Soccer is Over... And a Success!

Soccer season for Jack started out rough.  Really rough.  Crying at every practice and every game, rolling around on the field picking weeds, and not participating at all.  See  http://mackfamilymom.blogspot.com/2012/04/jacks-first-soccer-game.html  for the gory details.  The Coach was sure he made a mistake by letting him play so early and nearly pulled him out after the first week.  I'm so glad that he didn't, because Jack grew leaps and bounds during the season.  He went from laying on the field crying to being in the front of the pack!  This is a bad quality picture, I had to scan it from a good old fashioned printed photo.

WHAT?  Is that the same boy that was crying his eyes out during his first game?  I could really barely believe it myself.

And look at his goalie stance!  I laughed so hard when he played goalie, it was hilarious watching him rock back and forth, arms outstretched waiting to pounce on the ball if it got too close to the goal.

And he learned how to throw the ball in properly:

And finally, an few action shots of him kicking the ball:

His team was age group 4-6, and Jack was only 3 until the end of the season.  They agreed to let him play early since his Dad was coaching, and Joe was really afraid we made a mistake.   I was so glad that Jack not only picked up on the game, but started to really enjoy it.  He is already looking forward to the fall season, and I'm looking forward to being on the sidelines cheering him on.

Justice had a great season.  He played very well as always, and scored more goals than I could count.  He typically plays basketball, tackle football, and soccer during the year, but soccer is his favorite sport by far.  He loves to run, and he's built perfectly for the sport.  I imagine as the years go by, he will stop playing football and concentrate on soccer instead.  I love football because it teaches a certain type of discipline that you can't teach at home.  Yes, that's true.  I would have never believed it until I saw it for myself, but it's true.  There is just something about southern youth football that I can't explain.  I will be disappointed if he stops playing football, but I will of course support him with whatever decision he ultimately makes.

I am a terrible photographer almost always, but I'm especially bad during a youth sporting event.  I cannot stand to have my eye up to the camera during the game trying to get the good shots.  As a matter of fact, I will have the camera up to my eye for long periods of time, only to jump out of my chair and purposely drop the camera so I can see Justice make the shot in person without the camera in the way.  I definitely need to work on that, and I have the pictures to prove it.  Justice jumped over the goalie and scored an impressive goal right after I took this picture.

And right after I took this picture, he kicked the ball right in front of the net so his teammate could score.

Justice is incredibly fast.   And right after I snapped this picture, he scored again.  See the trend?  I'm too busy jumping up and down screaming "GO JUSTICE GO!!!!" to take the good pictures.  I get so excited when I watch the kids play, I can't help it.  It used to embarrass Shandi terribly.  I didn't care, I did it anyway.  Justice said he doesn't even hear me so it doesn't bother him.  He must be zoned in to the game, because EVERYBODY can hear me.  

And here is where things go south.  After Justice has scores X number of goals, his coach pulls him off of the field and puts him in as goalie.  He only does this if we have a VERY COMFORTABLE lead, because Justice is the worst goalie in the history of goalies.  Honestly.  I see him put that yellow jersey on and I say "ohhhhh, here we go" and cross my fingers the other team won't catch up.  If they do, the coach will pull him out of the net and send him back in to score some more, but still... Goalie is most definitely not his position.  It's a character builder though, and the humility is good for him.  He tends to get a big head, and nothing will cure big head syndrome quicker than a stint in the position you totally suck at.

As we close this chapter, we always open another.  Football has already started!  Hopefully I will get better at taking action shots by then.  Or maybe not.