All good things must come to an end...

It's been a bit since my last post but I've been busy with soccer (shocking!). After our District Tournament triumph, our State Tournament journey began last Saturday.

Our first game was against Mankato and we started very flat. No jump, no hustle, and we gave up two early soft goals. We got one back before halftime, but still weren't playing very well. We tied it at 2 in the second half and nearly went up 3-2 on a beautiful free-kick but the Mankato keeper nonchalantly made a HUGE save. The game ended in a tie, which wasn't that bad considering we didn't play how we play when we play...

Our second game was against the Minnesota Revolution...and I'm not sure where they're from (uh...Minnesota?). They have some really tall kids and they took advantage early. They scored two goals on crosses in the first five minutes. We were at a severe height disadvantage but we should have still been able to prevent the goals. We got one goal back in the first half but soon after, we gave up a third. We came out in the second half with a bit more jump but not enough to put any significant attacks together. The game finished 4-1 and it was a disappointing loss. Based on the strange 10-pt scoring system I mentioned in a previous post, we were all but eliminated after the second game. We still had one game to go and it was crucial for us to end on a high note.

The final game was against Chaska/Chanhassen. They had tied the Revolution and lost to Mankato so we were expecting a fight. We tried to get the guys pumped up while keeping it light-hearted: "it's the last game, so have fun, but let's go out there and play a solid game." Boy, did they respond.

Chaska/Chanhassen had the kickoff, but it didn't do them much good. We picked off one of their first three passes and put together a few quick passes of our own to set up a scoring chance just outside of their box on the right side. Their goalie, seemingly unprepared for the start of the game, could only watch as a perfectly-weighted shot floated over his head into the far corner of the net. We scored in 18 seconds, by far the fastest by the team this year (and probably ever). It set the tone for the rest of the game: the guys were pumped and happy for the remaining 79 minutes and 42 seconds and all thoughts of the previous loss were gone. The game finished 5-2 and it was a great end to the Tournament even though we didn't move on.

The year was fabulous. After a rough start, we played superbly down the stretch (2-1-1 at USA Cup, 3-0 in the District Tournament, and 1-1-1 in the State Tournament). The kids were truly a great bunch and they made the year very exciting. Most have played together for 6 years and are friends off the field. They made a fantastic and memorable run through the District Tournament and I couldn't have asked for a better group.

For my first year of coaching, it was an eye-opener. Having to think more as a coach and less as a player was a tough transition, but by the end I was starting to see things in ways that can help players. More importantly, I was able to communicate those things to them more clearly (it was rough at first). Hopefully I'll get another opportunity to assistant coach soon. I don't want to have a team of my own yet because it requires much more time than I put in this year (which was a lot). It was nice to confirm that I will enjoy coaching whenever my knees, ankles, and everything else gives out and I stop playing. It's something that I look forward to in the future.

Speaking of the future, because we finished 3-9 in the regular season we did not accumulate enough points to remain in Classic 2 (skill divisions are 1, 2 and 3) and we will be relegated to Classic 3 next year. However, when we made it to State, we started the appeal process to remain in Classic 2 next year. Unfortunately we could not find a precedent where a team appealed and was successful, but if any team could set one, this one could. There is a lot at stake since several players will switch to teams in Classic 2 if our team is relegated and it would be great to keep the team intact. We go before the board in a few weeks and hopefully we'll be successful. The fingers be crossed!