Soccer Specialist

I apologize for not posting for awhile, like most of you I have been out playing soccer as much as possible. It is great to get out in the summer and kick the ball around with friends. I play any evening I can and try to play most Saturdays as well. I have been trying to start pick up games on Saturday mornings and it has not worked out very well. I have received feedback from at least 15 people that want to play, but when it comes time to play they are nowhere to be found. We did this 2 summers ago and had excellent turnout every Saturday for the entire summer. It was a blast, but the last 2 years I have not been able to get people to show up. If any of you have had success putting together pick up games, let me know how you do it.  I could really use the help! If anyone in the Salt Lake Valley wants to play leave me comment and let me know that you are interested and I will let you know when and where we will be playing.

Enjoy the summer while you can, and play as much as possible!

The men’s soccer team recently lost to England in the famous Wembley Stadium. I am a die hard US Soccer fan and it is frustrating to see them struggle in big atmospheres. They struggled in the last World Cup and it seemed as if they were shocked to be there the whole time. It seemed that way against England and they lost 2-0. What do they need to do to get back on track and focus for big games? Landon Donovan sat out this game with a sore groin and that could have caused them to struggle up front, but a national team should not rely on one player alone. What do you guy’s think the US Soccer team needs to do to step it up and compete in big games?

The only US game I have been to was a qualifier for the 2006 World Cup in Germany. They came to Utah and played Costa Rica. The US team dominated the game and Landon Donovan had 2 goals en route to an easy victory for the US. It was very exciting to cheer for my country in a match and I look forward to the time I have the opportunity to cheer them on again in person. It doesn’t matter what country you are from it is always exciting to cheer your team on in an athletic event! I recommend you go if you have not had the chance before. It was the greatest sporting event I have ever been to and hopefully someday I will be able to go cheer them on in the World Cup!

I would love to hear your responses on what the US team needs to do to compete in big games. I would also love to hear any stories you may have about cheering on your national team and what it feels like to watch them play in person.

I finally had a game after 2 weeks off, and of course I came down with the flu 2 days before the game. I was not feeling well at all yesterday, but I still wanted to see if I could play despite not feeling well. I got ready for my game and headed out the door. When I got there I could see we had enough guys there so they didn’t really need me, but I wanted to play anyway.  I played one of the best games I have this season. I had a couple of assists and several stops on defense. Our team won, it was a great game and I was very glad I went.

Our team has struggled this year and this was the first game we really played well together and got the win. Granted it was only our third game of the season, but we usually do really well all season so the first 2 games were really frustrating. It felt good to win, but it felt better to watch good ball movement and communication amongst our team. It made me wonder; What motivates soccer players to play better? We have the same guys every game, but it seems one week they don’t care to do things the right way, then the next week they are motivated to play better. I don’t understand the mentality of players that quit once they are down. I will play as hard as I can when I am on the field the whole game no matter what the score is. I don’t need external motivation, I just love to play the game and don’t want to miss a chance to play. I have noticed some guys on my team do better when certain girls are in the stands watching, some players do better when they are mad, some players do better when a coach or teammate calls them out.

What is it that motivates you as a soccer player. I think every player is different so I would be interested to hear what motivates you. Leave a comment and let us know what  you do to get motivated to play your best in a game.