Just got back from my first league game of the year, and thought I'd write a little recap. Despite the cool, windy weather, I was pretty pumped to get in some league play after my Friday game got cancelled at the last minute, on what was a perfect day for ultimate.
Anyway, I decided to rock the receiver gloves in warm-up since my hands were freezing after a couple of tosses. Left them on all game, which is rare. Plus, I put a long-sleeved breathable shirt under a cool orange t-shirt I picked up at Value Village ("Beauty is only a light switch away") since my two from Ebay haven't been delivered yet. I warmed up by following the advice of one of my BigFish teammates by trying for 10 perfect flicks, 10 perfect backhands, and then repeating after changing sides (to figure out the wind). The girl I warmed up with was a super-cool sub, who had more consistent throws than me. Random observation, but a lot of people who have strong throwing skills don't step up and handle in games. Don't really understand that....
Poach's cheer is "Poach Motel, Always Open" which goes along with their official t-shirt (Poach Motel...Al ays O en). After the other team got a quick score, I was a tad worried since they seemed to work the disc up the field really quick and with smart passes. Turns out, I had nothing to worry about, as we scored the next 4 points in rapid fashion. It was 8-4 at the half, and ended 15-4. Although it felt closer at times, it was probably the fact I guarded their primary handler most of the night, and he was a handful. On the flip side, he had a bit of trouble with my height and speed endurance (i.e. I burned his ass in the second half). In terms of personal stats, I think I caught 5 goals and threw 2 more. Although that might sound impressive, the speedster on our team who I played against in the intermediate indoor development league last winter probably caught 8 goals for us. Plus, the kid had some sick layouts. Talking to him after the game, he was saying that he's still worried about having the disc outside of the endzone, so I'll make sure to give him a dump after he catches long passes.
I think the biggest difference between a high tier team like Poached Motel and the B&Es from last summer (mid-to-low tier) is the women. Every one of the five women playing for us tonight could handle when needed, and made extremely smart decisions with the disc. Better yet, all of them understood that when they were cutting, the handlers were going to lead them with the disc. People (girls and guys) who stand still and expect the disc make me angry....if you're not moving, I probably can't hit you with a pass. I also found the women tonight were good at communicating and asking for help on defense.
As for the male gender, Chris was fantastic as a handler, only missing a few passes all night (even with the nasty wind). We also have this other older, tall (6'3 or 6'4) guy Andrew who's super strong with his throws. He's a bit more aggresive than Chris, and puts some zing on his passes. Matt...or is it Mike...is a relative newbie, but he's plenty athletic. And as mentioned, Steve has speed to burn. Since there were only five us guys tonight, c'est tout l'histoire.
Anyway, I hope we don't get too big of a bump in LeagueRunner after winning by that margin. Although I think we're well placed around 20ish in the league, if we end up better than 15, we're in for a brutally tough game next Monday. Oh well, after a couple more practices with BigFish, I don't think brually tough will scare me :P Until next time, happy hucking!
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