Done and dusted

Well. That is it. Summer Select done. Over and out. To be honest, I'm not that pleased about it because I absolutely loved it. I really did. But I am sure my players are all glad it is over as it means they don't have to attend my practices anymore - or see me! No, I'm sure they all enjoyed themselves and learned something. I must give all the credit to the players though for making my job enjoyable - each and every one of them was brilliant. Yes, we had a couple of really bad sessions but I expected that. Nothing in this world is plain sailing.

I'm sure some of you are wondering what the current state of my Ford Crown Victoria is. Well, thankfully, I got it back from the garage today. It needed all it's tires changed, which was comforting to have known! Now, I need to get it inspected and updated otherwise I will be receiving a $130 fine again. Providing that goes okay, I should not have any more problems unless I decide to drive erratically and cause a crash, which of course will never happen as I am the best driver ever. So yeah, I'm feeling quite good at the moment!

I should note that I was amazed to see nearly all my U10 players turn up for the optional practices this week. They have all bonded so well now as a team, which was evident to see on Monday and Thursday. Hopefully, we can bring the team back together for some indoor tournaments during the winter, which is what one of the parents suggested. However, if that was to go ahead, unless my three year visa application comes through, I'm not sure if I would be able to re-enter the US in time. At the moment, I am on a J1 and it expires in November, which is when I will be flying back home. But, not to worry, as the kids will excel without my guidance because they keep telling me how smelly I am and it apparently prevents them from performing well. And you think I am joking...

Now that Summer Select is over, I get to have a bit of a rest before I take charge of the Junior Varsity Boys Team at the Immaculata High School, which is something I am really looking forward to. Even though we have practice every day, which is going to be tough, we have lots of games and I love coaching games. So that will be my main job during the fall before I fly back home. I just hope I am granted this three year visa! Maybe I'll just walk to the immigration office, they'll see how tall I am, and that should be enough to grant me a three year visa. Maybe I should add an angry face or something - just to make it scarier you know?

So let me take this opportunity to thank all the players and wonderful parents for making this summer a fantastic experience for me. Hopefully I will see you guys next year!

Expected arrival: 18.00 Actual arrival: 21.00

After an exhausting yet extremely exciting tournament weekend, I was looking forward to getting back home. After watching the Jersey United U11s Summer Select team win in the semi finals, I decided to call it a day and hit the road. I left at around 15.30 and was expected to get back home at around 18.00. It looked a simple journey - up Route 222 North and then all the way across Interstate 78 East into New Jersey. However, having experienced frightening events with my Crown Vic already, more was to come in the form of a burst tire. No, not running out of gas again but a burst tire. Now, part of this was my fault because when I took the car to have it's oil changed the day before traveling to the tournament, the guy said to me, "You gotta change your tires man". I thought, get this trip out of the way and get the car into the garage.

So I managed to get through Route 222 okay and just after crossing into New Jersey via 78, there I was, sailing at a nice steady speed in the fast lane, until I heard a sudden burst and an incredible scraping noise. I thought - oh oh. Hazard lights ON. Mirror checks DONE. Calmly pull over into the hard shoulder DONE WITH SEVERE PANIC. I put the car into park and stepped out of the vehicle. WHOOOOOOOOOSH! Probably the biggest truck I have ever seen whizzed past me and I almost got swept away. Thankfully, I did not. So I inspected the tire and it was done for. Dead. Kaputt (broken in German). So I walked over to the boot of the car and got out the jack and other necessary tools (oh yeah, and the spare tire!). In the middle of changing the tire, I received the fright of my life when three human beings walked up to me (it's not as if they were aliens or something!). Incredibly, one of the humans was a kid from my U10s team. Obviously, the other two were his parents. After quickly explaining what had happened, the father rolled up his sleeves and did the entire job for me. Not only that, but I got a free bottle of Lemon Gatorade from the mother. If that is not awesome, then I don't know what is. After everything was sorted, the family even made sure I made my exit okay by tagging along behind me. Now, I doubt the family would have been so helpful if the U10s did not win the tournament. No, I'm only joking. What a great gesture though. That is something I am so appreciative for - helpful and kind people. It's they way forward. If you are reading this, I thank you once again - the Gatorade was extremely refreshing!

That is not the end of the story though - there is more to it! I got to the exit okay and was about 10 minutes away from home. However, a recent thunderstorm hit the area and it was so severe that massive trees were uprooted and blocking roads. As things were going for me, all the possible avenues to my house were cut off. I could not get home! Ahhhhhh! So I started to feel a bit hungry and decided to go to this Chinese place. I had some delicious sweet and sour pork, sat in the car for a while, and drove off to see if the roads were cleared yet. Thankfully, they were and I arrived at my home three hours after my scheduled time of arrival. Good times. It's probably going to happen again, isn't it?

Let's not forget the U10s...

Ha! Thought I forgot to mention the U10s eh? How could I not? After all, they did win their first tournament over the weekend! Yes! Official U10s Lititz Summer Showcase Champions 2009! I am so, so pleased for them because they deserved some success. Yes, we have had it tough in previous tournaments, only because we were coming up against very strong teams. However, this time, every single player really upped a level and I knew they would at some point because they are all potentially very good soccer players. First game though, we lost 7-2. Yes, 7-2. The score at half time was 2-2 and we were playing very well against a good side. But, once we lost an early goal in the second half, the team simply collapsed. Naturally, I was disappointed but I understand their rash need to give up because let's not forget, they are only 10 years old and under - one kid I have is only 8! Therefore, they are bound to easily give up. They are just young players who are developing, which of course is my job as a coach - to develop them. So I told them all after the game that I understand why they collapsed but we all just need to be a bit more mentally strong. Things turned better when we won our next game 7-1 against a fairly weak team - that gave the players a lot of confidence and I was looking forward to the next day of the tournament.

So I was awake, bright and early, for the eight o'clock kick off. Man, I love kick off times such as that one (said with a very sarcastic tone). I knew if we were to win this match, we would progress to the final to face the team that beat us 7-2. So a lot was at stake and I made sure the players knew that. All I asked of them was to give me their best, which is all they can do really. We played a great game and won 3-0. Through to the final - YES! Even though I was extremely happy, I was fairly upset as well as I knew I would be missing most of the final due to my commitments with my U13s. It's just a bit frustrating when you train a team for over a month and you have to miss the biggest game of their lives! But, that is life I suppose.

Once I finished the game with my U13s, I jumped to my car in one step (I have ridiculously long legs) and most probably broke the speed limit to get to the last 15 minutes of the U10s final. I ran over to my assistant and asked him what the score was - he looked over to me with the most serious of faces (he is a serious guy) and said, "We're two nil up". At first, I thought my reaction would be of disbelief - but it was not. Something in me on the way to the game was telling me that we were going to do well because those players are clearly capable of playing very good soccer. So, instead of replying with something like really, all I said was good, turned away and started coaching the game. In the end, we won the match 3-0. The kids went crazy when the whistle was blown but I was very pleased with how they composed themselves and shook hands with the opponents. I wanted to take a step back and allow the kids to enjoy their moment as they deserved it but the parents pushed me into the photos and everything. Thanks for that by the way!

As I said, I've been training these kids for over a month and I have seen improvements session by session. I could already see from the first practice we had how capable each of them are. One of the main factors of soccer is confidence - you may have the ability but if confidence is lacking, you will not do well on the field. On Sunday, July 26 2009, those U10 players were brimming with confidence and I am just so pleased for them. I've really enjoyed my time with them. Yes, there have been rough patches but that is what learning is all about. Great kids, great parents, great everything. That's me over and out.

What a great weekend!

Well, well, well. I'm just going to put it simply - my U10s became champions over the weekend, while my U13s performed absolutely brilliantly to reach the semi finals. Let's start with my U13s, shall we?

On the first day of the tournament in the Pennsylvanian town of Lititz, the U13s played their best soccer of the summer. We won the first game 3-1, a truly great performance. We played even better in the next game even though we drew the match 2-2. It really should have been 7-2 but it did not matter as we came top of our bracket - through to the semi finals. As I headed to my very nice motel, I was just thinking of how good our performances were today. I then thought to myself - this is what I want to see: progress and improvement. Yes, winning is good but, for me, it is only a bonus. As a soccer coach, I look for player development and I definitely noticed that during those first two games, which gave me great satisfaction.

So, semi final day arrived. I was actually very calm and composed, as I knew the players were going to give it their best shot. If they were going to do that, I knew we would have a great chance to progress to the final. The match kicked off and we looked very, very good. A bit nervous to start with but we eventually got into the swing of things. However, we received a real kick in the teeth when an unfortunate mistake in the defence allowed one of the opposition players to shoot them into the lead. We rallied though and unluckily hit the post towards the end of the first half. 1-0 down but still very much in it. I told the players to carry on with what they were doing as I was very pleased with how they were all playing. All we needed was a bit of luck. We started the second half and we really piled the pressure on the opposition. Chances went begging and I started to think this was not going to be our day. This thinking was further enhanced when the other team scored a very good long range shot. 2-0 down. Game over? No because soon after we got the ball in the back of the net (finally!) and had about 10 minutes to get the equalizer. At this point, I was getting extremely nervous yet excited as I felt we were going to score that second goal. I thought that chance arrived when one of my players cut into the penalty box and was tripped - penalty kick surely? No, linesman says it was outside. I must admit, I got rather furious and things went from bad to worse when the other team hit us on the break and sealed the win by scoring their third goal. 3-1 and out.

Like all the players, I was deeply disappointed as I felt we deserved something more due to the battling performance we put in. However, after having cooled down and reflected on the match, I told the players they should be very proud of themselves, as I was of them. Yes, it is always tough to lose, but the important thing is that they performed extremely well and that is what I look for as a coach. I must say, I really enjoyed working with those kids. I just hope they enjoyed it as well! If they did not, well, they can tell it to my face (if they dare!). Remember, I am 6ft 7in after all...

A tough weekend...

So here is the general overview of what happened over the weekend at the soccer tournament. I'll start with my U13s. In our first game, we came up against an extremely good side and lost 5-0. However, that was the score at half time and, therefore, we performed a lot better in the second half and even could have won the half (so it ended 0-0 in the second half, which was pleasing for me). In the next game, we performed brilliantly and really should have won. However, and I hate to say this, the opposition team cheated. Yes, cheated. We were winning 1-0 with roughly 20 minutes to go and suddenly this random person (as tall as me!) shows up on the opposition's bench, puts a shirt on, and jogs on to the field as part of a substitution. You should have seen the face expressions of my players - they thought some sort of mutant entered the field! Anyway, this ridiculously tall and massive man, who clearly was not under 13 years of age, goes and scores two goals and they win the match 2-1. When their second goal was scored, I entered the field and asked the referee if he seriously believed that guy was under 13. He just mumbled something about the player's card. Believe me, it is very easy to forge one of those player cards. So I was very upset after the match and so were my players - they did not deserve that.

In our final game, again, we played very well but just could not score - so the match ended 0-0. After thinking about it, we could have easily reached the semi-finals. Unfortunately, luck was not on our side. But I am happy because I am seeing constant improvement in the players' displays on the field. The team that cheated got to the final and a smile was brought to my face when I heard they got smashed 5-0 by the team we first played. Maybe justice does exist after all.

Now - my U10s. It's going to be tough to talk about them as I feel very, very bad for them. The first day we did okay - losing one and winning the other. However, things turned ugly on the second day where we lost both matches 9-0 and 8-0. First impressions will say that my team is not very good. However, I'd tell you straight away that is simply not the case. The team we lost 9-0 to was on another planet. They were beating everyone 9 and 10-0. I'll be the first to admit that my team consists of very small players - apart from one maybe. At this age, when you have kids who are tall, strong, and fast, it makes a huge difference and that is what we had to come up against over the weekend. Things were made worse for us when the tournament scheduling had us playing a game straight after the 9-0 loss. Understandably, the players were tired and deflated - therefore we lost heavily. Yes, they gave up but I would have done the same if I was out there playing. It is human nature.

I'll tell you something now. My U10 players are very talented. In two or three years time, they will have grown and that will help them - a lot. I just hope they do believe they are good soccer players. I have practice with them tonight and will have a good talk with them all. So, as the title of this entry suggests, it was quite a tough weekend. But, we can all learn from it and get better, which we will.

A close shave!

Hey everyone. Now, here is a little story about me being frightened for the very first time in the United States. So, I was driving to Princeton to cover a session for Uncle Peeps (Lee Pollard, for those who don't know) and the fuel gauge on my Ford Crown Vic turned to empty. I thought - should be okay to get there and find a gas station to fill up after completing the coaching session. I arrived safely and in good time. So I delivered one of my signature coaching sessions (I say signature because it is the best around...I may be the worst referee in the world but I sure am the best coach in the world!). Once I was done, I confidently stepped into my car and swiftly drove off.

As I left the fields, I was looking out for a gas station but one did not appear so I carried onto joining Route 206, thinking there will definitely be one somewhere along there. A couple of miles went by and still nothing. When things get a bit edgy, I tend to get overly nervous - as my parents will completely testify to! Anyway, so I was quite nervous at this point but was confident a gas station would soon turn up. However, everything changed - the car was out of gas.

So there I was - slowly coming to a halt with about 10 cars behind me. At this moment, I was panicking big time. I immediately started searching for the hazard lights, thinking that would make everything better. Eventually, I found them and switched them on. The car was still crawling but I could not pull over anywhere as there was no hard shoulder. The road was also in the middle of a wooded area, so there were not any shops etc. where I could pull in. So I kept going, hoping something good would happen.

And there it was - my savior: a downward hill. It felt like I was on a roller coaster - you know, when the cart crawls to that first drop. So with my hazard lights still flashing, I coasted down the hill and in front of me I saw a set of traffic lights and just beyond them a Sunoco gas station! However, as I was approaching the traffic lights, they were red. I knew I could not stop otherwise that would have been it. Thankfully, the lights turned green and I literally snailed my way into the gas station - relief to say the least.

That Crown Vic though eats up gas similarly to how I eat my food - extremely quickly! It was a good experience - scary - but good. Only in the US of A eh? I'm really looking forward to this weekend as it is the second tournament for my boys teams. I have a sneaky feeling we will do very well as the practices lately have been excellent. Both teams are really gelling together now. I'll be sure to let you know how the weekend's results go. Must go sleep now - got Kiddie Soccer in the morning! Yeah!

The good, the bad, and the ugly

It's been a mixed week for me so far - summer select wise anyway. The reason the title of this entry reads as above is because, unfortunately, I have had very contrasting summer select practices with my U10s and U13s. Now, I'm completely okay with this as it is normal. A coach is always going to have one bad session with his players - it's a fact. On Wednesday, my practice session with my U13s was probably the worst one I have had with them - I was actually quite disappointed at the end and I told them so. For some reason, the players were just not listening to me. I'd be trying to explain or show something and there would be some kids either not listening or fooling around. The U13s are a great bunch of players - they really are and I have immensely enjoyed working with them thus far. It was just an off day. The fact I was so disappointed, I think, shows how much I have grown into them - working with them twice a week and getting to know them as individuals. They are all very capable and, generally, very nice kids. I know our next session will be good as they always respond - fingers crossed anyway!!

On the other hand, I ran a practice session with my U10s this evening and, put simply, they were absolutely brilliant - they really were. I was so pleased with each and every one of them. I brought them in at the end and I just said to them, "Thank you". You know what they said back? A nice, hearty "Your welcome". Is that not great? For me as a coach, the main factor is that the players are enjoying themselves. I'm a firm believer in enjoying when you are learning - it's the way forward! The U10s actually had quite a bad session one week ago and I asked them to come back to the next session a lot better and they did.

Overall, I'm very pleased with the progress of both my teams. I'm noticing improvements constantly, which as a coach, is what I want to see. Not only are the kids great, but the parents are as well - very nice and friendly people. It's all one, big, happy family over here! The next tournament is next week but, thankfully, we have managed to arrange a friendly scrimmage for the U10s with the Parsippany club on Saturday. Hopefully it goes well. I'll be sure to let you guys know how it goes. I'm pretty exhausted now so I am going to head to my queen size bed (I am 6ft 7 in remember!).

Have a lovely weekend everyone! Bye for now.

A nice, relaxing July 4th weekend

Hi all. I hope you had a wonderful July 4th weekend - I'm sure part of your activities included fireworks! Seeing that I am not American, I obviously don't feel the passion that real Americans do on Independence Day but what I can say is that I was extremely impressed with how brilliantly Americans show their pride. I visited an old, old friend on Saturday and when I was driving through a certain town, I just saw families sitting amongst themselves, eating food, and clearly having a good time. The one thing I love about America is the family ethos. I'm a huge family man and I really appreciate how Americans get together as families and enjoy themselves. It's great.

As I said, I visited an old friend (we went to school together back in Austria) and had a relaxing time before setting off to upstate New York to join a small house gathering (with a pool, by the way!). We had some food and then went to the cinema to see Public Enemies with Johnny Depp (I found it very disappointing - slow and boring). The best thing about the cinema was the ice cream I had. Everything in this country comes in big sizes, which I love because I'm a huge fan of food. The ice cream was MASSIVE. It was probably bigger than my right foot (and my right foot is pretty big). I could not believe it when I managed to finish it but I did feel rather sick afterward. It was worth it though!

So - its back to work for me. Back to my summer select teams and a bit of camp coaching. Looks like it is going to be hot this week, which is not great but I plan to get my haircut tomorrow, which should help things. The barber shop I was planning to go to (just down the street) has a sign up saying on vacation until 4th August. I thought...great - I'm going to have to find somewhere else. Does the owner not realize that people are going to want a haircut, like me!?!? Oh well, I'm sure he (or she) deserves a holiday.

I must get to work now - the annoying Sean Davies is getting restless (I think he has just ordered a pepperoni pizza......oh oh). For anyone who does not understand the whole pepperoni pizza thing, scroll down and have a look at my entry entitled "I am the Terminator". Ok, bye for now.

I'm sweating buckets here

As the title suggests, I have not grown accustomed to the New Jersey summer humidity. When I worked in Pennsylvania two years ago, I thought the humidity was bad but I did not think it could get this bad. I am really suffering at the moment - big time (as they say in the United Kingdom).

Through out this past week, I have been doing a camp at the Immaculata High School. I am head coach of the Junior Varsity Boys, while Dominic Rice is in charge of the Senior Varsity Boys. Even though I enjoyed it, the whole thing proved very tough as the humidity was sky high. Now, when it comes to sweat, I tend to sweat more than others, particularly from the head area. I take after my Dad as he is exactly the same. Anyway, I am just going to have to get used to it. I think it would help if I got myself a haircut as my hair is rather long now - but I'll have to wait until this weekend is over, with all the independence celebrations taking place.

At the moment, I have no plans for independence day yet. Eveything here is usually last minute so I am sure something will be initiated. If not, then I shall do a Lee Pollard and play some Championship Manager (there you go Peeps - a brief mention). By the way, if any of you are big soccer fans and it is all you can think about, then please play the game called Championship Manager. But be careful, it will take over your life but that's okay because it is soccer, right?

Going back to the humidity issue, if any of you have any suggestions as to how to combat the evil of humidity, please let me know as I am desperate. All I can say is...thank god for air conditioning units! Now, let me take this opportunity to wish you all a very enjoyable independence weekend! You all have a great time - bye for now.