On Monday I had a soccer game with my Habana Cuba team. We played a team named Tobiko and beat them 12-6. This would have been a close game if the goalkeeper for the other team had put some effort into it. Let me explain. We scored 4 or 5 goals from or near the half marker, some 40 feet away. The goalkeeper was basically standing on the line, in the middle of the net, and when my team would fire a shot he wouldn't really move. Once we picked up on this we started taking pot shots from all over the field and a lot of them got in. If he had put some effort into getting into the proper position in case the ball is shot, communicating with his defense on who to cover, and actually move (or dive if necessary) to make a save, the game would have been much closer, and in my opinion much more entertaining. I was playing goalkeeper for my team, and while I let in 6 goals I was moving around, making an effort, and making saves. Most of the goals scored on me came from rebounds (either off of me or the wall) or one timer shots when the other team would make a pass to an open person. I think all goalkeepers have a bad day in net every now and then, but even when those bad days hit it is important to keep trying and forget about the last goal. The goalkeeper for Tobiko did none of that and even started arguing with his team. My favorite games to play in are really close games where the score is either tied or we are ahead or behind by one. That way I have to make big saves to either preserve the win, or keep us in the game.
Posted by troutm8 at November 30, 2006 11:01 AM