As we hit the mid-point of our season and fall officially arrived, all of our teams had matches during a heat-wave week. Temperatures were in the low 90's as it definitely felt like summer instead of fall. Each team worked hard and did all they could to stay hydrated. See below for our ALT Architecture Team of the Week and the game reports.
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Game of the Week MVP – Kon
Game of the Week Highlights Video
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TYPgAZyP6JU
GAME REPORTS:
Age/Gender: U10 Boys
Location: Delco Park | Kettering
Players: Elliott, Oliver, Samir, Kellen, Kyle, Jhoan, Ronnie, Tanner and Parker
Result: 8-1 Loss
Scoring: 60’ Elliott
ALT Player of the Match: Elliott
.....The U10 Boys were away on a very hot & humid Saturday evening match. The boys worked hard the entire match, but suffered another defeat.
.....This match unfortunately followed the same script has the previous matches this season. The other team plays a very direct approach and we do not put forth our best effort to match the opponent. Thus, too many breakaways and defensive blunders give the opponent great chances to score and they take advantage of them.
.....Defensively, we never played aggressive enough to win the 50-50 challenges and once beaten never would fully sprint back to put pressure on the attackers. This led to a 5-0 scoreline at halftime and a very bad showing for us.
.....Offensively, we moved the ball with our passing many times, but could never put the final shot in the net. We shot right at the keeper 4 times in a row when we had good attacks. Late in the second half, Elliott made a nice move at the top of the penalty area to beat a defender and had an even better shot when he nailed it in the upper corner for the only Lions goal.
.....Coach Ric shared after the match, “The pace of this match was fast, but if we would have given our best effort we could have competed. For the first time, I felt that our team did not truly care about giving up goals or getting beat. They played hard, but not their hardest which was needed for them to compete. We started slowly and never adjusted. We improved slightly in the second half as we improved our talking, moving and support. This allowed us to string some passes together and we had several good attacks. When we play soccer ~ we have a chance, but when we just run around kicking the ball ~ we get hammered. I am looking for us to give a complete effort…..soon.”
.....Elliott was selected by Coach Ric as the ALT Player of the Match. “Elliott, as he always does, gave a spirited effort. He made a handful of good saves in the first half, came out of his goal to stop attacks and distributed the ball well. In the field, he was our best player as he gave 100% of himself. His goal was a great reward for his stellar effort.”
Age/Gender: U13 Girls
Location: DOC Stadium|West Carrollton
Players: Mia, Marayna, Rachel, Adler, Lauren, Ava B., Ava P., Hope, Shiloh, Laura, Oliva, Sarah and Nicole
Result: 2-0 Loss
ALT Player of the Match: Laura
.....It was a very hot and humid day for the first match in the fall with temperatures in the low 90’s. The Lions started the match with only two subs and an injury reduced that number in half mid first half. Despite, the lack of subs the young ladies gave a spirited effort and improved their play as the match continued.
.....Defensively, the home team struggled in the opening 20 minutes with closing gaps and maintaining the proper spacing. This led to several breakaway opportunities and one was converted to give the visitors a 1-0 lead. The Lions made some adjustments and minimized the through balls. Unfortunately, a second goal was conceded from the run of play as the Lions did not get goal side of the attackers and were beat to the ball far post for a 2-0 deficit.
.....Offensively, the Lions struggled to put passes together. The ability to stay focused in the heat started to become a factor as the players pace was slowing down. It became a vicious cycle that we could not get out of in the first half…..a bit tired, thus not moving and therefore no passing options. As the other team pressured, we started to clear the ball at every chance and this only played into the opposition’s strength. The second half we did better in moving the ball wide and attacking in the final third. The Lions had several good attacks and came close to scoring, but it was not to be.
.....After the game Coach Ric shared the following with the team, “It was very hard to give an all-out effort today due to the weather and having only one sub. I am very proud of the way the girls played the second half. Being down 2-0, they could have very easily quit playing, but they did not. They had the better of the play and were a bit unlucky to not have scored. We need a bit more mental toughness to get us through matches like today.”
.....The ALT Player of the Match, selected by Coach Ric, was Laura. He said, “Laura competed the entire match and gave a stellar performance today. I asked her in the second half to move to the backline and she played like she has always been a defender. She closed the right side of the field down and no attacks were able to come down that side. A very good effort by Laura as she helped us turn the match.”
Age/Gender: U13 Boys
Location: DOC Stadium | West Carrollton
Players: Daniel; Christian; Tyler; Zane; Asher; Kon; Joseph; Tyson; Akol
Result: 5-3 Loss
Goal(s): Kon (2); Akol
ALT Player of the Match: Kon
.....On Saturday, the Dayton Dutch Lions U13 boys team played their fifth game of the season at home, a good match and a nice performance overall from the young Lions even under the hot temperatures.
.....On defense the team started the game a little anxious, and conceded three goals early in the match, however after that period and a few adjustments the boys found themselves, and had a solid second half. It was possible to see a good organization, with all the players involved in the process, playing compact to make sure the spaces inside were covered.
....Offensively the young Lions had a very nice performance, three goals were scored and a handful of other chances were created, however a lack of assertiveness in that last moment ended up being crucial at the end. It was possible to see the boys moving the ball around, with a nice collective dynamic, looking to keep the ball and finding the right spaces to attack the opponents half of the pitch, most of the times in counter attack.
.....After the game coach Bruno had the following to say“ I'm really proud of these group of players, they had all the reasons to find excuses and take the game easily however they did the completely opposite, their attitude was terrific since the first minute, they never gave up, they have proved to all of us that when you work hard and fight for each other it's easier to achieve good things." Continuing," We had some really nice moments, on defense with a good organization and also offensively with moments of good soccer. Now is time to get back to work and fix some of the mistakes to be better in the next match."
.....As ALT player of the match Bruno selected Kon and said, ” Today it's really hard for me to select only one player, I feel like everyone deserves to be distinguished for all what they have done. However I decided to nominate Kon not only for the goals he scored but also for his performance on and off the ball, he was the player that linked our game, keeping the team compact in terms of space."
Age/Gender: U14 Boys
Location: DOC Stadium | West Carrollton
Players: Braxton; Keaton; Aaron; Holden; R.J.; Noah; Alex; Deng; Connor C.; Gabe; J.R.; Max; Connor B.; Dominic; Ryan
Result: 3-0 Loss
ALT Player of the Match: Deng
.....The Dayton Dutch Lions U14 Boys played on Saturday, at West Carrollton, their third game of the season, a tough challenge especially with the heat, typical of a summer day.
.....Defensively the Dutch Lions team had a decent performance, especially in terms of organization. The boys were able to keep their defensive shape most of the match, reducing the spaces and shifting over, according to the ball position. However, were the defensive transitions that end up being crucial to the outcome score, the team was not able to react quickly after losing the ball possession, which left the line defense exposed too many times.
.....Offensively the young Lions have had the right intention to play throughout the game, building up their game from the back, moving the ball on the ground with a positive a approach. However, the dynamic and the movement off the ball was not consistent enough and the players become predictable and a easy target for the opposing team, that and a lack of efficiency on the execution have limited the ball possession in the last third of the pitch and the chances to score.
.....After the game coach Bruno had the following to say“ Today I believe the high temperatures have an impact on our game, although that can't explain everything. On the ball we had the best intentions to play but for the majority of the times with low pace and very predictable, without movement the options to build up our game were limited. Defensively we had a nice performance in terms of collective organization but struggled during the transition moments, to press the ball carrier quickly and also to match the physicality of the game, something we definitely need to increase.” Continuing,” like I mentioned before this is a learning process, which takes time to assimilate, and sometimes the things don’t happen the way we all wanted, but I’m sure the players have identified the aspects we need to work on and we will keep working towards what we thing is the best at this stage for this team.”
.....As ALT player of the match Bruno selected Deng and said ”I've decided to nominate “D” as ALT player of the match for his work ethic. He brought some really good energy, intensity and aggressiveness to our defensive line, besides the quality on the ball in that first moment of our build up.”
Age/Gender: U15 Boys
Location: DOC Stadium | West Carrollton
Players: Collin; Owen; Gradey; Deng; Alex; Max; Connor C.; Evan; Keaton; Dominic; Braxton; Gabe; Connor B.; Noah; Aaron
Result: 9-0 Loss
ALT Player of the Match: Dominic
.....On Sunday September 24th, the Dayton Dutch Lions U15 boys team host their sixth game of the season. A tough challenge against an older team, but the young Lions have remained faithful to their game philosophy.
.....On defense the Dutch Lions team started the game well, with a good organization, but a couple of individual mistakes helped the opposing team to open the score. After that moment the boys had an hard time to find themselves again and contain the opponents initiatives, especially when they played an more direct type of soccer. However it was nice to see all the players involved in the process, trying to reduce the space and time on the ball.
.....On the ball the young lions team had a decent performance. They were able to build up from the back most of the times, even under pressure they found the right solutions to move the ball out of that first areas, although the process was slow which gave the opposing team too much time to reorganize their lines. The team had a rough time to have the ball possession in the last third of the field, mostly due to a high and intense pressure from the opponents. However, when the team decided to keep the ball on the ground and look for the short combinations, they were able to break the defensive organization and reach the last third easier.
.....After the game coach Bruno had the following statement “Well if we look purely to the result, we can say that was a tough match, which it was, however that's too reductive and we can't forget that most of us are playing one year up, it's not an excuse for all the mistakes we have committed but it's a fact." Continuing, "I think we have conceded too many mistakes on our defensive half, especially during the transition moment, when we were trying to move up, we can't lose the ball so easily." Coach Lopes concluded," I really think we had some really nice moments, when we were looking for the short combinations and playing in support, and that needs to be our focus. I saw everyone sad at the end, which makes me believe that we can and are capable or revert this situation, and the only way to get there is practicing, working hard."
.....As ALT player of the match Bruno selected Dominic and said, ” Today I’ve decided to nominate Dominic for his work ethic and competitive attitude, he never gave up and was an important piece on our defensive organization with his positioning and availability to cover his teammates.”