I'm laughing at your Texas comment. So true.
2019 Women's D1 Soccer Talk!!!!
- Thread starter gkrent
- Start date
MakeAPlay
DA
Grosso is good and at times she is looking for players to connect with and unfortunately they just kick the ball upfield and chase it. They are like a poor man's version of Texas A&M without as good a defense!
dk_b
GOLD
That's why I try to look at how a team plays and not the result. In watching the UCLA-Santa Clara game . . . I thought it was clear that UCLA was the better team. And sometimes, in a given game, the better team can lose (I think of the completely dominating Stanford v Santa Clara performance in 2016 in the NCAA that ended up being a SCU win in OT; the SCU GK stood on her head and kept them in the game but anyone who followed it could see that Stanford was dominant (just looked at the box score - 31 shots (14 on goal) to 7 shots (3 on goal)). It's also why a weird upset can happen in the tournament though with the enhanced focus, usually the right teams advance.
My guess is that Stanford and UCLA will remain the top of the Pac but that there will be a ton of competitive games, some upsets, some lost leads to expose the weaker GKs, some wins when a dominated team rides a hot GK, etc. It will be a fun conference to watch. It usually is.
The WCC is more quizzical to me. Harder to get many qualifiers so every game among the contenders will be HUGE. Nobody can afford a small bobble of a game. If Pepp can take down Stanford, I would not count them out but how many bad games in league can it afford? 1? None. But that's no different than BYU or SCU . . . they all have to be near perfect. And you can't take even the weakest teams for granted (I was at a SMC v Loyola game in 2016 and saw the Gaels get the upset and Loyola getting knocked out of the NCAA consideration (NCAA took 3 WCC teams that year and the Lions would have been a solid pick) only a year after making it to the third round)
I can't comment on past recruiting, but Texas is going to easily have the top recruiting class in a couple of years. At one point, one of their assistants was closely tied into the YNT and seemed to be pulling in players. Bad optics in my opinion.
MakeAPlay
DA
I heard that one of their future classes is supposed to be good. We will see. I just can’t imagine that a group of top players would want to go play horrible kickball.
MakeAPlay
DA
I must have missed the play that you were referring to. I will say that I enjoyed watching the game. It was fast paced and I was really impressed with Fullerton’s attack. They looked like a tournament team and not one that you would want to catch in the first round. I secretly hope that $C gets a 2 seed and draws them in the first round. They are also an excellent set piece team which gives them the ability to score against the run of play.
I am not that impressed with Cal. I feel that they try to slow the pace of the game down and if pressed by a fast team with a deep bench, they will be in trouble. Their starting 11 is only going to get them so far against more experienced teams.
outside!
DA
It was the play where Mizzou had a set play near the Fullerton goal, the ball came out, the Fullerton forward touched the ball around the defender, muscled through the impeding arm bar and got a couple of steps on the defender only to have the defender do a big jersey tug which enabled her to slide tackle the Fullerton player. The referee reached for his back pocket and got the red card part way out before changing his mind and putting the red back in his pocket and getting the yellow out of his front pocket. I believe without the second foul, the Fullerton player would have pulled away from the defender and been 1v1 with the Mizzou keeper.
outside!
DA
While I am sure there are still good parts, I could do with never being in Texas again.
dk_b
GOLD
Was she inside the 18 when that happened?
3thatplay
SILVER
DOGSO is always about the 4 D's. Defenders, Distance to Goal, Distance to Ball, Direction or Play.
If only the Goalie was left then Defenders is satisfied, then how far away the attacker is from goal when fouled and how much control of the ball would they have maintained and in what direction are they going. If you think ALL of those are satisfied, then DOGSO is probably the correct call. Ask SurfRef to watch the play.
I haven't seen it yet.
Dos Equis
GOLD
When did Gregg Berhalter join the forum?
In fairness to this statement, and to MAP, I understand the desire and appeal of playing a certain style of soccer, and matching your player's strengths with the coach/school's style of play should be a consideration in selecting a school. But a good/great coach understands how best to win with the talent they have. At this level, results matter, and that is how success, and teams, should be judged.
outside!
DA
The distance to the goal was probably the issue, as it all happened very near the center circle. The other 3D's were satisfied. She had the ball at her feet, she was headed straight towards goal, and she had the defender beat.
dk_b
GOLD
Huh? I don't follow the men's game all that closely so I don't know how my comments match Berhalter's. But the full context of my comment makes it clear I'm talking about overgeneralizing based on a single game or event. We do that all the time in contexts in and out of sports (in sports, a specific score also often weighs too heavily in framing our conclusions). UCLA lost 0-2 . . . oh, they will have a hard time scoring! (they won't) Stanford lost 0-1 . . . Ratcliffe should have played more players to mix it up (um, they had 22 shots). I'd prefer a body of work or at least a series of games before I think the bloom is off the rose or that a single upset is indicative of anything more than just an odd confluence of variables. It is what makes sports fun to watch game-by-game and also why when I'm rooting for my particular favorites, I am pretty mellow until my team faces an elimination game (and worry in those non-elimination games when the team plays like crap - even in a win - and can be satisfied when they play well - even in a loss).
(one game just came to mind: FSU was clearly the better team in the 2018 semifinal. But until the 2d goal - through the Stanford GK's hands - a 1-0 game was a (less than 100%) Marcario free kick from being tied. Maybe that game ends 1-1, goes to PKs and maybe Stanford wins. If that were the result, it would not have told the story. 2-0 does tell the story BUT not really as the score could have/should have been 1-0 but for the error)
MakeAPlay
DA
I do remember that play and it seemed like a red card to me. I was pretty surprised. Fullerton overcame the BS.
outside!
DA
I thought the announcers did a great job of discussing the call, and they seemed a bit surprised as well. It was a fun game and the Fullerton players were a bit pumped up after that game. Brown's second goal was a thing of beauty, perfect ball served in and a quality finish. Primus was fun to watch. The Mizzou senior that kept dribbling through the Fullerton defense was impressive.
MakeAPlay
DA
Her name was Sarah Lubbert. She is a 3 time all-SEC player which is why it was weird that she was coming off the bench. She was clearly their best player. Seems like the Mizzou coach is a relic and has been their too long if he can't figure out that his returning 1st team All-SEC player should start...
I'm now officially a fan of CSUF and will be watching as many of their remaining games that I can. And I hope that they get $C as a first round opponent and that they have a similar result as their scrimmage last month.
Dos Equis
GOLD
Berhalter wants us to focus on the style of play of the USMNT, not any specific results. Seems his goal is to play the most beautiful soccer of any team not qualifying for major international tournaments. My comment was more about style being the focus over results.
We all understand how one game does not provide a complete picture of a team. But the accomplishment of the winning team should not be diminished either -- the win also tells a story.
dk_b
GOLD
In fact, I agree with you. I think the win does tell the story and, in particular, upsets can have a big impact on a team. They also are often defined by amazing individual and team performances, great tenacity, grit, etc. I certainly don't want to diminish any accomplishment and love when "that's why they play the game" plays out in front of us.
(I do also think that context matters - what purpose is "better soccer" for the USMNT if there are no positive results? Similarly, many people criticize the USWNT for how they play and ignore the results when they count the most.)
MakeAPlay
DA
Travel day for UCLA, Wazzu and Pepperdine. Tomorrow will be my players 60th consecutive start and her 75th of her career. Both pretty big milestones for her. It would have been 76 straight if not for a bout of mono and strep (at the same time) her freshman year that caused her to miss one game. I'm hoping that she runs that number to 78 straight and 93 total starts which would mean that they are playing for the title again.
Good luck to all who have a player playing this weekend!
Good luck to all who have a player playing this weekend!