Soccer Due to our goalie's retirement and the fact that at the time I was the only one on the team with goal-keeping experience of any kind (although it was all on the hockey rink, and only in a never-practiced-emergency-only back-up capacity), I am the new backstop. I can't say that it isn't fun; for a few brief moments every game, it's about as exciting as it can get. The problem is that with the exception of those few brief moments, the rest of the game is pretty much just standing around. Standing around doesn't contribute to staying in shape, which was one of the main reasons for joining the soccer team. However, hockey starts up in a couple of weeks, and I can always join a weeknight soccer team (my current team is in a weekend league, so they would never conflict) if I feel like I need more excercise. But for now, all I do is stand in net. Here's a quick recap:
Game 1 I wasn't really counting but I probably stopped something between 8 and 12 shots. I gave up one goal in the latter part of the second half on a high shot that I did not get a very good jump on. Our defense did a great job pressuring the other team. Most of the shots they got off were low percentage shots from a bad angle. Aside from the one that went in, which I really should have been able to tip over the bar, there were maybe three saves required a decent amount of effort. On the other end of the field, our offense took it to them, putting up four goals and giving me my first win (I played goal for one complete game during the summer season while our regular goalie was out of town--it ended in a tie).
Game 2 This game started well, despite the fact that we began the game with only eight players (most games are in the afternoon, but for some reason this one started at 9:30 am). I faced only a handful of shots during the first half, but as the game progressed I became increasingly worried that our defense was not playing up to the level it had in the previous game. There were numerous wide-open breakaways towards the end of the first half, and while very few of them resulted in shots on net--several sailed just over the crossbar--it was only a matter of time before the opposing strikers dialed in their shots. I did make a few skin-of-the-teeth saves, but in the closing minutes of the half a breakaway chance finally resulted in a goal for the opposition. Things really started to fall apart in the second half. Our defense wasn't challenging the ball, and the breakaways kept coming. The final score was 6-0, with the first four goals coming on breakaways. The fifth goal was a beautiful play; classic three-on-two, with all three strikers getting a touch on the ball before the shot came from just outside the six. The last goal was totally my mistake, but I wasn't that broken up over it since we were already down 5-0 with less than five minutes to play. The ball had been booted into our end of the field and was rolling down the sideline into the corner. An opposing striker was chasing, and our nearest defender was a good fifteen yards behind. I thought I could get to the ball first and kick it out of bounds, giving our defense time to get back rather than facing a two--or possibly three-on-oh. I did get to the ball first, but when I got to it I had the stupid idea that I didn't need to kick it out. 'Why don't I just turn it upfield?' I thought. The problem is that it was on the left side of the field, and my left foot is not very good. I knew I didn't have time to pull the ball to my right foot, so instead of making the safe, easy play, I mucked the attempted clear with my left foot and the ball rolled right to the attacker who had been chasing it. Needless to say, what would have been a two-on-oh and was now a two-on-empty net from inside the six resulted in a give-me goal. The highlight of the game for me was stopping a penalty shot. One of my defenders took the worst dive I've ever seen and I found myself standing with my heels on the goal line staring down a shooter twelve yards away. I lined up a little off center and dove towards the wide side, getting my left hand squarely in front of the shot. I even drew a yellow card when one of the players on the other team collided with my while trying to pick up the rebound. I am now 1 for 1 on PKs.
Summary Game 1 W-4-1
Game 2 L-0-6
posted by Tom 9:02 PM
It starts with the shoe. Maybe the next day it's a t-shirt or a sock. You don't know if the washing machine ate it, or your roommate borrowed it a month ago and forgot that it was yours. All you know is that by the end of the week, you're walking to class naked because you don't have any clothes left.
