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As an observer, how can one middle school from the same town beat another middle school 14-0 when the second middle school is playing only 7th graders this season. What point needs to be proved? Just curious as a new observer to area soccer

Don't know which area you are talking about, but that is pretty classless. While I don't coach soccer anymore, I still am the HC for the middle school football team where I work. We were up 28-0 at halftime against the other middle school that feeds into our high school. I pulled every starter that I could after the 1st series of the 2nd half and replaced them with 7th graders. We still went down and scored on them. If we had been jerks, we could have scored 60 on that team, but that just isn't me. Feelings would have been hurt and no one would have benefitted from it in the end.

Hear ya but appears some of the varsity teams play by those same rules!

There is no region, playoffs or champion at middle/JV. This makes win loss and the score irrelevant. Looking at a final score is pointless.

When my team played Wando we would get beat 10 or 8 nil. The parents bellyached but I heard my girls talking after the match wanting to learn to play like that. Those same girls moved on to varsity and achieved the highest amount of BHS wins and went into the second round of the playoffs.

Until I start witnessing seppuku after a loss I really believe these kids will survive a butt kicking.

Echoing Coach Tim...our butt-kickings, coupled with resolve, made us a better team in the long run. I bear no resentment toward those who delivered them.

I see your points, but I did not know what point was being proven by Gold Hill in beating up on a first year Banks Trail with only 7th graders. Both teams feed to the same school, so I am confused. I get the "making you stronger" reference, but I guess as a coach, I am not wired that way.I could not do that to a team that I see in the community and go to church with.

Not gonna try and defend the score, but I would be willing to bet that Coach Bill had placed restrictions on his players before they could score. Things like had to cross it or be a corner and other things that would slow down the scoring. Would also bet most of the later scores were by defenders playing up top or non starters who do not normally get to score.
Problem is they are a very very good team (have been for 4 years now) and instead of playing keep away for 3/4's of a game they let their players play. While it may seem harsh I think the losing team can lean alot from watching a good team like that play around them. I would think a 14-0 loss where they were challenged the whole game would be better than a 5-0 loss where the other team scored 5 goals and then played keep away for 40-50 mins, to me that is more like taunting than playing.

A warrior/competitor owes the other the best they have in a competition. A negotiator attempts to barter some sort of compromise. Both ideas exist, choose your side and step on the field.

In a world where the 14-0 loss does not occur you cannot find Rudy. Braveheart does not scream "FREEDOM!" Patton doesn't rip the guts out of the Nazis. Indiana Jones doesn't get the hat that makes him into the icon that he becomes. Tenzing Norgay doesn't step back and let Hillary step on the summit. Even if Chewie didn't get a medal they still needed a Death Star to blow up.

So bring your Death Star, I haven't seen anything blown up in a few weeks!

theres just a serious disparity in school soccer, at all classes & levels that i'm sure its just as frustrating for the haves, as the have nots. i'm starting to think that the clubs should just go ahead & play u15 & up in spring & leave high school soccer to the rec type kids which would make it more competative & maybe more kids involved.

Totally agree with sandman..

Gotcha...thanks. So, it is ok to humiliate 12-13 year boys who you go to church with and see around the community. I guess I am in the minority here. Live and learn I guess. BTW, big kid stayed in whole game and coach was screaming for them to get double digits. Big kid wanted to move out or to the back but was told to stay up top.

Ok...I totally agree with Sandman and CHT...but the frustration from the winning end of a mismatch is usually how to get a good game that is beneficial for your players WITHOUT making it a total blowout. Sometimes it happens despite efforts to put in restrictions.

On the other hand, intentionally running up the score and screaming at players to keep running it up is just wrong and makes a coach difficult to respect. I would say that to anyone at the middle school, JV, or varsity level.

Most times, coaches with that mentality grow out of it with experience and wisdom...sometimes they don't.

I'm not saying that actually happened at the game in question, because I wasn't there, but I have seen it before, so I'm just making a general statement.

Sandman...

100% agree with you

Sorry, I thought it was the girls game you were talking about. Heard they had a very uncompetitive game and thought that was the 14-0 score, my bad. Not sure why the coach for the boys would be trying to run it up, not the welcome you would expect I guess.

I personally think everybody should get a trophy after every match, win, lose, or draw. I don't care if you're a starter, 5-goal scorer, bench-warmer, manager, coach, assistant coach, parent, bus driver, canteen worker(s) (if you have one), teacher that teaches any player, person that their parents dated prior to marriage, current mistress/lover (I don't know the male form of mistress...hmm), school athletic director, pet, imaginary friend, cousin, uncle, aunt, maid/servant, YOU NAME IT!

THIS IS AMERICA! EVERYONE SHOULD BE ENTITLED TO BE A WINNER!

And then afterwards they should all get together and share in the joyous fellowship that is an oatmeal cookie and a Capri-Sun. I'll bring my guitar. We can sing songs.

It's not about winning or losing; it's about competition and respect. Everyone who takes the field should be playing to win; everyone who takes the field should be prepared to accept a loss and even a blistering as part of the natural order of competition.

When it comes to goals, though--and I'm not talking about the ones with the nets--there's a big difference between having the goal of playing hard, winning decisively, and improving the confidence and overall ability of your team vs. having the goal of seeing just how high you can drive the score.

Sometimes it happens regardless...after all, it's the defenders' job to figure out how to keep the ball out of the net, not the attackers', and if your second and third string are still scoring, well, they've probably waited patiently for the opportunity so it's not fair to them to tell them they can't. But if you've got kids sitting on the bench and starters still on the field just because you're not satisfied with how high the score is, you might want to re-visit your overall goals for your team.

Coaching is like every other profession. It has its share of great people, its share of absolute schnooks, and a bunch of people in between who aspire to one, but occasionally lapse to the other.
When my (basketball) team got raked, I told our kids it was OUR job to stop keep the game competitive. Then, when the shoe was on the other foot (as it inevitably is), I made a point of being gracious, and let the other guy see how it was done.

When I have a JV squad I don't even consider a 60 minute match, that is just an artificial limit that exists. I tend to look at smaller amounts of time and encourage my players to do the same. If a team scores a few on me early that is just a segment of time that is in the past. My focus is the players and the remaining time we have left. If the other team quits then there really is no more game to be played and the clock watching begins.

For many years Stratford has been a mountain that was tough for us to cross. The JV girls in '07-'10 had been keeping the game close but I had allowed many subs to get playing time. I had quite a few parents and players question me about me "intentionally throwing the match". All because the focus was the score and if the best players got all the time.

This same team at Varsity '12 eclipsed Stratford 1-0 a few nights ago. I was extremely proud of the girls and had no desire to seek out the naysayers from years past. I only post this experience as insight to what may be seen in other places. This is also not a taunt at Stratford in any way they have always been a role model team with class that my teams have respected.

Let these kids play and please stop manipulating every activity that they get into. The 20 to nil result will become 10 to nil and following this idea any victory over another will be deemed humiliating and unsportsmanlike.

Thanks guys. Great perspectives. I don't agree with everyone getting medals, and that was not my point. To intentionally do it sends a bad message. It is not about winning and warm fuzzies, but about sportsmanship. Even pros know that and will back off unless there is a record to be broken or jockeying for position. Tugjobber, if it was your child being defeated so bad, how would you handle it? Just curious. I am new to the area and the sport and am trying to grasp concepts coming from a different sport background.

Soccernewbie I will give a small insight as to my slant on this. My daughter is part of a SC record for most individual goals scored in a single match. She still considers that the biggest gut check she faced going to school the next day and then to practice. Of course her name does not appear on the record as she was the goalkeeper that night.

She is a productive adult now and facing many more challenges in life, but when issues of high concern pop up someone in the house always screams her rally cry " SOOOO PAHHHH LOOOOOO!" that being the name of the very talented Wando striker that was announced ten times on the PA system.

I see your point Coach Tim..thanks. I guess it is how the school will react after this.

Coupled with No kid who plays AAU Baseball or Basketball or softball can be on a school team either then we can get just kids who play for fun. Of course there will always be the kids who played club soccer then quit for school or the over achiever who will play club, Rec, school, and in any pickup game they see.

Guess they can look fwd to getting to play with them in HS who knows maybe some will beat them to making Varsity because they get a fire in the belly from this!

Great point as well Chief.

So how is the team doing at mid season soccernewbie? Not concerned with win loss just the mentality of the team itself?