3rd and 4th Results

I don't have the results of later games, but I do know that the 3rd grade coed team sandpapered the gums of Saline County, 10-1. early Saturday. The 4th graders were losing, then winning, then losing...and finally beat Jackson 5-4. Goal scores - Logan Tweedy, Eli Scherer, and Enrique Arreola. Hence forth to be called ENRIQUE. One name is enough. They later lost a heartbreaker to Carbondale 1-0.

The girls' lost to a good Perryville team 1-6, but came back to beat Saline County 2-0. I don't know who scored for us, but I bet one is named Katie.

1st and 2nd Results

We have three teams playing at the 1st and 2nd grade level.

Orange (coed, which means boys) - I saw most of their first game, where the beat...somebody. I forget who. But Zac Paar scored twice, Derrick Harvel, Noah Fuller, and Aaron Arreola added goals and the good guys won 5-2. Steven Wells took a ball the in mug...hope you're OK, Steven! After 8 hours at the tournament I decided not to stay for their 6:15 PM game, but I am sure they won. Watch these kids and see the undefeated A-J High School soccer team of 2015.

Blue - These guys are a fun team to watch! Our guys took it on the chin from the semi-professionals from Farmington 1-4. I mean, come on...matching jackets for the PARENTS? They came back to tie Saline County, 1-1. I'll get back to you on the goal scorers.

Girls - Played great and beat Jackson in the first game, 4-2. Samantha Schott scored twice; so did Madison Calhoun. In the second game, CAYSA beat our girls 1-4; Ms. Schott scored again.
If another girls team beats CAYSA I will push a peanut with my nose from Marion to Anna.

Friday Results

The High School team won tonight 2-1 against Albion. Daniel Cohen scored both goals - a man among boys. The Junior High team under Mark Boomer won 2-1, goals by Shawn Stone and Lance Dixon. The 5/6 coed team lost to a really good Marion team, 4-0, but I want to single out Travis Smith and Colten Collier for playing good enough to keep us in the game. I wandered over to see the 5/6 girls play for a while...at the time they were losing 3-0. The final score was 3-2!

If I could editorialize for a second...

If you have not been to an All-Star Tournament, you should come to Marion. You won't believe the level of intensity and skill our kids display. I have been involved with Union County Soccer for 8 years (!) now. When I think back to the beginning and consider how far we have come, I am absolutely amazed! Thank you to all the coaches who volunteer their time, the parents who allow their kids to participate (and skip dinner to get them to games and practice), and the kids themselves who work so hard to get better at the most popular game in the world. Bring the little ones...our kids are an inspiration!

Marion Tournament Schedule

The schedule for this weekend's Whirlwind Tournament in Marion is here.

It's going to be a rainy week leading up to the Marion Tournament. Here's what it looked like after ONE NIGHT of rain two years ago. That's Zeb Goessman in the white.... 

AN IDEA FOR OUR EARLY SPRING GAMES

While normally I wouldn't condone this kind of behavior, it may solve our early spring problem of games ending after dark.

Mali Soccer Riot

Even A-J fans will have a hard time topping this.

Follow Up the FIFA Standings

From Jerry Green of the Orlando Sentinel:

Hey, don't laugh. The U.S. is now tied for 10th with Italy in the FIFA world rankings. This is the highest ever for a country that doesn't know these rankings exist.

ATTENNNNN-HUT!

Zane DeWitt (Dyno Nobel) takes it to the goal while his teammates stand at attention, waiting to salute.

Where are they now? 

Day light Savings Time

Daylight Savings Time begins APRIL 3!!!

As a result, we will push the starting times for our Tuesday and Thursday games back to 5:30 PM.
The first games affected are the Tueday, April 5 ones.

FIFA World Standings

The United States has moved into a 10th place tie with Italy in the FIFA World Standings. Can you name the others in the top 10?

Me neither. Here they are:

1) Brazil
2) France
3) Argentina
4) Czech Republic
5) Spain
6) Mexico
7) Netherlands
8) England
9) Portugal

Harvel Disposal is in 14th.

This is what happens when fund raising does not meet expectations.

Shirts

Hang on! If you recall, we have something like 70 new players. They were assigned to teams only 10 days or so before the season started. That's not a very long lead time.

Thanks for your patience.....

Photos

Do you have any good, digital photos of UCSL soccer action? If you do and want me to post them on this site send them to me at jope@cba.siu.edu !

Final (?) Registration Number

As of today, we have 317 players registered to play this Spring 2005. We lost around 30 from the Fall 2004 season but made up for that by adding 75 new players!

Supplies for coaches

If you need anything, let me know. I am expecting a shipment of goalie shirts and soccer balls tomorrow (March 18). I also have uncovered some goalie gloves and mesh soccer bags.

Medical Release and Liability Form

All new players must fill out a medical release form. This is mandatory! Those who played in the Fall 2004 season should already have one on file with his/her coach. You can get a form here.

Child rearing article

Here's a fascinating article that, although it does not deal specifically with soccer, is relevant in many ways to what we as soccer parents can and shouldn't do. The money quote..."Having overprotective parents is a risk factor for anxiety disorders because children do not have opportunites to master their inate shyness and become more comfortable in the world." (Michael Liebowitz, clinical professor of psychiatry at Columbia University).

Schedules

I have linked to the schedules for the PreK/K, 1st and 2nd grade, and 3rd and 4th grade schedules. Let me know if you see anything wrong!