Match Day, May 5, Game 1 -- 2-0 v. Jags Green

No, that isn't a Force parent suppressing a scream at an official.

That is the pastel version of Edvard Munch's *The Scream* that sold to a private buyer earlier this week for a record 119 million (whoever that private buyer is I pray his or her property taxes for schools aren't too high -- those teacher benefits are killing the economy!!!).

At any rate, the *Scream* has long been understood as an icon of modernism in that in represents the alienated sense of self we all feel in a modern world that is indifferent to our screams.

Both games today in "Match" play produced a "Scream" effect, although one game ended well, and one not so well.

The day started off chilly and overcast against the Novi Jags 01 Green team. This was a slightly different Jags team than we have seen. They were skilled, played soccer, went for the ball first. What a concept!

 One knows, though, that against the Jags in the MSDSL one has to play one goal down because at some point the official will provide an opportunity -- in the form of free kick or pk -- for the Jags to win. Such was the case today despite the league.

The girls played well. Emmi turned in a classic Emmi performance from start to finish, stepping up and breaking up attacks, taking the ball out of the air at midfield, and even providing one scoring opportunity off a bomb corner kick. Led by Emmi, the Force backline determined play for most of the first half. Backline solidity provided frontline opportunities. Rhea, now an offensive juggernaut, just missed the post early on. And she had a sure goal on a break before a brilliant slide tackle by a Jags' defender stopped her run.

The Force did struggle with counterattack all day. After a good corner the Jags took a run and only Kate's dive right kept the game even for the half.

The Jags came out with more energy than the Force to start the second half. Sawyer and Rhea had some nice combinations, but the Jags took a turn controlling play. About 20 minutes in the ref saw his chance. Just outside the box a soft collision became a Jags free kick. But the potential game winner went wide.

This "almost" disaster woke the girls up. Rhea sent her second of the day just past the post. And Jazzy turned some great pressure into two hard shots for herself.

Again, though, the counterattack!! Kate stepped up big to beat a forward heading for the ball.

Just as things looked a bit troubling, again, Coach Cookie provided some brilliance of his own -- and, we could even say, a bit of bloodthirstiness. He quickly shuffled the line-up moving rockstar defender Annabelle into the right forward spot. ("No," screamed this blogger, "we will give up the goal, not get one!"). But Cookie does know his stuff.

As if on cue Sawyer sent a wonderfully placed (and paced) ball directly in Annabelle's flightline. She caught up, took on a defender, and got a tough shot on a good Jags' keeper. When the ball dribbled free there was Rhea to bang it home -- her fourth shot on net.

1-0. A few minutes later Lauren sent a nice stretch to Sawyer -- who could have been onside -- and superstriker buried the ball in the top left shelf.

MSDSL standings as of May 5 -- Avengers Assemble

Under 13 Y Girls Division 2		Pts	GP	W	T	L	GF	GA	GD
1.	Pacesetter Premier 00 Black	7	3	2	1	0	10	1	9
2.	Michigan Jaguars 00 White	7	3	2	1	0	8	3	5
3.	Force FC 00 Purple	4	3	1	1	1	8	5	3
4.	Canton Celtic 00 White	4	2	1	1	0	3	1	2
5.	Michigan Jaguars 01 Green	4	3	1	1	1	5	6	-1
6.	Waza FC 00 Blue	1	3	0	1	2	2	5	-3
7.	LCSC 00 Meteors Blue	0	3	0	0	3	3	18	-15

Soccer, religion, play, Sydney Harris and evolution

Many of you of a "certain age" (Primary Spotter, for example) may remember an old Chicago newspaper columnist by the name of Sydney Harris. He was erudite, a friend of novelist Saul Bellow, something of a counterpart to the hardball political hilarity of the brilliant Mike Royko. Both columnists' work appeared in the Detroit papers in the 70s and early 80s and I loved them both. Indeed, along with $1.00 Marvel Comics (Avengers debuts May 4), and the Boston Congregationalist minister, "Dr." Roy Hutcheon, my mother made us go hear (the church was in Grosse Pointe, where she aspired to live), I found what academics call the "life of the mind."

If you were to look in local Detroit papers today you would find some combination of -- Mitch "I see dead people but don't go to basketball games I write about " Albom; Susan "the fudge is really good up north" Agar; and Rochelle "people shouldn't shoot children" Riley. I would rather listen to Katy Perry sing Fireworks. Apologies in advance; I don't mean to offend anyone's taste -- just listing my own (de gustubus -- "to each his own").

At any rate, Sydney Harris had a column called "Things discovered en route to looking up other things" where he listed in pre-bullet point form disparate but always interesting facts, ideas, etc. he had come across.

This post is something thought en route to looking up other things.

On Monday, some 650 MILLION people took a Monday afternoon to watch Manchester City beat Manchester United 1-0. That is a world event (I stood in the rain, instead, and watched a jr. high track meet).

And that is why many talk about soccer  as a "religion." Soccer, a game -- play -- captivates what seems to be an inordinate amount of attention. We can't explain it. It seems, and is, irrational. Why can't something real, something that matters, something critical for our very survival -- say global climate change :) -- captivate our attention in the same way? In this, then, soccer is like a religion. Current vociferous critics of religion -- Harris, Hitchens, Dawkins and so on -- make this point all the time. Why does religion -- something (for them) not real, something not critical for survival -- still captivate so much attention? In our house we have this discussion frequently: should "play" be taking this much attention and time?? ("why are you blogging about soccer and not finishing your book?")

Sociologist Robert Bellah suggests the connection between soccer or play and religion might be much more substantial than we think. In *Religion in Human Evolution: From the Paleolithic to the Axial Age* (Harvard UP, 2011), Bellah points out that "play" in birds, mammals, and humans evolved because those species spend more time caring for their young as they mature. Those in the area with 30 somethings living at home will understand this evolutionary process immediately! Because these young are free from "selection pressures" -- the need to find food, water, shelter to survive and so on -- they develop activities (play) to stave off boredom. Not surprisingly, the play behaviors that develop mimic the instinctual survival behaviors that atrophy. Human, mammals, birds play wrestle, chase, hunt, and so because these are the things they would have been doing -- for real -- if Mom, Dad, Nana, Grandad and so on weren't busy doing those necessary things for them.

Simple enough, right?

Here is where Bellah makes things interesting. If we tend to think of play (read: soccer) in evolutionary terms we would tend to say play evolves because it prepares the young for real world work. Sports teaches us teamwork, character, discipline...blah, blah, blah. You know the Lombardi  mantra.

But Bellah makes clear the development of play (soccer) is an evolutionary accident, a byproduct of the way humans, mammals and birds raise and protect offspring. Moreover, and more strikingly (no soccer pun intended), functions develop out of or from play -- "novel activities" -- that had never existed before. Remember: we are talking about hominids who began evolving 1.8 million years ago. Out of play, Bellah argues, out of this hominid engagement with what is purposeless, not real, not essential and so on developed a capacity for humans (late hominids) to embrace with great seriousness that which is purposeless, not real, not essential.

This would include the capacity for religious belief itself.

In other words, human religious activity evolved in part because of the evolution of play. So when folks say soccer is like religion, we should be aware that we might soon be saying, instead, religion is not only like soccer -- it evolves from soccer.

Looking forward to the Jags, of course, this weekend. Let's get Kate some PK practice.

Weekly Update from Alice!

All,

Monday and Thursday practice OLMS
Tuesday: New session of NLT training begins 4:30-6

Saturday May 5th

Game 1

12:00 please arrive by 11:15, wear WHITE, Independence Park Field 2 MI Jags 01 Green

Game 2

4:30 please arrive by 3:45, wear BLACK, Independence Park Field 2 WAZA FC 00 Blue

Independence Park 1898 Denton Road, Canton 48188

We will have a little over 2 hours between games so I am proposing team lunch at Panera on Ford Road.

The weather for this Saturday is possibility of rain maybe even some storms so I think indoor lunch will best. It also gives the girls someplace to change jersey’s for the second game, rest etc.

Sunday May 20^th 6:30 at ITC Community Sports Park will be our next game.

Manchester day in soccer!

	Click the following to access the sent link:
	England's game of year draws attention from across pond - CNN.com*

Not a bad weekend, 8-1 over Meteors

Well, the weather didn't improve from the morning but the result did. The Force girls took their second game of the day 8-1 over the Meteors.

The game opened with Rhea's creativity. In fact, that creativity took up about the first 8 minutes as Rhea got 6 shots on net, including a shot off the cross bar. Playing up and in the middle -- which seemed a natural home -- she had to choose on several occasions to shoot or to dump off to a streaking Kyra on her right.

But it was Grace's splendid header (the Force airgame got some work today) to Jazzy that got the Force on the board.

1-0.

Zoe's spectacular run from penalty box to penalty box almost gave Jazzy her second -- but that would have to wait.

Jill, thankfully back in action, tore up the left side of the field all day, and pushing up she drove a header to Rhea who gave a touch to Kyra who drove it home.

2-0.

Rhea, on her 7th shot, finally found the back of the net on a nice dish from Zoe.

3-0.

Then Rhea turned passer, giving a nice lead to Stasia who got knocked down in the box. While the officials consulted in the corner the Meteors took up off the field. All World Manager, Alice, put the stop to that. MSH's mom remained on the sideline. When official play resumed Zoe dished to Stasia for another opportunity and, then, a few minutes later, Rhea passed off to Stasia in the same spot where she had been knocked down and her hard shot hit the keeper's hands and dropped in through her legs.

4-0.

To start the second half Sawyer had 5 shots in 6 minutes (Sawyer's Dad was timing) before making it 5-0.

Then Annabelle turned and sent a ball deep into the box where Sophia directed it to Jazzy -- 6-0 and her second goal.

Sophia, getting some offensive action in the last few weeks, came up big. Kate, pulled for some field time, send a great lead pass to number 8 who finished in the left corner like an experienced striker.

Annabelle delivered a great cross that Grace tapped in to bring the offensive barrage back to where it started.

With all the goals it needs to be noted that most of the second half involved watching Jill fly and hurdle pass Meteor defenders, digging a path in the left side of the field before cutting hard into the net.

This is still the MSDSL. And the Force need to take a PK. Thems the rules. With less than thirty seconds a Meteor found the left corner against gamer Emmi -- who dover right and just missed.

I was so tired writing all this down that I missed the chance to hear Andy Wagstaff's talk after the game. This is a shame as he used lots of soccer lingo -- which I love -- but my notepad was already put away.

Canton, 0-0, April 28

Game one of the first spring match day turned out to be a 0-0 tie against Canton. The morning was overcast and very cold. But the turf at West Bloomfield was firm and big. Force parents dispersed across the stadium to get different vantage points. Annabelle's mom and dad went as far as to choose opposite sides of the field. Now there, we can say, are dedicated spotters.

Grace's mom did her job, getting there early and handing over cash to the referee.

The girls?

They played well, even without a still injured MSH (who got a few minutes) and rock solid defender Jill. Backline running mates Emmi, Annabelle, Sophie, Sophia stepped up big to fill the gap -- as did Grace, shuttling back and forth from midfield to defender. Indeed, the one serious opportunity the Force gave up in the first half found Grace artfully dashing back to catch a breakaway forward and oh so deftly nudging her, Nick Lidstrom like, to avoid the penalty but still throw off the shot just enough for Kate to make (for Kate, not a regular goalie) a routine save. Grace would make a comparable subtle, but brilliant, play late in the game, preventing a corner and then clearing under tight pressure.

The backline's willingness to step up and apply pressure in the second half created some opportunities for the Force. But it also exposed the girls to counterattack. The Force answer here was rather simple: "Annabelle." She stopped two attacks and chased down Canton's biggest offensive threat when the ball took a tough hop against the Force.

When Annabelle wasn't there Rhea tracked back from midfield to save another opportunity. At points, Rhea seemed to be all over the field. How does she get there? The stride is so fluid it doesn't look fast. But there she is at the ball. And when on the ball there she is turning, effortlessly, distributing the pass. In contrast, Zoe is also all over the ball at midfield but seems to have sped up, accelerating sideline to sideline (she must be looking forward to spring basketball). When the backline steps us and plays well like today you see the advantage. Zoe is able to find her way to the offensive end and create problems for the opponent.

The Force could have pulled this one out. They had the edge. Lauren, Rhea and Sawyer put together some nice combinations. But things never clicked inside the final third of the field.

What is a pleasure to watch, both as parent and customer, is the way in which the girls have grasped many aspects of soccer. Ball control, changing the point of attack, making angled runs. This is fun.