TexasTea

Yougogirl meet double yellow......double yellow meet Yougogirl Couldn't resist.

Or better yet, how many ND or CCH alumnus have crossed the great divide, known as the Licking River, and want to continue the family tradition. I don't know if Wiki has this data.

Sorry for holding up traffic but I had to see the wreck. . . . In order to be statistically accurate, you have to include median salary figures because the tuition factor is in play. . . .sorry everyone but had to chime in.

OTB...is that double yellow dancing? Hehe

After watching several games this past weekend, it's going to be a really competitive soccer season in NKY. There's probably 1 or 2 teams that should be ranked and the rest are all a toss-up depending on who they're playing (at this point in time and will change come October). Several teams showed flashes of optimism but others showed signs of trying to find the right mix, Ryle playing a 3-5-2. Way too many attacks from the middle of the field trying to dribble through defenders. Very few goals on set pieces or corner kicks (it's still early).

Agreed most have ball balls but was thinking Simon Kenton, over the fence, and Dixie balls going everywhere. . . . Campbell County had a great venue to watch soccer, especially at night. I also enjoyed the grass field at Scott behind the stadium.

So I guess we nailed every team in NKY that still has a grass pitch, except St. Henry. Is there any stadium that has a turf field, that is a bad experience to watch to match? I'm beginning to dislike the fields with tracks around the pitch open areas behind the goal. Slows the game down too much chasing the balls. Any thoughts???

I believe a big slice of Humble Pie and some Kool-Aid are on the menu today - Wow!!! I think you should heed the advice of Vince Lombardi - "Act like you've been there before". . . . I know Coach Martin would echo his sentiments!

Wow - someone's been drinking the Kool-Aid!

In fact, if my memory serves me correctly, NCC upset CovCath in the regional final in 2011. I believe CovCath was the top ranked team in the state for the majority of the year and was ranked nationally as well. Grosser had a dominating performance between the pipes, especially the last 15 minutes of the game where he made save after save.

No cat in this fight . . . . Your double yellow has been converted to a red - it's disheartening to listen to opinions that have no logical foundation and try to discredit someone's abilities. Yes we all have opinions, that's why they're free. But over the same period of time (4 years), there's been several teams with much better soccer players who haven't experienced the same level of success as a team. A coach who can get players at various skill levels to play together is a pretty successful coach (i.e., John Calipari). I don't see how this makes a mockery of the game. During your time sitting out a game (under a red card). Start to understand the entire landscape of Northern Kentucky high school soccer, evaluate each teams accomplishments, dissect the differences from high school and club soccer (totally different styles of play), and enjoy the efforts these kids and coaches demonstrate. Stay positive, enjoy the games and I'll see you on the pitch.

I find it funny that it's being mentioned that someone who hasn't reached 40 yet is too old and the game has passed them by . . . . isn't that comment reserved for someone who's been a head coach for let's say at least 15 years. Come on man!!! Let's put it into comparison . . . . Ryle hasn't reached a regional final in the past 3 years. . . . has the game passed him by?? Take the personal vendetta's out of this topic and praise the job these guys do in developing the young men into strong individuals who will be successful in whatever they choose to do in life.

Not familiar with the official protocol but this sounds really fishy to me. I believe the Bellevue game was cancelled earlier in the week and originally rescheduled for this Saturday. Then it was changed to be played on Thursday, which was subsequently cancelled, to have a better chance for Ludlow to have their senior night. Now the Dayton game which is scheduled for tonight has already been rescheduled to be played on Saturday. What happened to wanting to have their senior night????

Just in - word on the street is the Ludlow has elected to reschedule with Dayton for tomorrow and let the Bellevue game slide. I guess they used the RPI rating to make the decision.

Does anyone know when this game is being played? I know a lot of people don't care about conference championships but it's the only thing these small schools have to hang their hat on.

I wasn't at the game but hasn't the tugging, pushing and flopping become a bigger part of the high school game. These kids see what's going on with the international game and are starting to emulate their actions. Soccer is the most imprecise game we watch or participate in. The time of the game is subjective, the fouls are subjective depending on the situation and level of competition, and the level of sportsmanship has steadily declined (i.e., I get this part as your helping up another teammate and they do a fast start on you). We need to enjoy the artistic value of watching a well played game and praise the teams that do it the right way.

You are correct. NCC has been very blessed over the past 5 years to have close to 60 kids in their soccer program (Freshman, JV and Varsity). This has allowed them the time to develop kids at the right level and move them to the Varsity level at the right time. Last night they started 7 seniors and 4 juniors. This has been the formula for the past few years and not having to rely on younger classmen as much. However, some sophomores and freshmen have had opportunities to play a few varsity games during the season as the schedule permitted.

Let's keep in mind also that NCC is a very young team as well. I believe they replaced 7 starters from last seasons team that was a regional runner-up. Good luck to all the remaining teams.

I think Cooper's inexperience in general is what caught up with them. It was time to step up their game and Cooper didn't answer the bell. Good teams adapt and modify their game for weather, field conditions and opponent when up against it. NCC did tonight by responding and not reacting.

As for a summary - first of all what a game plan by Coach McDonald. . . . . NCC utilized every inch of the big field at Ryle High School and made Cooper chase from side line to side line. This spread the usually efficient Cooper defense out and left several open lanes for the long crosses and allowed NCC to have open shots on goal all night long which they converted at a high rate. NCC was very patient and controlled the ball about 65% to 35% of the game while making Cooper chase them wide. For a true soccer fan, this one was fun to watch. As for the NCC defense, they never let the Cooper attackers go unmarked and applied pressure to the ball at all times. The defense was very effective as Grosser didn't have to make a save and there were no serious shots on goal. It's the regional and for some reason NCC decides it's time to put full games together and make a run as they've been to the regional final the past 3 years with coach McDonald.

So let's get to the root of the original post . . "Refs need to stop trying to be Important" - - I agree that there are some Refs, in all sports at all levels, who feel they're the reason for the event. However, reality is there are not enough people who are willing to put themselves on the line to be judged by a group of individuals who do not understand the rules of the game (i.e., watching 100's of games does not make one an expert). This is why the bad Ref's don't get weeded out and the good Ref's don't stay around long enough to become great. So let's look at an even playing field with participants, parents and officials. . . the common phrase often heard within the parent section when a player isn't successful with a move, trap, pass, etc. is "UNLUCKY". . . I'm still counting the days when a Ref misses a call when the parent section passes the same praise to the Ref. Let's quit with the double standards about how each game is called poorly and also acknowledge that each game is played at a different skill level and style which causes a lot of the inconsistencies that are often discussed on this board. Please let's pass on the "UNLUCKY" statement to Refs as much as possible because I don't want my grandkids having their games cancelled because there are not enough officials to manage the games. Our continual questioning of Ref's at games and on these boards has diluted the value of sportsmanship and it's started to bleed onto the playing field. Kids receiving Red cards for their disrespect of Ref's is mind blowing, as the level of respect for authoritative figures has diminished. Let's get back to the day of enjoying a good old game and let the kids determine the outcomes.

Rumor has it that Cooper has tried to schedule home and home games with some of the better teams but have not been successful due to the tight field at Cooper. It changes the entire complexity of a game which the better teams do not want to play.

Some meaningless data for what it's worth - NCC has beaten St. Henry the last 3 times they met with a goal differential of 9 - 2.

Agreed, NCC is very beatable and has a lot of work to do before the region. I believe the biggest difference between StH and NCC is the level of teamwork / respect, not skill level. StH became very frustrated with several players openly displaying their displeasure for each other and tried to turn it into a physical game. A sign of a young team and hopefully they'll get over it soon as they have the makings of a good team.

Very good win for the Breds - they just keep reloading with a bunch of athletes who know their roles. Consider that they lost 7 starters from last year's regional final team, they've jelled well but are still a work in process.