# Blowouts



## Woodwork (Sep 12, 2016)

Saw a CSL G07 team blew out another team 17-0 last weekend.  What is the worst blowout you've ever seen?


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## mommato2girls (Sep 12, 2016)

Wow. 17-0. I've never seen that before. What is the point? Worst I've ever seen is 12-0 during a tournament. League play coaches usually play keep away before it hits double digits. Especially at that young of an age.


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## Woodwork (Sep 12, 2016)

I just checked the schedule again and, not only did my eyes not deceive me on the 17-0, but there was another team blowing out their G07 opponent in the same group 12-1.  Is the goals differential tie-breaker causing nuclear proliferation?


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## Mystery Train (Sep 13, 2016)

Scores that lopsided have to be a result of poor bracketing or seeding choices by the league or the coaches.  Obviously, those two teams shouldn't be competing against each other.  Could be that the losing team's coach thought they were better than they were, or the winning team's coach sandbagged to get in a lower division?  Years ago, my daughter's brand new U11 bronze club team played in a local city league during the summer against U13 teams some were silver elite and in one case gold.  We got crushed by double digits multiple times.  I think the worst was maybe 15 to 0.  And it was demoralizing.  But honestly, I felt bad for the winning teams, too.  After the 5th or 6th goal, they weren't having any fun either cause it was just too easy and clearly they weren't any better off for the experience.  In some ways, as a parent, I was angrier when they played keep away, because it was like they were toying with the weaker team by showing them that they couldn't even touch the ball.  At least when the other team was scoring, our defenders and keeper were getting a work out.  When they played keep away, our girls would just end up standing around, exhausted from chasing the ball.  So there's really no good way to handle a mismatch that big.


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## Mystery Train (Sep 13, 2016)

My bad.  I missed in the OP that this was U7, so I guess there probably aren't many options for knowing where to bracket them because they are probably all new teams, and only two choices.  I wonder if the new small sided rules make it easier to get results like this?


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## 7soccerdad (Sep 13, 2016)

Club soccer and U7  is a contradiction to begin with... ridiculous


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## madcow (Sep 13, 2016)

7soccerdad said:


> Club soccer and U7  is a contradiction to begin with... ridiculous


It was an 07 team. Isn't that U9 or 10?


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## 7soccerdad (Sep 13, 2016)

madcow said:


> It was an 07 team. Isn't that U9 or 10?





Mystery Train said:


> My bad.  I missed in the OP that this was U7, so I guess there probably aren't many options for knowing where to bracket them because they are probably all new teams, and only two choices.  I wonder if the new small sided rules make it easier to get results like this?


Didn't realise they started at U7, back in the day club started at U-10.


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## Woodwork (Sep 13, 2016)

Mystery Train, it is actually G07, so Under 10.   Certainly mismatch has something to do with it, but that explains maybe 8-10 goals.  After that, someone is making a decision as to how this is going to be handled and the score will reflect that.  Somehow, most other teams have kept it under 12.   I've seen a "blowout" defined as a 5-goal difference.  17 goals is the highest I've ever seen.  If you were to draw a line where you changed strategies, how many goals ahead are you before you make that call?


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## timbuck (Sep 13, 2016)

If I had a magic wand and could change one thing about youth soccer, it would be allowing a coach a "Time Out" once per half if they are losing by more than 4 goals.
Sometimes you can make a few changes. Sometimes you can give a little advice.  And sometimes you just give the kids a "play your hardest, don't worry about the score.  Your parents still love you."


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## Wez (Sep 13, 2016)

Mystery Train said:


> When they played keep away, our girls would just end up standing around, exhausted from chasing the ball.  So there's really no good way to handle a mismatch that big.


Sounds like the coach could have thrown in the towel?  I don't think parents on either side would of had a problem with that...


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## Eagle33 (Sep 13, 2016)

Unfortunately blowouts at U8-U10 are very common. Some teams are just very good, and some should be still playing Rec soccer. Many parents are delusional about their kid playing ability and crook coaches are capitalizing on this. Leagues on the other hand should do better job placing and bracketing teams. In SCDSL there is flight 1, 2 and 3 at U8-10, in CSL it's only Bronze for girls at this age, so there is more blowouts in CSL.


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## Mystery Train (Sep 13, 2016)

Woodwork said:


> If you were to draw a line where you changed strategies, how many goals ahead are you before you make that call?


Ok, yeah, the whole U-age and calendar year thing is screwing with me.  Under 10, got it.  I agree with you totally about changing strategies.  When it happened to us, I thought about what I'd do differently if I was a coach of a team that was blowing out an overmatched opponent.  For me, if it is clear the other team can't possibly score on us, I'd try to stop them from shooting after 5 or 6.  And that's maybe too much already.  We had a coach who instructed his players that they could only shoot from outside the box after they were up 4-0 within the first 20 minutes.  They ended up still scoring 3 more, but it was a much better game.  There are definitely things you can do to avoid a 17-0 game.


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## Mystery Train (Sep 13, 2016)

Wez said:


> Sounds like the coach could have thrown in the towel?  I don't think parents on either side would of had a problem with that...


Actually that is kind of what happened for us.  Our coach talked to the ref and they agreed to shorten the game.   In our case it was an age disparity as well as skill, so nobody was too bent out of shape about it.  In the 17-0 game the OP is talking about, I have no idea what the circumstances were, but it does seem that the winning coach missed an opportunity to show some class.


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## soccerchaffeur (Sep 13, 2016)

There was a 31-0 in CSL G2008 division last weekend.


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## Woodwork (Sep 13, 2016)

So, are we just supposed to accept that it is what it is?  Is 30 - 0 acceptable even if the coach plays the starters most of the game and doesn't run her team a player down to level it a bit?  I have always played for coaches that would pull a player and let the subs have at it once it was about 6 up.  Putting aside the losing team's feelings, are players able to feel good about being on the winning side of a 20-0 game?


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## Woodwork (Sep 13, 2016)

soccerchaffeur said:


> There was a 31-0 in CSL G2008 division last weekend.


Wow!


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## Woodwork (Sep 13, 2016)

I see who did the 31-0 and I can't say I'm surprised.  The consolation is that they may play the G08 version of the G07 17-0 team, who may have to take it as well as their older team gave it.


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## Wez (Sep 13, 2016)

Eagle33 said:


> In SCDSL there is flight 1, 2 and 3 at U8-10, in CSL it's only Bronze for girls at this age, so there is more blowouts in CSL.


So you could have flt 1 equivalent teams playing against flt 3 teams at the early ages?  CSL doesn't have skill divisions at early ages???


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## Woodwork (Sep 13, 2016)

Wez said:


> So you could have flt 1 equivalent teams playing against flt 3 teams at the early ages?  CSL doesn't have skill divisions at early ages???


With promotion/relegation, I think they don't believe any team can earn promotion so early.  For the 31-0 team, in the G07 level I think their "A" team doesn't even play CSL because they need higher competition, which isn't offered by CSL at G07.  With the birth date changes, CSL could definitely stand to change this, since each group is actually older than before.


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## timbuck (Sep 13, 2016)

I've said for a long time that at the younger ages, there should be an initial 6 games to the season.  And then teams should be shuffled around based on their performance over those 6 games.
It doesn't do either team any good to win or lose by 10+ goals.  Especially if it happens consistently.


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## Mystery Train (Sep 13, 2016)

soccerchaffeur said:


> There was a 31-0 in CSL G2008 division last weekend.


Holy crap!  By far the most lopsided score I've ever heard of.  Disgusting, really.  I like the idea of playing shorthanded once the outcome is not in question.  In that 31-0 game, I don't care if you end up with just the keeper and one defender left, you've got to do SOMETHING if you're the coach up by double digits.  Even if you come from the school of thought, "Hey this ain't AYSO, we're not here to make people feel good, blah, blah, blah..." your own players are getting zero from that experience.  Not even worth the parent's or kids time.  Play them shorthanded and make the kids work for crying out loud.


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## Woodwork (Sep 13, 2016)

timbuck said:


> I've said for a long time that at the younger ages, there should be an initial 6 games to the season.  And then teams should be shuffled around based on their performance over those 6 games.
> It doesn't do either team any good to win or lose by 10+ goals.  Especially if it happens consistently.


I agree as to G08, but it probably would only take 3 games, if you consider point differential in the analysis.  The thing is, for G07 these are teams that already played a season of club last year, so there isn't really a good reason not to have them divided by skill levels.


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## Woodwork (Sep 13, 2016)

Mystery Train said:


> Holy crap!  By far the most lopsided score I've ever heard of.  Disgusting, really.  I like the idea of playing shorthanded once the outcome is not in question.  In that 31-0 game, I don't care if you end up with just the keeper and one defender left, you've got to do SOMETHING if you're the coach up by double digits.  Even if you come from the school of thought, "Hey this ain't AYSO, we're not here to make people feel good, blah, blah, blah..." your own players are getting zero from that experience.  Not even worth the parent's or kids time.  Play them shorthanded and make the kids work for crying out loud.


Or play them a year up if they are that good.  There are other options.  This looks like a real culture problem among a few teams, though.  The same team that won 31-0, their G07 was pummeled 12-1 last weekend (which appears merciful in comparison).  This seems like something that could be resolved by a gentlemen's agreement, but there are no gentlemen to be found.  Otherwise, what goes around comes around...


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## Eagle33 (Sep 13, 2016)

Interesting fact:
In 2001 Australian Men's National team beat Tonga 22:0, American Samoa 31:0 and Samoa 11:0 just to prove the point that Australia shouldn't be playing in Oceania Conference.
Maybe CSL should take a hint....


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## soccerchaffeur (Sep 13, 2016)

I'm a team manager, and in the SCDSL they've instructed us to not even call in scores 8-0 or higher.  My older girl played flight 1 at U8 & U9 and we took some beatings.  Surf, Galaxy and few others who could have run it up never did.  They would take girls off the field, play it back to the keeper, try different formations, play kids out of position, etc...and they would never call in anything worse than 8-0.  Whoever called in a 31-0 should be ashamed.


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## outside! (Sep 13, 2016)

Sometimes it makes more sense to let the losing team add a player or two.


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## 3JMommy (Sep 13, 2016)

My son played in a tournament last year at U8 and we lost 26-1. The worst part was that the boys were running up and down the sidelines blowing kisses and high fiving the parents cheering them on at goals 24, 25, and still at 26. I still can't believe that is what I saw. Have also had the flip side experience of our coach allowing only header or left foot goals after a 5 goal lead (or no goals at all depending on the amount of time left), and have seen other teams quietly remove a player at a time until they were playing 8 v 11 and the match got even.
There are lots of options, and yes I would never call in a score like that.


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## Wez (Sep 13, 2016)

3JMommy said:


> The worst part was that the boys were running up and down the sidelines blowing kisses and high fiving the parents cheering them on at goals 24, 25, and still at 26.


That's crazy, our parents usually start talking among themselves and stop watching the game after a 5 goal differential.


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## espola (Sep 13, 2016)

outside! said:


> Sometimes it makes more sense to let the losing team add a player or two.


The coach can always volunteer to subtract a few of his own.


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## espola (Sep 13, 2016)

Are there any penalties for falsely reporting the final score?


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## Woodwork (Sep 13, 2016)

espola said:


> The coach can always volunteer to subtract a few of his own.


I think that is the more legal option.  I think you can proceed with 4 or 5  on a team in a 7v7, so you can take off at least 2.  In addition, I think too many wait until they are 10-0 to start making changes.  If you are at 5-0 in the first 15 minutes, you know how it is going to go and  I think you tell the starters to take the day off and ride the bench for once.  With certain teams, it could make a difference. With the 31-0 team, their bench is (usually) deep skill-wise so pulling players would also have been necessary.


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## outside! (Sep 13, 2016)

When I was a rec coach our club transitioned from having the strong team pull players off the field to having the weak team add players as it meant more kids getting a chance to play more minutes. It isn't always the best solution, but it some cases it may be. Yeah, I know, rules, blah, blah, blah.


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## watfly (Sep 13, 2016)

soccerchaffeur said:


> There was a 31-0 in CSL G2008 division last weekend.


Hopefully that is a misreported score as that would be a goal every minute and half.  Considering the time taken for restarts, throw-ins, balls out of bounds, etc that would be a relentless barrage of shots with no let up the entire game.  I'm a little skeptical of that scoreline.


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## timbuck (Sep 13, 2016)

If a team has 9 players, then each of them scored at least 3 goals in a 31-0 game.
I believe those games are 40 minutes long.  That's a goal every 77 seconds.  WTF?  
I assume that it takes 10 seconds to steal the ball after the kickoff and dribble towards the goal.  And I assume that after each goal is scored, it takes about 20 seconds to dig the ball out of the back of the net and get ready for the restart.
So that leaves 47 seconds between goals.  Factor in a few throw ins.  Maybe a goal kick or 2.  A few corner kicks.  Maybe a few seconds here and there for substitutions. 
And now that we have the build out line, the winning team shouldn't have been able to camp out at the top of the 18 and launch shots on goal kicks.
Was anybody at this game?  What the heck happened?


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## OchoUno (Sep 13, 2016)

soccerchaffeur said:


> There was a 31-0 in CSL G2008 division last weekend.


I hope that's a typo! I feel for the girls on the losing team. Looking through the G08 results I noticed a 17-0.


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## soccerchaffeur (Sep 13, 2016)

https://coastsoccer.us/web/coastsoccer/teamschedule?YEAR=2016&TEAMNUMBER=3752


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## socalkdg (Sep 13, 2016)

Just coached AYSO GU12 game this weekend.   At 5-0 after 3 quarters every girl that has scored this season was moved to defense.   Final was 5-1.  Next time we go up 4-0 going to move some girls up front and try and get them their first goal of the year and have some of my better players try for assists with those girls.  Every kid and parent likes to see their kid score once.


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## Woodwork (Sep 13, 2016)

timbuck said:


> If a team has 9 players, then each of them scored at least 3 goals in a 31-0 game.
> I believe those games are 40 minutes long.  That's a goal every 77 seconds.  WTF?
> I assume that it takes 10 seconds to steal the ball after the kickoff and dribble towards the goal.  And I assume that after each goal is scored, it takes about 20 seconds to dig the ball out of the back of the net and get ready for the restart.
> So that leaves 47 seconds between goals.  Factor in a few throw ins.  Maybe a goal kick or 2.  A few corner kicks.  Maybe a few seconds here and there for substitutions.
> ...


I wasn't there, but the funny (or sad) part I imagine isn't how long it took to score, but just digging the ball out of the net and dragging it back to center line, where the losing team is taking the first kick after the ref blows the whistle has to take about a minute.  These games are 50 minutes total, so that would mean less than a minute to score each goal average - meaning some were more and some were less.


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## Socal United (Sep 13, 2016)

timbuck said:


> If a team has 9 players, then each of them scored at least 3 goals in a 31-0 game.
> I believe those games are 40 minutes long.  That's a goal every 77 seconds.  WTF?
> I assume that it takes 10 seconds to steal the ball after the kickoff and dribble towards the goal.  And I assume that after each goal is scored, it takes about 20 seconds to dig the ball out of the back of the net and get ready for the restart.
> So that leaves 47 seconds between goals.  Factor in a few throw ins.  Maybe a goal kick or 2.  A few corner kicks.  Maybe a few seconds here and there for substitutions.
> ...


I know it is easy to  do the math, but it really does not take very long.  I remember last year at a game with my team it got ugly early. We scored on 3 passes from kick off, then continued to steal the kick off.  Before I could blink, it was 7-0.  I looked down at my watch when the 7th went it, we were 3:40 into the game.  It was the longest last 36:20 in history.  The coach kept apologizing to me, it wasn't his fault as the manager filled out the registration wrong.  In the ulittle, you can score in 5-10 seconds.  That said, it should never, ever get to that.  At the Copa Del Mar we had a certain famous coach in these parts win his 09 games 22-0 and 19-0.  Then crowed about it in his email that he sends out....


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## Socal United (Sep 13, 2016)

outside! said:


> When I was a rec coach our club transitioned from having the strong team pull players off the field to having the weak team add players as it meant more kids getting a chance to play more minutes. It isn't always the best solution, but it some cases it may be. Yeah, I know, rules, blah, blah, blah.


That is what we try to do in the rec league that I run, unless that is all the players they have.  We do it at a 4 goal differential.


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## collita (Sep 13, 2016)

I know a family that was on the winning side of that game.  It wasn't a fun day for them either (but not as bad as being on the losing side).  From what I heard from that  parent, the coach did what he could to try to slow down the scoring, from instituting a number of passes required before the team could shoot to pulling girls off the field and playing with fewer players.  Unfortunately this is one of the better teams at this age group and they too had no other choice then to play bronze.  Evidently, the other team was actually made up of girls that were 09/10 birthdays.  That's up to two years younger than this stronger 08 team and who many have been playing together for several years.  They were easily able to connect the ever climbing number of passes the coach wanted before they could shoot.  It's going to be a very long season for the losing team and they are going to have some really lopsided scores.  My question is why would a club set up their kids to be in such a situation?


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## Woodwork (Sep 13, 2016)

collita said:


> I know a family that was on the winning side of that game.  It wasn't a fun day for them either (but not as bad as being on the losing side).  From what I heard from that  parent, the coach did what he could to try to slow down the scoring, from instituting a number of passes required before the team could shoot to pulling girls off the field and playing with fewer players.  Unfortunately this is one of the better teams at this age group and they too had no other choice then to play bronze.  Evidently, the other team was actually made up of girls that were 09/10 birthdays.  That's up to two years younger than this stronger 08 team and who many have been playing together for several years.  They were easily able to connect the ever climbing number of passes the coach wanted before they could shoot.  It's going to be a very long season for the losing team and they are going to have some really lopsided scores.  My question is why would a club set up their kids to be in such a situation?


So they scored 31 goals on a bunch of 6 year olds?  Oh. My. God.

Do you know anyone on the 17-0 team?  Would love to hear on that one...


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## mirage (Sep 13, 2016)

These examples reminds me of a game several years ago when my kid was U12 playing in a tournament where his team was up 6-0 or something like it by the half time.  The coach made them connect 6 passes before they can take a shot and only from outside the 18 box. 

My kid got the pass count wrong and took a shot after 5 passes and the coach made him do 20 push-ups right there on the field while the game continued.  The ref was looking at it with a laughter as he knew what was going on.  Another kid took a shot from inside the 18 and another 20 push-ups. 

The coach can do a lot to slow the game down and not run the score up, if so desired.


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## meatsweats (Sep 13, 2016)

mirage said:


> The coach can do a lot to slow the game down and not run the score up, if so desired.


^ That's exactly it.  Which makes this even more sad. Just curious if anyone knows how the Fullerton team has done against teams in SCDSL or others (as in tourneys).  Meaning, is Fullerton just that good or is Westminster to blame for even taking parents money and fielding a team that will get crushed every week. Having said that, I still fault Fullerton more (specifically the coach and club) for ripping the love of the game out of little kids hearts (both winners and losers). Not one good lesson could have came out of 31-0.


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## Mystery Train (Sep 14, 2016)

collita said:


> I know a family that was on the winning side of that game.  It wasn't a fun day for them either (but not as bad as being on the losing side).  From what I heard from that  parent, the coach did what he could to try to slow down the scoring, from instituting a number of passes required before the team could shoot to pulling girls off the field and playing with fewer players.  Unfortunately this is one of the better teams at this age group and they too had no other choice then to play bronze.  Evidently, the other team was actually made up of girls that were 09/10 birthdays.  That's up to two years younger than this stronger 08 team and who many have been playing together for several years.  They were easily able to connect the ever climbing number of passes the coach wanted before they could shoot.  It's going to be a very long season for the losing team and they are going to have some really lopsided scores.  My question is why would a club set up their kids to be in such a situation?


Wow.  Well, clearly that's a terrible move by Westminster to field a younger team in an older division in league play.  My daughter's club teams have done it in tournaments or in city rec leagues when the coach wanted to toughen them up against bigger opponents, but usually its just for a few games.  Those kids are going to have to endure 11 games over 2 months where they get absolutely trounced.  Any kid who comes out of a season like that still excited about playing soccer has my full admiration.  On the flip side, the Fullerton coach might have felt bad and tried to stem the tide, but mandating passes obviously wasn't enough.  Next time he plays them, he really should pull players from the field and play short handed.  Like maybe half of them.


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## timbuck (Sep 14, 2016)

How about at halftime, agree to call it 10-0.  And then swap goalies so that at least the Fullerton keeper sees a ball a few times.


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## TangoCity (Sep 14, 2016)

collita said:


> I know a family that was on the winning side of that game.  It wasn't a fun day for them either (but not as bad as being on the losing side).  From what I heard from that  parent, the coach did what he could to try to slow down the scoring, from instituting a number of passes required before the team could shoot to pulling girls off the field and playing with fewer players.  Unfortunately this is one of the better teams at this age group and they too had no other choice then to play bronze.  Evidently, the other team was actually made up of girls that were 09/10 birthdays.  That's up to two years younger than this stronger 08 team and who many have been playing together for several years.  They were easily able to connect the ever climbing number of passes the coach wanted before they could shoot.  It's going to be a very long season for the losing team and they are going to have some really lopsided scores.  My question is why would a club set up their kids to be in such a situation?


I call B.S. on this one.  The coach OBVIOUSLY did not try hard enough.


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## BarcaLover (Sep 14, 2016)

How bout the Coach stepping in and saying, "No more shooting on goal.  We are going to work on our possession.  Can we keep the ball away from the other team?  How many passes can we string together in a row?  I want to see how good our movement is off the ball so that the player with the ball has multiple options to pass to.  When we lose the ball, how fast can we win it back?  When we win the ball back we have to restart our build up by going back to our GK.  Girls, this 2nd half is going to be all about how well we can maintain possession of the ball."

I've been on both sides of the "blowout problem" and that's a way in which the better team can work on something other than scoring and attacking and it doesn't completely humiliate the inferior team.


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## TangoCity (Sep 14, 2016)

Yes - there are many ways to not score.  Too many to name.  This coach who ran the score up to 31-0 just plainly blew it.  No excuses.  Really ignorant.  She/He blew it!


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## outside! (Sep 14, 2016)

I felt bad when during my first game as rec coach my team won by 7-0. We were actually up 2-0 before I knew it as I was flailing around trying to keep track of subs. It turned out I had been assigned a team that ended up supplying five all stars for that season. We worked hard after that as a team to not run up the score against weaker teams. I think the Rangers coach should maybe send an apology to the other team. An in person apology would be even better explaining that it was his/her fault and very unsporting. If that hasn't already happened, the Rangers DOC should encourage it. This is low level competitive soccer, not international play.


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## darn1 (Sep 14, 2016)

To some extent I understand high scoring, one sided games with the younger ages. But, looking at some of the results for B2002 (these boys should all be freshmen in HS) in SCDSL this past weekend, there were quite a few lopsided wins. Two Flt 2 B2002 teams won 14-0 and a Flt 1 team won 13-0. I hope this is not a trend that will continue throughout the season.


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## fantasyfutbol (Sep 14, 2016)

Socal United said:


> I know it is easy to  do the math, but it really does not take very long.  I remember last year at a game with my team it got ugly early. We scored on 3 passes from kick off, then continued to steal the kick off.  Before I could blink, it was 7-0.  I looked down at my watch when the 7th went it, we were 3:40 into the game.  It was the longest last 36:20 in history.  The coach kept apologizing to me, it wasn't his fault as the manager filled out the registration wrong.  In the ulittle, you can score in 5-10 seconds.  That said, it should never, ever get to that.  At the Copa Del Mar we had a certain famous coach in these parts win his 09 games 22-0 and 19-0.  Then crowed about it in his email that he sends out....


You realize this is competitive soccer, right? You realize that 2009's have the mental capacity to read, write, ride a bike, and even learn technical soccer, right?  Wait...don't answer that, I already know the answer.  You realize AYSO plays recreational soccer, right? You realize that not every child should be playing competitive soccer, right?  You must realize that not every small community in the san diego area should start their own club therefore watering down the talent at the club level, right?  You realize that if you swim in Australian waters you may be bitten by a shark, right?  Maybe....don't swim in shark infested waters, then blame the shark for biting you, then criticize the shark for probably enjoying the bite,  then write about it in a forum about how sharks should realize that although you invaded their habitat, they should have the decency to not enjoy biting you.


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## Socal United (Sep 14, 2016)

fantasyfutbol said:


> You realize this is competitive soccer, right? You realize that 2009's have the mental capacity to read, write, ride a bike, and even learn technical soccer, right?  Wait...don't answer that, I already know the answer.  You realize AYSO plays recreational soccer, right? You realize that not every child should be playing competitive soccer, right?  You must realize that not every small community in in the san diego should start their own club therefore watering down the talent at the club level, right?  You realize that if you swim in Australian waters you may be bitten by a shark, right?  Maybe....don't swim in shark infested waters, then blame the shark for biting you, then criticize the shark for probably enjoying the bite,  then write about it in a forum about how sharks should realize that although you invaded their habitat, they should have the decency to not enjoy biting you.


Wow, looked who joined the forum today....


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## Woodwork (Sep 14, 2016)

Calling the Fullerton team a bunch of sharks is pretty harsh.  Some of the other posters were kind of beating around the bush, but I wasn't sure any adult would really go there.  The Fullerton kids are just a bunch of nice kids who played soccer and listen to their coach.  They weren't trying to show the other kids their place in the food chain.  Lets be civil about it.


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## fantasyfutbol (Sep 14, 2016)

Woodwork said:


> Calling the Fullerton team a bunch of sharks is pretty harsh.  Some of the other posters were kind of beating around the bush, but I wasn't sure any adult would really go there.  The Fullerton kids are just a bunch of nice kids who played soccer and listen to their coach.  They weren't trying to show the other kids their place in the food chain.  Lets be civil about it.


The aforementioned  Copa Del Mar is the Sharks tournament...it was a bit of a play on words..But your point is well taken.  I will condemn any coach that tries to play the sharks vs minnows game at practice.  Don't call my precious a Shark! 
OK that was a joke but seriously, would you tell your children's 1st grade teacher not to outperform other schools in a spelling bee.  Would that teacher be expected to tell her children to spell slower so as not to offend?  Would that same first grade teacher not be supported for writing a newsletter praising the children and explaining his/her teaching technique?


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## Woodwork (Sep 14, 2016)

fantasyfutbol said:


> The aforementioned  Copa Del Mar is the Sharks tournament...it was a bit of a play on words..But your point is well taken.  I will condemn any coach that tries to play the sharks vs minnows game at practice.  Don't call my precious a Shark!
> OK that was a joke but seriously, would you tell your children's 1st grade teacher not to outperform other schools in a spelling bee.  Would that teacher be expected to tell her children spell slower so as not to offend?  Would that same first grade teacher not supported for writing a newsletter praising the children and explaining his/her teaching technique?


At the risk of using another animal analogy, I think the issue is that it becomes akin to beating a dead horse after a certain point.  Most people are pretty sure the horse is dead for sure at about 11-0.  I think a lot of teams could deliver a beating to other teams of 30 or more points.  It is just really strange to see a team actually do it and it makes you wonder why.  Was there still joy in scoring that 31st goal or were they still kicking just because they couldn't think of anything better to do?  Even if there was joy, was there something more valuable that the winning team could have taken from the game?


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## *GOBEARGO* (Sep 15, 2016)

BarcaLover said:


> How bout the Coach stepping in and saying, "No more shooting on goal.  We are going to work on our possession.  Can we keep the ball away from the other team?  How many passes can we string together in a row?  I want to see how good our movement is off the ball so that the player with the ball has multiple options to pass to.  When we lose the ball, how fast can we win it back?  When we win the ball back we have to restart our build up by going back to our GK.  Girls, this 2nd half is going to be all about how well we can maintain possession of the ball."
> 
> I've been on both sides of the "blowout problem" and that's a way in which the better team can work on something other than scoring and attacking and it doesn't completely humiliate the inferior team.


Don't fool yourself and think passing the ball around is a better solution, as it can be equally as humiliating, if not more to the losing side. I've been a part of this "possession" (U9) and no shots and it made the kids look foolish. Chasing, chasing, chasing and never touching the ball is not a solution. One team even bounced the ball around right in front of the own net and were laughing it up while doing it.

Taking kids off the field and playing 2 or 3 players down is about the only sensible remedy, although certainly doesn't guarantee goals not being scored.

BTW...this doesn't just happen at the younger ages. Last weekend in the SCDSL boys 02 division (U15) a team won 14-0. That opens up a whole different can of worms, as boys at the age don't like to be humiliated (lots of testosterone cursing through them boys).


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## espola (Sep 15, 2016)

*GOBEARGO* said:


> Don't fool yourself and think passing the ball around is a better solution, as it can be equally as humiliating, if not more to the losing side. I've been a part of this "possession" (U9) and no shots and it made the kids look foolish. Chasing, chasing, chasing and never touching the ball is not a solution. One team even bounced the ball around right in front of the own net and were laughing it up while doing it.
> 
> Taking kids off the field and playing 2 or 3 players down is about the only sensible remedy, although certainly doesn't guarantee goals not being scored.
> 
> BTW...this doesn't just happen at the younger ages. Last weekend in the SCDSL boys 02 division (U15) a team won 14-0. That opens up a whole different can of worms, as boys at the age don't like to be humiliated (lots of testosterone cursing through them boys).


My son's high school team beat a league opponent 9-0.  In the later game at their field the final score was 5-0.  Our team mom had brought our boys a post-game meal (fried chicken and stuff), but before they could gather up the gear and finish the food the opponents had locked the gates and turned off the lights.


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## Surfref (Sep 15, 2016)

Blue I had something similar happen during the Legends spring tournament a few years ago, but the teams (Yellow and Blue) were GU16.  The team had been entered late at a discounted price to fill a bracket spot that was at least two flights higher than they should have been playing.  6-0, 10 minutes into the game, when the Yellow coach took two players out.  At 7-0, 12 minutes into the game, the coach took another player off and told the players they had to link 20 passes before they could shoot and only from beyond the Penalty area.  At 8-0, 15 minutes into the game, he said no more shooting.  The Blue team became very frustrated as they tried to chase the ball around and my job as a referee became injury prevention. The Blue coach was trying to control his players, but 15-16 year old girls can be hard to control.  The Blue players started going in late and hard on the Yellow players.  At halftime the two coaches and Field Marshal approached me and said they would like to stop the game and the tournament was okay with the game ending as being played in full.  I completely agreed, but when I indicated the game was over a bunch of Blue parents started yelling and protesting that their team did not have a chance to come back and that they paid good money for a full length game.  The players from both teams looked relieved that the game was over.  That next week a parent from the losing team came on this forum and started blasting the Yellow team especially the coach for playing "dirty" and running up the score.  The parent also blasted the referee, me, for "taking it upon myself to stop the game."  That parent was a fool and tried to blame everyone else for the Blue team losing.

Luckily with the 31-0 game those little kids did not do what the olders did and try to take out (injure) the winning teams players.


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## *GOBEARGO* (Sep 15, 2016)

espola said:


> My son's high school team beat a league opponent 9-0.  In the later game at their field the final score was 5-0.  Our team mom had brought our boys a post-game meal (fried chicken and stuff), but before they could gather up the gear and finish the food the opponents had locked the gates and turned off the lights.


Spola that's hilarious from where I sit, but I'm sure it sucked for you & the team.


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## BarcaLover (Sep 15, 2016)

GOBEARGO....There is no perfect solution for a match that has two teams that are nowhere close to each other in ability level.

What a coach should be looking for is "making the best" out of a bad situation.  If my team is up 6-0 and it's clear the opposing is not going to be making any kind of a comeback, I'm going to use the rest of the match to implement the things we have been working on in training instead of trying to score 31 goals.  We might work on our building out of the back, switching the point of attack, playing back to our GK, seeing how many passes we can connect in a row etc., it's the perfect time to work on those aspects of the game, when scoring is no longer necessary.

A coach, as others have mentioned, can also take players off the field and play a man or two down to try and keep things a little more even. But whatever the case, beating an opponent 31-0 is just stupid.  There are other things you can work on in a lopsided game other than just scoring.


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## TangoCity (Sep 15, 2016)

If the score is 6-0, 10 minutes into a game - you are on the edge of already blowing it.

So many easy ways to keep the score down.
1. Left footed shots
2. Left footed touches
3. Only x number of players in attacking half of field
4. Instead of shooting, pass ball to GK
5. Don't press
6. x number of passes then kick ball to opposing GK

So many other things to do which allow the score to remain reasonable, other team to touch the ball and your team to get "some" work.  Playing keep away for 55 minutes is bad too.  Two teams having to face each other that are completely different in talent levels is a tough situation.  Realizing the situation quickly, communicating a remedy to your players all while not making it too obvious (verbally) to the other team is tricky.


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## espola (Sep 15, 2016)

TangoCity said:


> If the score is 6-0, 10 minutes into a game - you are on the edge of already blowing it.
> 
> So many easy ways to keep the score down.
> 1. Left footed shots
> ...


I had to sub for our BU9 coach because the head coach couldn't make it to the game.  We were up 6-0 at halftime, so I sat the 2 best players the whole second half and reversed everyone's playing positions, with a new keeper every few minutes.  That meant that a defender who had not taken a shot all year took advantage of his opportunity and scored 4 straight goals.   The real coach then had to listen the next week to our 4-goal hero's dad who wanted to get him moved to forward.


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## Daniel Miller (Sep 20, 2016)

Worst blowout I ever saw was 13-1.  That one hurt.


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## timbuck (Sep 21, 2016)

espola said:


> I had to sub for our BU9 coach because the head coach couldn't make it to the game.  We were up 6-0 at halftime, so I sat the 2 best players the whole second half and reversed everyone's playing positions, with a new keeper every few minutes.  That meant that a defender who had not taken a shot all year took advantage of his opportunity and scored 4 straight goals.   The real coach then had to listen the next week to our 4-goal hero's dad who wanted to get him moved to forward.


They should have promoted you to head coach. At u9, kids should be switching positions all the time.


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## Lionel Hutz (Sep 21, 2016)

There is a B2007 team that has lost their first three games this year 10-1, 12-1, and 20-0.


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## Oski (Sep 21, 2016)

A couple more options for keeping the score in check with younger teams:
1.


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## Oski (Sep 21, 2016)

My go-to option for keeping the score in check with younger rec teams:
1.  Nobody who has already scored is allowed to score again.
2.  Identify a target player (usually one of the weaker players -- preferably one who hasn't scored in quite a while) who is the only player allowed to score.  Everyone else can focus on getting the target player a goal.
3.  Instead of yelling out limitations (so the other team hears), call players over during the game and spend a minute or two talking to them (effectively reducing the number of active players on the field for your team).


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## timbuck (Sep 21, 2016)

You can also assign a "man to man" defense.  You can only try to take the ball away from the one kid you are assigned to. No double teaming.  No helping out if a kid gets beat.


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## coachrefparent (Sep 21, 2016)

fantasyfutbol said:


> OK that was a joke but seriously, would you tell your children's 1st grade teacher not to outperform other schools in a spelling bee.  Would that teacher be expected to tell her children to spell slower so as not to offend?  Would that same first grade teacher not be supported for writing a newsletter praising the children and explaining his/her teaching technique?


To complete your analogy correctly: Would you want the winner to keep spelling words correctly for hours on end after everyone dropped out, but the losers are required to sit there and listen?


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## Surfref (Sep 21, 2016)

My DD and I were talking about a college game she this Friday and what her coach told them.  Their opponent has lost all five of their games 11-0, 10-0, 2-0, 8-0, 10-0 with only 6 total shots on goal.  My DD said their coach told them that "we do not stop scoring until we are ahead by at least 12 than we will go into a 10 passes before you can shoot and only from outside the penalty area."  My DD asked the coach why a 12 goal lead.  The coach said the goal differential will help them in the overall standings.  He also said that if they were his youth team he could cap the scoring at a 6 goal lead.


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## espola (Sep 21, 2016)

Surfref said:


> My DD and I were talking about a college game she this Friday and what her coach told them.  Their opponent has lost all five of their games 11-0, 10-0, 2-0, 8-0, 10-0 with only 6 total shots on goal.  My DD said their coach told them that "we do not stop scoring until we are ahead by at least 12 than we will go into a 10 passes before you can shoot and only from outside the penalty area."  My DD asked the coach why a 12 goal lead.  The coach said the goal differential will help them in the overall standings.  He also said that if they were his youth team he could cap the scoring at a 6 goal lead.


That big a goal differential does not matter in NCAA or NAIA post-season selections - is it a conference thing?


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## fantasyfutbol (Sep 21, 2016)

coachrefparent said:


> To complete your analogy correctly: Would you want the winner to keep spelling words correctly for hours on end after everyone dropped out, but the losers are required to sit there and listen?


Don't claim to complete my analogy correctly.  The winning team doesn't shoot goals into an open net for hours on end after the opposing team drops out/sits on the sidelines and are required to sit there and watch.  That doesn't happen in soccer, spelling bees, or any contest where the objective is to outperform the opponent DURING the contest.

You don't have to agree with the analogy but by creating a straw man argument you are only exposing your own lack of touch with reality.  

Blowouts can be handled many ways, but as long as the coach makes a sincere effort to not embarrass the other team, then we can say he did his due diligence.  When referencing teams in this thread, we shouldn't speak about what the coach's intentions were unless we were there.  That would be speaking out of turn.  What remains true that if the blowouts are happening, we need to look at why these teams are competing against each other and see if what the real problem is parents.  Parents lack of touch with reality thinking their little Fred or Frida belongs on a club team.  AYSO is not a bad word, it is a great league with great attitudes and wonderful people.  If your team is getting blown out, you might need to stop looking across the field for blame and start looking in the mirror.


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## Socal United (Sep 22, 2016)

TangoCity said:


> If the score is 6-0, 10 minutes into a game - you are on the edge of already blowing it.
> 
> So many easy ways to keep the score down.
> 1. Left footed shots
> ...


I had that exact scenario this past weekend.  It was pretty tough, I think it was 7-0 about 15 minutes in.  I gave them the non verbal instruction of no more scoring for the half.  If I had let the kids go, I have no doubt we would have been at 10-12 minimum by half. When we got to the half time talk, it was kind of funny because this particular team was in a different position.  They were not sure what to do but as I do with every team I coach they know that I do not allow my teams to just run riot on another team.  We discussed what we thought would be the best thing to do to help us get better and not embarrass the other team.  One of the kids suggested, since we are all right footed, only left foot passes and shots.  We work on it a lot, but as many of you know when you have little kids they are married to that magic right foot no matter what you say.  Also, it is not a top team so even their right foot is not what it needs to be. Needless to say, it worked extremely well.  The kids struggled mightily, the other team had some chances, and stringing 3 left footed passes together to get to goal was very unlikely.  In the last minute, we hit a good pass down the line, a kid crossed it without falling down, and another ran in and first timed it into the goal.  It took us 24 minutes, but they were finally able to get it done.  The whistle blew soon after, final of 8-0.  We didn't embarrass the other team, and the kids were very happy for the kid that scored with his left.  We also didn't press, came back to the half on goal kicks, and dropped off on throw ins.  FF, I know you think your analogy works but I disagree.  Don't get the value of education and youth sports mixed up, I make a living doing both and they are COMPLETELY different in almost every way.  Maybe that is my problem, I have spent too much time with kids over the last 25 years so I have 0 interest in humiliating a bunch of 7 year old kids.  I just don't think Darwinism has a place everywhere.


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## espola (Sep 22, 2016)

http://sports.yahoo.com/news/german-goalkeeper-arrested-after-conceding-43-goals-in-one-game-171441312.html


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## Surfref (Sep 22, 2016)

espola said:


> That big a goal differential does not matter in NCAA or NAIA post-season selections - is it a conference thing?


I didn't know so I asked my DD last night.  DD did say that her coach absolutely hates the coach of the team they are playing.  DD said the coach has told them that he does not like the other coach and they had better beat that team.  DD said she thinks her coach just wants to beat the other team to get back at the other coach.  DD said she does not know why the two coaches dislike each other.  Sorry, that is the best answer I can give you.


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## fantasyfutbol (Jul 15, 2017)

Socal United said:


> I know it is easy to  do the math, but it really does not take very long.  I remember last year at a game with my team it got ugly early. We scored on 3 passes from kick off, then continued to steal the kick off.  Before I could blink, it was 7-0.  I looked down at my watch when the 7th went it, we were 3:40 into the game.  It was the longest last 36:20 in history.  The coach kept apologizing to me, it wasn't his fault as the manager filled out the registration wrong.  In the ulittle, you can score in 5-10 seconds.  That said, it should never, ever get to that.  At the Copa Del Mar we had a certain famous coach in these parts win his 09 games 22-0 and 19-0.  Then crowed about it in his email that he sends out....


http://events.gotsport.com/events/schedule.aspx?eventid=59485&FieldID=0&applicationID=4110991&action=Go

Is this coach also famous in these parts? Or is this lopsided score a common occurence?  Or did you have some personal reasons to call out one coach but see no problem when another does it?


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## ESPNANALYST (Jul 16, 2017)

No Coach that was his post back in September. I am sure he has long since forgot about it unlike you who whose club it was probably about since you appear to be so butt hurt about it. Did you wait ten months for this? What a troll.


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## zebrafish (Jul 16, 2017)

Socal United said:


> I had that exact scenario this past weekend.  It was pretty tough, I think it was 7-0 about 15 minutes in.  I gave them the non verbal instruction of no more scoring for the half.  If I had let the kids go, I have no doubt we would have been at 10-12 minimum by half. When we got to the half time talk, it was kind of funny because this particular team was in a different position.  They were not sure what to do but as I do with every team I coach they know that I do not allow my teams to just run riot on another team.  We discussed what we thought would be the best thing to do to help us get better and not embarrass the other team.  One of the kids suggested, since we are all right footed, only left foot passes and shots.  We work on it a lot, but as many of you know when you have little kids they are married to that magic right foot no matter what you say.  Also, it is not a top team so even their right foot is not what it needs to be. Needless to say, it worked extremely well.  The kids struggled mightily, the other team had some chances, and stringing 3 left footed passes together to get to goal was very unlikely.  In the last minute, we hit a good pass down the line, a kid crossed it without falling down, and another ran in and first timed it into the goal.  It took us 24 minutes, but they were finally able to get it done.  The whistle blew soon after, final of 8-0.  We didn't embarrass the other team, and the kids were very happy for the kid that scored with his left.  We also didn't press, came back to the half on goal kicks, and dropped off on throw ins.  FF, I know you think your analogy works but I disagree.  Don't get the value of education and youth sports mixed up, I make a living doing both and they are COMPLETELY different in almost every way.  Maybe that is my problem, I have spent too much time with kids over the last 25 years so I have 0 interest in humiliating a bunch of 7 year old kids.  I just don't think Darwinism has a place everywhere.


My hat is off to you for your approach. I wish all coaches thought this way-- asking players for solutions to problems and giving them challenges without destroying the morale/sprit of the other team. Your team got more out of that half then they did by scoring another 7/8 goals. 

The kids are really lucky to have you as a coach. Really, really good stuff. I hope you can keep that spirit.

I see so many coaches who clearly have no idea about these philosophies-- it is all about winning and not growing.


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## fantasyfutbol (Jul 16, 2017)

ESPNANALYST said:


> No Coach that was his post back in September. I am sure he has long since forgot about it unlike you who whose club it was probably about since you appear to be so butt hurt about it. Did you wait ten months for this? What a troll.


Responding at 7:38 AM???? So that means you logged in to this forum that early???
 Get a life Troll.  
My post had a link with real data.  Your post had opinions and assumptions which are all wrong.  Look in the mirror Troll.
Trolls are always the last ones to see themselves for what they really are.  Find something productive to do at 7:38 am instead of logging in to a kids soccer website.  Creep.


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## Socal United (Jul 16, 2017)

fantasyfutbol said:


> http://events.gotsport.com/events/schedule.aspx?eventid=59485&FieldID=0&applicationID=4110991&action=Go
> 
> Is this coach also famous in these parts? Or is this lopsided score a common occurence?  Or did you have some personal reasons to call out one coach but see no problem when another does it?


I didn't know I was the blowout police as I posted that almost a year ago.  That said, I don't think that running up the score like that is best.  I see a problem whenever someone does it.  9-0 and 15-0 are both rough, certainly not 22-0 and 19-0.  In the case I was referring to, said coach opted to keep two super studs up top as they scored 17 of the 22 in the one game.  I saw some of the scores from the weekend, it is tough at this age and only going to get tougher.  The new rules coming will widen the gap between teams in my opinion, making this even more the case.


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## ESPNANALYST (Jul 16, 2017)

fantasyfutbol said:


> Responding at 7:38 AM???? So that means you logged in to this forum that early???
> Get a life Troll.
> My post had a link with real data.  Your post had opinions and assumptions which are all wrong.  Look in the mirror Troll.
> Trolls are always the last ones to see themselves for what they really are.  Find something productive to do at 7:38 am instead of logging in to a kids soccer website.  Creep.


Coach you seem so upset. 
You are an idiot- you respond to something posted seven months ago. That makes you the troll. Who looks at a post from seven months ago. That means you were up at 9:40 pm scrolling an old forum. Who has no life- that would be you! 
Must be a loser coach, or a loser parent. 
All you do is stir up sh** on here and it's clear you are an idiot or a coach.
You need to get a life and a grip.


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## fantasyfutbol (Jul 16, 2017)

ESPNANALYST said:


> Coach you seem so upset.
> You are an idiot- you respond to something posted seven months ago. That makes you the troll. Who looks at a post from seven months ago. That means you were up at 9:40 pm scrolling an old forum. Who has no life- that would be you!
> Must be a loser coach, or a loser parent.
> All you do is stir up sh** on here and it's clear you are an idiot or a coach.
> You need to get a life and a grip.


You must be a pleasure to live with. You have shown yourself to be THAT parent.  Quick to yell and lose your temper, foul mouthed, red faced and complaining on the sidelines lol.  What sadness in your life is making you so angry? Seek professional help.


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## coachrefparent (Jul 17, 2017)

ESPNANALYST said:


> Coach you seem so upset.
> You are an idiot- you respond to something posted seven months ago. That makes you the troll. Who looks at a post from seven months ago. That means you were up at 9:40 pm scrolling an old forum. Who has no life- that would be you!
> Must be a loser coach, or a loser parent.
> All you do is stir up sh** on here and it's clear you are an idiot or a coach.
> You need to get a life and a grip.


How is responding to an old thread being a troll? He posted new timely on topic information showing another a-hole coach running up the score against little 6 year old girls. 6 year old girls. I wonder if the coach  chuckles as he watches kindergarten kids walk off the field sobbing. 

And why are you so angry? Is your kid at the sharks?


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## Surfref (Jul 17, 2017)

fantasyfutbol said:


> http://events.gotsport.com/events/schedule.aspx?eventid=59485&FieldID=0&applicationID=4110991&action=Go
> 
> Is this coach also famous in these parts? Or is this lopsided score a common occurence?  Or did you have some personal reasons to call out one coach but see no problem when another does it?


Those are U7 teams.  I thought they did not keep score at that age.


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## ajaffe (Jul 17, 2017)

Some of the brackets were not very good. I've never seen this many lopsided scores across multiple brackets.


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## SocalSoccerMom (Jul 18, 2017)

ajaffe said:


> Some of the brackets were not very good. I've never seen this many lopsided scores across multiple brackets.


Copa Del Mar was a disappointment this year for various reasons 1)very late in getting the schedule out 2)finals on Monday where could easily be done on Sunday especially with 4-team flights 3)good number of teams, but poor bracketing resulting in blow outs.  One positive note, all games were at Polo fields.


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## socalkdg (Jul 19, 2017)

Daughter is playing basketball besides soccer.  11 year old coed.  Our team is loaded as it looks like our coach knew what players to draft while the other coached didn't.   We went up 30-0 in the first quarter.   Our team stopped pressing.   The score board operator turned off the score.  Top 3 players sat on the bench, increased the number of passes before shooting, let the other team get some open shots off from the outside, plus they let a boy score from the other team that hadn't scored all night.  I believe the final score was 74-25, but at least in the 2nd half it felt more competitive and fans and players from both teams felt better about the whole situation.  

It really is uncomfortable when you are destroying another team, or being destroyed yourself.  Goes for any sport at this age.


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## coachrefparent (Jul 19, 2017)

socalkdg said:


> Daughter is playing basketball besides soccer.  11 year old coed.  Our team is loaded as it looks like our coach knew what players to draft while the other coached didn't.   We went up 30-0 in the first quarter.   Our team stopped pressing.   The score board operator turned off the score.  Top 3 players sat on the bench, increased the number of passes before shooting, let the other team get some open shots off from the outside, plus they let a boy score from the other team that hadn't scored all night.  I believe the final score was 74-25, but at least in the 2nd half it felt more competitive and fans and players from both teams felt better about the whole situation.
> 
> It really is uncomfortable when you are destroying another team, or being destroyed yourself.  Goes for any sport at this age.


Where is this basketball league?  Sounds like the typical rec (basketball/baseball) draft where the club coaches know all the competitive players and other volunteer coaches are clueless. They also often collude to get all their "kids" on their team.


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## Primetime (Jul 20, 2017)

I saw a 24-0 score last season in CSL fall league.  Was also a Youngers age 07'    It was between Fullerton Rangers and EDA.  Don't remember who won.  At some point, likely 8 or 9-0 you need to just play possession keep away.


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## Surfref (Jul 20, 2017)

Primetime said:


> I saw a 24-0 score last season in CSL fall league.  Was also a Youngers age 07'    It was between Fullerton Rangers and EDA.  Don't remember who won.  At some point, likely 8 or 9-0 you need to just play possession keep away.


I recently refereed a BU14 team that won 14-0. In the second half with the score 8-0 the coach told the boys to stop scoring and reiterated that numerous times.  The coach was pissed off at his players and kept apologizing to the other coach. The game the parents, on the opposite sideline from the coach, were encouraging the boys to continue to score. After the game the coach had the players running sprints for about 20 minutes while he talked to the parents about sportsmanship.  After the boys were done running he had a sportsmanship talk with them.


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## seesnake (Jul 20, 2017)

I thought Copa was a good tournament as far as organization and experience. Fields of course were good and facilities were good. I thought referee quality was good from the multiple matches I saw/coached.  

There were a lot of lopsided scores, signaling some bracketing issues and also the reality of playing on the smaller fields, I think. The good teams' superiority was magnified because they could get to goal so much more quickly on the smaller pitches. I saw at least two goals with shots from the midline in 9 v 9 play. 

My daughter is on the Sharks team this weekend who had those lopsided scores. The coach actually tried to rein it in a bit by playing players in unfamiliar roles. I probably would've done more. 

I will say that the atmosphere for the little girls on the losing end was pretty positive as the coaches were celebrating good play from both sides and complimenting bits of skill and determination to all the girls. The players left smiling, I think. I thought it was pretty neat that there were 6 teams bracketed at such a young age. 

BTW- at Rebels cup there was a CDA Slammers team of girls 2010, so 6 and 7 year olds, who won each of their games by scores of 15 or 16 to nothing. They were a class above, not sure if the coach did anything to mitigate the gap in ability.

I think most kids this age don't care THAT much about the scores. It's the parents.


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