Misdirected Destiny

photo by Carly & Art	via PhotoRee

Coach Tom makes a sparkling return to our pages, closing the book on what was a magical run to the Womens' World Cup Final for the US team:


There was a great article yesterday in the New York Times about how quickly the women's game has improved and how much more like men's soccer it has become.  Anyone watching the France and Japan teams can attest to that.  Where were they in 1999?  


And even US Coach Pia Sundhage sees that it's no longer enough for the US just to be the best athletes on the pitch, they need to play better soccer.  And so on Sunday they went out and did just that.  


But then it all fell apart.  A bizarrely bad defensive clearance and a goal, an indecisive Hope Solo not getting to a ball which led to Christie Rampone clearing for a corner, which led to another goal?!  And then a vomit-on-the-cleats shootout and there it all went.  The golden girls defeated.  Heros to zeros. What happened to destiny?


Destiny.  It's a word we use far too often in sports.  But on Sunday there seemed to be a lot of sporting destiny in the air.  First Darren Clarke came from nowhere to find a week of glory and help erase a heap of personal hurt and professional disappointment. Maybe Team USA should have taken note.  Because destiny is not a word reserved for the number one team in the world; it's reserved for teams that carry the grief of a nation on their back and fight their way through the tournament to claim the title.  


It's destiny that saw Team USA play their best soccer of the entire tournament, and still lose.  And while Brazil and France might say "karma, baby!"  it should be noted that in those games the USA withstood possession disparities, not clear goal scoring opportunities. In a game that the US should have won 5-1, a game in which they held good shape, showed a variety of attacking skills and effort, the US created chance after chance - good ones - and failed to score. It seems unfathomable.  I can't (won't?) watch the highlights just to see the ball hit the crossbar again or go just wide or....  How could this happen?  Destiny seems to be the only answer.   


The sad part is how quickly the women's game will be forgotten into four more years of oblivion (with the exception of maybe a brief uptick at the Olympics).  Good luck seeing any women's soccer coverage on ESPN after Monday night.  Think it'll be different this time?  Ok.  Quick quiz:  Where was the Women's World Cup held in 2003 - only 4 years after the amazing USA win?  Germany?  


Nope, back home in the USA (there was a SARS scare in China at the time).  Where's the next World Cup?  Korea?  Nope, Canada.  Will we see you there?  Doubtful.  But hopefully, as the skill improves at this lightning pace, and as the world sees more good teams enter the tournament with a chance to win -- Take a bow, Japan -- this sport will continue to rise and maybe even creep into our consciousness.  Ya know, kind of like the NHL, eh?  Destiny, we need your help!



This is farlieonfootie for July 18.

It's a Stretch

photo by docbaty	via PhotoRee

Long absent from our pages, Coach Tom returns with some helpful tips for footballers of all ages:


Driving home last night, as the precipitation froze on the windshield of my heated car(!), my mind predictably drifted to warmer times – like playing soccer in the summer. And it got me thinking about warming up in general.

When coaching little kids (under 10), a warm-up is really about trying to focus their tiny minds. Their bodies are so forgiving that they are years away from “Oh, I just pulled the crap out of my hammy!” These little Wolverines probably do pull muscles, but they heal as fast as they pull. I’ve called it the stem-cell-zipper-effect, but that hasn’t seemed to catch on.... I recommend about 10 minutes of warm-up – all of it with a ball. They can jog a lap or so, work on partner passing or dribbling skills, and then try a bit of shooting if there’s time. These kids are developing skills, so warm-up really should prepare them the practicality of play.

International Friendly

Fiona Shoots Over the Largest Defender

Coach Tom returns to our pages with a heartwarming story of how football transcends language and culture, and helps to makes the world a friendlier place:


I just returned from my annual trip with a group of US students to Honduras. Through Grace the Americas, a charity supported by volunteers working to make a difference in the lives of those who live in rural Latin America, we spend a week building a home for a family living without adequate housing. It's also become a tradition while we're in Latin America to play a game of footie against the locals.

This year we got upgraded from the small pitch (a generous term, as it's usually half submerged by floodwaters and constantly surrounded by a moat of slimy filth that would keep even the most exuberant Brazilian from storming the pitch) to the town’s main field. This seemed to my eyes to be roughly 110' x 75', although without any lines I was making  a best guess, and even had a small section of concrete “stands.” Notably, it also featured a number of sizable cow patties and, naturally, a cow, which soon moved off for quieter pastures as Los Gringos took the field.

Joe Looks to Dribble Around Defenders, Garbage and Cow Patties

This year our group from the US featured two varsity boys and five varsity girls; the other five players on the team consisted of three girls, our translator, Franklin, and me. Our opponents were a mix of Honduran boys and girls who averaged 13 years of age. In other words, it was an even match.

The Measure of Sin

photo by Biking Nikon PDX	via PhotoRee

Coach Tom is back with the latest edition of Coaches Corner, this time on the sin of knocking the ball anywhere but in the back of the goal:

Which is worse, shooting the ball over the net, or shooting the ball wide of the net?  The answer is neither.  Not shooting at all is the worst mistake any player can make.  Trick answers aside, the other correct answer would be high AND wide.  In my coaching days it was 10 pushups for over the bar, 20 for wide, and 30 for high and wide.  It seems only fair as the goal is three times as wider as it is high and, really, one mistake per shot is all one should tolerate.  Maybe I should have gone 60 for high and wide....hmmmm. 

And yet football is full of sinners -- one need look no further than Wayne Rooney's wayward effort against Arsenal last week (see below).  Folks pelt the stands, advertisements, ball boys, trees (so Correspondent Ed tells us) and ether with wayward efforts.  Aren't they supposed to be professionals?  My answer to that is simple:  try it. 

The Golden Cutback

photo by Sean Davis	via PhotoRee

What's a football blog without the requisite winning coach to offer insightful analysis of important games?  We've got one of the best in our ranks: farlieonfootie is proud to introduce Champions League winner Tom to our blogging staff.  Granted, Tom won the Champions League of the Girls' Under 11 Division in Riverside, New York, but still, it's something.  Those were some tough girls.  With no further ado (because there is none), herewith the Coaches Corner:

I've done a bit of coaching in my time:  little bitty weeble kiddies, seventh grade boys, varsity girls (with some acclaim, I add most humbly).  At every level I, and all other competent coaches, stress the fundamentals.  First touch, body over ball, shin guards in the front, what have you.  And at every level I've stressed the vital power of that most basic and plain of tactics:  the cutback.

Even little kids can see (eventually) that if an attacker drives the ball to the end line and attacks the near post some wonderful things will happen. The 'keeper slides to the side of the net,  all ten field defenders will face their own net, and, blessedly, nine remaining  attackers wait in position to pounce.

What makes this simple strategy so hard at the youth level is skill.  Not a lot of kids can get the ball to the end line without dribbling out of bounds, or kicking the ball in a random direction or tripping over the line.  And then, if the poor kid gets to the line, he or she has to have the presence of mind (important term.  We'll return to this) to drive to the near post and then lay the ball back into the box.