Soccer Season

Bryce and Thane both played soccer this year.  It was Bryce's third year playing and Thane's first.  

Last fall, Thane had a little introduction to soccer as part of our preschool co-op.  He was a natural!  While his friends cried (in typical four-year old fashion), he was dribbling the ball up and down the field, and scoring goal after goal.  I was pretty excited to see what he'd do on an organized team.

Turns out, he's a darn good spectator.  Sometime in the last year he somehow managed to lose whatever drive to participate he once had in abundance.  At half time of his first game, I pulled him aside and explained, "Did you know that at the end of every game the players get snacks and treats?  But, those treats are only for players, not for watchers. So, if you want the snack, you'll have to actually try to play."

Perhaps it wasn't my finest parenting moment, but Thane is mightily motivated by food.  From then on he at least ran around and every once in a while kicked the ball.  

He insists he really likes soccer and wants to play again in the spring.  I wonder how much of that is because he really liked the snacks at the end of each game!

Thane with Coach Smith

Bryce is a different story.  He's always liked soccer just fine, but mostly because he loves being around friends and is a willing and good-natured kid.  This year we switched to a different division, and there was a BIG jump in expectations and level of play.  Half of Bryce's team played in this division last year, and there were some really quality ball players.  

Bryce wasn't nearly as skilled or experienced as the majority of boys on his team.  But.  Bryce discovered that he really loves to play soccer.  He is excellent at listening and following directions, and he always  tries really, really hard.  

Sometimes he listens and obeys a little too well.  A big emphasis in this division is learning to play positions.  It took Bryce a while to understand that he didn't have to stay exactly in his position.  

I really enjoyed watching Bryce's soccer games.  Yes, part of that is because I knew most of the boys on the team, but a larger part is because the game had progressed far enough that it was actual soccer (as opposed to bunchy-ball).

A benefit of knowing most of the kids and parents is that we were able to have a really fun end of the season party.

Bryce and Thane had the same coach, our neighbor and friend, Eric Smith.  He was fantastic.  Bryce is looking forward to playing spring soccer on his team.  We should probably get in some practice before then.

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Last week I gave Bryce the writing prompt, "Write about a leader you admire," and he picked Coach Smith: