Just play. My advice is not to make it a debate or a decision each week. “Sunday morning? That means I am playing soccer.” See how simple that is?
9:00 AM at Murphy Field.
We had a really good game last Sunday. Looking forward to seeing you all there. I am sure that Tony, our Outreach Coordinator, would love to see a good crowd on Sunday too.
Lawrence
Murphy at 9:00. Back field. White shirt, dark shirt, no grey shirt. Same as always. Bring water. Same as always. Somebody bring a properly inflated soccer ball. Same as always.
The weather forecast says that it may be raining all of Sunday morning (or not at all). I mean, I know that we really need the rain and have not had any. But I would prefer that it rains on Mondays. Use your best judgement on Sunday. If it is raining a lot, we don’t play on the grass fields. If it is light or intermittent rain, we generally play. No umbrellas on the field.
Lawrence
If we get to 24 players, we are sticking to our plan and splitting into two games. Last week we thought that people would leave because it was Easter. They didn’t. This week, be prepared. Smaller games mean more touches on the ball and more action.
If you arrive late, count the players on the field. If one team is down a player, join the other team. If the total is 23 and you would make 24, make that known so that we can split.
This Sunday is Greek Easter. I was going to suggest that we wear blue on one side and white on the other in honor of that. Then I remembered our long-term and on-going project to try to distinguish grey from other colors. So, perhaps asking for specific colors was a bridge too far. Keeping it simple: bring a white shirt and a dark shirt. Bring water. If you have a good, properly inflated ball, you may want to bring that too.
With all of the rain that we’ve had recently, I was afraid that we’d miss our game. The hourly forecast seems to indicate that it will stay dry between now and just after our game. Let’s see if our luck holds. Temps will be cooler than last week. So, no excuses not to run hard. Hope that we can start on time to get the game in before the weather changes.
Looking forward to seeing everyone at Murphy for a 9:00 AM kick-off.
Lawrence
P.S. it was pointed out to me that last week’s post implied that some of you are getting old.
If you do, and it is properly inflated, we’ll use that. Otherwise, we’ll just use a regular soccer ball.
Be ready to kick-off at 8:55 on Sunday at Murphy. We are on the back field.
I had not posted until now because I was monitoring the rain. But, the forecast seems to be in our favor. We should see temps around 60 F/15.5 C for the game. Slight chance of showers at about 11:00. I checked the CYSA Field Status and the fields are open.
I strongly encourage people to get to the field early for a proper warm-up. This is not just because a lot of you are getting old. It is a good practice for the rest of us too.
Now that the season is going along at full swing, I may not post each week. Assume that we are at the field and time that I last posted about. In June, we sometimes switch back to the turf but that is to be determined. For now, we are at Murphy.
Last week we were able to balance the teams out pretty well. This is made easier when people bring both a dark and white shirt. Thank you.
See you on Sunday.
Lawrence
The weather looks good for a third straight weekend. Let’s play Sunday at 8:55 at Murphy Field. I think that we are in a rhythm now.
Remember that we NEVER play on a closed field. When in doubt, look at the CYSA website for field status. Although, that should not be an issue this week as all of the fields are open.
Also wanted to let you know that I have been contacted by Professor Darwin McPherson from the west campus of Northeastern. He stumbled upon our blog and — as luck would have it — is studying the high incidence of color blindness among soccer players. Apparently, he thinks that we have trouble distinguishing between white and grey. No idea where he got that impression. Perhaps this is the Sunday where we prove that we can bring both a dark shirt and a white shirt AND water to drink AND get there in time to start the game at 9:00 AM. If not, Professor McPherson has more material for his paper that he’s looking to publish. Either way; win-win.
Even if the good professor does not come to study us, do try to bring a white shirt and a dark shirt this week. We had a really good game last week. Let’s keep the momentum going. Murphy is big enough to accommodate our group even if everybody all showed up on the same Sunday. So, I hope to see all of you there.
Hoping also that former Australians rejoin our ranks. Last week there was only one player named David. That is only 20% of our available Davids.
Lawrence
First, I had no idea that the Ewoks would be at McCarthy last week. I was under the impression that Chelmsford Lacrosse had moved to Roberts Field. Maybe their program is big enough to be in three places at once or maybe they too were trying not to rip up the fields. Regardless, we had a good kick-around. Not the best field we’ve ever used, but we had fun.
I have confirmed with CYSA that we are at Murphy Field this season. Yay! Love playing at Murphy. (Although, one time one of my soccer balls got kicked so far that it wound up in the brook. I picture it now playing a small, but vital, part in a Tom Hanks movie.)
When in doubt as to whether or not the field is open, you can check the CYSA page first.
https://www.chelmsfordyouthsoccer.com/
We never play on a closed field.
I love that we have coaches, former coaches, players, former players, and just folks coming to play. There are times of the year when we’ve almost got too many people. I will never turn anybody away. However, we’ve got to manage this better. Once we reach 24 people, we will split into two games. Anyone high school age and older, who respects the game, is welcome to play.
It would be much easier to manage everything if everybody was at the field and ready to play by 8:55. Please make an effort to start showing up in time for a decent warm-up by then. I understand if you are late, but would appreciate it if people could be on time.
Temps at kick-off predicted to be about 48 and a bit warmer by the time we stagger off the field. Perfect weather. Seems that Sunday is often the worst weather of the week. We’ve got a bit of luck this week.
Bring water. Bring a white shirt. Bring a dark shirt too. Yes. Two shirts. (Wear one at a time.) This makes it much easier to balance the teams. When we balance the teams, it is just a better game for everyone. Note to Kyle: steal a white shirt from your father.
Start stretching cuz we’re going to run.
Lawrence
This is New England. Even a forecast that is only 37 hours away from kick-off could change. But, based on what we’re seeing now, Sunday morning looks dry and warm… the warmest day of the year so far.
Let’s meet at McCarthy turf at 8:45 AM for a 9:00 AM kick-off. Don’t forget water. Bring both a white shirt and a dark shirt.
We had almost a full compliment last week and almost a full field. It felt good to be back out there. This week, I expect a good crowd. That’s no problem. We can break into two games easily.
So, start stretching and be ready for action on Sunday morning. See you there.
Lawrence
Who had Sunday, March 24th in the pool? Okay. It was always going to be a Sunday, but it was unclear which Sunday. THIS SUNDAY. The weather looks good for this Sunday, March 24th at 9:00 AM..
Let’s play at the McCarthy turf field on Sunday morning at 9:00 AM. That means kick-off at 9:00. So, try to arrive at the field by 8:45. But if you’re late, still come.
For those of you new to our group, there are only a few guidelines. Bring both a dark shirt and a white shirt so that we can balance the teams. Do not wear grey or the “Where’s Waldo” shirts that are kind of 50/50 dark and white. Bring water (even if it is cool weather). An inflated soccer ball might be useful too. We don’t need 20 soccer balls, but a few good ones are useful.
We welcome anyone (men and women) high school age and older who respects the game and the people playing. The core of the group has been together for more than a dozen years.
I love when we play 11 v 11. However, when we get to 12 v 12, we break into two 6 v 6 games. More touches on the ball and more running. (We’ll put more running in the “Pro” column.) We don’t have refs, but try to be self-policing. This is not a coaching opportunity. As this is an adult game, there has been the odd occasion where somebody swears. Oh, well.
If the location, time, or particulars of the game change, we use this blog to announce them. Subscribe to it so it automatically goes to your E-Mail. Thursday night is when we can get a pretty good read on the weather. So, Thursday night is the earliest that we typically send out the blog. As it has been the off-season, I don’t have any updates on the USMNT scouting of us or the rumors that we may be asked to join the “Super League”. When I have updates, you’ll be alerted.
Soccer is a game. Our group is about the fun of that game. We enjoy the playing of soccer with our friends old and new.
See you Sunday.
Lawrence
P.S. If any of this changes, I will post an update.
I had thought that the weather would be conducive on Sunday for us to resume. After looking at the forecast, I checked with some of the guys and this just doesn’t seem to be the Sunday. Looking at the forecast, the “real feel” temp for 9:00 AM is predicted to be 19. Yikes. Significantly colder than today.
The good news is that the ten-day forecast looks good for Sunday the 24th. Keep training and let’s shoot for that day.
Lawrence
I have been encouraged not to say, the weather is too cold for us to play. If it is clear, that decision should be up to each individual — particularly when we’re playing on turf. As strange as it sounds, you can play even if I am not there. Just because it is too cold for my comfort does not mean that others may not play.
However, the forecast for this Sunday does not give me much hope. “Freezing rain in the morning will change to a wintry mix in the afternoon. High 27F. Winds N at 15 to 25 mph. Chance of precip 100%. 3 to 5 inches of snow and ice expected.”
We got to play a little in December and a little in January. We knew that the weather would turn on us. Seems like that time is now.
Let’s find ways to keep active and stay in shape for the next several weeks whilst we wait for the weather to clear. I am not saying that we return in April out of shape EVERY YEAR. Why would I say that? Who said that?
I hope that the weather clears soon and we are back out on the pitch. I enjoy playing soccer with you guys.
Lawrence
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