Game 6 - Jaguars vs Lower Hutt Scorpions

Result - Loss - 1 - 0

Player of the day - Sam - for a awesome skills with positive passing and tackling.

Strengths - Some great movement out wide to get the ball up field & pressure on their goal.

Areas to develop - Positional play (again).

After today's game I got onto the whiteboard and have developed a better plan for subs and positions so players are more familiar with their positions each week.

My wife also thought I should read this clip from today's paper. As a coach I will take the article on board as I do find myself becoming a little too vocal from time to time.

There were a number of times where players seemed to forget what position they were in and the important links (particularly through midfield) to get the ball into an attacking position were simply missing. This meant there were players bunching together & when we got the ball would sometimes kick away possession.

We didn't have very many scoring opportunities, and the ones we did have weren't capitalised on. We didn't follow though on our attacks, which Lower Hutt did and were lucky to win the game by a goal scored in the 10th minute, but I guess they put themselves in the position so they could score.

Having said that there were many positives to take out of the game.

Player of the day, Sam, played positively and made some superb passes.

The AJ twins were busy attacking & defending (I'm sure there were 2 of them on the field again).

Andy made some decisive runs, carving up the opposition. They were obviously concerned and dealt to him with some physical defence which saw him carried off the pitch.

Liam was solid in defence and has a strong ability to read the game, getting the ball into attacking situations.

Amanda made some tackles and passed well to team mates. I was impressed when she fell back into the defensive line when defenders took the ball up.

Cody seemed to be frustrated in goal, because he made a huge contribution to the second half with skillful moves up the right hand side.

JD played up the front and looked like getting in a position to score a few times.

Bosco was captain for the day and proved solid in defence. His big kicks turned around the opposition more than a few times.

I was surprised Vinnie didn't score as he got past defenders time & time again.

Aaron looked dangerous on the left wing every time he got the ball and was unlucky not to score some goals.

Josh kept the opposition scoreless in the second half and was called on to make a number of saves which he handled easily.

Vincent was another player who seemed to be everywhere, from attacking to defending. He made some great probing runs and looking to attack from everywhere on the field.

Practice this week will focus on positional play and getting those shots into the goal!

Game 5 - Jaguars vs Petone Settlers

Result - Loss - 5 - 0

Player of the day - Bosco- for clear communication.

Strengths - More positive 2nd half.

Areas to develop - Positional team play. Capitalise on goal shooting opportunities.

I was feeling disheartened after today's loss because I didn't think the scoreline reflected how the game evolved, however we didn't capitalise on our chances to score.

Players that went close to scoring were: Vinnie, AJ, Bosco & (Captain) Aaron.

I asked the team to score two goals early and our first shot on their goal was after 1 minute. In the 2nd minute Caleb (The Rock) was staunch in defence, diffused the attack and was key in getting the ball up to Vinnie who forced a corner in the 3rd minute.

Aaron and AJ combined well in the 5th minute and put pressure on their goal.

I was impressed with Aaron's attacking runs and he looked threatening whenever he had the ball.

AJ made the most of his mid-field role with great defence and storming attacks, I thought there must have been 2 of him on the field!

Cody made some great saves and we were lucky the scoreline was only 3 - nil at half time.

A positional change at half time saw us only fielding 3 in defence, but the strength of our back 3 meant Petone only scored twice in the second half. Cody, Liam and Caleb were solid making tackles and clearing the ball to the mid-field.

In the mid-field, Vincent connected well with the ball and I was impressed with his passing. I've been pleased with his continuous improvement, getting better every game.

Amanda was aware of her position and was able to provide useful linkages.

Andy also made some good tackles in defence and positive passing.

Josh took a few knocks, but brushed them off to save a number of goals in the second half.

Sam had his best game yet, making more tackles and looking for subtle passes to his team mates.

Vinnie is capable whichever position he is in. I was most impressed with his ability to win the ball with skillful tackling.

Bosco will be captain next week and after this week's excellent communication on the pitch should thrive in this role.

Focus for practice will include: fitness, physical play, capitalising shots at goal, clearing from our goal area.

I'm sure we can learn from the result and the players can support and help each other develop into a game-winning team.

Game 3 - Jaguars vs Upper Hutt Cougars

Result - Win - 4 - 1!

Player of the day - Cody - for fantastic goalkeeping & positive forward play.

Strengths - Realise that teamwork wins games.

Areas to develop - Taking shots quickly & passing.

The game
It was a sunny autumn day as we prepared to take the field. Vinnie was captain for the day and won the toss, electing to kick-off and we played with the slight in the first half.

It looked like Vinnie was going to score the first goal from the halfway line with a huge punt up the field.

Our 4 goals came as a result of great team play.

The first was after Andy tackled a player and sent the ball upfield to Josh B who passed deftly to Bosco who sent it on to Joshua D who scored a great goal. It was worthwhile seeing the delight and joy on Joshua's face.

AJ scored twice. Once after a nice pass to Bosco, who passed it back, giving AJ room to score. AJ repaid the favour with a well-placed kick across the goal allowing Bosco to run on to it and put it in the goal.

The Cougars played well and had better positional play. They deserved to go away with a goal.

The highlights for me were:

- Vinnie's solid defence that saved a number of attacking plays.

- Caleb was reliable and didn't allow anyone to get past him.

- Vincent's ability to play a strong defensive/ midfield game that gives us extra striking power on attack but is fast enough to get back quickly on defence.

- Sam is improving with every game, making more tackles and looking for passes.

- Aaron moved to left midfield, then defence. His strong positional play creates space that allows us to exploit the gaps.

- Josh worked hard in the mid-field and I was proud when he offered to goalie the second half.

- Another player who provided structure to our play was Liam who showed up in the right place at the right time with a strong ability to read the play. I liked it when Liam took a shot at goal with his first touch, which just went wide.

We still need to develop our positional play and kicking skills.

It was great to win the game and everyone seemed to have a lot of fun which is what it's all about. Now we have to polish our boots for the photos on Monday!

Game 1 - Jaguars vs Eastbourne

Result - Loss - 6 - 0

Player of the day - Caleb, for great defence and communication

Strengths - Communication, 1 touches

Areas to develop - Positional play

The game

It was a sunny morning in Totara Park and the coach was there early to set up.

The team arrived and warmed up, thinking about their positions and how the game might unfold. The team is made up of a variety of players, some with positional preferences and different skill levels.

The positions were:

Forwards - Joshua - Vincent

Midfield - Andy - Josh - Amanda - Bosco

Defence - Sam - Caleb - Vinnie - Cody

Goalie - AJ

Our goalie, AJ was required to make a save after only 1 minute due to some defensive disorganisation and Eastbourne's first goal was scored after 2 1/2 minutes due to an excellent break down the middle.

Our defence strengthened and became more cohesive with some great work between Vinnie & Caleb in the middle.

We were looking like scoring with Josh and Joshua both having attempts but Eastbourne were able to turn around quickly and score again in the 13th minute. With their tails up, they looked like they were going to score again in the 14th minute, but scrambling defence saved a goal. In the 20th minute Eastbourne came close again but Cody and Caleb combined to clear the danger.

Just before half-time Eastbourne had another shot on goal which AJ saved and cleared to the wing.

The team looked close to exhaustion at half time, but a banana and water re-energised them.

Some half time changes to positions:

Forwards - AJ -Josh- Bosco
Midfield - Amanda- Vincent- Andy- Sam
Defence - Caleb - Vinnie - Cody
Goalie - Joshua

With fewer defenders there was always the risk of more goals, but without strikers we were never going to score goals. With mid-field getting tired there was no surprise that Eastbourne scored 4 more times in the second half at the 35, 38, 44 & 49 minute marks.

Our highlights in the second half were AJ's attacking runs, Cody's strong defence, Sam's relentless energy, Joshua's penalty save and other saves, Bosco's strong boot, Josh's control in midfield, Andy's ball skills, Amanda's passing and Vinnie's powerful tackling.

I felt disappointed about the result but proud of the many examples of good soccer skills that the team displayed. Having seen each player's strengths I have a better idea about which position they are best suited to that will ensure the best coverage on the field.

One idea I have is to take my subbuteo game to the next practice to illustrate some examples of positional play.

I will prepare well for the next practice, focusing on positional play and tackling so we can maximise the opportunity to improve for the next game.