President's Cup Tournament

January 7-9, 2016

President’s Cup Tournament

Mesquite, NV

We weren’t going to do this tournament. I’m tired of sacrificing for soccer. But once again, we let the pressure of the team/coach dictate our schedule and I went down to St. George/Mesquite while Jeff stayed home and ran our company party. Isaac’s coach called me on the phone and told me how much he needed Isaac at this tournament. Flattered, I thought that meant he would get a lot of playing time and maybe it would be a good experience for him. I knew of a few teammates who weren’t going so I assumed they were short players. When we showed up to the first game and there were 6 boys sitting on the bench (they only play 8 v 8), I was a little bugged. Isaac had a great first game, scoring an awesome goal off of a beautiful volley in the first few minutes of the second half. After the game his coach came over and said, “Don’t let him stop playing. He is such a talented soccer player!” But each game he got less and less playing time. Part of it was his own fault. In one game he got hurt at the end of the first half and told the coach he was too hurt to play in the second half. After the game he was running around playing with his friends just fine. In another early morning game he was so cold he kept running over to me on the other side of the field looking for hand warmers or gloves or extra socks. He was nearly in tears he was so cold so the coach barely played him. I felt bad that he was so cold. And it was freezing. The field was frozen over and their game was at 7am. I was freezing huddled under a blanket with hand warmers on the sidelines. I just think he is too young for this level of competition. His team made it to the championship game and it was heartbreaking to see Isaac sitting on the bench on the other side of the field with his head hung low, looking so dejected. He played 1 minute in the first half and 3 minutes in the second. During the one minute he played in the first half, his coach was screaming at him for giving the player too much space. Then Isaac closed in and stabbed and the coach screamed at him for stabbing: “Are you kidding me Isaac?!!!” he yelled. Isaac looked confused and hurt. I was so frustrated. I wished it was sunny so I could hide my tears behind my sunglasses. I was so sad for Isaac. He was trying his best and in the few minutes he got to play, he was berated. I was not happy. I don’t think it is at all appropriate coaching for 9 year olds!!!

***Since the tournament I have had a few good talks with Isaac's coach. He is young and very competitive. He is a good coach and puts in hours and hours and really wants the boys to improve their skills so I can't fault his intentions. I just think at this age, everyone should get an opportunity to play. You don't know how kids will develop. It's not about winning at this age, it's about development. I think Fekky (his coach) has tried to understand my point of view that Isaac just wants to have an opportunity to play and that he is so afraid to mess up that it makes soccer not fun for him. I don't think he agrees with it or even understands it. He has told me that he will not change his approach. He wants the boys to fight for a spot on the team and he will only play the best players, (which I don't agree with at this age), but he has said that if Isaac commits to go to all of the practices and work hard, he will make sure he is progressing and understanding what he is trying to teach. Isaac had gotten into the habit of not wanting to go to practice this winter because of the intensity of his coach. It's not as fun as it was before. But Isaac has committed to go without complaint each week and his attitude towards it is improving. I still think it's not the right fit for Isaac but we are stuck until the end of Spring season.

Kate was asked to go play in this tournament at the last minute. Almost literally. I got a phone call at 3pm asking her to come down and play with the A-team. I was planning on leaving with Isaac at 4pm. I figured I was already heading down so if Kate wanted to go, then why not? We quickly gathered her stuff and she came with us. It was really fun to spend some one-on-one time with Kate and Isaac. We listened to The Black Stallion for a lot of the time in the car. It was nearly a 6 hour audio book and the narrator was so animated and did all of the different voices and accents for each character. It was very engaging. The kids and I loved it! We talked about all kinds of things and I got to know each of them a little better than I did before. We cranked the “pump up” music they wanted to listen to before the games and rocked out in the car. We ate out and they cheered each other on at their games. Between the two kids we had 8 games in two days! We drove back and forth from Mesquite and St. George through the Virgin River Gorge 8 times. I ate a lot of sunflower seeds to try and stay awake during the drives. It was actually beautiful and when we were driving back to St. George at night, the stars were so bright you could see the Milky Way. Isaac even saw a Big Horn Sheep on the cliff one of the times.

Kate’s team was short players. They only had two subs (they play 11 v 11). That meant that Kate got to play every single minute of every single game. She was exhausted but in heaven. Let’s be honest, soccer is a lot more fun when you get to PLAY! Who even cares if your team wins or loses if you don’t get to play. Kids just want minutes in the game so they feel like they are learning, improving and contributing. Kate played left defender. She honestly played so well. Everyone kept talking about how much she has improved and how amazing she was playing. She felt like a million bucks. They played some very tough teams and had some pretty intense games for those little 11 year old girls. She played tough and never stopped running. Kate’s team also played in the championship. It was such a tight game. The final score was 2-1. Kate made some key plays and saved some potential goals. She probably played one of her best games ever! Her team won the championship and took first place in the tournament! And Kate’s coach (Alex) named her the MVP of the whole tournament. He talked in front of the whole team about how she had been called at the last minute and came to play up with the “A” team against much tougher teams than she has been playing against and how she repeatedly shut down the offense and how he was so proud of how much she has improved and how well she played. She was on top of the world! I was so glad she could have that awesome experience.

Isaac sitting alone at the other end of the bench. This scene made me cry. He sat there with his head down, resigned to the fact that he wouldn't play, during the entire second half. 

Isaac didn't really know about the medals so he was just walking to the car trying to keep it together when one of his teammates ran after him and told him to come get his medal. Even though he was sad from sitting the bench the entire game, his teammates were kind and inclusive and he felt a little better after getting his medal. I was grateful to that little boy (Spencer) for making an effort to include Isaac, especially after a tough game.

Isaac with his coach, Fekky.

Isaac congratulating Kate after her championship win. He is everyone's #1 fan at the games. He loves to watch and cheer for his siblings. It's awesome!