Hockey/Soccer Writers

Sirs, Madames,

I remember watching World Cup coverage years back. 1-0 game. Graham Leggat, CBC's soccer guy, said: "1-0 but the game was closer than the score would indicate."

YHS, etc

 

For my money, I'll read Cruickshank from the Calgary Herald and Cox from the Toronto Star.


In a 1-0 game, you have to pick your spots. Who threw some good hits or played well defensively? Any spectacular saves that preserved the shutout? Missed breakaways? Line changes? Who controlled the play?

In soccer? Get good at writing 1-0 games. There's a lot of them.

 

How do you write about a 1-0 baseball game? Same principle.

It's about as rare as a 1-0 hockey game. (6.5 approx goals in an average NHL game, less than 3 in a soccer game)

As far as hockey writers go: Cox and Eric Duhatschek (Globe & Mail) along with his colleagues Allan Maki & William Houston.

 

Quite frankly, a 1-0 soccer match is easier to write about than a 4-0 match ... and in prep soccer, you get a lot of 4(or more)-0 matches.

I had a 2-0 match last night that I could've gone well over 20 if I had to ... that said, 15 was plenty and I barely mentioned the first goal. The second goal put the match away. Plus, at 1-0, the losing team's all-stater had a point-blank chance inside the 6 he put over the crossbar with about 12 left (btw, the kid, despite being on the verge of tears, was a much better interview post-match than his coach).
Make those two mentions, the logistics of where the winner goes in the state tourney, and toss in a few quotes and you've got 15 pretty quick.

To whomever mentioned soccer/rewards for failure/etc ... Agreed. However, when you (or your team) succeed in soccer, the build-up and expolosion is akin to the best orgasm you'll ever have.

 

No sport rewards failure like baseball.

You go hitless seven times out of ten? You're a star.

 

Indeed.

 

Thanks. A lot of good suggestions.

 

Wrong. It's a testament to how fucking hard it is to hit a baseball. Anyone can kick a ball "toward the goal" - and believe me, that's celebrated.

And, Juri Tlusty had a puck deflect off his ass and was credited for "a goal" the other day - one of two goals he "scored." And he's a hero on a team, that's what, 4-7?

Oh, and baseball doesn't celebrate near misses or hitting into a double play the way fans go bonkers over a "beautiful cross" (soccer) or "quality scoring chance" (hockey).

 

Buck, I thought you'd agree with me, if even a little.

 

Sorry, dude. Not on this one.

Love hockey *almost* as much as I love baseball. And I have a great appreciation for soccer, too. Every sport has its flaws, but I don't think the ones mentioned above (by you or JR) are valid in this case. There is an aesthetic allure to "a beautiful cross," even if it's not converted, that makes the sport so much fun to watch. I never get tired of watching Sid the Kid exercise his otherworldly vision on the ice, and Gretzky was the same way before him. It's athletic artistry at its finest. It's as enjoyable for me as watching Johan Santana make a hitter's knees buckle when he pulls the string on a changeup right after breaking the guy's bat with a fastball on his fists. Or Tiger Woods having the balls to attempt <a href="http://www.usagolf.tv/video/95886-tiger-woods-masters-shot-on-16th-hole-2005.html">this shot</a> on the back nine at Augusta.

There are ugly, excruciating games in every sport; hockey and soccer have their share, for sure. But so do <a href="http://www.baseball-reference.com/boxes/FLO/FLO200709210.shtml">baseball</a> and <a href="http://sports.yahoo.com/nfl/recap;_ylt=AlLBpn2Le_YCdvkKp_b.PbYisLYF?gid=20071007025">football</a>. You can always find ugliness if you're looking for it -- but there's plenty of beauty out there, too. Just gotta know what to look for.