by
posted 05/19/2023
First of all last week was not our best game but the girls played hard and for the most part the reason we lost the game is mostly my fault. I was not able to articulate what i felt we needed to do with regards to clearing the ball and getting possession in our offensive end. The girls played much better on defense and played hard, BUT we lost out on a number of possessions due to losing ground balls in our own end. We have talked with the girls all season about getting wide, getting open and creating space. They did exactly what we wanted them to do but because the team we played was well coached they had the defensive player in position to contest the pass by staying in front and just to the inside of our players. So when one of our girls would pass to a teammate unless the pass was perfect (not often at this age) the defender was in a better position to pick up the ball. The good news is this can be fixed and it is something that as a coach I should have seen coming and should have worked on with them. Moving forward now that we are creating space and using the whole field the next thing we can work on is when to pass, where to pass and what location to put the pass. By passing the ball to a space on the field we can increase our chance of getting the ball. If we catch the pass that is awesome but if we don’t by putting the pass outside and deep behind the defender we will have a head start on the defender as we go after the ground ball.
On a positive note the girls did play hard and did show great sportsmanship. Again as always i was really happy that the girls did not self-coach and stayed positive during the game. I was again impressed with Rowan, Ellie, Nealy, Meila, Taylor, Olivia, Presley, Leah, and Scarlett. I am not sure if Olivia, Rowan, Scarlett know how good they really are but they are doing really well. Meila is a player I would also put in the “Don’t know how good they are” camp. She has shown a lot of growth this year and has become one of our better 2 way players. Francesca again keeps getting better and better so keep up the good work. Along with Francesca Harper has really improved this season. Also now that anyone who wanted to try playing in the net has she can finally get what she wants, and that is being one of the goalies.
In net Nealy played the first half and as always she played well for us. She is an instinctive athlete who I am sure will be good any anything she tries. Anna Drane played the 2nd half of the game in goal and made a few great saves that helped keep us in the game. Both in goal and on the field Anna has turned into a good player for us. Moving forward I am looking forward to seeing Harper back in the net. She has shown the team that she can play the position well and she really likes to do it. I also feel good putting Anna back in the cage any time she wants.
Next Sunday we have a game vs Sandwich Blue at 2pm. The game will be at Falmouth High. Please be at the game 30min early so we can work on the location of our passes during clears, keeping our midfielders high and we really need to SHOOT THE BALL!!!!!
As always if you have any questions please call my cell at 617-413-1063.
Thanks,
Joe
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