The FISU games women's soccer tournament started for real yesterday as we played Great Britain. We came out on top with a great 2-0 win.
We were somewhat concerned about the weather as the day started out very hot and humid but by half time, the clouds had rolled in and the temperature seemed to cool off. We had a solid game plan supported in part by some intel that both Graham and I gathered in speaking to the Japanese coach on two different occassions. We started off strong and put GB on their heels defensively as they had to account for our pace. A great penetrating run forced one of their defenders to foul us and on the ensuing free kick, Andreanne Gagné blasted one of the inside of the far post to give us the lead. The game was in no way a one sided affair but we defending well as a group and our goalie Rachel Bedek came up with the big safe when we needed them. Our scouting report indicated that GB's #17 would be a handful with her size but she only lasted 45 minutes are Justine Labreque introduced her to some good old fashioned physicality for the entire first half and she was subbed off at the break. The team played with passion, desire, heart and the right skill at the right time. It is always great to get a tournament like this started with a win and in doing so, we have the chance to dictate our destiny moving forward. Today is an off day, and many of the players are looking to return downtown for some shopping. We leave for Shenhzen Bay stadium for the opening ceremonies at 5pm for what should be a fairly long evening but probably an incredible experience. That is one aspect that I was disappointed with in Belgrade as I didn't get to experience the type of opening ceremonies that I had seen on TV at the olympics growing up. Tonight it will be another and ew life experience that I will get to be part of. Tomorrow it is back to competition mode as we face the hosts China and the largest soccer venue of the games. Rumor has it that the stadium (40,000 places ) is sold out although apparently there as still tickets available here at the village. Looking to track down a player or two who hasn't run off shopping and have them share some of their thoughts about the FISU experience later today. I will also try and loa
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AuthorAfter many years of coaching at various levels and with different teams, I thought I would share some of my experiences and thoughts about coaching. Archives
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