the next goal to go up by 3, that team makes things a bit easier for themselves from then on.  It was 3-1 at this point of our game. 

10 minutes later, we effectively put the game away with another goal off a cross, this time from Nash (RM) into the box for Bidi (LM) to finish with her second touch.  

At the 28th minute, Millie (now at Att Mid), beat two players up the right flank and cut into goal.  She spotted a wide open Gratz (LF) at the top of the 6 yard box, and Gratz 1-touched the ball home. 

2 minutes later we tallied our final stike of the game, as Millie (Att Mid) once again (instrumental in 5 of our 6 goals on the day) was on the mark finishing a long ball over the top.

7-1 and rolling on into the final on Wednesday.

* * * * *

Our U14 White team pulled out a come-from-behind victory, beating Wayzata 2-1 in double overtime.  Our U12s upset the Tonka United 13s in PKs to win their semifinal, setting up the all Bangu U13 and U14 finals on Wednesday.   

Field Training - May 17

Trying to get some training in when we can. 

Nice, light, early morning session in Woodbury prior to tomorrow's State Cup semifinal against Northern Lights.  Cook ran the girls through an exercise working on playing out of the back (something we struggled a bit with at times against EP on Thursday).  It stared a bit slow, but the girls got into it, grasped the needed concepts, and were sharp and lively 20 minutes in. 

 We then spent the remaining time on corner kick work and penalty kicks.  Hoping we'd never let it come to that, but better safe than sorry.

The East U12s scheduled training right after us. Kaasa and I had talked early in the week about conducting a shootout contest between the teams, so our training ended and their's began with the match up.  

The fearless little 12s proved up to the task, converting a good share of their shots on Zazu, with AJ (their GK) making a few very good saves.  The 12s were more likely to need PKs in their upcoming State Cup semi or maybe even final, so it was nice to see the girls get into it.   

MRL Game #8 vs Eden Prairie (MN)

Our next to last MRL group match prior to the First Division playoffs in mid-June. 

Nice large field at Miller Park in EP for the game, though the ground had recently been punched (aerated).  Hard chunks of cored dirt scattered the field, and the ball took unpredictable hops constantly.   

Comfortable and confident in our 3-5-2, the girls put on another solid performance.  Even Tom, their coach, commented in the first half that it was a clinic on the field.  With possession heavily skewed in our favor, and more than our fair share of very good looks at goal, we couldn't find the back of the net until around the 30 minute mark. 

After a loss of possession on our throw in deep in EP territory to the left of goal, Macky's (RF) persistence after the loose ball saw it pop out to Millie (LF) about 5 yards from the touchline.  Millie cut back with her left foot towards the middle of the field and drove in a cross to Bidi (RM) at the far post.  Somehow, with the ball flying at her chest-level, Bidi contorted her body and connected with her right foot as she was falling off balance.  The EP GK, moving from her right to her left across the goal to play the cross, couldn't stop and react quick enough as the ball was played back where it came from into the far post's (relative to Bidi) side netting.  Fantastic finish out of nothing, great coaching point for the girls at halftime as there was not a ton of pace on the shot, but it was textbook placement as the GK was moving in the opposite direction. 

Once again at halftime, Cook and I didn't have a lot to say.  No real changes needed, the girls were playing great.  Just simple encouragement to concentrate on finishing technique as we should have been up by at least 3.  We needed to be
able to put team away, not to mention demanding more technical focus as we will not get as many opportunities at goal in the upcoming competitions (Manchester United Premier Cup, MRL First Division Playoffs, and hopefully the Region II Championships).

10 minutes into the second half we doubled our lead.  Ripper (RHM - right holding mid) headed an EP goal kick back into the penalty area and Millie (LF) pounced on the bouncing ball to slot past the onrushing GK.

6 minutes later, Macky (LF) won a 50/50 ball 15 yards in our half and found Gratz (RF) with a great through ball.  Gratz raced to goal on a breakaway and calmly passed the ball into the lower left corner of the net. 

We gave one back two minutes later as some lax passing in the back gifted an EP midfielder with the ball about 20 yards from goal at the top of the "D".  She cut back to her left foot and hit a great shot off the inside of the left post to make it 3-1.  Not much Zazu could do about that one, but we never should have given possession away like we did where we did.  Another good lesson to emphasize after the game about getting too confident with a lead and after a goal, allowing a weaker team a lifeline back into the match.

No real threats on our goal after that, though the same didn't apply for EP's.  We weren't able to capitalize on anything else, so the game ended 3-1 in another really solid performance overall by the girls.

Here's how things stack up with one game left on our end.

 

U15 Premier League Game #2 vs Wayzata-2

Our second game in the 2008 MYSA U15 Premier League against Wayzata-2, a team that had earned Premier status last summer, promoted from the U14C1 league. 

Our first game at Bielenberg in Woodbury.  Decent field - good size for us (large), with a good surface, except in the middle of the field which was a bit hard and bumpy.  

Still without our GK, Zazu (formally known as Tori), Maddie once again stepped in to tend our net.

We continued to work on our 3-5-2 shape, with Becs (CD), Blondie (LD), and Hannah (RD) in our defensive roles.  We'd get Gratz some time back there as well today, though now mainly in a back 3 instead of a back 4, we're looking at using Gratz's speed up top.  

Prior to the game, I took our forwards (Macky, Millie, Jilly, and Gratz) and our two attacking mids (Lily and Getch) to do some shadow play work.  Just some simple movement exercises for our forwards as the ball is played side to side in our midfield.  One showing, one deep.  If a ball is played into a forward, she looks to find the other (non-passing) midfielder with a lay back, and that mid looks to spring the second forward with a dangerous ball over the top into space.  Buzz used to do this all the time with the Thunder forwards and mids, just to try and give attacking players some ideas relative to where the ball is in our midfield.   

The game went well for us.  Another very, very solid performance on our end as we created a number of chances early.  Defenders were solid, though tested by some speedy, strong Wayzata-2 players.

We got on the board twice in the first half.  The first, 7 minutes in, was set up by Millie (LF) as she fought for a loose ball near the endline to the right of goal, won her battle and pulled the ball back for Bidi (RM) who fired a great, low shot hard into the far post side netting. 

Our second came 12 minutes from the end of the half on a corner.  Bidi (RM) drove a near post ball in that Macky (RF) flicked on the dead run towards the back post.  The ball hit the post hard and rebounded across the goal for Gratz (LF) to tap in.  

Numerous chances throughout the remainder of the contest, though we failed to tally another.  Solid defensive work by our back 3 (Becs, Hannah, and Blondie) and no real tough saves needed by Zazu (formally known as Tori) in goal.  

Another really, really good performance by the girls.  On a roll now, with back (EP U15 Prem) to back (Wayzata MRL) to back (today) showings.  Love to see the girls play like this.  Personally, and I'm sure I speak for Cook as well, it's a true pleasure to see concrete results of years of work.