I watched more MU soccer yesterday in one day than MU B-ball in my lifetime. Go Herd Soccer! That’s all, that’s the post.
I have to admit:
- Thread starter Marine03
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I am extremely happy the soccer team is super successful and I hope they can become perennial national champions.
Being 72 years old and never having any knowledge of soccer growing up I simply can't get into it. I have tried many times. In my opinion they should have one kicker and one goalie and simply play penalty kick contests.
Much more exciting than 2 hours of running up and down the field with little to no scoring. Also, look how inexpensive it would be to field a team...
Being 72 years old and never having any knowledge of soccer growing up I simply can't get into it. I have tried many times. In my opinion they should have one kicker and one goalie and simply play penalty kick contests.
Much more exciting than 2 hours of running up and down the field with little to no scoring. Also, look how inexpensive it would be to field a team...
It apparently is not so much about offense, but mostly about defense. Until it gets to the OT or sudden death. To me, it's like hockey. Never could understand that one either.
I don’t watch any soccer but I watched part of this game. The thing I don’t understand is you go from it being extremely difficult to score to being very easy to score on penalty kicks. Quite the contras!
Penalty kicks is like a FT contest to determine a basketball winner. It’s intense and makes sense when you play 110 minutes without a winner.
What I’ve learned about soccer over the years, and I only follow closely the World Cup and Marshall, is that even when nothing is really happening, there can be a sudden attack and goal.
Watching Marshall the past two seasons, I’ve learned to greatly appreciate the possession game (U.S. soccer in World Cup is unable to play this way so I’m not used to the team I’m pulling for controlling play).
The margin for error is razor thin.
It looks disorganized for long periods then boom, you see a run connect and a shot on goal. Makes you realize the important of practice and unspoken communication.
We’re fun to watch.
What I’ve learned about soccer over the years, and I only follow closely the World Cup and Marshall, is that even when nothing is really happening, there can be a sudden attack and goal.
Watching Marshall the past two seasons, I’ve learned to greatly appreciate the possession game (U.S. soccer in World Cup is unable to play this way so I’m not used to the team I’m pulling for controlling play).
The margin for error is razor thin.
It looks disorganized for long periods then boom, you see a run connect and a shot on goal. Makes you realize the important of practice and unspoken communication.
We’re fun to watch.
Having played soccer my whole life and having played overseas, I can tell you its an amazing sport.
Our team is good because they know one another so well and play off of instinct. Forward centers the ball knowing his guy will be there at a certain time, plays are set up with specific scenarios in mind, and players often are aware of each other's presence on the field.
Probably one of the best examples of how well a team can do based on their on field chemistry was Germany when they crushed Brazil in the WC semi finals in 2014.
The way they misdirected the goalie, passed, shot, everything was a work of art.
Our team is good because they know one another so well and play off of instinct. Forward centers the ball knowing his guy will be there at a certain time, plays are set up with specific scenarios in mind, and players often are aware of each other's presence on the field.
Probably one of the best examples of how well a team can do based on their on field chemistry was Germany when they crushed Brazil in the WC semi finals in 2014.
The way they misdirected the goalie, passed, shot, everything was a work of art.
How is the purpose and strategy significantly different than hockey or lacrosse other than those two requiring far more skill and being far more physical?
Who did you play for overseas? Must have been a cool experience.
Agree, when the game is played well, it’s great to watch. I got hooked when my daughters started playing as little kids.
I played soccer into college and coached at the high school level. Soccer is not that awesome. It’s pretty easy and it’s typically our 3-4th level athletes that play in this country.
Wow rifle I agree with with you most of the time and rarely comment but that last post... Far more skill? That was sarcasm right?
USA part of a sports ambassador program. Played in Australia and traveled the country for 3 weeks. It was just before the Syndey Olympics, so while there, we got to see the arenas and all the planning prior to the olympics starting.
We only had a week to adjust to one another's playing styles, in New Zealand prior to actually going to Australia, whereas we played teams who'd grown up together and knew each other, so we didn't do so well...but hey I scored 2 goals in the tournament so that was cool.
The last 2 words pretty much describe your sentiment and why you see it as such.
I doubt I really need to go into what Futbol is like outside of America.
I absolutely despise the flopping in soccer. Its bullshit.
I think its simplicity is what makes it both a world-wide popular sport but also so difficult to do.
I think a challenge is that the sheer size of a soccer field versus other sports. Also the other sports have tools, hockey and lax have a stick, that helps advance the ball/puck, versus soccer where you have no tools, just your feet.
You also have to execute all your game plans in 90 mins using, a cap of 4 substitions, whereas hockey or lax, substitutions happen very frequently.
Entire lines sub in and out in those sports.
Essentially you are moving nonstop for 90 mins on a very very large field with limited people to sub in for you.
A fun but untrue rumor: Until 1908 they made soccer balls from inflated stomach tissues of executed Irish prisoners, so there's that.
Cheers.
Watching my grandson and granddaughter play soccer in past couple of years have given me an appreciation for how difficult the game is. Having to use your body, except your arms, to move the ball is not natural for humans. And the stamina it requires to constantly be in motion means everyone has to be in top condition. There is physicality in the game also, probably as much contact as there is in basketball. I agree that there are long periods where nothing appears to get accomplished, but then there is a burst of activity around the goal resulting in shots at the goal and exciting goalie play. The sport is exploding among the youth here in the Columbus area, as well as in most cities in America. The Crew is getting a new stadium and last year won the championship. Soccer is here to stay.
I’ve become quite the fan. Coached middle school and travel. My youngest played in college.
Not sarcasm and not even a hint of exaggeration. Both hockey and lacrosse take far more skill. Want an easy way to see how?
Take a really athletic eight year old. Take a really athletic 13 year old. Take a really athletic 18 year old. Put each of those great athletes in soccer amongst their peers who play soccer. The really athletic eight year old, even without much soccer instruction, will do well. The really athletic 13 year old who doesn't have much soccer training will also do well. The really athletic 18 year old will be able to keep up and be somewhat serviceable even playing with high school kids who have played soccer their entire lives.
Now, do the same with hockey. The really athletic eight year old who hasn't played much hockey will be awful. Why? The kid won't even be able to skate. The really athletic 13 year old? He also will be awful, since he can't skate. The really athletic 18 year old high schooler trying to play hockey will get crushed.
Lacrosse? A really athletic eight year old with little lacrosse experience will be able to compete due to his speed and athleticism. He will be able to run past the other well trained lax players. The 13 year old athlete may be somewhat serviceable due to athleticism, but at that age, the lacrosse skill has already developed to a high level. The 18 year old athlete will have no chance.
Why will a great eight year old athlete with no sport-specific training be able to excel in soccer but get crushed in hockey? It's because soccer is far less of a skilled sport than hockey. Why will a 13 year old great athlete without soccer instruction be able to compete while not being good at lacrosse? Because soccer uses less skill and, in many ways, more athleticism than lacrosse.
It's the same thing with baseball. A fat kid who isn't athletic can be a great hitter in baseball due to mastering the skill. A fat kid lacking athleticism won't be good at soccer even if he has great ball skills. His ball skills are useless if he can't keep up with the rest of the players athletically. Lacrosse, to a less extent, is the same way. I had high school friends who weren't good athletes but had played lacrosse their entire lives which allowed them to be really good at the sport. They would play attack, wouldn't have to run much, and were lethal with their shots and stick skills. They end up getting D1 scholarships because their skill is more important in lacrosse than athleticism, which isn't the case as much in soccer.
Some day people who don't like soccer are going to find out that people who do like it don't care if they do, and it's just going to be a sea of blood from all the heads exploding into pulpy red mist.
I would be really interested to know which college you played soccer for, and which high school you coached. Seems like a strange attitude for someone with so much of his life invested into the sport.
Same thing could be said for baseball.
I happen to love both sports but couldn't care less if someone finds baseball boring or thinks soccer is too low scoring. Who gives a 5hit? A lot of people do for some reason.
watching that video makes it even funnier that some would question the athleticism, skill or stamina of athletes competing in soccer. If you don't like soccer or are just not interested, fine, but why feel the need to make silly comments dismissing those that do play the game.
I believe you guys are over thinking it. People who play ice hockey like to skate. If you don’t want to skate or there’s no place to skate play something else. Indoor basketball is popular. The issue is Marshall is playing a very popular sport played around the world and they are very good at it. Everyone talks about or athletic program at Marshall, well this part of our program is playing for a national championship!!! GO HERD
Who is questioning the athleticism or stamina needed? Hell, I am arguing just the opposite. I am arguing that pure athletes will do better in soccer than they will in something like hockey or baseball, because soccer requires more athleticism and less skill than hockey and baseball.
If you're a great athlete, you're still going to be garbage in hockey and baseball because it requires far more skill than athleticism. If you're a great athlete, you can at least be serviceable at the amateur level in soccer since the sport relies so much on athleticism. Sure, the higher you go, the far more advanced skill is, but that is like that in any sport.
Listen, I understand that you will always take the opposite stance that I take, but in doing so, you're almost assuring yourself of being wrong and looking more like a fool.
19MU88 - don't do it! Don't go down into Rifle's wabbit hole. Not only is it not worth your time, it also feeds the troll.......I am really, really excited to watch this match-up!! Go HERD !!!!!!
I wasn’t even talking to him. Talk about obsession. In any case, there have been many comments on a variety of message boards criticizing much about soccer from the scoring and excitement to athleticism to skill required since MU has been winning in tourney.
People often don't see that (in other countries) soccer tends to be a symbolic representation of various elements of a country and its citizens. Hence why there's such a frenzy for it and given the magnitude of some games, even more for the interest.
Some of the more intense rivalries like Celtic vs. Rangers are based on politics, religion, and socio-economics...so when their teams play, it's not just a city they're representing, its a whole culture.
Some of the more intense rivalries like Celtic vs. Rangers are based on politics, religion, and socio-economics...so when their teams play, it's not just a city they're representing, its a whole culture.
Here's the issue: Americans like our sports compartmentalized.
Baseball games are really just a series of individual pitches, or if you wish, 27 outs per side. Football is broken down into plays. Basketball is the most free-wheeling, but even it is a series of 24 second possessions, alternating back and forth. Americans like sports that can be broken down into these minute pieces, and stats can be mined from them an almost limitless number of ways.
Football/Soccer is completely open-ended, like watching water sloshing back and forth inside a tub. If you know what you're looking at, that water can be pretty exciting, but to the uninitiated, especially those raised on American sports, it can be near impossible to figure out what is even happening except when a score occurs.
I think this is the barrier that keeps a lot of Americans from becoming interested in the sport.
Baseball games are really just a series of individual pitches, or if you wish, 27 outs per side. Football is broken down into plays. Basketball is the most free-wheeling, but even it is a series of 24 second possessions, alternating back and forth. Americans like sports that can be broken down into these minute pieces, and stats can be mined from them an almost limitless number of ways.
Football/Soccer is completely open-ended, like watching water sloshing back and forth inside a tub. If you know what you're looking at, that water can be pretty exciting, but to the uninitiated, especially those raised on American sports, it can be near impossible to figure out what is even happening except when a score occurs.
I think this is the barrier that keeps a lot of Americans from becoming interested in the sport.
The strategy of soccer is very similar to hockey and lacrosse. If you played/understand how they work, you also understand soccer. The difference is that hockey and lacrosse are more physical and have more skill compared with soccer which is full of a lot of loose balls and ricochets.
I think it’s a beautiful game. The passing, not using hands thing can easily be admired. I know I can’t do it worth shit.
However, I just don’t have the patience to watch the ball so methodically being moved down the field and then you see some goober come in and launch the damn thing 80 yards in the other direction. If 90% of football possessions ended in an INT/fumble, I wouldn’t have the patience for that either. That’s my frustration with soccer. And that’s a me problem, that’s why I don’t bash the sport.
However, I just don’t have the patience to watch the ball so methodically being moved down the field and then you see some goober come in and launch the damn thing 80 yards in the other direction. If 90% of football possessions ended in an INT/fumble, I wouldn’t have the patience for that either. That’s my frustration with soccer. And that’s a me problem, that’s why I don’t bash the sport.
I like winning. Even if it is in sports I don’t understand.
Wanted to point out a few things first being penalty kicks are almost automatic. I think people are more mad that the game is growing and just hate change. I would point you to follow Jake Griffith he can show you some amazing content and breakdown.
The game has grown even more popular since the 90s.after the Brazil World Cup everyone was trying to rock those C. Ronaldo haircuts to impress your girlfriends. When West Virginia held the regional and the investment in the soccer complex has only grown in the states. ESPN kicking up EPL league and champions league on sundays in the morning have also helped.
Never understood how people can watch basketball or any other sport and not like soccer. Give and goes, drop offs and creativity are all the same. The 2 biggest problems in the US game is excessive fouling which is also why we don’t fair well in national level and off sides. Both slow the game down too much.
The game has grown even more popular since the 90s.after the Brazil World Cup everyone was trying to rock those C. Ronaldo haircuts to impress your girlfriends. When West Virginia held the regional and the investment in the soccer complex has only grown in the states. ESPN kicking up EPL league and champions league on sundays in the morning have also helped.
Never understood how people can watch basketball or any other sport and not like soccer. Give and goes, drop offs and creativity are all the same. The 2 biggest problems in the US game is excessive fouling which is also why we don’t fair well in national level and off sides. Both slow the game down too much.
I was never a soccer person until my daughter started to play premier in CT. There’s a defined strategy that I understand now as a result of watching, listening to her coaches at practice. When they execute it perfectly it’s a cool thing to watch. He plays a 1 touch system with a lot of pass backs to goal, he runs the defense to death
Not really. Since 1930 each game played in the World Cup has averaged 2.8 goals/game.
In the College Cup this year 91 goals have been scored over 32 games. Again, basically 2.8 goals/game.
Would it make people feel better if soccer arbitrarily made each goal worth 7 points?
no kidding. Despite pretty much nonstop action and no timeouts, people are bored due to the low score but the same people are excited watching football which gives you 15-20 minutes of action over a 3 hour broadcast.
It's due to simply not understanding the game and not watching a lot of soccer, and I get that, it's the same reason most of the rest of the world is not into American football or baseball.
429’s scenario is exactly 3 goals in a game. The stat you gave says it’s actually less at 2.8 per game. Not a lot of people get excited over a 14-7 football game at any level either. I also understand that different people find different aspects of sports exciting. Take the UFC for example, I like watching the wrestling and grappling exchanges while some people see that as boring. To me, soccer as a whole seems too drawn out. It’s like the sprint cycling events in the Olympics where they go slow until about the last lap of two and then it’s all out.
Right. He said 2-1 is a high scoring affair in soccer. Its not. It's almost exactly average using a huge data set of high level matches.
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