Sunday, October 23, 2005
Drew had his weekly soccer game yesterday, and it was a real test of character. His team was clearly out-matched by a team of bigger kids with much more developed soccer skills. By the end of the first half the other team had scored several times and his team had not really had a single shot on the goal, since the ball spent nearly the entire time near their own goal. Drew already had volunteered to be goalie in the second half (he has heard a lot from us about how well has done at that position before - plus the fact that his Aunt Vicki plays that position), and he was determined to keep the other team from scoring.
He actually did rather well. He blocked the first shot and had done a great job of staying between the ball and goal the whol time. Then he had the other team coming at the goal with three players and none of his own to help him. On top of that, the kid with the ball clearly had a lot of experience and was able to place his shot exactly where Drew wasn't, despite Drew's good technique, so the shot went in. Drew was devastated! He pulled himself together before they were back, but it was another three-on-one. The first shot was chest-high, which is unusual for this age, but Drew made and incredible save with his hands, kocking the ball to the ground. WIthout help from his team, though, it wasn't over. Drew paused for a moment, and the other team came back and kicked it in on the other end of the goal. He just fell apart! His coach, substituted another player at goal, and we told him how well he had done and what a difficult situation it was. We didn't expect him to block every shot – especially without help from the rest of the team. He was still crushed.
His coach offered to put him in play on the field, but Drew declined. I talked to him a while about how the other team would always score when they controlled the ball and kept it in front of the goal all the time. I told him that no goalie is expected to block everything without help from the team and emphasized how well he had done in a very hard situation. After a little bit, Drew suprised me by volunteering to go back in the game (not at goal)! I figured he would stay too down to play for the rest of the game. When he went in, he was a different player than in the first half. He still hesitated in some situations, but whenever the ball started going towards his own goal, he went speeding towards the goal to help out (he confirmed later that he was making a big effort to help his goalie). He made quite a difference, too! The other team still scored, but not as much they would have. Near the end of the game, Drew kicked the ball back out of the box towards midfield, and his teammates took it down for their only score!
That was quite a comeback for Drew, and even more dramatic than his reversal in spring soccer! He was still dejected afterwards, but I kept telling him how well he had done and how proud I was - especially of going back in the game and making a difference despite how he felt. I took him to Ben & Jerry's for a cone to mark the occassion. By the time we got home, he was bursting to tell Mary about his spectacular save! I'm sure Drew will remember this game for a long time, and I hope some of the memories make him feel good about himself.
John
He actually did rather well. He blocked the first shot and had done a great job of staying between the ball and goal the whol time. Then he had the other team coming at the goal with three players and none of his own to help him. On top of that, the kid with the ball clearly had a lot of experience and was able to place his shot exactly where Drew wasn't, despite Drew's good technique, so the shot went in. Drew was devastated! He pulled himself together before they were back, but it was another three-on-one. The first shot was chest-high, which is unusual for this age, but Drew made and incredible save with his hands, kocking the ball to the ground. WIthout help from his team, though, it wasn't over. Drew paused for a moment, and the other team came back and kicked it in on the other end of the goal. He just fell apart! His coach, substituted another player at goal, and we told him how well he had done and what a difficult situation it was. We didn't expect him to block every shot – especially without help from the rest of the team. He was still crushed.
His coach offered to put him in play on the field, but Drew declined. I talked to him a while about how the other team would always score when they controlled the ball and kept it in front of the goal all the time. I told him that no goalie is expected to block everything without help from the team and emphasized how well he had done in a very hard situation. After a little bit, Drew suprised me by volunteering to go back in the game (not at goal)! I figured he would stay too down to play for the rest of the game. When he went in, he was a different player than in the first half. He still hesitated in some situations, but whenever the ball started going towards his own goal, he went speeding towards the goal to help out (he confirmed later that he was making a big effort to help his goalie). He made quite a difference, too! The other team still scored, but not as much they would have. Near the end of the game, Drew kicked the ball back out of the box towards midfield, and his teammates took it down for their only score!
That was quite a comeback for Drew, and even more dramatic than his reversal in spring soccer! He was still dejected afterwards, but I kept telling him how well he had done and how proud I was - especially of going back in the game and making a difference despite how he felt. I took him to Ben & Jerry's for a cone to mark the occassion. By the time we got home, he was bursting to tell Mary about his spectacular save! I'm sure Drew will remember this game for a long time, and I hope some of the memories make him feel good about himself.
John
