First Soccer Game!

Luke was up early this morning for his game. As in 5:30! ::yawn:: "Is it time yet?" No, honey, the game isn't until 9. He didn't eat much for breakfast, which is pretty standard. Starting at 8, we got lathered up in sunscreen (probably didn't need it today, but I wanted to set the precedent for our afternoon games later in the season). I forgot to take uniform photos before we left the house, so I had to snap a couple of quick shots at the field. Here is Mr. 23:



They warmed up a little bit, and then it was time.

Ready:


Set:


GO!


It's hard to get in there with so may little feet in the way. It was great fun to watch! The other team only had 4 players show, and we had 5, so lots of folks got to pull double duty instead of switching off each quarter as planned.



Again, here is a good shot for scale, just to show how much bigger he really is than most of the other players (on his team or the opposing team).



It is just not in Luke's nature to be aggressive, which is probably a good thing, given his size. On the other hand, B (far right of below photo) is both the smallest member of Luke's team and by far the most aggressive. B is very good! He has clearly played before.



Here is B with the two largest players on the team. The other boy, J, is the one who is 2 months older than Luke and in 1st grade. He has also clearly played organized soccer before.



Ah, a short break at the half.



Luke with B. They have bonded a bit, which is nice, since we have also bonded a bit with B's parents.



Typical Luke! LOL



This is one of the only times Luke actually took control of the ball. Up until this point, he was just happy to be out there running around. Maybe B is rubbing off on him!



Ah, he's finally learned to try and get ahead of the ball to keep the other team from scoring!



All in all, it was a good game. Most of the kids, on both teams, obviously had not played before, but each team also had a kid or two who clearly had played before. One kid on the other team was putting on a dribbling clinic! (Kid in green with the ball in the above photo.) It was really rather amazing. Officially, they don't keep score, and I don't know exactly what the final tally was. Something like 8-6, I believe, with the opposing team having more goals. But everyone seemed to have fun, and Luke is dying to play again! Definitely a great experience for him.

Currently feeling: happy