This Post is called Soccer but could also be titled 'What are we doing with our kids?' So let's go back a bit. I took Friday and half of Thursday off sick and have been pretty under the weather. I have been slow to move. Last night (Friday) we went over to a friend's house for (significantly more upmarket) nachos, which we would have been having at home anyway. The lower school had a Disco on that night and after being on again, off again several times in the night, the boys just didn't really want to go. I too was grateful, because it started pretty late even for a Friday and frankly last time I took him he sat on the side and asked to go home all the time.
Then we woke up and went to soccer. We played Dayboro (a little town up the way) and it was an interesting game. Before the game I played with our team in a 5 against 1. I tried to show them how a team can beat a single player every time. They played against me and they called and passed well. After a season of practice, they are getting really good! I was almost in trouble! Now there was a reason for doing it. We were playing Dayboro.
Dayboro has a kid who has some pretty good skills in it but the team and their parents have allowed the team to go from the Dayboro Under 6's to Ed's team and his Minions. It is so sad to watch. He is pretty good and with my Physio brain, it is fun to watch kids well put together and enjoying it. With my parent brain, the whole thing just saddens me.
He never passes. He tackles his own team and he is never substituted. The first time we played his team we lost about 10 000 to zip. Actually it was 14 to 0, I think. Today it was 4 to 2 and 2 of their goals were scored in a mismatched game. It is great to watch what we all know is true; A team will beat an individual every time! I think that this poor kid, unless a parent gets a clue, or someone brings him in line, will likely peak in his soccer career somewhere between Under 7's and Under 8's, because after this, the team becomes the focus. It would be such a pity. He has such potential with his skills, it would be sad to see ego destroy it.
Today we had 5 players and so did they. We play 4 a side on the field at a time, so both sides had a substitution. Our kids played well. They were locking Ed down and tackling him. They went to him and tackled him and often as not got the ball. So Ed starts to get frustrated, and cranky! Now remember, we are talking about Under 6's. First off, he runs over Levi's hand wearing soccer tags, so Levi comes off crying with three tag marks in his swollen hand. Now we are down to 4 players. Next Ed whacks another boy's head, who comes off with his nose bleeding. We are down to 3. If we had been playing another Samford team, actually any team, they would have pulled a player. In fact it has happened several times during the season, but not this team. We played 4 against 3 for about 5 minutes. Now Levi is a bit of an Italian Soccer player so I was not concerned he was actually hurt, but still at this age it is a bit unfair. Anyway our coach and our parents start to yell encouragement to our team;
"You can tackle him! He won't pass it!"
And once they took that to heart our team did well! Take out Ed and there was nothing left. At halftime, our team all huddled together with the coach chatting and getting encouragement. Their team did too. Oh except for Ed who sat with his parents.
I wanted to go to them afterward and ask them;
"What are you trying to teach him from soccer?"
"What are you thinking!?"
But they would think that it was sour grapes from me. Not so. I am so proud of our kids and the fact that when H went back on with blood on his face, every one of our team went up and patted him on the shoulder and checked out how he was and it was true too when Levi went back on. Because if that parent asked me those same questions, the answers are easy;
"I want him to learn to work with a team"
"I want to watch him grow into a strong compassionate adult and childhood soccer, is one of the ways"
And you know what? It's working!
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