Eclipse Challenge Cup - Day #3

Saturday, Aug 16

Off to the fields at 8:30AM for a 10:30AM game.  Nice front row parking though games were already going on, and thus another relatively easy transport of the Hi-Pod equipment to the field.  Lots of weird stares though from parents watching the games in progress.  What?  Hasn't anyone ever seen an 80 lbs suitcase and 8 ft tall skinny cylinder being wheeled out to a soccer game before?

Hi-Pod set up took about 20 minutes.  Slowly getting the hang of it.

CIS, our morning opponents, was a good team.  I had told the girls that same thing even after we beat them 7-3 in April.  They played good soccer, with good ball movement and ideas, and were tough and athletic.  I did my best to get the girls ready for the challenge this morning, the challenge of playing a team who knew they got beat by us, who knew we were a stong team, and whose knowledge of all this would help them come out focused and sharp.  I was confident though that if we were able to match their intensity and desire we come out on top. 

I stayed with the 4-2-1-3 formation.  Though Normy was our strongest option in goal, I wanted to give her some field experience at this event as well.  I found out Novi, the third team in our group, had beaten CIS yesterday 2-1.  With what I thought would be a tougher game this afternoon, and likely only tougher games ahead tomorrow, this seemed like the best opportunity to get her on the field.  Mal and Phi Phi would split time today.  There was the danger of condeding goals on high shots since both girls maybe stand 5 ft nothing in heels, but that's OK.  Both are quick and have good reactions.  They just look so small in the big net!  

The first part of the game was a fairly even contest.  We played in their end more than they played in ours, but neither team could create anything dangerous. 

With about 7 minutes to go in the first half though, CIS got the go ahead goal.  A throw in to a CIS attacker and a quick ball into our penalty box saw us unbalanced.  Babes (Sweeper) tried to one time the ball out of danger on her week foot, but the half clearance went straight to another CIS attacker.  A great controlling touch and a percise left-footed pass back into the central area found the initial CIS attacked (the one who received the throw in) wide open in space with 4 of our girls unaware of her presence due to ball watching (following the ball with their eyes).  That attacker hit a one time shot with her left foot that sailed over Mal.  Lots of mistakes on our part before the ball found the net.  Will be a good one to go over in Video Analysis later.  

CIS Goal Against from Mark Abboud on Vimeo.

A minute before the halftime whistle, I feel we should have been awarded a PK off a great solo run by Chels down the left flank and into the CIS box.  Was I wrong?

CIS Missed PK Call? Probably from Mark Abboud on Vimeo.

At halftime we talked again about coming out in the second half and matching the CIS workrate and desire, battling harder for loose balls and 50/50 challenges, and looking to move the ball with quicker passing.  Phi Phi relieved Mal in between the posts and I pushed Babes up the field to give us more power in the attack. 

That move paid dividends early in the second half as her power gave us the equalizer.

CIS Goal For from Mark Abboud on Vimeo.

A few minutes later we had a good chance to take the lead and Babes found Wiki on a cross.  Wiki's shot was somehow saved by the CIS GK's heel as she jumped up and turned away from the shot at the near post.

CIS Great Chance from Mark Abboud on Vimeo.

We spent the next 10 minutes in their end but couldn't create anything dangerous.  

CIS then got some momentum back and pressed their attack, creating a dangerous scoring opportunity on us with some very good passing and movement at the top of our box.  The final shot just didn't pack the needed punch, but pretty good soccer to watch.

CIS Close Call from Mark Abboud on Vimeo.

The MTA girls stepped up the intensity and after a great flick from Chels and some strong physical play from Babes, we should have done better with a little more composure on this 4 on 1 opportunity.

CIS 4 on 1 from Mark Abboud on Vimeo.

But in the end, CIS would get the game winner with about 5 minutes left on the clock.  Again, from a throw in, CIS got down our right flank and into our box.  Maddog made a play to clear the ball then got completely steamrolled over by the CIS attacker.  I heard a whistle and looked at the ref, fully expecting a call to go our way, but he didn't have the whistle anywhere near his mouth.  Nothing.  What the heck?  Was the space time continum creating a visual warp field in this particular penalty box that prevented and ref from seeing infractions that occered here?  This was almost the exact same place that I felt we were fouled in the first half that he missed.  And where did that whistle come from?  Maybe I was hearing things.

I turned back to the field to see the CIS bulldozer hurdled Maddog and pounce on the loose ball.  I saw our defenders hesitate, also hearing the whistle, then pick up the defense again seeing the CIS player still playing.  The ensuing high shot over Phi Phi found the far post side netting to give CIS the result. 

CIS Goal Against 2 from Mark Abboud on Vimeo.

Crap.  I was fuming at what I thought was a clear foul that went ignored.  I yelled out to the ref, "Holy crap!  Didn't you just see that?  How can you not call that?  You just gave them the game!!!!!!"

Actually, I yelled that out in my head.  I harp on the girls to focus on controlling what they can control, and controlling the refs is not one of those things.  I can't preach something I think it super important to the girls and then demonstrate the exact opposite.  It's not like the ref is all of a sudden going to change his call.  It doesn't mean I can't think of making a case to the ref.  So we move on...

The CIS girls were obviously excited to come away with the win.  It was a tough battle though again I didn't think we played very sharp.  We'll see this team many times down the road I'm sure.

Eclipse Challenge Cup - Day #2

Friday, Aug 15

Off to the fields around 9AM for a noon game.  I'd like to say I was going out early to watch other U12 games but the tournament was set up so that all U12G played at the same time.  The girls were to arrive at 11AM for a Noon game.  No, I wasn't out two hours early to scout or game watch, I was out there completely paranoid that I wouldn't be able to set up the Hi-Pod. 

Thankfully we were the first round of games that day at the complex.  It would have sucked to have witnessed as what I envisioned to be the Leaning Tower of Hi-Pod come crashing down on the unsuspecting structural engineer (me).  Then again, it might be helpful to have someone at the scene with working appendages to dial 911 if I'm crushed beneath $5,000 worth of video equipment and aluminum tubing. 

Luckily with no games going on I was able to get front row parking and lugged the two cumbersome heavy-duty carrying cases out to the field.  The 80 lbs.  case was the heaviest, though the 8 ft long tubular case wasn't exactly easy to maneuver around solo.

It took me only about 30 minutes to set up.  Not bad.  I needed to wait for some help to telescope the camera up but all in all I was pretty psyched about the ease of use... once everything was brought out to the set up location.

The girls began arriving around 11AM eager to kick off the tournament. 

Our warm-up began about 30 minutes prior to kick off.  I led the girls through our 4 Phase Circle Routine (I'll details this later), some crossing and finishing, and we were ready to go.

I opted to start in a 4-2-1-3 formation that we had been working on for a whole 4 days.  I was interested to see how the girls would adjust to the larger field and knew it would be challenging for us under the pressure we were sure to face.

The Sting kicked off and proceeded to string 9 passes in a row, most right in front of our bench, with our girls running around chasing.  Sting switched the field with a good outlet pass and knocked another 4 or 5 passes.  They played quick and moved both off the ball and to the ball when needed.  I almost yelled out to the ref to throw another ball out on the field so White could play.  I remember thinking it could be a really LONG weekend.

It could be a LONG weekend... from Mark Abboud on Vimeo.

We finally broke their possession when Phi Phi intercepted a pass at the top of their box.  The girls on the bench cheered like we just scored a goal. 

A full 2 minutes later, as we were still unsettled and unorganized, we should have gone down 1-0 as the Sting broke down our left defense with some nice combination play, sent in a hard cross that we couldn't clear, and then missed a sitter from 6 yards out. 

3rd Minute Luck from Mark Abboud on Vimeo.

We slowly began to get accustomed to the speed and physical presence of the Sting team as the half went on.  I shifted from a flat back 4 to a stopper/sweeper formation as the Sting had a very dangerous center forward who found uncontested space in the gap between our holding mids and our center backs.  This change helped shore up our defense quite a bit and really stopped the Sting from threatening our goal for the rest of the game. 

In possession though we still couldn't find our rhythm and we struggled to keep the ball under pressure.  We'd work so hard in defense then give the ball away too easily on the attack.  If our opponents don't have the ball, they can't hurt us. 

We were also too North-South in our play with no thought about playing East-West or across the field in order to stretch our opponents shape and create dangerous gaps up the field. 

My competitive juices were flowing and I found myself getting frustrated at our lack of composure and skill.  I needed to remind myself that this team, regardless of past successes, was still a huge work in progress and we were here at this event to highlight what work needed to be done. 

Thankful for the halftime whistle, I led the girls to the shade to try and get us better organized.  I spoke about low-pressure defense against a team that could possess the ball.  Instead of chasing around as individuals, could we fall back, let them have the ball in their defensive third - a third of the field from which they couldn't hurt us - then apply coordinated pressure once the Sting reached the top of the midfield circle (in their own half).  Coordinated meant bent runs to force the ball one way or the other, making it predictable for our teammates behind the ball.  Advanced stuff for 12 year olds but it was as good a time as any to introduce it as we would be given ample opportunity to put it to use today.  This didn't mean that we'd play low pressure all the second half, but the girls would know what to do if I yelled out instructions to do so.

The Sting were very physical and I asked the girls to match it.

I also talked about our North-South play, a term I'd use with the girls to describe straight-line attacking up the field.  We could alter this North-South play by 1) dribbling across the field, 2) linking (passing) across the field, and 2) making diagonal runs for the ball (for our forwards). 

Lastly I spoke to the girls about being confident on the ball.  Though out-possessed in the first half we were by no means a vastly inferior team to the Sting.  I encouraged the girls to be confident on the ball, find smart space in order to have time when receiving passes, and looking to concentrate on completing passes quickly over simply playing long up the field.  

The second half went much better for us.  Our defenders (Babes, Mal, Meggy, Gizmo, and Cal) were strong and better organized and our attack was slightly more dynamic. 

Wiki (Att Mid), a new addition to the group this year from Lakeville, helped set the physical tone early in the half with a great individual effort.  The ensuing flurry around our opponents penalty box saw the ball fall to Chels (Point) who took a rushed shot that the Sting GK batted down. 

Second Half Flurry from Mark Abboud on Vimeo.

We created another good chance midway through the half as B-Money (RF) pounced on an errant pass along the Sting backline, danced down the right side of the field, and sent in a wonderful cross into Chels (Point).  If not for a fantastic block from the Sting sweeper, we likely would have gotten on the scoreboard. 

Another Good Chance from Mark Abboud on Vimeo.

With about 7 minutes left in the game we got the winner.  Gizmo's (LD) tackle in midfield to disposses a Sting midfield started the movement.  Cal (HM) pounced on the loose ball and played a good pass to Vivy (Att Mid).  Vivy turned up field, took a touch away from pressure to her right, and sent a through ball to B-Money who had made an excellent diagonal run from her right forward position.  B hurdled a tackle from her marking defender, touched the ball by the onrushing Sting GK who made a valiant play at the ball, and tapped the ball home a split second before being taken down by another recovering Sting defender.  Great goal, good result to start off the weekend.  

Game Winner from Mark Abboud on Vimeo

How cool is the Hi-Pod.  Seriously.

Eclipse Challenge Cup - Day #1

Thursday, Aug 14

Good to be on the road again.  Super busy end of the summer for me (in case you couldn't tell by the lack of posts for my 94s - still working on posting thoughts about the last part of our season) with the merger and MTA, as well as the normal chaos of tryouts season.  Road trips like this are an ideal time for me to get some needed alone time during my drive - just me, my sunflower seeds, and my iPod or audiobooks.  Time to unwind, rest and rejuvenate a bit, and reflect.

I'm definitely excited about the tournament.  This Eclipse Challenge Cup is considered one of the top 3 girls tournaments in the nation based on competitiveness.  Top Region II clubs like St Louis Scott Gallagher (MO), Carmel (IN), Ohio Elite (OH), Michigan Hawks (MI), and Eclipse Select (IL) will be in attendance, as will a number of teams from nationally recognized competitive clubs like PDA (NJ), Neusport (NV), and Dallas Sting (TX).  Suffice it to say that we will likely find our most competitive tournament competition this year a mere 3 days after the team has been formed. 

So why go?  Why spend the time, energy, and money to travel to this event right off the bat?  Two reasons mainly and neither has anything to do with the hardware.

First, this will be a terrific team bonding opportunity for the new team.  Though I ended up selecting all the players from last year's team, there are new players in the mix who will benefit from the group interactions this weekend. 

The second reason is all about player development.  This team has already had it's fair share of results success at the regional level as U11s last year.  Why?  We have an above-average group of athletic and technical girls, some who are physically dominant on the small field, we have more than a handful of girls who can score goals, and, in all humbleness, and based on my playing and coaching experience, I know how to put girls in positions and use tactics to win games.  Lots of people can do this just as well if not better, but not many are in place with teams at the younger age groups.  Winning is important to me though I believe I have a firm grasp of balancing this with individual and player development. 

Anyway, my goal this weekend is to expose this group to the very best competition we can find in order to highlight individual and team strengths and weaknesses.  I (and my players and their parents) will also see girls at our age group from some of the nation's most competitive clubs, see where they are technically, physically, and tactically.  I will also be able to network with the coaches and coaching directors at the event to share development thoughts and ideas.  All this will give me plenty of needed ammo to use to develop training sessions this coming year so that these girls better reach their potential and this team improves.  Should be an eye opening weekend for all involved.

I arrived into Libertyville at around 4PM and headed straight to the fields to check them out.  We were here last year with our U13s in a torrential rainstorm, with the host club bringing in helicopters to set on the fields to try and dry them out.  We ended up playing shortened games in Elgin (nearly an hour away).  Not a very fun time.  The weather this weekend promised to be sunny and hot.  I'll take it. 

The fields were in good shape.  Large, flat, and relatively smooth.  Two of the three fields for our group play were 120x70, the third 110x75.  Not sure where we'll be for consolation/semifinal/final games, but all the fields looked to be either of the two large dimensions above.  Great complex. 

Back to the hotel for dinner and research.  Research?  I had the Thunder purchase a Hi-Pod for this year, a sophisticated tripod set up that could elevate a digital video recorder 31 feet into the air.  I just received it on my doorstep yesterday and had absolutely no clue how to set it up or operate it. 

My goal is to video tape all our games this fall in order to watch and analyze during our winter Video Analysis sessions.  We'll mix in our own games with some Thunder games and EPL highlight dvds as it is important that the girls watch high level soccer.  We will use these professional games to highlight specific development ideas that we are addressing in training.  Based on my experience with the 94s, the girls will get into the video sessions, more so if we sprinkle in watching our own team play.

So why spend over $5K on a stupid tripod?  Well, anyone that has watched any kind of soccer event from a stadium seat can see the benefit of the overhead perspective.  You can see more of the field and see the play develop more easily.  For the girls, they have NEVER seen themselves play from that perspective and it will be educational for them when we sit together and go over ideas in the game analysis. 

My first experience with a tripod like this came in Vegas last March with my 94s.  I paid $500 or so to have 3 of our games taped by a company that used a similar camera elevating product, and the results were magic.  I've posted some video clips from the weekend below.  See for yourself.  (Andy Kaasa decided to come down with us for a vacation and was gracious enough to be hi-pod-dude all weekend).

Where was I?  Oh yeah... I met with the girls at 8PM on Thursday night for a light jog and stretch.  As teams always are the first night at an out of town event, they were giddy with excitement after the long car ride into the Chicago area. 

I then had a chalk talk with them in the lobby, going over our team formation (as the11v11 game was new to most), and the rules and restrictions for the weekend. 

I talked to a few of them about their Game Goals for the tournament as well with the promise to pass out all the Game Goals tomorrow morning at breakfast.

Back to the room to study up on the Hi-Pod.  I'm either going to look like a complete fool with this thing tomorrow or it's going to be awesome.  Let's hope for the latter.

Eclipse Challenge Cup Handouts

Study materials for your long drive tomorrow :)

11v11 Team Formation 4-4-2

11v11 Team Formation 4-4-2 Diamond

11v11 Team Formation 4-2-1-3

Set Pieces - Corner Kick Attack

Set Pieces - Corner Kick Defense

What to Bring Checklist

Baptism by Fire

A whole 4 days after the 0809 team is formed, we're off to the Chicago area for what will likely be this year's most competitive soccer tournament for us.  Moreover, we're going to play 11v11 soccer, something that only 2 of these girls have had any real experience with.  

We'll be missing Gia, Barbie, and Anna this weekend.  Kait is guesting with us from our White team and Chels is guesting with us from Mahtomedi giving us a 16 girl roster this weekend.  I think we're going to struggle with some fitness issues for sure, even with 5 subs, but many teams there will be in the same boat.

We scrambled two training sessions together this week to try and hammer out as best we could team shape and formations, set pieces, and some other large field tactical ideas.  Two sessions (one cut in half due to weather) when we need 20. 

As I said though, I believe most other teams in this event will be in similar situations, either just getting to the larger field or not even there yet and still playing 8v8 in their respective states and coming to the event for the 11v11 experience.  If they're just getting to the large field though, most will have had tryouts well in advance of ours and have been training for the 11v11 game for longer than we have. 

Am I making excuses?  I don't think so.  Just trying to be a bit realistic about what we're going to be up against.  I'd be making excuses if I was bringing the team there with the focus of winning the whole thing.  We're not traveling to lose, but getting wins will not be the focus.  Rather, this event will be an invaluable experience for all of us (parents, coaches, and players) as we will witness firsthand how we currently stack up against some of the nation's most competitive clubs at this age group. 

Our schedule is as follows:

• Friday, 12:00PM vs Dallas Sting (TX)
• Saturday, 10:30AM vs CIS Knockouts II (IL)
• Saturday, 4:30PM vs Novi Jaguars (MI)
• Sunday, TBA

There are a number of other teams that I'd like to see (come up against) this weekend - PDA (NJ), Michigan Hawks (MI), Eclipse Select (IL), Carmel (IN), Ohio Elite (OH), and St Louis Scott Gallagher (MO).  Hang on a sec, that's every other team in the event.  I was thinking that hopefully we'll do well enough in pool play to advance as a high seed and guarantee us a tough consolation or semifinal match up, but all fourth matches will be tough ones. 

To be honest, I think we have a decent chance to advance as the #1 or #2 seed in our group.  I'm sure the Sting team will be tough, and we open against them.  CIS we saw in the finals of the West Des Moines Premier Games in April.  We beat them 7-3 on the smaller field though I told my girls that weekend that CIS played better soccer than we did.  We scored some lucky-ish high shots from distance and the game was tighter than the score indicated.  I don't know anything about the Novi team, just that they're from the same city as Michigan Hawks who are pretty highly touted at this age level.

Group B is the group of death in my mind with PDA, Carmel, Michigan Hawks, and Eclipse.  Group C features SLSG, Ohio Elite, Eclipse, and a TBD team.  

If we were to advance we'd play the Group B winner, unless the wild card team came from Group C. 

I'm really looking forward to watching the girls play this weekend!