Game: DDL FC U9 Boys vs South Dayton Blast
Date: Saturday, January 18th, 2014
Result: L
Player of the Game: Braxton
This was a hard fought game for the boys. A very young team overall, they were outmatched in terms of size and speed playing against a true U9 team. However, they always played hard and refused to give up, continuing to fight and play hard until the final whistle.
Coach Eric said that "this was a very tough game. At this age, speed and size are such huge factors, and we weren't prepared for it. Nonetheless, it's valuable experience and playing time, and it showed our team how much we still have to work on."
Game: DDL FC U10BB vs Stags Gold
Date: Saturday, January 18th, 2014
Result: L 5-1
Player of the game: Evan
Saturday January 18th was the first game of the U10 Boys Blue and Red combined, playing in the indoor league at Kingdom. For a lot of players a new experience, playing 8v8 on a turf field with the possibility to use the walls...
Although the players of the other team were way taller than the young lions, the U10 boys showed some good things on the field. You could see it was the first time playing at Kingdom, but the boys already improved during the 40 minute game! In the beginning of the game they played a little hesitated but when time passed they started to feel more comfortable and showed some good combinations. Trying to build up from the back when possible, passing the ball to the open players and using the open spaces on the field. Unfortunately the opponent was able to score a couple of goals using the walls next to the goal, which was a new aspect in the game for the young lions. Although the Dutch Lions got scored on a couple of times they didn't give up and were looking for the well deserved goal: after some good passes it was midfielder Evan who had great change saved by the goalie...but Aaron was paying close attention and was able to finish the ball in the rebound!
'It was good to see the boys playing their first game in the new year', said coach Marco after the game. 'It was a new experience for a lot of players playing indoor, but I did see some good things. Ofcourse I did also see some points to improve, and we will work on these things, but it was good to see all the players back in action after the winter break!'
Game: DDL FC U13B vsBoro United
Date: Sunday, January 19th,2014
Result: W 5-0
Player of the game: Matthew
A combination between two DDL youth academy teams, The U13 Boys Orange and the U13 Boys Blue, is representing the club at Kingdom’s highest U13 bracket and started with a good 5-0 win againstBoro United on Sunday afternoon.
The young Lions showed some great combination plays and good skills throughout the game. This combined with the hard work this team put into the game led to a very strong performance and a happy coach at the end of the game, “I think the boys played very well, every pass had a intended target and we stayed calm when we had the ball on our feet. It is very exciting to see the progress all of these players have made in the last year.”
Coach Sid nominated Matthew as player of the game and had the following to say about his performance, “Matthew is a very technical player and is in his element when playing indoor where the spaces become very small. Besides his goal his work ethic was great and his passing accuracy was very high.”
Game: DDL FC U13G vs Metro U12 Rapids
Date: Sunday, January 19th, 2014
Result: W 7-4
Player of the game: Veronica
This past Sunday was our first indoor games of the season. The girls were excited to play as it has been a while since they played a game against someone that was not a member of the lions. And it showed early with the girls taking a quick lead and never looking back.
Grace did a good job of anticipating when to go up and got her self-involved in the attack. She was not the only player taking chances in the new environment. Micayla played forward for a little and was taking players on again and again.
The player of the game goes to Veronica. Her teammates were able to find her on nice through balls, and just about every shot she took found the back of the net. With the experience of this game and the lessons we learned we look forward to the next game.
‘’It was a good first game’’said coach Alex after the game.’’ I look forward to seeing how the team builds on this in the practices this week’’
Game: DDL FC U14G vsBoro Blast
Date: Sunday, January 19th, 2014
Result: L 6-5
Player of the game: Hannah
It may have been cold outside but inside Kingdom Sports center things were heating up as the U14 girls took an early lead over the Boro Blast. Gabby grabbed two goals and was tough for the other team to defend. After a little bit the other team started mounting their attack and we had to work through a few formations to find out what would work best for the team in the space. In this time Hannah did a great job of adapting to the different positions she was in and really tried to build an attack from the back. Her willingness and great play in these new positions earned her the player of the game. The game was a battle til the final buzzer with Boro taking a one goal win.
‘’It was great to see the team work hard throughout the game.’’Said Coach Alexafter the game.‘’Obviously with it being our first game there are a few little things we can work on in the coming practices that can turn this one goal loss into a win.’’