I’m coaching again this year .. had the U10 Cardinals last year and again this year with exactly one returning player – my own son. Fortunately, he’s a good base to build around, being one of those kids blessed with enough natural ability to shine at everything (which will no doubt take him far if we can blend a little humility into the mix…). Tonite was our final practice of the fall campaign .. last game on Saturday. We’ve run up an impressive string of wins without a blemish this fall and could probably have really made some games ugly were it not for trying really hard to stick to the rec philosophy of getting everyone a lot of playing time. I got handed a fairly rag tag group, but they’ve come together wonderfully under the system I taught last spring and really look like an older team. Several of these kids will no doubt go on to the club system either here in town or one of the surrounding clubs. I’ve not enjoyed coaching more since I went back to my high school to coach the girls’ cross country team while I was in college. Winter league indoor stuff sure is tempting…..