Preliminaries out of the way...

We've had a busy few days in muggy Minnesota. Weather has been humid and relatively warm (high 70s to low 80s,) with rain showers and thunderstorms to spice things up. We had two 8:45 AM games and one at 3:45 PM, and the morning games made for comfortable weather.

Our flight was pretty uneventful and everyone arrived in good spirits. We flew all day and arrived at the hotel with HUNGRY boys! A trip to Chipotles was in order...




We had a relaxing day on Monday; a chance to recover and adjust to the time change and the weather. We headed to Soccer USA to check out new gear possibilities, and also to the Puma Store to check out their merchandise. (Ironically, there was one other team checking out the Puma Store: the Velocity girls from Alaska!) The team had a practice and a session of yoga with Danny's mom as well.



















Monday was hot and sunny...but when we woke up bright and early for our first game against a Canadian team, this is what we saw:















It was pouring rain! Fortunately, the rain let up by the time we were ready to play, and made for nice playing weather.


The boys had a good game. This team was quick to the ball and it took a while for our boys to settle into their rhythm. We ended in a 1-2 score. The worst part of the game was the final 15 minutes. Tanner turned his ankle and had to be taken to the medical clinic; he ended up on crutches for the rest of the tournament. Very disappointing. He's taken it in stride and with a great attitude.
















We had a beautiful evening for opening ceremonies. Teams paraded in; sky divers glided into the stadium; fireworks exploded, and the band played. The energy was fantastic, and the boys agreed it was a great time!





























We spent the next two days swimming, watching tv, playing small sided games, watching the Minnesota Thunder beat a Guatemalan team, and playing our other two opponents, both from Minnesota. We won those games 5-0 and 2-1.






Tomorrow we begin the playoff bracket with a game at 1:00 PM. The boys are pleased to be able to sleep in a bit, and they are excited to play hard and play well.

There are tons more pictures at the Flickr account, which you can access via the Flickr link on the side, and Kelly has been taking pics with her long lens and has shared them via her .mac account:

Kelly's Album

Enjoy them!

Finally, I'm In!

Hello friends and family!

Internet has been cranky and sporadic in my room, and I have finally found a better spot to get online!

We are headed off to our third game this morning, so this will be a very brief note. I have finally gotten some of our photos at the Flickr site, so check those out for a visual tour of the past few days. I will be back on later to write more here at the blog. The kids are having fun and playing well.

More later today!

Happy Father's Day!

To all the Fathers who helped out this week...

The Gentleman Mr. Fulmer

The Thinker Mr. Sterns

The Friendly One Mr. Oberto

The Softy (although the picture doesn't show it) Mr. Crowe

The Patriot Mr. Edwards

The Inspirer Mr. Sedor

The Giver Mr. Huntzinger

GOAL! GOAL! GOAL! GOAL! GOAL! GOAL! GOAL!

This game lived up to all the hype. We had the best MLS team, Chivas USA versus Tigres UANL, a top club playing in the Federacion Mexicana de Futbol league. Only top flight teams are selected to the Superliga tournament, four from the U.S- Chivas USA, Chicago Fire, Kansas City, and New England Revolution and four from Mexico- Atlas, Tigres UANL, San Luis, and Santos. These games are passionate with this one being no different. We had flag waving, drum banging, whistling, chirping singing fans; non-stop end-to-end attacking football, yellow and red cards, and goals, including a unbelievable 'scissor kick' which made many highlight films for the goal of the week. The aura was electric.

Passionate Chivas Fans Playing, Singing, and Chirping for 90 Minutes

Makoto Having a Bite Before Sinking His Teeth Into Sweets

View Armando Pulido's beautiful one-time scissor kick or as Mr. Amilicar Oberto says in Spanish a 'chilena' kick here:

In the end, Tigres came away with the win 2-1.

What a beautiful evening, great time, and experience for all.

Great Times!

With Regionals out of the way it was time for some fun! So we gathered up the herd and headed to Santa Clara for a day of excitement and thrill riding at Magic Mountain. Now when I want to go and do something like this at home, having two older teenagers , I'd just yell out "let's rock" and we'd be on the road, at the park, hitting the rides lickety split. This was not the case: We discussed, planned, organized, communicated, gathered, and finally drove to the Park and gosh darn it we were there inside the park three hours later!

Hanging Out Waiting...

In Line At The Opening Gate

Inside we let the boys run wild and the parents decided to go to the Roaring Rapids (a water ride) to cool off from the sweltering sun. The employee there warned us we might get 'splashed' or 'soaked' on the ride...little did I know that on the ride one person would get soaked but another would be bone dry. Guess who got wet...

The Parents After Roaring Rapids

The Viper Roller Coaster-

Over seven spins and twists!

The Tatsu- the kids favorite Roller Coaster!

Coach Spending Some Jail Time for Regional Results

...and commiserating and consoling with a goat after Regionals.

Daffy Duck(s?)

The Boyz & Coach Hanging Out

Game 3- Oregon Summary

We began our Wednesday morning game with beautiful blue skies and temperatures hovering around 70 to 75 degrees. Though bruised and battered, our players came to play. Sparta began playing a little different formation, a 4-5-1, which allowed us to control and string our passes together a little better than against Colorado and Nevada. Though I'm not a big fan of the formation (who is?) the benefits of 'possession' soccer, rather than playing 'dump-n-run', clearly outweigh the score-at-all-costs mentality...in other words it's better to sacrifice a goal or two and keep true to the beautiful game than it is to create bad habits. The trio of Travis, Amp and Brock stabilized our midfield which frustrated and shut down Oregon and kept them from scoring for the first 20 minutes of play. Even then a very iffy goal was awarded to Oregon even though control of the ball appeared to be in Arturo's grasp. Sparta was down 0-1 at the half with plenty of time for a comeback.

The triple trouble of Amp, Travis & Brock wreaking havoc in Oregon's midfield

The second half started like the first in that our midfield & defense (Michael, Fulmer, Jordan, Mokoto, & Steven) were doing a terrific job, after a while pressures were beginning to take their toll. In particular, Oregon's 'Big Red' was creating havoc and problems for us. He scored in a fantastic individual effort by beating four of our players before slotting the ball in right-hand corner off a diving Arturo. A third goal was made shortly thereafter from a very unlikely angle. The last goal was by a PK, which Arturo came close to saving.

Daniel Fulmer finding space & time!

Conner Stearns in relentless pursuit, pressuring Oregon's defense

Chase turning back a defender

In the end, our boys played well and should be proud of their efforts; they can build from the experience they've gained.

Congratulations Sparta!

Game 2- Colorado

Remember my last post? The one where I ended by stating "We look forward to playing Colorado tomorrow"? I don't know that was necessary true...we lost big, but as a great writer once penned:

"Every defeat, every heartbreak, every loss, contains its own seed, its own lesson on how to improve your performance the next time."

So with that spirit in mind, I wanted to share with you some answers from our boys on what Sparta can do to improve their performance.

I asked the following players the same three questions:

Q1) What made Colorado a successful team today?
Q2) How was their play different than your usual adversaries or teams that you play at home?
Q3) Is their anything they did you'd like Sparta to emulate?

Auturo said:
A1) They switched the ball back and forth. They also had fast strikers.
A2) More aggressive.
A3) Score more!
Chase said:
A1) Really good passing.
A2) They didn't do much dribbling and they switched the ball a lot.
A3) The passing and they could read each other and knew where to put the ball.
Conner said:
A1) They were bigger and faster.
A2) Played more thru balls than we're used too.
A3) More speed workouts.
Daniel H. said:
A1) I think they were faster than us & played better as a team.
A2) Quicker paced & they controlled the ball better than any other team in AK.
A3) I don't know...move the ball better and create chances by doing so.
Jake said:
A1) Their movement of the ball.
A2) Best one-touch soccer I've seen.
A3) Move the ball and work on the basics.
Jordan said:
A1) Good speed and physicality.
A2) They moved the ball quicker and their thru balls were more effective.
A3) Place better thru balls and press up more.
Makoto said:
A1) Power and speed.
A2) They were able to pass the ball around. Taller and tougher.
A3) Grab and being stronger.
Sternsey said:
A1) They could go longer because they were from Colorado and were conditioned better. Lots of pressure.
A2) Have more time to relax and make a play.
A3) Passing and moving the ball around.
Tanner said:
A1) Every touch they had they were looking for a pass and anyone who didn't have the ball was moving to get open.
A2) They were more relaxed and we were spazzing out.
A3) They talked a lot.
Trason said: (team mentor plus he just loooks sooo marvelous I had to show you another pic!)
A1) They passed, communicated, and wanted to win.
A2) Similar to Sparta play when they're on their game.
A3) One touch passing & forwards actually passing.
Travis said:
A1) How they moved the ball and well conditioned they are.
A2) Quicker, more accurate passing, and more aggressiveness.
A3) Move the ball around quicker, make more accurate passes, and aggressive (step to the ball harder).



The answers are very, very, very interesting...but unlike Arte Johnson's old quote, not stupid.

I hope these little seeds of wisdom are something are boys can build and improve upon.

Blessings to all parents not here with us!

SpartaDad