Saturday, 23 April 2016

Starting from the Bottom...and Now We're 3rd

Our tier 1 ultimate team went to our first tournament in February, and promptly lost every game we played.  However, there were some good plays and great sharing by the team.  These are good signs as we shared the disc with everyone and swung the disc around from side to side:
The tier 1 team is warming up, and my colleague who has the same last name is excited to be at her first ultimate frisbee tournament.



Another great sign of the future was foreshadowed with this play with great defence from a grade 9 and terrific anticipation by another grade 9 to go for the score.  I'm proud of the way they competed against older and more experienced players:




Our tier 2 team did a little better by losing 4 games and tying the last - but we beat them by spirit points and won the spirit award for the tournament.  This assured that we brought home hardware two years in a row at this Toronto tournament.  Last year we won the tier 2 tourney and this year we got the spirit award, completing the collection.


I could tell this year's chemistry was something spec,ial as we came home from losing every game. Everyone's spirits were high from experiencing ultimate at such a high level.  Our beginning cheer is epic and our final cheer is pretty much always right on point.  It's not complete with the manager playing the guitar!  It was the bus ride home that really got to me - the buzz after a full day's tournament was really strong.  Many people in the bus were playing heads up with each other or having a good conversation.  Some were sleeping (it's a long day) but in general the team was upbeat. 

We practiced hard for the next month with a couple alumni coming into practice for some extra help.  7am morning grinds as well as after school practices got us into the work mode.  We improved a lot, but they couldn't tell....until we entered our next tournament - the Husky Huck. 

We started off the tournament with two strong wins to win our pool.  It was convincing with a balanced attack with points coming from everyone and going to everyone.  No one player dominated the pitch offensively.  It was a treat to watch.  

Our first playoff game was a tough one against a rival in TDCH.  We got down early but came back in the end as we showed great resilience and grit.  We dug deep and believed in ourselves to get back into the game.  Even though we lost, we learnt quite a bit.  

We played for 3rd in our final game and ended victorious.  We made adjustments in our activity level and beat another rival that beat us last year in the playoffs.  And really, I keep mentioning the final result when I believe that those results are just icing on the cake.  The real result is that the players are developing and getting better.  They're learning loads and adjusting well.  We are sharing the disc amongst all players - including the females on the team.  Our females have the confidence to throw forward.  I'm so proud that they've taken the initiative.  

It's considered a genderless sport and I'm trying to champion that.  

I'm also proud of the trust that the males have placed on them by throwing the disc to them and then running ahead to demand for the disc instead of standing behind them asking for a backwards pass.  

The bus ride home was really fun.  The sun was shining and there were no cliques.  Everyone was talking to everyone.  The team was again very upbeat and the mood was happy.  Multiple games of heads up occurred at the front and back of the bus...and even the most quietest of players would take part. 

The captain of the team organized a team dinner 3 weeks ago because she wanted to build the team up.  They played ice breakers and everything to try and break down barriers.  Looks like she succeeded.  

I completed my goal.  It's their team.  They own it.  They're happy.  They learnt a lot.  

I have two managers helping me with the administrivia.  I have two alumni starting to come out more regularly because their 1st year in university is done.  

I could just stop here and be really happy about the team, but we're only halfway through the season. We are starting outdoor season now.  

Fitness time.  

Disc up.  

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