After a week off for spring break our academy teams returned in full swing this past weekend:
Age/Gender: U11 Boys
Location: DDL Complex
Roster: Braxton, Holden, Connor, Daniel, Christian, Aaron, Sean, Tyson, Andrew, Dominic
Result: W 5-1
Goals: Sean, Aaron, Connor
Player of the Game: Aaron
Offensively, the Lions were successful putting pressure on the opponent’s defense, which caused turnovers in the defensive third. The Lions were able to turn these moments into scoring opportunities and confidently finished their chances in front of goal. The Lion’s attack moved the ball quickly throughout the field and were also effective with through balls behind the defensive line.
Defensively, the Lions maintained their organization by shifting sides as a unit and constantly pushing forward to stay connected with their teammates. Midfielders executed on their defensive tasks and did an excellent job recovering on the field to help our defenders.
Coach Shane was quoted, “I was impressed with our boys performance in today’s game. The confidence we showed in the attack by finishing our scoring opportunities and strong defensive effort were the key points in today’s victory. We will now move forward and look to improve in our next game.”
Coach Shane nominated Aaron as the player of the game for his offensive production along the wings, excellent effort defensively, and tallied two brilliant goals.
Age/Gender: U11 Girls
Location: Germantown
Result: L 5-2 (4-0)
Players: Erin, Aliana, Adler, Laura, Ava, Marayna, Nicole, Lauren, Rachel (U9)
Goal(s): Marayna, Aliana
Player of the game: Nicole
Defensively, it was a game with ups and downs for the Lions. For the majority of the first half, the girls weren’t sharp on marking and struggled keeping their organization compact. However, there were moments of good defensive duels, defensive runs and ball recovery.
Offensively, the girls didn’t start the game playing with their usual confidence. There were moments of good passing and combinations but lacked the initiative to shoot on goal, especially during the first-half. At the second half, the girls were more aggressive and determined to shoot on goal. They had great initiatives and created some good chances to score but unfortunately, weren’t able to capitalize. The Dutch Lions goals were scored in the 2nd half by Marayna and Aliana.
Coach Paulo said after the game “Today we didn’t played well, especially defensively, we gave a lot of space to the opponents and conceded four goals in the 1st half. Despite of that, the attitude that the girls had during the second half, being more confident, driving the ball when they had space, and the offensive team work is what we have to take out from the game”.
After the game, Coach Paulo nominated Nicole as a player of the game and quoted “Nicole was very involved in the attack with very assertive decisions, showing some good footwork. At the 2nd half, as an outside defender, she was very creative with ball being involved and creating several scoring opportunities. She also had a brilliant individual initiative where she assisted Aliana on our 2nd goal”.
Age/Gender: U12 Girls
Results: W 2-1
Players: Alexis, Audrey, Brooke, Ellerie, Hannah, Ilana, Kira, Maddie, Mallory, Milan, Morgan,
Goal(s): Maddie, Kira
Player of the game: Kira
On this windy Wednesday night, the Dayton Dutch Lions U12 Ladies competed against the BSA Celtics. From the start of the match the Lions stayed true to their possessive style of play against their bigger, more physical opponent. Offensively, they were able to create numerous dangerous opportunities by moving the ball quickly and with precision. Right away the Lions tested the Celtic keeper as Maddie C. recorded the game’s first goal with an ambitious shot from 20 yards out.
Defensively, the Lions stayed organized and compact for the majority of the game despite considerable pressure from the Celtic offense. The Celtic equalizer came in the second half as the Lions became disorganized in the opponent’s quick transition. Moments later, the winning goal came from Kira D. as she received a driven cross from the flank, beat her defender in a 1 v. 1 situation, and stuck a powerful shot into the Celtics net.
After the game, Coach Katie had the following to say: “Tonight the ladies came out ready and motivated to play. These two teams have somewhat of a history and rivalry and its great to see the competitive attitudes in these young ladies. I am pleased with the girls’ performance and and excited to get the season started on the right foot!” Coach Katie has nominated Kira as the Player of the Match. “This was Kira’s first game coming back from a pretty serious injury. We have definitely missed her presence on the field so it was great to see her in action again and to experience the talent she adds to this skilled team.”
Age/Gender: U13 Boys
Location: DOC Stadium
Roster: Collin, Noah, Evan, Simon, Matthew, Dominic S., Tommy, Robbie, Dimitri, Nick, Noah, Luke, Enrico, John, Jaden
Result: W 5-1 (3-1)
Goals: Noah (3), Robbie, Simon
Player of the game: Noah
Offensively the lions dominated most of the possession and created many chances. A lot of good passing, movement of the ball and shots on goal during the 70 minutes of the game.
In defense the opponent was unable to create any big chances only registering 1 shot on goal. It was a relaxed night for both goalkeepers and the defense was able to contain most of the opponents attacks with some good positioning.
Coach Sid after the game said, "We started very sloppy and conceded a goal where I believe we could have done better. The goal woke us up and we dominated the game after that. We scored 5 goals and should have scored a few more... The one thing I would have liked to see better today would be finishing the many chances we created."
Noah was nominated as player of the game as he scored 3 goals and was very dangerous through out the game.
Age/Gender: U14 Girls
Location: DOC Stadium
Roster: Marissa, Nora, Alessandra, Muriel, Alicia, Ema, Rachel, Ashley, Emma, JJ, Sumera, Shelby, Nicole, Katie
Result: W 5-1
Goals: Emma, JJ (x2) , Rachel, Sumera
Player of the Game: Sumera
Offensively, the Lions were patient in possession of the ball and utilized the space by switching the field with pinpoint crosses with the ball. Wingers were disciplined with their positioning and maintained the width of the field, which provided excellent passing options for their teammates. The Lions showcased their dynamic attack with creativity in the central midfield and had excellent production along the flanks.
Defensively, the Lions kept a solid defensive shape and did a great job covering their teammates on the field. The Lions continue to be aggressive in their tackles and are improving in the 1v1 situations in the defensive third.
Coach Shane was quoted, “I have seen a big improvement in our ball possession in the attack and it has resulted in more scoring opportunities for us. It great to see our girls finishing their chances in the box and rewarding themselves after all the effort it takes to create those scoring situations. Another key moment in today’s game was strong defensive effort from our back 4 and goalkeeper. I’m glad to see the girls playing with confidence and we will continue to challenge ourselves to improve each game.”
Coach Shane nominated Sumera as the player of the game for her ability to keep possession of the ball on the wings, had an assist, and scored an excellent goal.
Age/Gender: U14 Boys
Location: West Carrollton
Result: L 0-4 (0-2)
Players: Alfonso, Dominic, Elijah, Ethan, Hunter, Gradey, Kyle, Luke, TJ, Eli, Gareth, Teddy, Owen, Silas
Player of the Match: Luke
The Lions played their second game of the MVYSA season against BSA Celtic. The boys started the match a little reluctant with a wait-and-see attitude. The first couple chances were for the opponent and after a quarter, the first goal of the game was scored by BSA Celtic. The Lions came 0-1 behind, but after the goal, the Lions played better and created a couple scoring chances. Luke almost scored the 1-1 but he was unlucky in a 1v1 situation with the goalkeeper. The Lions were hungry and tried the score the goal they deserved. Right before halftime the Lions came unexpectedly 0-2 behind from shot from distance and the opponent scored off a shot from the rebound.
After the break, the Lions continued the way they played before halftime. The boys knew that they needed to score that important goal to find the connection with their opponent. It was again Luke who had the chance to score this goal but in the 1v1 situation he missed the target. A few minutes later, there was a counter attack and it was the Lions own mistake again that led to another goal for Celtics. Towards the end of the game, there were a couple more chances for the Lions but they were unlucky in their finishing.
Coach Daan had the following to say: “I don’t believe the result accurately reflected the game. During the match we created a couple of 100% chances that are normally goals. We have some players with excellent skills, who can create opportunities out of individual qualities. The result of this match is from our own mistakes. We did not score our moments and the way we gave our goals away was too accessible.”
Short after the game, Coach Daan nominated Luke as the player of the match. Luke showed today that he has the quality to create scoring opportunities for the team. Beside the fact that he was unlucky in those chances, does not take away the fact that he creates them. The job for him is to keep working hard the practice and continue to improve himself for the upcoming games.
Age/Gender: U15 Girls
Location: West Carrollton|DOC Stadium
Result: 2-0 W
Players: Grace T.; Sarah; Morgan; Meera; Emily; Paige; Peyton; Ashley; Kayla; Veronica; Grace P.; Olivia; Mollie; Grace Z.; Eva; Emma
Goal(s): Eva / Peyton
Player of the game: Eva
On defense, the Dutch Lions girls team had a solid performance, very focused, compact, and kept a good organization throughout the match. They were able to react quickly after losing the ball possession with effective defensive transitions, pressuring the ball carrier that limited his options to build up, and avoiding the counter attacks. It was also very pleasant to see the girls pressuring high on the field forcing several mistakes on the opposition's defensive line.
Offensively, the girls presented a dominant performance showing a tremendous attitude, they were very confident and comfortable on the ball keeping the possession on our offensive half for the majority of the time. Besides the two goals scored, they have created many chances with most of them coming after good combinations on the middle or through balls on the flanks as a result of a good collective dynamic and constant movement providing multiple pass options to the ball carrier.
After the game coach Bruno had the following statement " I'm happy with what the girls did here today. After the loss last game, I was wondering how our reaction would be this game and it couldn't be better. We dominated the entire match in all the aspects, very focused on defense with a tremendous sense of responsibility / commitment and effective on the ball with a very positive passing game. It's nice to see how they are working together on the field and they are more mature and confident, but it's important to recognize that there's still a long road to walk, there's still a lot of aspects where we can work on and get better." concluding " today Eva was nominated as player of the match, besides a great goal, she covered all the field today playing as winger and midfielder she was always involved and committed to the team."
Age/Gender: U15 Boys
Location: Spindler (Columbus)
Result: W 3-0
Players: Kyler, Terry, Richard, Jonathan H., Todd, Kevin, Caden, Dylan, Jonathan H., Caleb, Hunter. Cameron, Aaron B. & Alex.
Goal scorer (s): Hunter, Jonathan C.
Player of the game: Hunter
Offensively this was the best game this team has played so far this season. Not only by the goals they scored but also by the confidence they showed on the ball, the constant involvement of the players of the ball and the constant threat provided by the 3 forwards.
Defensively the team was able to register a shutout thanks to a very active Kyler in goal, playing well of his line and making the saves that needed to be made. The team pressured high and aggressively what resulted in the opening goal during the first half.
Coach Sid said after the game, "I am a pleased coach today, not only because of the win but the team showed the right intentions during the game. The progress of these boys is very visible and we are growing as a team and improving on a weekly basis."
Hunter was selected as player of the game thanks to his high energy, hard work, goals and constant threat up front.
Age/Gender: U18 Boys
Location: West Carrollton | Doc Stadium
Result: 1-0 W
Players: Trent; Drew; Marien; Micah; Cody; Makay; Matthew; Alex; Britton; Bradley; Declan; Tanner; Scott; Tony; Trevor; Wyatt
Player of the game: Trevor
On Defense, the Dutch Lions boys team presented a solid performance, focused and organized for the majority of the game. The team was able to respond quickly after loss in ball possession, with quick defensive transitions, which reduced the amount of dangerous situations on our defensive half of the field. The space occupation was also very positive with all the players involved in the process, pressuring the ball carrier and marking the players around limiting his options to play short.
Offensively, the team had positive performance, thoughtful on the ball with moments of good soccer. It was nice to see the outside backs more involved in the offensive process providing width and creating space on the flanks from where we create the majority of our scoring chances. The boys have created a good amount of opportunities to increase the score, however a lack of effectiveness and an inspirational performance of the opposite keeper kept the result unaltered.
After the game, Coach Bruno has the following to say, "Today I think the result does not reflect what happened inside of the pitch, for the amount of clear chances that we've created we should be walking of the field with a different score, but that's soccer. On defense, I enjoyed the organization and the commitment, everyone was involved reducing the spaces. Overall, I think we had positive performance, some really good moments of soccer with a great collective dynamic moving the ball on the ground from the back, dropping it when necessary, we just need to be more effective to score those chances and control the game better." to conclude coach Lopes said "Today Trevor was nominated as player of the match for his offensive production, he was always a headache for the opposition’s defensive line."
Age/Gender: U18 Boys
Location: West Carrollton | Doc Stadium
Result: 0-3 L
Players: Trent; Drew; Tristan; Marien; Micah; Cody; Makay; Matthew; Alex; Britton; Bradley; Trevor; Declan; Scott; Tony; Daniel; Wyatt
Player of the game: Bradley
Defensively, the Dutch Lions team had a pleasant performance despite the three goals conceded, the team was organized and aware of the space and style of play of the opposition throughout the match, closing the spaces inside and reducing the chances for them to connect their short passing game. It was really positive to see how the boys pressured high and stole numerous balls on the last third of the field. However, the team had a tough time to neutralize a more direct style of play, based on long balls on the back of our defensive line, which resulted in the goals conceded.
Offensively, the team had some moments of great soccer. The boys seemed very comfortable on the ball knowing exactly what to do at every game moment, with a great collective dynamic. The lads were able to find the options to build up their game, with short combinations and constant runs off the ball, and switching the field looking for the wingers to unbalance the opposite defensive line. The team created enough chances to score, but once again a lack of effectiveness in the last moment was determinant on the final score.
After the game coach Bruno has the following to say, "Today I think we played our best game in the league, despite the score not being what we wanted I really enjoyed the way we played. It’s never easy play two games in a weekend, but I think we had some brilliant moments on the ball with a really good dynamic, always looking for a supported style of play. After conceding the first two goals, we had a moment of insecurity but after a few adjustments we were able to pick up the game again. I do believe that today we were the best team inside the field, at least on the ball, we just need to be able to be more consistent and work on our finishing moment capitalizing in goals with the amount of chances that we are creating every match." To conclude coach Lopes said, "Today Bradley was nominated player of the match for his work ethic. He brought a tremendous energy and aggressiveness to our midfield keeping the team balanced."