Academy Game Reports February 3rd
Age/Gender: U11 Girls
Location: SportsPlex (indoor)
Result: W 4-3
Players: Erin, Aliana, Marayna, Ava, Lauren, Nicole, Hope, Shiloh
Goal(s): Hope
Player of the game: Erin
On defense, the Dutch Lions girls had good positioning on the field throughout the game. They were aggressive on the ball, which allowed the team to recovery a lot of individual duels. In some moments, due to a direct play from the opponent, the defensive transition wasn’t so fast but was something the team corrected and was able to adapt well.
Offensively, the Lions were confident maintaining the ball, trying to play using all the field. They also did a great job building up from the back with good short passing and quick transitions allowing the team getting numbers into the attacking half with some 1v1 against the GK and several opportunities to score.
Coach Paulo said after the game “Today we played against a team with a different approach to the game that we are used to, and I was pleased to see the way the team was able to adapt.
The girls played well, put a lot of effort throughout the game, showed some good intention, and confident in possession of the ball”.
Coach Paulo nominated Erin as a player of the game due to a significant role she had on the game with good saves, communication with teammates, and ball distribution. She also scored an important goal for us to secure the win.
Age/Gender: U11 Boys
Location: Kingdom Sportscenter
Result: W 4-3 / W 5-3
Players: Braxton, Connor, Holden, Daniel, Sean, Sam, Justus, Tyson, Christian
Goal(s): Aaron, Sam, Sean
Player of the Game: Aaron/Braxton
Offensively, the Lions were effective in the attacking half and confidently beat defenders in their 1v1 moments and also were creative with through balls behind the defensive line. The Lions made the most of their scoring opportunities and showed excellent technique by finishing their goal scoring chances. The Lions will improve their attack by becoming more patient and being more comfortable dropping the ball back to teammates to keep possession.
Defensively, the Lions were aggressive throughout the field and picked the right moments to press as a team. The Lions had excellent work ethic recovering to their defensive positions in transition. The Lions need to communicate more in the defensive half will help keep the team organized.
Coach Shane was quoted, "I was very proud of the u11 boys effort in today's games and we were able to secure wins against 2 tough opponents! We were sharp in the attack by scoring the goals we needed and some strong defensive moments propelled us to victory."
Coach Shane nominated Aaron spectacular offensive performance and Braxton for a solid performance in goal for both games!
Age/Gender: U12 Girls
Location: Kingdom (Indoor)
Result: 8-0 W
Players: Brooke, Ilana, Alexis, Maddie, Hannah, Morgan, Kira, Camlyn, Audrey, Mallory, Ellerie, Milan
Goal(s): Camlyn, Kira, Brooke, Maddie
Player of the game: Camlyn
These young ladies showed significant improvement from last week’s match. Defensively, their back line played with strength and composure; once they gained possession they were able to connect passes and build the attack out of their defensive half. They were also able to maintain a compact shape under attack and did not allow any goals with the assistance of some great saves made by the goalkeepers.
Offensively, the team was relentless in their attack. They moved the ball around on the ground well with a lot of short combination play. They were able to capitalize on several of their offensive pursuits by remaining composed on the ball.
After the game coach Katie had the following to say: “I’m very proud with the girls’ performance and their response to last week’s match. As a whole, I am pleased with our composed and confident style of play this evening.” Coach Katie added "Last week we demonstrated that we had the right intentions and this week we were able to capitalize. My expectations and hopes are that we remain consistent with this style of play and we show progress in each match.” to conclude coach Katie said "Today we've nominated Camlyn as the player of the match. Camlyn was able to capitalize on three opportunities this evening. Her offensive dynamic and composure on the ball really impacted the attacking aspect of our game. Defensively, Camlyn applied high pressure in our attacking half, forcing several turnovers and creating more scoring opportunities.”
Age/Gender: U12 Boys
Location: SportsPlex (indoor)
Result: L 10-3
Players: RJ, Gabe, JR, Mick, Mason, Jake, Justin, Connor, Owen, Billy, Aaron, Ryan, Connor (U11)
Goal(s): Aaron
Player of the game: Jake
Defensively, the Dutch Lions, showed some difficulties from the beginning of the game. The boys were aggressive defending in the middle channel, but the biggest problem came from the flanks, where the support and defensive transitions weren’t efficient.
Offensively, the decision making after recovering the ball not always the correct one and lost the ball many times in front of our goal. Some lack of confidence to finish the plays was visible, especially at the first half of the game. At the second half, the boys showed more confidence in the offensive process, with a couple of quick good passes and combinations, creating some opportunities to score.
Coach Paulo said after the game “Today did not play our best our soccer. There are some aspects that we have to correct especially our defensive process and fitness, this is our main goal with these indoor games in order to be prepared for the Spring Season”.
Coach Paulo nominated Jake as the player of the game for his defensive effort trying to keep the balance and offensive work rate.
Age/Gender: U13 Boys
Location: Sportsplex
Result: 4-3 L & 3-3
Players: Luke, Noah, Dominic S., John, Jaden, Robbie, Tommy, Mathew, Dimitri. Collin, Evan, Noah, Enrico, Simon, Nick,
Player of the Day: Robbie
On both sides of the ball there was a lot of improvement compared to last week. Defensively the team looked more aggressive and organized and both goalkeepers looked confident in goal.
In attack the fans where able to see some good combinations and many opportunities where created. At the end both games where very closed and could have gone both ways.
Coach Sid after the game, "These where two good games today, both teams tried to play good soccer and we showed a lot more then we did last week. We marked our opponents a lot tighter, made some good decisions when in possession and the tactical changes that we made from last week to this week really helped us today. I would like to see more communication between the boys and constant awareness of the space around them", Coach Sid continued, "Robbie has been playing very strongly the last few weeks. He is a fun player to watch and works very hard during the game being involved constantly and scoring goals as well."
Age/Gender: U14 Girls
Location: Kingdom Sportscenter
Result: W 5-2
Players: Erin, Camille, Alessandra, Ema, Ashley, Shelby, Sumera, Emma, Ainsley, Katie, Muriel, Alicia, JJ, Nicole,
Goal(s): Alicia, JJ, Emma P
Player of the Game: Alicia
Offensively, the girls utilized the wide areas effectively and did a excellent job keeping possession of the ball in the attack. The Lions would create their best scoring chances with quick passing combinations and through balls between the defensive lines. The Lions will continue to work on their decision making on the 2v1 /3v2 situations and improving their movement and communication on the field.
Defensively, the Lions worked hard to maintain their defensive shape as a team and were aggressive in their tackles. The Lions have become much sharper in their transition to defense and recover quickly as soon as we lose ball possession. The Lions had difficulties in their 1v1 situations close to goal and need to make sure to always have a covering defender.
Coach Shane was quoted, "The u14 girls put in a tough effort out there today to earn their 2nd victory! It was great to see the girls confident in the attack and finishing their chances. This is a result we can definitely build off as we prepare for the next game."
Coach Shane nominated Alicia as the player of the game for a tremendous offensive effort led her team to victory
Age/Gender: U14 Boys
Location: Kingdom Sportscenter
Result: L 4-1
Players: Gareth, Dominic, Elijah, Teddy, Silas, Caden, Gradey, Hunter
Goal(s): Silas
Player of the Game: Elijah
Offensively, the Lions did well in their quick transitions to offense and were sucessful in numerous 1v1 situations. The Lions connected their passed in the attacking half and always had the right intention in ball possession. The Lions will continue to improve their speed of play on the ball to increase our offensive production.
Defensively, the Lions did a great job getting numbers behind the ball and defending as a compact unit. There was always a covering defender to help if one of our teammates were beat off the dribble. The Lions need to be more aggressive to recover the ball and more communication on the field.
Coach Shane was quoted, "Today's game was a positive result for us. We were much more organized defensively and that kept the game competitive. It's great to see the team improving each week."
Coach Shane nominated Elijah as the player of the game for strong defensive effort and also contributed to the attack with effect overlapping runs from the back.
Age/Gender: U15 Girls
Location: Wall2Wall (Indoor)
Result: W 1-0
Players: Grace T., Grace Z, Olivia, Sarah, Morgan, Meera, Emily, Paige, Peyton, Ashley, Kayla, Anna, Veronica, Mollie, Eva, Grace P.
Goal(s): Ashley
Player of the game: Olivia
On defense the young ladies kept a great defensive organization during the entire game, very focused and with quick transitions that helped a lot with the defensive balance. Besides that the Dutch Lions girls were aggressive on the ball winning most of the individual duels and combined with a great teamwork, removed the space to the opponents and played closer to our defensive zone.
Offensively the girls had a very positive performance, with a good collective dynamic attack, trying to keep the ball possession and connecting their short passing game. Even when under pressure they never lost their focus and the right intention to play the ball. It was also important to see how the girls used the width, looking for the outside space as an option to create some scoring chances, ending by scoring the only goal of the match after a cross into the box.
After the game coach Lopes has the following to say: " Today was perhaps the most competitive game we played so far and it was a great challenge. I'm really happy with what we did here today especially on defense, the girls were fantastic very focused and organized with a tremendous attitude and we kept a clean sheet for the third game in a row. On the ball we need to increase the speed of play, especially in the last third of the field, where the pressure is higher and also be more confident to keep possession" concluding "today Olivia was nominated as player of the match for her terrific defensive performance. She was an example of attitude and responsibility, with numerous tackles and anticipations."
Age/Gender: U15 Boys
Location: Wall2Wall (Indoor)
Result: T 2-2
Players: Kyler, Terry, Aaron, Mike, Todd, Caden, AJ, Alex, Hunter, Caleb, Jonathan C., Cameron, Richard, Stephen
Goal(s): Hunter
Player of the game: Todd
Defensively the young boys had a good performance, despite the two goals conceded, the team looked organized and compact, responding well for most of the times, especially when the opponents tried to build their game on the ground the boys knew exactly what to do, and due a good pressure moments they were able to steal numerous balls and launch dangerous counter attacks.
On the ball the Dutch Lions team created enough chances to build a different result. The boys tried to build up their game from the back line, looking for short combinations, however there was not much space to play inside due a high defensive line from the opponent's, that gave the boys a lot of space to take advantage of the counter attack, letting the strikers in a 1 v 1 situation with the keeper several times, unfortunately a lack of effectiveness in the last moment dictated the end score.
Coach Bruno has the following to say after the game "I liked the attitude that we put inside the pitch, of course, we have committed some mistakes here and there but that's what the winter season is all about, building our game ideas and learning from our mistakes." Continuing " I really think we did some good things, especially on the ball the boys knew exactly what to do to move up on the field and create scoring chances, we just need to be more effective in that last moment." Concluding "Today we nominated Todd as player of the match for his tremendous defensive effort. Besides his work on defense, he was also involved on our offensive process with constant overlaps"
Age/Gender: U18 Boys
Location: Wall2Wall (Indoor)
Result: L 0-2
Players: Trent, Tony, Drew, Triston, Marien, Micah, Cody, Makay, Matthew, Alex, Britton, Bradley, Collin, Wyatt, Declan
Player of the game: Tony
Defensively the team had some positive moments, they were able to keep a good organization, tightening the field and switching over according to the ball position. The Dutch Lions boys have presented also some moments of high pressure, limiting their offensive strategy to counter-attacks, and at the same time forcing some mistakes on their back line. However the team needs to be a little more aggressive on the individual challenges.
On the ball it was clear that the boys had the correct intention to play the majority of the times, alternating the short passing combinations with some quick offensive transitions, trying to take advantage of the depth. It was good to see the collective dynamic, and how they used the entire field to create space and unbalance the opposition defensive line. However the possession game is something that can be more effective, even under pressure, to allow a better control of the game and all his moments.
After the game coach Bruno has the following to say: " It was definitely a tough match and a excellent challenge for us, we had a rough start, but then we found ourselves, and it was a balanced match. Despite the two goals conceded, the team never lost their focus and our game idea. We do need to better utilize the offside rule as a weapon, and move the ball quickly especially on our offensive half where the space to play is smaller." continuing "Today, Tony was nominated as player of the match for his standout performance on defense. Besides his work without the ball he was also very involved when the team had the ball possession with several runs off the ball, giving width to our game