My philosophy on the beautiful game

I have four simple rules: Number one...Keep possession of the ball. Number two...Keep possession of the ball. Number three...Have fun and keep possession of the ball. Number four...Be more physical than the other team and keep possession of the ball. I am an American. I think that I was raised in the wrong country. I call it football and not soccer. The teams that I have played on that I have fun playing with are teams that understand that you only need to score once and it is much easier when you have the ball in your teams' possession for much of the match. Here is some history about my career so far; -Started playing at 3 and 1/2 years of age -Played on my older brothers team(he is ten years older than I) for two years -My dad forced me to play in every position imaginable(keeper, defense, midfield, and forward) -In junior high there are virtually no football teams in Texas(only American football) -Once in high school I tried out for the "soccer" team my junior year and made Varsity -Scored the only goal in our semi final match in the playoffs in which we lost 2-1 -I didn't go back to play my senior year because of the lack of heart I saw in that game as well as the off field antics that some of the players were involved in. -Went to college and played American football for 2 years -Started playing REAL football again after I quit -Wondered why I ever stopped playing the beautiful game in the first place and still do -Got into AMSA(Austin Mens Soccer Association) -Learned a lot from an over 30's team (Waterloo) around this time I am 24 years of age -Moved back to Houston and joined the Galveston Pirates SC an NPSL team I can contribute a vast majority of my playing style and growth to when I played with the Waterloo club. That was the only club I have played for where I never started a match for. I was forced to sit and watch and observe how they wanted me to play. Their style is very much a style of ease and pleasure. Communication is standard on that team. You can tell that those guys know each other very well. The passing is what sets them apart from every other team out there. The passing and the physicality of the defense. I learned that I may be the fastest guy on the field but that doesn't mean I need to run with the ball every time I get it. They make the ball do the work and they aren't nearly as worn out as their opponents because they choose not to chase the ball around. Waterloo want the ball for the entire match and will slowly build up to gain momentum in the attack and refuse to go blindly into an attack with no edge. The next team that I saw great strides with was O4 Lounge. Younger guys who know the game well. My favorite game was when we were light years beyond our opponents. I believe the score was 3 or 4 nil for us so far and about 20min left in the game. We were holding onto the ball for long periods of time and the other team had all 11 back on their side of the pitch to help defend. I was playing in the center of defense and saw that they had most of their team my left trying to win the ball back. Now before I tell you what happened I would like to tell you that we hung out together and had parties and ran together and practiced together as much as we could, so we all had a great understanding of each other on and off the field. Now, from what I saw there was no way through the defense on the left side. Our guys were moving and trying to create space but it was just too clogged. I called for the ball to be switched. One pass back down the line to the left back. One touch and a pass to me. One touch and a pass straight in front which was simply flicked onto the path of the right wing who calmly slotted into the net. Four passes and a goal from a simple understanding that you trust the guy who is talking to you to do the right thing. A simple unspoken way of saying, "It's not working that way, let's try something different". The ball was not forced into a position that was not beneficial for the team in keeping possession and eventually scoring. That brings a smile to my face and I will never condemn that style of play. That is how I want every team I play on to play. Possession over out and out attack. A calculated plan of execution of your opposition. Make them frustrated and crush their souls on the pitch then shake their hands and offer to play them again with a smile.