Three years and god knows how many practices, games, and fun later, Matthew’s journey with Coach Alex and with his current club comes to an end with two final games on Sunday. All will be different next year.
First game is against long-time frequent opponent Canton White. And the boys, for one of the few times all year, come out and play like we have been practicing, lots of passes, lots of possession.
We take a 1-0 lead in the 2nd half, and then give up the tying goal with 5 seconds left on what could be called a very poor offsides call but I will chose to call an example of one of the bigger problems plaguing this team….one boy just completely ignoring what he should be doing on the field to do something else. And leaving a guy so wide open as to not even be believable.
So it is a sad melancholy type of day as Suzanne and I contemplate the switch that is going to happen and as we say our goodbyes to Coach Alex and Darus….I can’t say I’m happy with how the last 4 months have gone, but that’s not all on them, and they have consistently, to me at least, tried to do what they thought was best for the boys. I know Matthew has grown a lot as a soccer player and as an athlete over the last three years.
So there are more than a few of these type of pictures from Suzanne’s picture-taking…boys with the coaches getting half-time instructions.
One midfielder was sick for the first half of the first game, so, Matthew played almost 25 of the 30 minute half. Proud of that kid…was always hustling and moving even though he was playing quite a bit more than he usually does…..
The second game is nothing to talk about; we lost 7-1. The more interesting things happened before and after the game….the White team played before our game so our players hung out on the sideline. You know what, I’ll just go grab what Coach Alex wrote in his last email….
“Today during the first White team game there was a moment that I feel really summed up the past seasons...The White team was playing well on the field, and all members of the Red team were seated on our bench cheering loudly for their teammates. The Red boys at times started chants and songs in support of their teammates, and it was clear through their faces that the boys on the field loved the environment that their buddies created. The teamwork, respect, and enthusiasm for each other (and the game itself) was visibly present at that moment, and that type of selfless support is something that Darus and I are proud to see the boys embody as they move on to the next level. Thanks again for allowing us to be a part of moments like that. We look forward to keeping track of the boys as they continue their soccer careers, and we will cherish each success they have along the way.”
Last picture of the team…..holding Alex’s dog Buster above them as they do the team cheer one last time. Darus there on the right had hugged all of the players but Suzanne and I both noticed he held onto Matthew a little bit longer than anyone else. Makes me sad that they’ll be out of the picture next year and hope against hope that I’ve made the right decision for Matthew for at least the next two years. The next post will be the long-hinted-at but never-posted discussion of that decision, why I/we (and there isn’t a whole lot of we there I guess) are doing it and the impacts of the decision.
