Why I quit hating soccer.....besides the soccer moms!

RSKY · Jun 6, 2021

Until a couple years ago I thought soccer was the most boring game ever. Then I had a couple grandkids start playing. One is now eight and on a 'traveling team'. Holy guacamole!! Those little girls play rough. Elbowing, tripping, shoving, whatever they can get away with. Looks more like hockey than what I thought soccer would be. Parents with multiple children playing say the coaches have trouble getting the boys to be aggressive and have trouble getting the girls to calm down and not start witch slapping each other. A few weeks ago the granddaughter's U8 team (under 8) played a boys U9 team and manhandled them the first half. Though smaller than the boys the girls pushed them around all over the field the first half with the score being 3-2 in the girls favor. Boy's coach pretty well dressed them down at halftime about letting the younger girls push them away from the ball and they came back and got rougher and won the game by a point. But it was funny to watch the boys back off when a girl a head shorter ran into them at full speed.

The trash talking is hilarious. Just imagine what an eight year old girl would say to another to intimidate.

Oldest daughter teaches at a middle school. She says the 'soccer kids' are the best of the athletic groups in both the schools she has taught. The fittest looking, best acting, with the highest grades of all the sports.

I have learned to wear dark glasses to watch the moms.

RSKY

Frankenkubota · Jun 7, 2021

RSKY said:
Until a couple years ago I thought soccer was the most boring game ever. Then I had a couple grandkids start playing. One is now eight and on a 'traveling team'. Holy guacamole!! Those little girls play rough. Elbowing, tripping, shoving, whatever they can get away with. Looks more like hockey than what I thought soccer would be. Parents with multiple children playing say the coaches have trouble getting the boys to be aggressive and have trouble getting the girls to calm down and not start witch slapping each other. A few weeks ago the granddaughter's U8 team (under 8) played a boys U9 team and manhandled them the first half. Though smaller than the boys the girls pushed them around all over the field the first half with the score being 3-2 in the girls favor. Boy's coach pretty well dressed them down at halftime about letting the younger girls push them away from the ball and they came back and got rougher and won the game by a point. But it was funny to watch the boys back off when a girl a head shorter ran into them at full speed.

The trash talking is hilarious. Just imagine what an eight year old girl would say to another to intimidate.

Oldest daughter teaches at a middle school. She says the 'soccer kids' are the best of the athletic groups in both the schools she has taught. The fittest looking, best acting, with the highest grades of all the sports.

I have learned to wear dark glasses to watch the moms.

RSKY

we used to call the little kids games blanket soccer. you could throw a blanket and cover up both teams at one time, surrounding the ball.

Hay Dude · Jun 7, 2021

I hate soccer

RSKY · Jun 7, 2021

Frankenkubota said:
we used to call the little kids games blanket soccer. you could throw a blanket and cover up both teams at one time, surrounding the ball.

The younger grand plays in a 'recreational soccer' league and that is how they play. The older one plays on a 'traveling team' and it is not the same game. They have positions they specialize in and the games are as intense or more intense than high school play. I actually enjoy her games.

Saturday we watched a 3-on-3 game between some junior high age boys and girls. It was rough, the girls would not back down and the boys had to play hard to win against the smaller girls.

RSKY

MossRoad · Jun 7, 2021

Ahh, the beauty of youth soccer... the clock keeps ticking as they drag the casualties off the field and the game is over in an hour.

Youth softball - 10 run per inning walk-fest takes 3 hours.

Youth basketball foul-fest; how can 4 six-minute quarters add up to an hour and a half?

Youth volley ball isn't too bad. Pretty exciting, actually. There's always 1 giant kid that can jump serve and spike. Terrifies the other team.

Worst of all - multi-school youth track meets. There's 64 kids on the team. Your kid runs one event in 4 hours - the 1600, which is usually the last event, and it's your turn to bring enough bananas and water bottles for the entire team this week, too.

CobyRupert · Jun 7, 2021

Hay Dude said:
I hate soccer

I like turtles!
.... in case anybody wants to know.

2LaneCruzer · Jun 7, 2021

I agree. My Grandaughter played soccer and although she was my princess, I have seen her flatten a couple girls who crossed her...but growing up with two older brothers, she can handle herself. I loved to see the grand kids play soccer, and watching the little boys play hockey was a real hoot!

MoKelly · Jun 7, 2021

I deal with youth tennis.

We have not gotten to where girls play boys in singles.

Of all the troubles/issues, 8 of 10 are the parents.

MoKelly

MossRoad · Jun 7, 2021

Our kids went to a small Catholic school. The boys and girls basketball teams usually didn't have enough players for 5 on 5 practice, so the girls and boys would practice on one half of the court each for the first hour, then scrimmage game after. For a while, the boys didn't want to hurt the girls. Finally, they had enough of the farm girls beating the heck out of them and started pushing back. Those farm girls said if they can move a 1000 pound horse around, these boys are nothing.

That group of kids was the biggest bunch of brothers and sisters we ever saw. Really worked as a group. Surprisingly, none of them ever ended up dating each other even thought they hung around with each other for 8 years. Even in high school and college they'd get together for pick-up games. Many of them are now married and scattered around the country, yet still come back for a weekend every summer. Great bunch of young adults now.