Thoughts on Sand Soccer?

jimbohonky said:
Fun, but avoid the host team (CDA Slammers) if you can. They game the rules and are absolutely nasty when the ref isn't looking--almost as if their coaches are telling them to take cheap shots when the ref isn't looking, which is all the time with one ref on the sand.

At one point, this got out of hand and one of their players kicked a goalie in the head AFTER the play was over and the ref turned his back, and there was no question that it was done on purpose.
Split his head open and sent him to urgent care.
And no, wasn't my team. They were just a dirty bunch playing nothing that resembled soccer, and seemingly encouraged to do so by their coach: in all of their games.

They apparently REALLY REALLY want to win sand soccer at any cost.
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My daughter was kicked in the head twice during one of her matches, plus banged into a couple more times after she had possession. Referee called it on them 4 different times. Of course each call actually took the advantage away from us as she had the ball for a drop kick and instead we ended up with a free kick from our goal line. Seemed like a good tactic by the other team, but not really in the spirit of the game.

My daughter had a great time, but mainly because we were way overmatched and she was facing 25+ shots a game. She played the whole game in our first game, but then just the first half at keeper in the next two. I think she dove more in 3 games then she did all of last season. She also scored twice in our first game, so she is ready to do it again. Not so much for the other girls.

Our coach admitted he screwed up and put us in the top bracket where we faced WCFC Pre-ECNL 05 team twice as they split their squad, plus faced a 3rd team that beat those two teams. All three of those teams were very good, and were there to win. Our girls looked like they were running in quick sand while the other teams floated over the top. We looked like bad golfers taking divots on our shots and huge puffs of sand would explode when they went to kick the ball, which would go about 3 feet. I must say the WCFC team was very talented. Some of our girls could learn a bit from their killer instinct.

Best news is the girls had fun in the ocean and sand, and no one got hurt. :)
 
socalkdg said:
My daughter was kicked in the head twice during one of her matches, plus banged into a couple more times after she had possession. Referee called it on them 4 different times. Of course each call actually took the advantage away from us as she had the ball for a drop kick and instead we ended up with a free kick from our goal line. Seemed like a good tactic by the other team, but not really in the spirit of the game.

My daughter had a great time, but mainly because we were way overmatched and she was facing 25+ shots a game. She played the whole game in our first game, but then just the first half at keeper in the next two. I think she dove more in 3 games then she did all of last season. She also scored twice in our first game, so she is ready to do it again. Not so much for the other girls.

Our coach admitted he screwed up and put us in the top bracket where we faced WCFC Pre-ECNL 05 team twice as they split their squad, plus faced a 3rd team that beat those two teams. All three of those teams were very good, and were there to win. Our girls looked like they were running in quick sand while the other teams floated over the top. We looked like bad golfers taking divots on our shots and huge puffs of sand would explode when they went to kick the ball, which would go about 3 feet. I must say the WCFC team was very talented. Some of our girls could learn a bit from their killer instinct.

Best news is the girls had fun in the ocean and sand, and no one got hurt. :)
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Sounds like a fun weekend!
 
Our B05s played this weekend. There were many more kicks to legs, knees and shins (and other places) than I ever recall seeing on grass/fake grass. Also different referees applied slide tackle (not allowed), kickoff (go forward? don't go forward?) and direct kicks close to the "goal area" (there isn't one) differently.

(edited to add: All in all, considering the size of the tourney, seemed well run. Parking was a pain, of course. I like how various clubs made group areas to hang out for the days.)
 
3 boys teams in the tourney. No injuries. In the previous years. No injuries. Two of our teams won their brackets. One team Flight 1 was competitive (rough) but not dirty - but some shenanigans going on with the CDA Slammers. One team had to forfeit for using illegal players. In the championship game they decided to stick kids from other team to play - still lost. Kids had a great time, they bond and get to play wherever they wanted. I saw teams doing set plays before games, warming up like it was regular soccer - our teams were warming up doing Sand Wrestling, Pants Your Teammate and Run & Ocean Swimming before a match. Our worst team was still competitive, might have won if they were more serious, but no room for seriousness in Sand Soccer. IF wanted, you can find coaching moments that kids can take to use. Besides the goalkeeper, the most important things about sand soccer: win balls in the air (probably where some complaints about head smacking come from) on both ends, stop/bring balls down at midfield (so you can counter) and track back ALL GAME. Simple? Things kids can remember and improve them for the season - i mean if you are looking for that kind of stuff.
 
jrcaesar said:
Our B05s played this weekend. There were many more kicks to legs, knees and shins (and other places) than I ever recall seeing on grass/fake grass. Also different referees applied slide tackle (not allowed), kickoff (go forward? don't go forward?) and direct kicks close to the "goal area" (there isn't one) differently.

(edited to add: All in all, considering the size of the tourney, seemed well run. Parking was a pain, of course. I like how various clubs made group areas to hang out for the days.)
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My kid gets kicks to the shin EVERY practice, EVERY game. Spiked in the thigh, calves etc. Without fail. Happens at all levels of play. Not a sand soccer exclusive phenomena. And Yes, he also got a kick to the shin at Sand Soccer where he had to be subbed, but to call it a sand soccer thing is a bit dramatic.

You are correct on the refs. Home club got some home cooking and some seemed to make up rules at they went along. I even saw one ref stand in one spot near midfield and NEVER leave the spot the entire game
 
jrcaesar said:
(edited to add: All in all, considering the size of the tourney, seemed well run. Parking was a pain, of course. I like how various clubs made group areas to hang out for the days.)
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Parking was fun. Not. Many of our girls got there 5 minutes before game time.
 
Not_that_Serious said:
to call it a sand soccer thing is a bit dramatic.
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Fair point re: kicking ... simply could have the specific opponents in these matches, or harder to keep balance while defending, or match management by the refs in these games on this day.

I read in the HB Sand rules that referees were to officiate from the center line at the touchline (like beach volleyball), or could officiate inside the field. But then I also read rules about direct kicks that weren't always followed, so.... :confused:
 
Not_that_Serious said:
Newland Parking + Free ride from Surfboard Bus removed headaches. $30 bux to park for two days - pretty absurd though.
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I posted this earlier in the thread. Parking is horrible. Best bet is to park at Fashion Island in Newport Beach (free and no grief for being there all day) and take an Uber that will drop you off on the side of the road. Maybe $15 each way, but you are right there without having to park up to a mile away.
 
jrcaesar said:
Fair point re: kicking ... simply could have the specific opponents in these matches, or harder to keep balance while defending, or match management by the refs in these games on this day.

I read in the HB Sand rules that referees were to officiate from the center line at the touchline (like beach volleyball), or could officiate inside the field. But then I also read rules about direct kicks that weren't always followed, so.... :confused:
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I think part of the problem is hyper kids or level of the kid - my kid hates it and complains about it all the time. seems to be a magnet for being kicked. i told him maybe you need to move faster or i need to start beating your shins with bamboo.

the halfline on a shorter field is okay, but you gotta move from a circle larger then the size of your outstretched arms at some point in the game. if we are logical about it, the refs probably werent any worse then stuff we see during the season or other tournaments. you get one guy/gal who knows what they are doing for every 5 average refs and 10 real bad ones.
 
timbuck said:
I posted this earlier in the thread. Parking is horrible. Best bet is to park at Fashion Island in Newport Beach (free and no grief for being there all day) and take an Uber that will drop you off on the side of the road. Maybe $15 each way, but you are right there without having to park up to a mile away.
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too bad i had a cooler, and canopies day 1 - was there at 7am and parking was still a bit rough. wised up day 2 with the help of the weather - still managed to burn up the legs and ears though.
 
I just want to know how some of the girls we faced seemed to be wearing the winged shoes of Hermes as they glided over the sand while our girls, all pretty fast, seemed to run in quicksand. :eek: Forget about stopping on a dime and changing direction. Probably should have had at least one practice in the sand.

My daughter took one bad bounce off the face while playing keeper, had one later go between the legs even though she had one knee down (pretty sure the ball burrowed underneath the sand on that one).
 
A practice or 2 in the sand helps a little bit. We did one for 45 minutes followed by pizza at the beach.

My middle daughter seemed to be faster on sand than on grass. I can't quite figure out why. She has average/below average speed on grass, but was one of the fastest kids on the sand. She played last year too, so I think the experience along with a few sand practices helped.
 
socalkdg said:
I just want to know how some of the girls we faced seemed to be wearing the winged shoes of Hermes as they glided over the sand while our girls, all pretty fast, seemed to run in quicksand. :eek: Forget about stopping on a dime and changing direction. Probably should have had at least one practice in the sand.

My daughter took one bad bounce off the face while playing keeper, had one later go between the legs even though she had one knee down (pretty sure the ball burrowed underneath the sand on that one).
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almost pays to put most athletic kid at keeper. they can get to anything on the floor fast and then run up and chuck it or dink it for a header. the funny part was kids trying to go messi and the ball getting stuck in the sand. most kids are also conditioned to go for top corners - especially free kicks. sand soccer you are best driving it and letting the sand make the ball jump around. my kid had one hit a mound and jump over his head a couple time. just how it is. yeah pays to be light, we had some brutes (tire in about a min) and after a bit told one kid who is a defender "just hang out up top, no worries, try to score". and he did and the kids went nuts - even in a loss. that is what sand soccer was to us.
 
timbuck said:
A practice or 2 in the sand helps a little bit. We did one for 45 minutes followed by pizza at the beach.

My middle daughter seemed to be faster on sand than on grass. I can't quite figure out why. She has average/below average speed on grass, but was one of the fastest kids on the sand. She played last year too, so I think the experience along with a few sand practices helped.
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can find a volleyball court at a school or local park. good for conditioning regardless if they are playing sand soccer
 
We played in the May event. Lost both games on Saturday. Playing a 2-3-1with the "1" being a cherry picker. "
We won both games on Sunday playing with a "dual cherry picker".
The difference was that our single cherry picker would get to a ball, maybe take a shot. But nobody was there for a rebound or a pass. With 2 up top, we got more second chances. Especially when many of the goals are from a keeper punt and a hope for a touch before it goes in the goal.
 
timbuck said:
A practice or 2 in the sand helps a little bit. We did one for 45 minutes followed by pizza at the beach.

My middle daughter seemed to be faster on sand than on grass. I can't quite figure out why. She has average/below average speed on grass, but was one of the fastest kids on the sand. She played last year too, so I think the experience along with a few sand practices helped.
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That is funny. A couple of our fastest most aggressive girls were completely lost on the sand. The game was funny to watch, even for the parents of these kids. I think my daughter swallowed a cup of sand by the end of day one.
 
timbuck said:
We played in the May event. Lost both games on Saturday. Playing a 2-3-1with the "1" being a cherry picker. "
We won both games on Sunday playing with a "dual cherry picker".
The difference was that our single cherry picker would get to a ball, maybe take a shot. But nobody was there for a rebound or a pass. With 2 up top, we got more second chances. Especially when many of the goals are from a keeper punt and a hope for a touch before it goes in the goal.
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we ran 2-2-2 (yeah like they kept their shape during the game) but saw teams cherry picking 3 kids - which was fine for them given our kids loved going forward like a school of fish and hated running back. they put in a lot of easy rebounds. they say you cant learn anything @ Sand Soccer. hah
 
timbuck said:
We played in the May event. Lost both games on Saturday. Playing a 2-3-1with the "1" being a cherry picker. "
We won both games on Sunday playing with a "dual cherry picker".
The difference was that our single cherry picker would get to a ball, maybe take a shot. But nobody was there for a rebound or a pass. With 2 up top, we got more second chances. Especially when many of the goals are from a keeper punt and a hope for a touch before it goes in the goal.
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So no offsides in sand soccer? Yet they also allow keeper punts even without the offsides? o_O
 
Keeper punts are allows but are indirect. So it has touch someone for it to count.
The "strategy" is when your keeper makes a save is to stick a girl in front of the other teams keeper and hope it hits someone.
Like I said in an earlier post "it's barely soccer."
First time teams try to play possesion, pass it back, switch, etc. they learn by half time to play 1 or 2 touch and don't try to dribble too much.
 
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