From a short distance away it looked like any other game, on any other Sunday. But the closer you got, the easier you could make out that this was the main event: the first soccer game experience for many of these Orange and Green shirted angels. This is the only photo How To Soccer had time to snap before the field was buzzing with a match.
We started by taking a knee near the
touchline. The
referee showed his whistle and explained that it meant when to stop and when to start. Some players knew what a
Referee was because they had played in the
Summer Soccer Tournament Series 1.
We talked about teams and colors and goals and coaches, then we started with the League 1 players in a 4v4 arrangement, and had no goalkeepers. Before we
kicked off, the referee arranged the players and talked about what each position should be doing.
At some point, we put the League 2 players on the same field and we had a busy game. Someone picked up the ball, so we introduced goalkeepers into the game. We allowed the goalkeepers some minutes to get dressed--gloves, different color shirt, etc.--then we played.
The Green team attacked and Arbor made a save. The Orange team attacked and Eli made a save. The Green Team attacked again and Azrael--who informed the referee and made a change during active play-- made a save and punted the ball down field.
Emerson scored, and Vlada, and Mayer, maybe Larkin too.
After the game we all held together one pile of the green and orange shirts --everybody's hands holding up every players' shirts. Then we kinda made that stack of hands with shirts bubble and on the count of three we threw the shirts in the air and all yelled "soccer!!!!"
Next Tuesday, July 1 at 6:30 we have training, but the
Tuesday night trainings will have to get moved starting the second week of July because Coach Tad will be doing the
Plains Under 6 Soccer Program.
http://howtosoccerblog.blogspot.com/2013/04/referee-training-seminar-dayton-ohio.html
The schedule will be updated at the Youth League Page at
www.athenssocceracademy.com.
