Kellan's First Soccer Game

It must be spring!

Whether Mother Nature agrees or not, spring sports are well under way.  It was supposed to be sunny and 68 degrees but we awoke to clouds and a bit of a breeze.  We layered up and headed out.

Kellan is now 3.5 and ready to start sports as well as his big brother Oliver did when he was 3.5.  We signed him up for soccer with the Edge and Saturday was his first day.  He has been playing at Primrose in a clinic that is coached, but never competitive soccer.

That morning, Kellan was giddy with excitement.  He chattered a million miles per hour and the whole way to the field.  It was finally his turn to be in the spot light.

When we got there, his buddies Brendan and Stephen were already there and ready to play.  Oliver was a great big brother and helped the little boys play before the coaches stepped in.

A quick photo before they were off and running.

Brendan, Stephen and Kellan.

The boys headed out to meet up with the rest of the players.  Stephen entertained Kellan with his interpretation of what the cones should be used for.

I think that Coach Luke at Primrose has the boys stand with one foot on the ball quite often and this seemed to be their go-to pose.  Or, maybe their coaches told them to do this.  Regardless, they were cute to watch.

Kellan in white, Stephen to his left.

After taking some photos, I turned around to see my Dad on the sidelines.

Oh wait... it's Oliver.

Never in a million years would I have believed that I was going to birth my father, but it seems that I have.  There are so many things about Oliver that remind us of him from his meticulous nature, his caring and concerned heart, the way he gives knowledgeable advice readily, his rate of walking (which is always 20' behind us) and his resting position (legs crossed).

The team practiced for 30 minutes and then played a game for 30 minutes.

The teams were open to whichever field you went to and the coaches were high school student.  Since the players are all so young (4 year old division), this is how they operate it at the Edge.

Kellan had fun kicking his ball around.  He clearly has been learning some mad skills with Coach Luke at Primrose.

He practiced making some goals, even with obstacles in the way.

At some point, he took a resting position.  Again, I'm convinced that someone has taught him this and it seemed very natural and comfortable for him.

The march back to Mommy and Daddy also seemed natural.  He had a hard time transitioning from a spectator to a player.  He kept wanting to come to the sidelines to sit down and watch.  This seemed quite natural as Oliver had a hard time being on the sidelines and not playing.  We had to explain several times why he had to be there when he wasn't playing.  Give it a few weeks and they'll each have it figured out.

You can tell that Brendan thinks that Kellan is a bit out of his mind.  See him in white over Kellan's shoulder, likely wondering "where in the world is Kellan going?"

Finally, it was time for the game.  It turned out to be blue against white and the blue team had two ringers that dominated the white team.  It's a good thing that they don't keep score at this age.

Kellan was a bit shy on how and when to get in the crowd and kick the ball.  He did get in a few times.

At the end, they let all of the kids score a goal.  It was the biggest hit of the day, besides snacks.

Kellan so happy to be kicking in his goal!

Kellan had a great time and is already excited to go back again next week.