Writers Workshop

Katie Gavares

4/15/08

Lopaz/ Wagner

GOAL!!!!

When soccer season starts I am so exited. I go get a new ball (which is always pink) and new cleats. I enjoy soccer in so many different ways, the exercise, the actual game and the friends I meet. I have played soccer with a lot of different teams; I started playing competitive with Blast then I did not like it so switched back to recreational with the Warriors. Now I am with the Limeonaters. We always have a cheesy name that just comes with the soccer experience!! Your name usually depends on the color of your jersey. For example, when I had purple jersey, my team name was The Purple Dolphins. Another year was the warriors. This spring season I have soccer practice every Monday and Thursday evenings and games on Sundays.

My friend Piper and I both enjoy trying new things, so we agreed on soccer. Honestly my first impression of soccer was that it was a sweaty sport that did not take much effort to play because all you do is kick the ball around. But, when my first soccer practice was over I knew that this was my sport and I would play it forever!!!

In soccer you can get pretty hurt. That’s why we wear so much protection. We wear shin guards for our shins and ankle guards for your ankles and cleats for your feet. Since we can only touch the ball with our feet you don’t need pads on our arms.

Soccer has pretty simple rules; you can only touch the ball with you feet except the Goalie can pick up the ball. The object of the game is to score more goals than the other team. You have positions like baseball. There are defenders that protect the goal so the other team has a hard time getting the goal in the net. Then you have midfielders who stay mostly in the middle. But, they can run all the way up to the other goal unlike the defenders and can run back to their goal unlike the offenders. The offenders are always at about the half line. When the ball gets kicked up field, they are there to dribble it up the field and shoot. I prefer to play offense, but my coach puts me in midfield because I am one of the fastest runners on my team.

In some long soccer practices I question why I still absolutely love soccer. When I get to the game and everybody is tired, I get a perfect pass from my teammate, and then the excitement begins. Players throwing them selves at me left and right and I dodge all of them. When I get to the goal, all the sounds disappear, it is quiet, the sun is beating on my face, it is just me the goalie and a huge net behind her.

I kick the ball so hard it hits the goalie with all that anxiety that was built up though that entire game, the goalie lets the ball slip. SCORE!!!!! Then all the sounds come back and I get high fives from teammates and hear cheerful comments from your mom. That feeling, as short as it is, is the best feeling that you could ever have. It reminds me why I have played soccer for 6 years straight.

That night when I am lying in bed I think of that feeling and it always puts a smile on my face before I go to bed!!!

I LOVE SOCCER!!!!!!!