I’m actually blogging from a soccer match — girls under-14 state champions from Idaho and New Mexico. The NM team defeated Alaska and Hawaii Monday and Tuesday. A win or draw takes our homies to the quarterfinals.
It’s 103 degrees.
UPDATE: Parents at these tournaments are worse than drunks at English league matches.
POSTGAME UPDATE:
The New Mexican girls went down 0-3 early in the second half, and then — as if to prove me wrong — staged a dramatic comeback to tie the game, which ultimately ended in a draw 3-3. The New Mexico team advances to Friday’s quarterfinal game, winning first place in its bracket. Great coaching from my friend Mike!
But the parents, give me a break. Not only did they see every contact as a foul by the Idaho team, but they started up with some crazy stuff.
For example, a group of dads grumbling because time-out is called in each half for both teams to have a water break. WTF, it’s over 100 degrees and these assholes are sitting in the shade but they don’t want their daughters who are running around in the sun to get a gulp of water. No timeouts in soccer they declaim. (The timeouts are called in every game, every age when the temperature reaches a certain point. These are children.)
And then, once the game was tied, some of these same dads were upset because the team then played more defensively, willing to preserve the draw — AND ADVANCE AS THE FIRST PLACE TEAM. When I grumbled that a draw was good enough, one answered, “This is competitive soccer. We play to win.” To which I replied, “This is tournament soccer, you play the first round to advance with no players hurt or exhausted.”
I’d forgotten how awful the parents can be.
It was a great and enjoyable game and I don’t want the above to detract from that. It’s just me; a rant is my way.
FYI there are 192 teams from the 13 western states competing in this tournament, ages U-12 to U-19. California counts as two states; it has north and south divisions.
No vuvuzelas, apparently, but still plenty of blowhards.
Yeah, especially me I suppose.
The Albuquerque Journal covered this tournament, which apparently was held at Santa Ana Pueblo. http://www.abqjournal.com/sports/live/component/content/article/4-all-others/5535-alaskan-teams-enjoy-journey.html
Some of the players from Anchorage, Alaska were quoted this morning:
“”Desert, heat, all that stuff,” added teammate Dylan Afusia. “It’s really hot. I’m surprised to see they have grass here.””
…”said Velasco’s son Jaime, “We travel a lot but this is the first time we’ve been here. We didn’t know anything about it. The team went to Las Vegas one time, but never this far south.”
Facing stiff competition is one thing, the players said. Having to do it in the elements of New Mexico is another.
“The altitude out here — what is it, 7,000 feet? — that’s rough,” Afusia said. “The heat is what really gets you, though. “”
It was 103 in Las Vegas, Nevada yesterday. Maybe they went there in the winter, or stayed indoors? (It was 61 in Achorage yesterday, and 93 in Albuquerque.)
It’s my fourth time at the Region 4 finals and it’s always been enjoyable. Hawaii was expensive, but what a joy to play or watch in that soft tropical air.
And FYI the New Mexico Soccer Complex is on Santa Ana Pueblo land, not far from their casino in Bernalillo, New Mexico. 22 grass fields. The regional finals were played there in 2001 as well.
The regional finals were in Las Vegas, Nevada, in June 2007.
It was, according to my car, 103 degrees when I arrived and 100 when I left.