3-2 Byron Center WIN

Guys, way to step up today (especially in the second half) to win a game in a semi-adverse situation...job well done. We certainly "took care of business", although it certainly wasn't always pretty.

Either way, you all deserve a CONGRATS for already meeting an important team goal with many games still remaining!

Let's keep this thing going...

Next Week...

Gentlemen, next week is KEY in terms of "handling business" and making sure we are IMPROVING every single day. Let's keep this positive roll going!

Reminders/Updates:

1.) We will dress up for school on Monday.

2.) The bus leaves directly after school for Byron Center on Monday...hustle to get on!

3.) We'll wear black warm-up shirts and full warm-ups if necessary.

4.) Tuesday/Thursday/Friday = practice from 3-515 PM

5.) Wednesday is a home game vs. Wyo. Park...ball boys (Connor,Schreur), be ready!

Have a good weekend, everyone! Take care of yourselves...mentally and physically. And by the way, if you haven't noticed, we have the chance on Monday to meet one of our team goals...let's do it!

Zeeland East thoughts...

Gentlemen, what a great job by EVERYONE tonight. And I mean EVERYONE. I know not everyone actually played game minutes, but tonight was a total team effort. In other words, players on the field played their hearts out, and the guys on the bench "supported their hearts out", if that makes sense. I loved the focus all-around. It was just a great sight to witness: a quality soccer game that was won by the better, more deserving team on the night. If we all don't gain a huge handful of confidence from this one, I don't know what will...

Way to go, everybody!

Now, it's time to keep the foot on the pedal...especially now that the conference schedule gets just a bit lighter in the near future (Byron Center and Wyo Park next week). Let's take care of business, fellas. We will NOT settle for mediocrity!

Oh, and by the way...we just matched our overall win total from last season...nice!

Tomorrow:

**we wear black

**practice is from 3-515 on the upper field.

**get to the trainer quickly if you need it!

**practice the next two days needs to be AT GAME PACE and with 100% effort...let's keep pushing to get better every day!

Reminders...

...for tomorrow (Wednesday):

1.) Varsity wears anything Hamilton soccer-related to school...JV = dress up.

2.) Varsity will meet in my room at 330 PM tomorrow for snacks, beverages, and a brief team meeting.

3.) The bus leaves the school at 4 PM...be on time!

4.) JV starts its game at 5 PM and Varsity is slated to follow at 645 PM.

5.) There is a chance of rain/thunderstorms tomorrow evening..."be prepared for rain!"

Let's bounce back tomorrow, everyone, in another important conference game!

UNITY aftermath...

Guys, it's best we let this one go as soon as possible. I honestly thought that overall, the effort was there, but we were simply overwhelmed by the skill and pace of play. Let this be a lesson that we need to a.) play with much more pace IN PRACTICE in order to get better as a team and play with the "faster" teams and b.) take it to every team PHYSICALLY.

We'll see you out for practice tomorrow on the practice field with black t-shirts.

Hudsonville recap and more...

Guys, our game the other night was a good effort, but we didn't seem to be on the same page and lacked a bit of that "gusto" that we had the night before in the win over ZW. We've GOT to recapture that spark for our two important conference games vs. Unity and ZE. Keep in mind our TEAM GOALS and WHAT WE'RE SUPPOSED TO BE STANDING FOR AS A TEAM!!

That brings us to our THEME for the upcoming week: TOUGHNESS...and in this case, PHYSICAL TOUGHNESS. I meant what I said yesterday at the end of practice in our talk: the only way we have a chance to knock off Unity (and ZE for that matter) is if we OUT-TOUGH the opponent. In other words, we simply cannot back down to any given "fight" in the course of play....50/50's, sacrificing our bodies, whatever. We've got to be scrappy and simply out-will the opponent to have a chance. And again, that's the thing: THERE'S ALWAYS A CHANCE IN THE GAME OF SOCCER!! BELIEVE! ALL OF US!!

Reminders/Changes for next week:

**School wear on Monday...JV= gold jerseys (remember to wear your WHITE socks for the game) and Varsity = white jerseys.

**Meeting times on Monday...JV= dressed and ready to warm up by 3 PM on the game field (wear gold t-shirts for warm-ups) and VARSITY = MEET IN MY ROOM DIRECTLY AFTER SCHOOL (NO NEED TO BE DRESSED FOR THE GAME) FOR A BRIEF MEETING AND SNACK. We'll wear gold t-shirts for warm-ups as well.

**Tuesday = practice from 3-515 PM. We all wear black.

**Wednesday = game at Zeeland East...bus time TBD.

**Thursday/Friday = practice from 3-515 PM

Let me know if you have any questions, comments, and/or concerns! Have a good, restful weekend, guys. Get ready for a great day on Monday!

PS. I sent a few emails out already this weekend, guys, so check your accounts if you have one just in case. Check on Sunday as well.

Big 4-0 ZW win...

Guys, GREAT job tonight. I was proud of the WHOLE SOCCER PROGRAM really. Everyone, of all ages, put up a true Hawkeye effort, and it was fun to watch.

Conference play is so important and to get off to a 1-0 start is a very encouraging sign. That said, Hudsonville will be a quality opponent tomorrow, so let's remember what got us to success tonight: possession, 50/50's, positioning, and finishing ability!

Way to go, gentlemen...enjoy it tonight and be ready tomorrow.

Reminders:

**The bus leaves at 330 PM tomorrow.

**We'll wear black jerseys to school.

**Wear gold practice shirts to the game just in case it's warm enough.

Updates/Change

**Varsity players will meet tomorrow (Wednesday) in the HS cafeteria after school for the pre-game snacks and beverages. Be sure to clean up after yourselves, guys! And, of course, be respectful and represent the program well.

**JV players, be dressed and ready to go for warm-ups tomorrow (Wednesday) on the game field at 3 PM sharp.

**Ball boys for tomorrow (A.I., Smitty, Luke, and Trevor), be ready!

**Our bus leaves at 330 PM on Thursday for the game at Hudsonville.

Next Week...

Here's the daily lineup, guys, for a very important upcoming week (school, conference season, etc.):

**Monday: Labor Day...off.

**Tuesday: 3-515 practice (wear gold)...best "communicator" will be chosen (Smitty, please bring your captain band)...team dinner at the Guillozet's at 630 PM.

**Wednesday: first day of school (we'll determine what to wear to school on Tuesday)...home game (and first conference game of the season) vs. Zeeland West...we'll meet in my room at 315 for snacks, talk, etc...ball boys, be ready. Note: food and/or beverages can be either brought to me or given to Connie at school today and tomorrow.

**Thursday: away game vs. Hudsonville...bus leaves at a yet to be determined time but it is a later game (645 varsity) than usual.

**Friday: 3-515 practice...end of the first week of school!

I hope you are all enjoying the long holiday weekend. Let's get geared up for this important next week!

Otsego Reflections...

Let's learn from a game like last night and realize that we simply are NOT the type of team that can dig ourselves a hole and easily climb out of it. The first half was, simply put, not good soccer in all areas on our part. The second half was better but a little bit of "too little, too late", especially with our inability to finish on net.

Either way, i'm excited to see how we face the heart of the season coming up next week. It's conference play time (vs. Zeeland West) and then another tough non-conference game at Hudsonville soon thereafter.

What is this team really made of, guys?!! We'll see soon enough...

Reminders:

**We wear black tomorrow for our last 10-noon practice.

**Please keep in mind the team dinner at the Guillozet's next Tuesday evening and your food/beverage responsibilities.

**To clarify, we do NOT have practice on Labor Day next Monday. And practice on Tuesday is from 3-515ish...we'll wear gold that day and meet on the game field.

**Keep in mind our THEME for this week: COMMUNICATION...on the field and off. We can ALL be better communicators (myself included)!

Hopkins reflections...

The 6-0 win today was a true all-around effort, guys...a lot of players contributed to team success and we seemed to pay attention to a lot of the DETAILS that are so important to heed...job well done. This sets us up nicely for a rematch with an Otsego team that ultimately handled us this past season 3-1. It's time for a bit of redemption! Let's not let complacency set in...

Reminders:

**We meet in my room at 315 PM tomorrow before the JV game.

**Bring the snacks and drinks to my room.

**We wear black practice shirts and the rest all white.

**Ball boys, be ready to run for the JV game and HAVE BACK-UPS READY FOR THE SECOND HALF WHILE WE WARM UP.

**Be prepared for possible rain and/or thunderstorms.

See you soon!

Bus time for Hopkins...

The bus will leave the HS at 330 PM tomorrow (Tuesday) for the game at Hopkins. Remember, the JV does NOT have a game, so it'll just be us. Be on time!

"Bounce-back" at Allegan...

Guys, overall I was really proud of the effort last night vs. Allegan in the gutty 1-0 win. The ADVERSITY that we faced being short-handed really brought out the best, especially during the second half. Plus, after having a game (and a loss) the night before, it could have been easy to just go through the motions with tired legs and all...you certainly didn't do that...and you should be proud. Let's keep the ball rolling!

Reminders for Monday/next week:

1.) We practice from 10-noon on Monday and we'll meet on the GAME FIELD.

2.) We'll wear BLACK tops on Monday.

3.) Please take care of yourselves this weekend and get/stay healthy! We need everyone's help.

4.) We play at Hopkins on Tuesday at 4:30 PM with a bus arrival yet to be determined.

5.) We play at home against Otsego at 530 PM (meet in my room 315 PM that day for food/video/talk) on Wednesday...BALL BOYS be ready!

6.) Practice on Thursday and Friday is from 10-noon.

7.) Keep in mind our theme for the week: DETAILS! Pay attention to them in your everyday life and strive for the small things because that leads to success in the BIG things!

8.) Enjoy your last full week of summer freedom!

See you guys soon enough....

Thoughts on Grandville...

Gentlemen, I meant it when I said after the game last night that I really don't think that we got mentally out-toughed in general...so consider that a mini-win and carry it on into our next game vs. Allegan. Plus, you guys all played hard until the final whistle and without any finger-pointing. That's not always easy to do in that game context, so nice work with that as well.

Let's be honest though: we really let a golden opportunity to continue an undefeated season slip away vs. Grandville. That was a winnable game...and with a just a few lapses, bang, all of a sudden it's an ugly 4-2 loss. Let's learn from this one, guys!

Check out the "game recap" link to the left if you so choose....

And also, re-read the "reminders" below in preparation for the Allegan match.

Let's bounce back, guys!

Reminders...

...for the next two game days:

1.) We wear black each day...gold t-shirt for tomorrow (wed.) and black for thurs.

2.) Bring your whole warm-up suit just in case both days.

3.) The bus leaves promptly at 4 PM each day. The Grandville game will be a later return time due to a greater distance to the game site and a later start time (7 PM for varsity). ARRIVE EARLIER IF YOU NEED TO SEE THE TRAINER!!!

4.) Please remember food and beverage responsibilities each day.

5.) Do your best to stay on a similar wake-up/daily routine each day...and eat/drink right!

6.) Be ready to win two games and give efforts that you'll be proud of! Remember, we will NOT get complacent!

PS. Another "congrats" goes to Zach Beyer for his "soccer cleat award" today. Let's all strive to be MENTALLY TOUGH like Mr. Beyer each and every day!

Parents...

...your sons should have an updated "Parent Food/Beverage List" in their possession as of today's (Monday) practice. Ask them for it if they haven't given it to you!

Thanks so much ahead of time for the help on this...I know the guys appreciate it...as do I. I took care of simple snacks and beverages this past season, but a handful of guys stated that they'd like more for pre-game stuff...hence, this new set-up.

PS for everyone: our bus leaves at 4 PM sharp this Wednesday and Thursday for our away games.

PPS: check out the newly added "roster" info below as well as the "game recap" link.

First day REFLECTIONS...

Guys, it was a job well done today overall. A lot of players put in quality minutes in contributing to the 3 shutout (2-0, 1-0, 2-0) wins. Our last game vs. K-ville was a bit of a downer, but the end result was satisfactory. Let's learn to do a better job of "taking care of business" in the future!

Now, as we move on, here's the challenge: can we keep the ball rolling in the right direction, so to speak, and realize that all we did today was fulfill the EXPECTED? In other words, those were 3 games that we SHOULD have won in all honesty...let's keep that in perspective as we head into another game week with Grandville and Allegan on tap. That brings me to my next point...

**THEME FOR NEXT WEEK: MENTAL TOUGHNESS....thus far, we really need to do a better job of truly and wholeheartedly competing on the practice field and game field while blocking out other non-controllable factors such as referees, weather, opponents, etc. At the end of the week, we'll vote for the individual who frequently and consitently stays the most even-keeled and composed NO MATTER THE CIRCUMSTANCE. Let's ALL shoot for this great quality!

Reminders:

1.) We'll meet outside on the practice field at 9 AM for Monday practice until noon.

2.) We'll wear gold shirts.

3.) Our bus leaves on Wednesday and Thursday at 4 PM sharp for our two away games.

Have a good rest of the weekend, guys!

PS. Feel free to check out the newly added "JV Boys Blog" link on the left.

PPS. Two "roster" links will be added to the blog shortly as well as a "game recap" link with highlights, etc. of our matches.

First game day REMINDERS...

*Meet dressed and ready to go at the game field by 9 AM tomorrow (sat.)

*Wear your black practice shirts for warm-ups.

*Bring both sets of jerseys...although we WILL wear white for at least the first game.

*Snacks, beverages, and lunch will be provided.

*We're still looking for two ballboy/ballgirls who can work the upper field all day and will be paid $25 for the day's work. Let me know if/when you find helpers!

*Prepare to start the season off on the right foot tomorrow, fellas!

PS. Check out the newly updated "team principles", "team goals", and "team rules" on the left.

PPS. Congrats again to R.J. Flowers, Connor Hagen, Adam Schreur, and Cam Perkins for their selections as permanent team captains for the season. Also, another congrats goes to Connor for earning the first "soccer cleat" award for the week's theme: TEAM COHESION.

Volunteers needed...

If any varsity parent is interested in helping run a concession stand at home soccer games (starting this sat. at one hour increments...10, 11, 12, 1 PM) near the home stands, it'd be much appreciated if you contacted Mrs. Immink somehow to set up specifics. I say "somehow" because i'd like to avoid posting personal contact information on an online, public site for obvious reasons...so you can always email/call me and I can get back with you regarding that information.

By the way, this should have been mentioned at the parent meeting the other night (sorry!), but THANKS so much for all the help from various parents (especially the Rouwhorsts for organizing it all again) for the help at this past "sand soccer" Saturday! You all make our jobs so much easier! And, of course, the guys love it...thanks again.

Players, please see the recent post below if you haven't already...

PS. We also still need a volunteer to run the clock for the tourney games this sat. as well (you get in free!)...and, of course, any ball boys/girls we can gather would be great! Just let me know please.

Reminders...

Guys,

**Review your soccer guides and continue to bring them to meetings in the morning.

**Study up on the "player questionnaire" packets that you received this morning...hint hint...get to know each other!

**Team pictures are tomorrow (wed.) at 1230...we will wear all white.

**We will leave at 4:00 from the HS parking lot for our volunteer work on Thursday And plan on being back to the high school around 6/630 instead of 7 P.M. that day as well. You should wear anything Hamilton soccer-related that day for the volunteer work.

**Plan ahead for the team dinner on Friday at my house. Let me know if you have questions!

**Visualize success for our games this Saturday!

Keep working hard, guys...