It's a start to a new season.
New objective.
New goal.
New strategies.
New team.
New leaders.
New players.
It has been a rough start. Recruitment was not great. Names were penned but faces did not showed. After a seasons or two, you tend to get use to it and move on. It's better to work within your means than to hope what might be. No point dwelling on the uncertain.
Resources were thin. 10 outfield players and 2 goalies.
Preparations were limited. Twice, if remembered correctly, the full squad (10) was available for training.
Nonetheless, constraints were even across the league. Everyone has their own pile of s.h.i.t. to handle, so no complains. Yet the schedule sucks. 4! 4 morning, 1st game out of 5. What luck!
Well. Things couldn't get any worst I guess. Except it was. And Worst soon became underrated. If having 2 lines of 5 was not bad enough, losing 2 more to Co curriculum activities was. Double the blow when your player forgot, after constant and sufficient reminder, to bring his IC... It pissed me off!!
But, no time for that. In face of adversity, rather than taming the animal, it is time to unleash it!!!
Winners win but winning does not make you a winner!
So, are you are winner? Your actions will tell.
Some were convinced, some were not.
Some were fiery and determined, some were confused and lingering.
Soon we were down by 1 and I feared the worst to be honest. Yet, despite LiveSTRONG's constant bombardment, somehow we manager to survive.
We took the beating head on, miraculously survive the mere inches and wasteful sitters, which fuel the players confidence. As the game when on, the tide switched. By the end of the 2nd period, 7 was chasing down 17. From zero shots, a handful shot on goals were mustered. And in the 3rd, the unexpected happened, we equalised!
It was a mixture of relieve, proud and happiness.
So focus was I on the match, it was then I realised we were minutes away to pulling away from an upset. And we did.
Looking back, I was very proud of the players, even if we had succumb to defeat, the attitude and reaction on court were sufficient enough to convinced me that they are truly winners. The process rather than the destination was a far more accurate assessment of what they were made of. They will make a hell of a team if they are willing to train.
The real eye opener was that I finally had a real live, first hand experience on the impact of motivation and the massive difference of believing.
The ability you thought you did not acquire.
The outcome you thought you could not achieve.
The limit which you though was your limit.
Systematic analysis was crap and logical justifications were illogical.
Believe and all shall be possible.
Question is, will you?
