SC Soccer Forums SCSoccer.com Forums Girls Varsity Soccer For all the coaches on the board, a question:

What is everyone's feeling on the best way not to embarrass an inferior team?

Here is why. I went to the Hilton Head Prep/First Baptist game tonight as it was Senior night for HHP and I am familiar with many of the families.

The score quickly got out of hand with it being 6-0 in about the first 15 minutes. Hilton Head Prep did a pretty good job of moving kids around and not allowing kids to score and the such. This game literally could have been 25-0.

In the second half, Prep put it's senior starters back in to start the half but within 5 minutes started pulling kids off the field. They did this very discreetly as to try and not embarrass the other team, but with 10 minutes of the second half starting, HHP had 6 players in the field.

The game ended 7-1 with HHP basically playing keep away from First Baptist. My understanding was that they were only allowed to score on headers off of crosses.

Here is my question: Would you be more embarrassed by a 10-0 score or a 7-1 score where your team was being outplayed by 6 kids? Probably more importantly, which way is best as to not embarrass the kids?

There was an entire thread devoted to this. Search the forums for "running up the score".

Speaking from experience--it hasn't been that long ago that double-digit scores were the norm when we played the "big four" of the Lowcountry--I'd be a lot more embarrassed if a team pulled half its players and played us with 6. Dropping the numbers that much would seem like a slap in the face. There are other, much less obvious ways to keep the score from being ridiculous. Let me take my lumps 11 v. 11--there were plenty of games in the past when I'd have been happy for 10-0--until we can learn how to shut those 11 down.

One year against our big four (Riverside, Eastside, J.L. Mann, Wade Hampton) I believe that we got outscored 73-0 the first time through (one game against each).

Coach,

thanks for the response. It is interesting to me learn the thoughts of how other coaches view this conundrum.

I have learned tonight that there were other mitigating factors.

It seems that some of the HHP players are also participating in the Spring school play and had to leave at halftime of the game to go to play practice as the play starts Thursday.

The coach had two choices, leave his starters in to play the whole game or try and not run the score up by taking players off of the field because he had no subs.

Well, the only problem with that is, it's really kind of a hollow victory when you score a goal against 6 players; not exactly something the kids can go home and brag about. With 11 on the field, and against a team they know is really good, every little tiny victory...whether it's a stopped goal (no matter what the number), a stolen ball, or a shot on goal (maybe even making the keeper dive), or even getting the ball across half field...those little accomplishments against an obviously more skilled team can mean something. Against 6 players...those little victories suddenly lose their significance.

It's kind of funny...5-6 years ago, Berkeley was losing to Summerville, West Ashley, Wando and James Island by scores like 15-0, 18-0, and the like. I don't remember anyone stressing about people running up the scores back then...there was no public outcry. We just used it as a measuring stick as to how far we had to come to compete with teams who were more experienced, had more training, had great feeder programs, and were considered "soccer schools" where top-notch athletes gravitated to the soccer program. Every time we cut those scores down, we knew we were measuring progress. Had those teams not given us an honest starting point to show where we were, we'd have no true picture of how far we've come.

As I told the team when I first took them on back in those early days, I've seldom gotten good at anything competitive except by having someone beat the snot out of me until I figured out how to stop them from doing it. Those old drubbings didn't ruin our program or embarrass us right out of soccer...they gave us the motivation to get better.

Right on, Coach Chass.

Blue Ridge scored on Eastside in the very first soccer game between the two schools six years ago. Eastside had 6 on the field.

Blue Ridge scored their second career goal on Eastside this year in the second game. BR was winning until the 60 minute mark 1-0. First game went 0-0 for 71 minutes. Eastside won both just like every other year.

There is no right answer, but we don't mind doing the work before we pat ourselves on the back. We are trying, and we know it. That is the right answer, I think.

Despite what some would say, there can be pride in losing well when you know you've played a good match and stepped up from where you were. I have a feeling the BR players of today were prouder of that one goal against 11 when they held a close game than the one way back when against 6 when they knew the other team didn't take them seriously enough to keep a full squad on the field.

No question. From pride comes results.

And from results comes more pride...once the cycle is started, it tends to build on itself.

The first thing I said is "We are building something here." It does work that way.

I've lost count of how many times I've used those exact words...the right here and now is a lot of enjoyment, but when they can also see where they're going, and the progress they're making in that direction...priceless.