Santos:
Here's a schedule for futsal. We may have guest players play with us from time to time. I have set these rosters myself so if you have any questions or concerns about them, please address them to me. Some players have 6 games others have 5. Those with 6 can expect a little more time in the goal.
If you have to change a game or an evaluation date, please let me know and I'll make the change.
Robert Briglia secured the Int'l School gym for our practices, but they added some requirements that were unrealistic for us to meet. Thanks for the effort, Robert. I will continue to look.
11/16:
[game already played] Maddie, Jillian, Avi, Annaliese, EVM, Sophia, MM, Mac
11/23:
Avi, Lena, MM, Mac, Jillian, Toni, Sierra, EVM
Evaluations: 30 minutes Before: MM
After Game: Mac
12/7:
EVM, Maddie, Jillian, Alison, Avi, Toni, Sophia, Annaliese
Evaluations: 30 minutes Before: Annaliese
After Game: Maddie
12/14:
Alison, Sierra, Maddie, Avi, Sophia, MM, Mac
Evaluations: 30 minutes Before: Alison
After Game: Avi
12/21:
Lena, Annaliese, Toni, EVM, MM, Maddie, Jillian Mac
Evaluations: 30 minutes Before: Toni
After Game: EVM
1/4:
Maddie, Annaliese, Toni, Jillian, Lena, Alison, Avi, Sierra
Evaluations: 30 minutes Before: Sierra
After Game: Jillian
1/10:
Lena, MM, Toni, Annaliese, Sophia, Alison, EVM, Mac:
Evaluations: 30 minutes Before: Sophia
After Game: Maddie
1/17:
Lena, Annaliese, Sierra, MM, Alison, Sophia, Jillian, EVM
Thursday, November 20, 2008
Thursday, November 13, 2008
Player Evaluations
I will do individual player evaluations with each player during the futsal season. If you are not playing futsal, no problem, we will schedule some time later. Based on our futsal game rosters I will ask 2 to 3 players to show up early or stay late for each game. There is some space on the second floor where we can do the evaluations. I would like at least 10 minutes with each player and parents can join for an additional 5 to 10 minutes at the end if they wish. I will also hand out written evaluations at that time.
Sutton
Sutton
Wednesday, November 5, 2008
Futsal and Winter Training
Santos:
Sorry to have been out of the loop, been a very busy week. As you know, we have 1 futsal team with a roster that has a few too many players. I don't think this will be much of an issue. We will have to make a roster with 8 or so players for each individual game. This means all players players will miss some games in order to have a manageable roster for each game.
The first step is for everyone to let me know as soon as you can which which games you CANNOT attend. Here's our schedule:
SUN 11/16/2008 11:20 AM West FC England v. OSA Santos
SUN 11/23/2008 5:50 PM West FC Italy v. OSA Santos
SUN 12/7/2008 5:50 PM West OSA Santos v. THUSC Platinum
SUN 12/14/2008 5:50 PM East OSA Santos v. ESUFC Coventry
SUN 12/21/2008 4:55 PM East OSA Santos v. OSA Explosion White
SUN 1/4/2009 5:50 PM East NEU Fusion v. OSA Santos
SAT 1/10/2009 7:45 PM West OSA Santos v. OSA Shock
SAT 1/17/2009 3:05 PM West OSA Explosion Red v. OSA Santos
Once we have everyone's schedule, I will put together weekly rosters. The first week, Lena will sit out and let her foot heal a little more. Anyone else want to take a break this weekend?
We are entered in U13, which, looking at the competition, is exactly where we belong. The U12 is made up of mostly weak teams and the U13 has some teams that appear to be at our level. This won't be a big step up for us.
I have also been trying to locate Gym space for training. Robert Briglia is looking into some space for us and we may have French American on Sunday afternoons. This is not ideal but the price for FAIS is right and we will make better use if it once Futsal has ended. Most of the gym space remaining is late (8:30 to 9:30). Please let me know if this is too late. I have contacted schools in the Beaverton School District as well as PPS. If you know of a school, public or private with Gym space available in the evenings, let me know and we can contact them.
Sutton
Sorry to have been out of the loop, been a very busy week. As you know, we have 1 futsal team with a roster that has a few too many players. I don't think this will be much of an issue. We will have to make a roster with 8 or so players for each individual game. This means all players players will miss some games in order to have a manageable roster for each game.
The first step is for everyone to let me know as soon as you can which which games you CANNOT attend. Here's our schedule:
SUN 11/16/2008 11:20 AM West FC England v. OSA Santos
SUN 11/23/2008 5:50 PM West FC Italy v. OSA Santos
SUN 12/7/2008 5:50 PM West OSA Santos v. THUSC Platinum
SUN 12/14/2008 5:50 PM East OSA Santos v. ESUFC Coventry
SUN 12/21/2008 4:55 PM East OSA Santos v. OSA Explosion White
SUN 1/4/2009 5:50 PM East NEU Fusion v. OSA Santos
SAT 1/10/2009 7:45 PM West OSA Santos v. OSA Shock
SAT 1/17/2009 3:05 PM West OSA Explosion Red v. OSA Santos
Once we have everyone's schedule, I will put together weekly rosters. The first week, Lena will sit out and let her foot heal a little more. Anyone else want to take a break this weekend?
We are entered in U13, which, looking at the competition, is exactly where we belong. The U12 is made up of mostly weak teams and the U13 has some teams that appear to be at our level. This won't be a big step up for us.
I have also been trying to locate Gym space for training. Robert Briglia is looking into some space for us and we may have French American on Sunday afternoons. This is not ideal but the price for FAIS is right and we will make better use if it once Futsal has ended. Most of the gym space remaining is late (8:30 to 9:30). Please let me know if this is too late. I have contacted schools in the Beaverton School District as well as PPS. If you know of a school, public or private with Gym space available in the evenings, let me know and we can contact them.
Sutton
Clackamas and RSVC Notes
Santos:
We had a tough weekend last weekend. The Clackamas game was not one of our best. It was rough and ragged. They wanted it more than we did. We also did not play with touch and tended to force the ball forward too often.
The RVSC game was tough because we lost it, but I think we actually gave a better effort as a team. Our work rate and speed was good and there were some good things on the field. We can be proud of that.
They took the game from us because they were stronger physically, but also a little stronger mentally. They played hard, physically, and never backed off. It's true that they are bigger then we are, but that is no excuse for us not to match them in terms of mental strength and toughness. We need to play with more resolve in the future.
Let's prepare ourselves for this weekend and the tournament and make it a great end to our outdoor season.
Sutton
We had a tough weekend last weekend. The Clackamas game was not one of our best. It was rough and ragged. They wanted it more than we did. We also did not play with touch and tended to force the ball forward too often.
The RVSC game was tough because we lost it, but I think we actually gave a better effort as a team. Our work rate and speed was good and there were some good things on the field. We can be proud of that.
They took the game from us because they were stronger physically, but also a little stronger mentally. They played hard, physically, and never backed off. It's true that they are bigger then we are, but that is no excuse for us not to match them in terms of mental strength and toughness. We need to play with more resolve in the future.
Let's prepare ourselves for this weekend and the tournament and make it a great end to our outdoor season.
Sutton
Wednesday, October 29, 2008
Fuego and Milan Game Notes
Santos:
I was strongly tempted to write just one word here: "WOW!!!"
I'll just add that we did what we needed to do in every respect as a team this past weekend. We totally outworked both teams, especially the Fuego. We also did something we haven't done very much this year. We dominated play for 60 minutes of both games. Our focus and intensity didn't just last two halves; it lasted four halves.
We did beautifully and we did things we haven't done before. I was thrilled with and proud of our performance last weekend. It felt like a huge step forward. Let's have more of the same this weekend and prove again what kind of team we have become.
GO SANTOS!!!
I was strongly tempted to write just one word here: "WOW!!!"
I'll just add that we did what we needed to do in every respect as a team this past weekend. We totally outworked both teams, especially the Fuego. We also did something we haven't done very much this year. We dominated play for 60 minutes of both games. Our focus and intensity didn't just last two halves; it lasted four halves.
We did beautifully and we did things we haven't done before. I was thrilled with and proud of our performance last weekend. It felt like a huge step forward. Let's have more of the same this weekend and prove again what kind of team we have become.
GO SANTOS!!!
Wednesday, October 22, 2008
EMFC Game Notes
The game against EMFC was a good one. Any shutout is a credit to the goal-keeping in both halves. And when we were challenged, as we were quite a bit in the first half with long shots and opportunistic offense from our opponents, our keeping was well up to the challenge.
Goal-scoring. We needed a good game against EMFC and we got one. The first 20 minutes of the game we dominated and got a splendid goal to show for it. Once again, we combined very well up front to create a scoring chance and finished with precision. We have done that a lot this fall and all the girls are starting to make it look easy, but believe me it isn't. It's very difficult, especially against a defense as tough as EMFC's. Stylish goals like these--we've seen them against Clackamas, Tottenham, Sherwood, Milan, and EMFC--show the hard work and mental focus that we have brought to practices and games this Fall. Remember whenever someone makes something look easy, they have worked incredibly hard to do it. I love it!
Dominating Midfield Play. Our mids had a dominant first half. When we win balls in the midfield and quickly transition into the attack with well placed passes and runs forward, we succeed as a team. Our midfield controlled the middle third of the field with physical play and hustle for most of the first half. This lead directly to our best chances on offense.
Success Based on Defense. The second half was great too. We didn't play our best in the midfield and forward lines offensively, but our defense was rock solid. While we controlled most of the first half, our opponents were able to take some dangerous shots from distance because we weren't applying defensive pressure soon enough. In the second half, we were on the defensive a lot, but EMFC actually had very few shots on goal. Our defenders really played tight and tough and we gave up almost no space to their attacking players. It was a great defensive performance and a great adjustment made by the team. Our midfielders also helped out too. Our sweeper play is great and really helping us succeed as a team (by the way, we have dropped the flat back four defensive style and are de-emphasizing zone play because it didn't suit us individually). Our outside backs are moving forward to win balls and break up the attack far up field. This is critical. And our central marking defender is playing great, running down breakaways, winning balls with strong tackling, and destroying their attack. Without good defense, we don't win many games. With it we are a different, very powerful, team.
Tactical Focus. Tactically, this week we are asking our forwards to collect and hold the ball around the midfield more, rather then getting the ball and every time taking off down field--although we want to do this too when we have good chances--so that our outside backs can move forward to make runs down the line and our mids can move up and connect with the offensive line. We are asking our offensive mids to play more centrally, so we are stronger in the middle of the field and so they can receive lay-off passes from the forwards and switch the point of attack or push balls through to running forwards or outside to overlapping backs. These mids must occasionally look for opportunities to overlap themselves and they must constantly look for chances to get layoff balls and shoot from distance. We are trying to get our outside backs to move up into the offensive on a regular basis and look for chances whenever we are on offense to give us balance on the weak side (away from the ball) of the field.
This weekend and next are critical. If we play our hardest and best we will be fine. But if we cant keep up our effort and concentration for a full 90 minutes, we'll be in trouble. Let's be at our absolute best for these last four games!
Goal-scoring. We needed a good game against EMFC and we got one. The first 20 minutes of the game we dominated and got a splendid goal to show for it. Once again, we combined very well up front to create a scoring chance and finished with precision. We have done that a lot this fall and all the girls are starting to make it look easy, but believe me it isn't. It's very difficult, especially against a defense as tough as EMFC's. Stylish goals like these--we've seen them against Clackamas, Tottenham, Sherwood, Milan, and EMFC--show the hard work and mental focus that we have brought to practices and games this Fall. Remember whenever someone makes something look easy, they have worked incredibly hard to do it. I love it!
Dominating Midfield Play. Our mids had a dominant first half. When we win balls in the midfield and quickly transition into the attack with well placed passes and runs forward, we succeed as a team. Our midfield controlled the middle third of the field with physical play and hustle for most of the first half. This lead directly to our best chances on offense.
Success Based on Defense. The second half was great too. We didn't play our best in the midfield and forward lines offensively, but our defense was rock solid. While we controlled most of the first half, our opponents were able to take some dangerous shots from distance because we weren't applying defensive pressure soon enough. In the second half, we were on the defensive a lot, but EMFC actually had very few shots on goal. Our defenders really played tight and tough and we gave up almost no space to their attacking players. It was a great defensive performance and a great adjustment made by the team. Our midfielders also helped out too. Our sweeper play is great and really helping us succeed as a team (by the way, we have dropped the flat back four defensive style and are de-emphasizing zone play because it didn't suit us individually). Our outside backs are moving forward to win balls and break up the attack far up field. This is critical. And our central marking defender is playing great, running down breakaways, winning balls with strong tackling, and destroying their attack. Without good defense, we don't win many games. With it we are a different, very powerful, team.
Tactical Focus. Tactically, this week we are asking our forwards to collect and hold the ball around the midfield more, rather then getting the ball and every time taking off down field--although we want to do this too when we have good chances--so that our outside backs can move forward to make runs down the line and our mids can move up and connect with the offensive line. We are asking our offensive mids to play more centrally, so we are stronger in the middle of the field and so they can receive lay-off passes from the forwards and switch the point of attack or push balls through to running forwards or outside to overlapping backs. These mids must occasionally look for opportunities to overlap themselves and they must constantly look for chances to get layoff balls and shoot from distance. We are trying to get our outside backs to move up into the offensive on a regular basis and look for chances whenever we are on offense to give us balance on the weak side (away from the ball) of the field.
This weekend and next are critical. If we play our hardest and best we will be fine. But if we cant keep up our effort and concentration for a full 90 minutes, we'll be in trouble. Let's be at our absolute best for these last four games!
Thursday, October 16, 2008
Tottenham and Sherwood notes
Santos:
Last weekend had us in two hard-fought games that looked to me like mirror images. Against Sherwood, we started slowly and finished with an explosion of intensity and pressure and some really fine soccer. Against Tottenham we started very strong and lost our edge as the game progressed. We need to be able to start and finish games with intensity and intelligence, especially this Sunday against EMFC.
Looking Ahead. There are just five games left for us to play this season so we have to re-dedicate ourselves to hard work in practice and smart, strong, confident, and calm play in the games. A great end to the season will help the Santos next year during qualifying and would be an appropriate finish for a team like this that has worked so hard and come so far. I really think that we have earned--through hard work and real mental focus--a good strong finish. The Santos deserve good results as a team and as individual players. Let's make it happen!
Well Done! One thing that struck me about both games last weekend was how well the team executed our main goal for the weekend of combining well in the forward line staying connected between lines. The Santos have made improvements in our tactical understanding and ability to execute the tactical part of the game which is frankly a real surprise to me. I never expected us to be so adept so quickly at understanding and applying difficult tactical ideas. This is a VERY impressive group of players. We also had some outstanding individual efforts last weekend. Our holding midfield play was really superb in the first half and absolutely outstanding in the 2nd half against Sherwood and outstanding again in the first half against Tottenham. Our forwards were playing hard and smart against Sherwood, I can't think of a goal that was more truly earned than the one against Sherwood. It's hard to recall anything as elegant as the way we combined for and finished the goal against Tottenham. Our wing forwards were getting to every ball played near them in the first half against Tottenham. Obviously our keepers gave us everything we needed against Sherwood as did our back four, a great effort from the keepers and defenders. Our two center mids were distributing extremely well against Sherwood. Some really terrific stuff all around!
Struggles. What we continue to struggle with is our willingness and ability to attack the ball in the air. This hurt us especially against Tottenham when we were often first to the ball in the midfield, but weren't really committed to making solid contact with it, either with the head, chest, and even the feet. This was also true of our play on corners. I really think when the ball is in the air or bouncing around in front of our goal, almost every one of us is privately hoping that another teammate will step forward to take it. We have paid a steep price for this attitude in close games this year and we must overcome it. In fact until we do, we will never be able to compete consistently against Gold-level teams. We'll stay Silver.
Defending Corners and Clearing. When it comes to corner kicks, the first thing is to avoid giving them up. Throw-ins are always better than corners. We have to try harder to avoid them. Next, when defending them, because our ability to attack the ball needs improvement, we must give extra effort in marking and defending players. By leaving players open in front of the goal, we concede goals. Especially when we combine that with a lack of aggression in attacking the ball. At a more fundamental level, our clearing of the ball is still inconsistent. We often fail to make solid contact and produce, instead of a well-hit and solid clear, a little squib that ends up at the feet of our opponents. This is a technical problem and the coaches must take responsibility here because it is not something we have practiced at all and until we do we will have trouble.
We had a superb practice Wednesday and I know we are ready to go for Sunday.
Last weekend had us in two hard-fought games that looked to me like mirror images. Against Sherwood, we started slowly and finished with an explosion of intensity and pressure and some really fine soccer. Against Tottenham we started very strong and lost our edge as the game progressed. We need to be able to start and finish games with intensity and intelligence, especially this Sunday against EMFC.
Looking Ahead. There are just five games left for us to play this season so we have to re-dedicate ourselves to hard work in practice and smart, strong, confident, and calm play in the games. A great end to the season will help the Santos next year during qualifying and would be an appropriate finish for a team like this that has worked so hard and come so far. I really think that we have earned--through hard work and real mental focus--a good strong finish. The Santos deserve good results as a team and as individual players. Let's make it happen!
Well Done! One thing that struck me about both games last weekend was how well the team executed our main goal for the weekend of combining well in the forward line staying connected between lines. The Santos have made improvements in our tactical understanding and ability to execute the tactical part of the game which is frankly a real surprise to me. I never expected us to be so adept so quickly at understanding and applying difficult tactical ideas. This is a VERY impressive group of players. We also had some outstanding individual efforts last weekend. Our holding midfield play was really superb in the first half and absolutely outstanding in the 2nd half against Sherwood and outstanding again in the first half against Tottenham. Our forwards were playing hard and smart against Sherwood, I can't think of a goal that was more truly earned than the one against Sherwood. It's hard to recall anything as elegant as the way we combined for and finished the goal against Tottenham. Our wing forwards were getting to every ball played near them in the first half against Tottenham. Obviously our keepers gave us everything we needed against Sherwood as did our back four, a great effort from the keepers and defenders. Our two center mids were distributing extremely well against Sherwood. Some really terrific stuff all around!
Struggles. What we continue to struggle with is our willingness and ability to attack the ball in the air. This hurt us especially against Tottenham when we were often first to the ball in the midfield, but weren't really committed to making solid contact with it, either with the head, chest, and even the feet. This was also true of our play on corners. I really think when the ball is in the air or bouncing around in front of our goal, almost every one of us is privately hoping that another teammate will step forward to take it. We have paid a steep price for this attitude in close games this year and we must overcome it. In fact until we do, we will never be able to compete consistently against Gold-level teams. We'll stay Silver.
Defending Corners and Clearing. When it comes to corner kicks, the first thing is to avoid giving them up. Throw-ins are always better than corners. We have to try harder to avoid them. Next, when defending them, because our ability to attack the ball needs improvement, we must give extra effort in marking and defending players. By leaving players open in front of the goal, we concede goals. Especially when we combine that with a lack of aggression in attacking the ball. At a more fundamental level, our clearing of the ball is still inconsistent. We often fail to make solid contact and produce, instead of a well-hit and solid clear, a little squib that ends up at the feet of our opponents. This is a technical problem and the coaches must take responsibility here because it is not something we have practiced at all and until we do we will have trouble.
We had a superb practice Wednesday and I know we are ready to go for Sunday.
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