Pre-Season Has Begun

With the Spring 11v11 season bearing down upon us, teams are fielding friendly matches to knock some of the rust off and fine tune their instruments of soccer ability.  Our Wolves took on the up and coming Plague Rats this past weekend. A preseason fixture, that has seen the steady rise of the Plague Rats' development as a strong, competitive soccer team in the Lowcountry, came and went without much of a change in result from our last meeting. Having more of our team present for this most recent game then the latter, I felt we would have done a bit better. But with the Wolves trying out a few new players, experiencing some definite rustiness, add bit of miscommunication, and working with a new goalie...the Rats came up with the win. Now...reading that back makes us sound as if we had a ton of excuses for our off-performance...but if you know anything about soccer...all of these issues stated do come into play.  To the Plague Rats, we seem to be easy pickings for them each preseason. The past 2 matches, they come on to the pitch very organized.  They move the ball and find space with efficiency. They play a very direct game that exploits their attacking talents.  Their dedication to fitness and training as a team are very evident. I hope that we meet in the Division this Spring season.

Our team is a second half team that is desperately wanting to change for the better. The better, in this case, would mean controlling from minute one and imposing our style and strength throughout the 90 minutes. We have very good players on our team, and we always do well in the season. For a team that talks very little about gameplan, our history proves that we play with a silent understanding of each other, and most often come out victorious as league season winners and playoff champs.  Instead of a lot of teams in the league that showcase three or four stars, our team is comprised of many good players that believe in each others ability and work hard for each other to ensure the win. And if not a win, at least a good showing. 

With one more preseason match coming up against Madra Rua Irish Pub, the Wolves hope to continue our dominance over the "Boys in Black".  I honestly cannot remember ever losing to Madra Rua. But every game has been entertaining and fast paced. And to make sure credit is given where it is certainly due....Madra are no push-overs. These are the types of contests that we, as soccer players, live for.  Just this last season, we played them to a 2-1 finish in the first meeting. A couple of weeks later, and with the return of Paul Schrafft to the lineup...the Wolves turned a 2 goal deficit at halftime into a 4-2 win with an amazing show by the whole squad. Special work done by Brent Wood (an assist and an "almost" diving header for a goal), Tarus Little with a goal, and Paul with a brace. Paul even saw the goalkeeper sent off after a blatant foul resulting in the denial of a goal scoring opportunity. The third meeting of the season was in the Division 1 semifinals. This match lived up to its predecessors as an amazingly fast paced, dramatic, and nail-biting performance by both teams. This semi ended 3-2 with the Wolves on top (of course).  We tried a new formation that no one seemed to like right from the start. We played a 3-2-3-2, with the double stopper (or holding mids for some of you), and it did clog the middle up as intended. But with the lack of practice with this formation, we reverted to the tried and true 4-4-2 at halftime. Again, the match was back and forth throughout the first half. But once we hit that second half, it was time to coast through, get our goals, and finish the game like we have been doing for the past couple of seasons.  Over all three matches, and this past season as a whole...we would be nothing if it wasn't for our defense (comprised most always of Nate Pearson, Alan Dix, Brent Wood, and Joey Gorman) and goalkeeper (Anthony Jones).

Looking forward to our next match and the Spring season, I don't know what it's going to take to get the Wolves to be in command from the first minute of every match. Sometimes we play well and we are consistent, but other times its a hard fought battle all the way to the end. Dunno...

But I guess that's why we play this game. And another reason why we all love it so much. Football, or soccer, is a game that can go any which way, on any day, no matter who is on the pitch to play.  That is why we play the game. To put our own personal mark on it. To share our abilities with others to make something beautiful together. To find joy in the strike of a shot for a goal; in the last chance clearance of the ball off the goal line; in the threading-of-the-needle sort of pass to find your mate running through, unmarked; the stringing together of pass after pass after pass sending your opponent into the woes of misery; and most importantly, in the fraternal bonding of the team. 

But with the quest for joy comes the bitter agony of pain and defeat...but this too, is how you grow as a player and how we grow as a team. The hunger for another chance at glory. The desire to prove to yourself and to your opponents that you can do better. The constant replays in your head as you lay down to sleep, as you work out intensely in mid-week, and the night before gameday. All of these things are necessary to feed the beast that is your love for the game.


But in the end, the ball may bounce your way and it may not.