4/3/10 Game Recap (3-1 Win)
The Devils played their second game of the spring season on Saturday and turned in a strong performance against the visiting FC Milpitas MXG at the Sunnyvale Soccer Complex. The Devils scored a pair of goals in the first half, then traded tallies in the second half to take a 3-1 decision against the MXG.
The team got off to a strong start, scoring in the game’s first minute of play. Audrey punched home the first of her three goals on a 10 foot shot from point blank range. Courtney carried a through ball up the right side before sending a pass through the box. Marlene looked to be the intended target of the pass, but the ball skipped under her left foot. With the feed coming from the right side, the keeper and majority of the defense shifted over to cover the near side, leaving Audrey all alone for the easy deposit.
Katrina would setup the next goal n the 18th minute by side stepping a defender along the right sideline, then sending a through ball up the line. Once again, Courtney gathered the ball and sent a pass into the box where Audrey collected it and pumped home the 12 footer.
Courtney would get a chance to score herself a minute later by carrying the ball to the right corner of the box and drilling a shot that the Milpitas keeper was forced to glove.
Milpitas would make a push right before half time, forcing the play deep in the Devils zone. Jess Jess made a nice stop on a 29 foot shot that came from the left side right before the whistle.
The MXG would carry that momentum into the second half, and would cut the lead to 2-1 with a goal in the 32nd minute. Two Milpitas forwards executed a nice give-and-go that crossed up the Devils backliners.
Sensing a shift in the momentum of the game, Milpitas pressed the matter with a shot that sailed wide left four minutes later.
With only a lone substitute, the Devils were forced to juggle a short bench and have players stay on the field for longer durations than has been the norm. Milpitas utilized speedy forwards on the corners, but the midfielder did a great job of taking care of their defensive assignments first.
Akayla played most of the game at mid, which helped us control the middle of the field.
Kelly did a great job of playing at both mid and left defense in order to counter the speed of the MXG forward. Christene also saw time on the backline in order to deal with the MXG’s team speed. Both did a great job of suppressing the MXG offense.
Audrey converted the hat trick at the 40 minute mark when the Milpitas keeper misplayed a ball thinking it was a back pass. Rather than handling the ball, she tried to clear it but it landed right on Audrey's boot for the easy put back. In her defense, the keeper took the safe route on a play that could have resulted in a close range free-kick. I was the right decision, but it ended in the Devils favor.
The Devils almost scored a minute later on a shot from Akayla at the top of the box, but the Milpitas keeper grabbed the ball in traffic to deny the chance.
Christene would turn back a 15 foot shot from her keeper position with a nice kick save at the 43 min mark.
That’s as close as Milpitas would get, as the Devils defense would buckle down and prevent the ball from entering their end for the remainder of the game. Ruhi continued her stellar play at sweeper, clearing several balls with exceptional timing.
Game Positives—
Air Balls: One of the focuses in practice this weeks was utilizing wedge traps. The girls employed this technique several times in the game on balls they were forced to handle in the air. Headballs were something the girls improve on constantly, and they used them with great effectiveness on Saturday. They often would utilize head balls to simply control the ball in tight, which allowed them to retain possession of the ball.
Short Game: The use of short range passing and ball handling was superb. The girls controlled much of the tempo of the game, because they were able to retain possession of the ball. We’re starting to see more advanced ball handling skills, which is very encouraging.
2nd Defender: The girls have been working on the correct positioning for the second defender. We have seen improvement on doubling back quickly to become second defender as the first defender steps to the ball.
Moving to the Ball: The girls learned the benefit of quickly moving to steal the ball from the feet of the opposition in the season't first game. They struggled against it in the first game, but used it to their advantage this game. This was especially true for Grace at center mid and for the forwards in dropping back to win the ball.
Development Areas—
Corner Kicks: We finally played on the appropriate sized field for this age group, which meant the corners were closer to the goal. Corner kicks fell short or were off mark. The girls generated plenty of corner chances, but didn't take advantage of those opportunities.
Releases: We will focus more attention on getting quicker shots off, especially from distance, in order to capitalize on ball control.
The team got off to a strong start, scoring in the game’s first minute of play. Audrey punched home the first of her three goals on a 10 foot shot from point blank range. Courtney carried a through ball up the right side before sending a pass through the box. Marlene looked to be the intended target of the pass, but the ball skipped under her left foot. With the feed coming from the right side, the keeper and majority of the defense shifted over to cover the near side, leaving Audrey all alone for the easy deposit.
Katrina would setup the next goal n the 18th minute by side stepping a defender along the right sideline, then sending a through ball up the line. Once again, Courtney gathered the ball and sent a pass into the box where Audrey collected it and pumped home the 12 footer.
Courtney would get a chance to score herself a minute later by carrying the ball to the right corner of the box and drilling a shot that the Milpitas keeper was forced to glove.
Milpitas would make a push right before half time, forcing the play deep in the Devils zone. Jess Jess made a nice stop on a 29 foot shot that came from the left side right before the whistle.
The MXG would carry that momentum into the second half, and would cut the lead to 2-1 with a goal in the 32nd minute. Two Milpitas forwards executed a nice give-and-go that crossed up the Devils backliners.
Sensing a shift in the momentum of the game, Milpitas pressed the matter with a shot that sailed wide left four minutes later.
With only a lone substitute, the Devils were forced to juggle a short bench and have players stay on the field for longer durations than has been the norm. Milpitas utilized speedy forwards on the corners, but the midfielder did a great job of taking care of their defensive assignments first.
Akayla played most of the game at mid, which helped us control the middle of the field.
Kelly did a great job of playing at both mid and left defense in order to counter the speed of the MXG forward. Christene also saw time on the backline in order to deal with the MXG’s team speed. Both did a great job of suppressing the MXG offense.
Audrey converted the hat trick at the 40 minute mark when the Milpitas keeper misplayed a ball thinking it was a back pass. Rather than handling the ball, she tried to clear it but it landed right on Audrey's boot for the easy put back. In her defense, the keeper took the safe route on a play that could have resulted in a close range free-kick. I was the right decision, but it ended in the Devils favor.
The Devils almost scored a minute later on a shot from Akayla at the top of the box, but the Milpitas keeper grabbed the ball in traffic to deny the chance.
Christene would turn back a 15 foot shot from her keeper position with a nice kick save at the 43 min mark.
That’s as close as Milpitas would get, as the Devils defense would buckle down and prevent the ball from entering their end for the remainder of the game. Ruhi continued her stellar play at sweeper, clearing several balls with exceptional timing.
Game Positives—
Air Balls: One of the focuses in practice this weeks was utilizing wedge traps. The girls employed this technique several times in the game on balls they were forced to handle in the air. Headballs were something the girls improve on constantly, and they used them with great effectiveness on Saturday. They often would utilize head balls to simply control the ball in tight, which allowed them to retain possession of the ball.
Short Game: The use of short range passing and ball handling was superb. The girls controlled much of the tempo of the game, because they were able to retain possession of the ball. We’re starting to see more advanced ball handling skills, which is very encouraging.
2nd Defender: The girls have been working on the correct positioning for the second defender. We have seen improvement on doubling back quickly to become second defender as the first defender steps to the ball.
Moving to the Ball: The girls learned the benefit of quickly moving to steal the ball from the feet of the opposition in the season't first game. They struggled against it in the first game, but used it to their advantage this game. This was especially true for Grace at center mid and for the forwards in dropping back to win the ball.
Development Areas—
Corner Kicks: We finally played on the appropriate sized field for this age group, which meant the corners were closer to the goal. Corner kicks fell short or were off mark. The girls generated plenty of corner chances, but didn't take advantage of those opportunities.
Releases: We will focus more attention on getting quicker shots off, especially from distance, in order to capitalize on ball control.
Labels: 2010 Spring Season, FC Milpitas MXG
posted by Mike at
10:21 PM
0 Comments:
Post a Comment
Subscribe to Post Comments [Atom]
<< Home