UNC Tar Heels 2016

This may be true, but in 2008 I was in England having a conversation with a former female English professional soccer player. I asked her whether her daughter played soccer. The answer was a very sad, "No, most girls don't play soccer, it's not something girls 'do.'" My interpretation was that it was not socially acceptable for girls to play soccer, because of what that would imply about them. So, a more accurate statement would refer to "a country where men's soccer is part of the very fabric of life ...." Hopefully, some of this has changed over the last few years, but English girls have not grown up in a country where women's soccer is part of the fabric of life, quite to the contrary. American girls are about two generations ahead of them in this respect.

 

This article about Abby and her brother came out yesterday. So truly sad, but amazing the whole team went to Ohio to the funeral. Shows what a bond the players have with each other

http://www.dailytarheel.com/article/2016/10/thats-what-my-brother-would-want-me-to-do

 

I should have made it clear that I was referring to the men's game. A lot has changed in England since 2008 regarding the girls/women's game. American girls are nowhere near 'two generations ahead' in regards to soccer being an integral part of society, not even close. Soccer in the USA, whether the men's or women's game is not remotely 'part of the fabric of society',
Of course the men's game dominates in Europe and the rest of the world and this is the environment girls are initially aware of. The USA remains the ONLY country in the world that has to mention the USA MEN's national team.....everywhere else this is a given. In England it is referred to as the women's game...everything else assumes you are talking about the men's game. Go to thefa.com for confirmation.....It is VERY 'socially acceptable' these days for girls to play soccer in many parts of the world....not just England.

I stand by my statement that the rest of the world has caught up (some would say passed by) the USA in terms of the quality of the girls/women's game and this will not change in the foreseeable future.

 

This article about Lindsey Harris also came out yesterday.

http://www.dailytarheel.com/article/2016/10/lindsey-harris-chooses-greatness-for-unc-womens-soccer

 

To get back to the women's college game....why is it that many (not all) college coaches will only offer spots to big, fast, physical girls...? I know there are some exceptions....I have The Longhorn Network and have watched 5 of their women's games this season....to say they have a LOT of BIG girls would be an understatement...pity they cannot play soccer very well...check their record for confirmation....I watched Seattle beat them earlier this season in Austin...Seattle (until recently an NAIA school).....actually PASSED the ball around, kept possession and out played Texas in the own back yard. Seattle's 1-0 win was not indicative of their domination of this game.

 

The only answer for you that this is 2016. It it a different world.
Just watch on TV a La Liga game and you can see how many young girls/women watch the game with unbelievable passion. Yes, the support is still less than optimal but getting better very fast. Until a baseball game is much more interesting for US girls than soccer we will not be competitive in the future.

 

This was a very strange game. Great credit to UNC to completely destroyed UVA's rhythm. The goals were emberesing for a team like UVA. Having said that UNC deserved 100% the win. However, to be able to go forward and concider reaching the collage cup we need more sophisticated offense. It is highly unlikely that we will receive too many presents like today. Anyhow this team already overachieved considering the expectation.

 

Just got back in town and am delighted to see that the Heels played well again. We've seen pretty steady improvement over the season starting from some just gawd awful soccer in August. Let's keep it up and see how far we can go!

I've just watched the highlights of today's game, and it looks to me like the Tar Heels were hustling and that Virgina was trying to avoid any injuries for the NCAA tournament. Morgan Stearns has started 81 games at keeper for the Hoos but her lackadaisical play today allowing Madison Shultz to take the ball from her and then lope along instead of applying pressure seemed quite timid and lot like a high school All American and member of the U15, U17, and U20 national teams.

And then how is it that Sarah Ashley (not the fastest player for UNC) can dribble 2/3 of the field with out being challenged until the last minute (and then under pressure take a brilliant shot into the right netting.) Was Virginia not really wanting to win? (Save it for the NCAAs?...)

 

If a video of Bucky being passed the ball before her shot could be found, I could analyze the offsides. ...But is was not included in the highlight reel (and I do not have access to cable or high speed internet to get the full games on line. --short videos I can let load for 5 minutes or so and then re-play them.)

 

Sash is certainly not 'slow' by any stretch. She was able to 'dribble 2/3 of the field' because UNC caught them on a counter attack when they were all pushed up towards the end of the half and all she saw in front of her was acres of grass. I do not buy the idea that 'Virginia was not really wanting to win' and frankly find that statement totally ridiculous.

Anson needs to get away from his constant references to 'the reserves'.....no top class manager does this and I cannot remember any other coach ever referring to players who enter the game (at any level) as 'the reserves'....This is just bullshot and needs to stop.....When Olivier Giroud entered the game for Arsenal in the EPL game Saturday and scored two goals he was not referred to as 'a reserve' by Arsene Wenger.....he was a player who entered the game...and made a huge difference.

'The Reserves' need to be treated with much more respect than this....Anson should know better and it is about time someone called him on this crap...Might as well be me.

 

Im gonna step out on a limb and say that any reference to "the reserves" is a motivational spur to those in the "competitive cauldron" If you aren't starting then you are a "reserve" and there is nothing more a reserve would want to be more than "not a reserve"

 

UNC is playing well but of course benefited yesterday from two uncharacteristic howlers by the UVA keeper--and really three bad UVA plays. That first goal--what was the keeper thinking?--and then she falls into her own goal on that corner kick. And the second goal, while a good play by the UNC player, the UVA centerback was way out of position. UVA seemed, something...out of sorts, unmotivated, tired. But UNC was the better team and deserved the win. UNC seems to have deeper talent pool than the Cavs, frankly.

 

I am about to re-watch the game & gif all the best moments on my twitter feed. I'll link the play here if there is a decent showing of it.

 

Well.... I did not literally mean that Virginia consciously decided or was told "not to win" the game...that would indeed be ridiculous. I was using what I thought was a well worn sports expression that championship teams have to really "want to win." I used the term as a short hand way of explaining what Kazoo says above that "UVA seemed, something...out of sorts, unmotivated, tired." All teams seem to suffer from this syndrome from time to time, game to game. The reasons for appearing tired or unmotivated are often completely mysterious. But certainly if the team members were somehow aware that there is a documented history of teams (including Virginia) losing in the first round of a conference tournament and then, with extra time to rest and prepare, doing very well in the NCAA tournament they might succumb to this lethargy syndrome. Examples would be Notre Dame (which won the NCAAs in 2010), and several times with Virginia which got three rounds into the NCAA after loosing its first ACC tournament game in 2006, 2009, and 2010.

On the other hand (although it not the same issue as Virginia's energy state yesterday) there is, of course, that example of Mark Krikorian bringing a 13 member travel team to the ACC tourament in 2010 which included only one keeper and one reserve field player and left most of the starters back home in Florida. They promptly lost their first game to Wake Forest and went home to advance to the 4th round of the NCAA tournament with their full roster. In that case it would indeed be difficult to argue that FSU came to the ACC tournament planning to win it.

 

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There is, unfortunately, no camera shot, live or otherwise, that show whether Julia Ashley or Abby Elinsky were onside at the time Megan Buckingham strikes the ball. The controversy seems to be more about the fact that neither player touched the ball, however that is irrelevant when it comes to offside. I believe this is the correct call if either were actually offside, because both players clearly influenced Stearns decision to stay near post. Had she thought neither player had a chance to play the ball on the near post, she would have tracked more centrally towards her goal & saved this easily.

 

Actually the offside rule is pretty clear on paper. If a player who does not touch the ball and does'nt block the view of the GK even he/she is on offside the goal is valid. In the real life is up to the referee's interpretation of
this rule. Recently Messi made a SOG and Suarez jumped up in offside position and the ball went under his legs to the goal. He was clearly blocking the GK's view. No offside was called. So IMO the offside calls are "the wild west" of soccer.

 

How about starters and subs....and this can and does change from game to game.....Anson does NOT always 'start' the same 11...

 

The official NCAA designation during the tournament intros is "non-Starter" ( you can look it up)

I think I'd take offence at being called a non-starter.

 

A 'reserve' historically (and still does in the rest of the world) means you are NOT a first team player, are NOT yet on the first team roster and that you play for the reserves in the reserve league....

 

Congrats to the two UNC players who were recognized by the ACC on the 2016 "All ACC" teams. Freshman Bridgette Andrzejewski was named to the First Team and the All Freshman team, while Megan Buckingham as named to the Second Team.

I personally am soorry that Lindsey Harris did not get a mention at keeper. She has had an outstanding season.

I do believe that it is true that, with the exception of Duke incoming keeper Brooke Heinsohn, and UNC's Jessie Scarpa and incoming defender Taylor Otto, other ACC teams are not represented on the U20 team. This fact sure colors the All ACC teams announced today: (Four teams -The first, second, and third All ACC teams plus a All Freshman team) If Jessie and Taylor had been playing for UNC this season, I think that we would have hat at least 4 players mentioned.

FSU was the most lauded by fellow voting coaches naming 8 players to these four teams. Virgina, Notre Dame and Duke each had 5 players named and Clemson 4. UNC was in a crowd with 2 players named along with Boston College, Miami, Virginia Tech, and NC State. (And the one player each for Louisville and Wake Forest. Pittsburgh and Syracuse had no players honored this year.)

So it will be interesting to see how the remainder of the season plays out with the personnel the Heels have. I think that our girls will acquit themselves well!