This week, I’m kicking off my weekly motivational soccer posts, and I thought I’d start in kind of a unique way. In addition to spending a lot of my time playing soccer, in my off time I love learning about the ancient world, ancient battles and heroes.
Now you may be wondering what any of this has to do with soccer. This isn’t a blog about war or armies or battles. However, I think those things have a lot to teach us about the way we play soccer. If you think about it, an army is a lot like a soccer team. It is a group of people working in unison to defeat another group of people. Likewise, in soccer, you and your team work together to try to beat the other team. Lots of things are used by both armies and soccer teams – being strong where the opponent is weak, figuring out the best way to put your team on the field to be as strong as possible, training to be the best that you can be to increase your chances of winning, etc. We can use the lessons of war and battles in order to become better, more complete players.
This quote is attributed to a Greek philosopher and historian named Heraclitus. He was writing his observations about warriors when he wrote the following quote –
“Out of every hundred men, ten shouldn’t even be there, eighty are just targets, nine are the real fighters, and we are lucky to have them, for they make the battle. Ah, but the one, one is a warrior, and he will bring the others back.”
What does this quote have to do with soccer? It describes the player that every one of us should aspire to be. This quote describes a warrior, someone who transcends simply being a great independent fighter. Instead, this warrior keeps everyone around him coming back. He makes every person around him better. Without him, the team falls apart. This is the kind of player you should try to be.
Like the quote says, out of every 100 fighters, 10 should not be there at all. With a soccer team, players go to tryouts that should not be there at all. They haven’t practiced. They haven’t trained. That could be you if you don’t prepare to be there. Those players get cut and don’t even get to stand on the sidelines. They have to watch from the stands. Put in the time to prepare yourself to make the team. Make sure you are in shape before your tryouts. Don’t go out there having not touched a ball in 3 months.
Next are the eighty. Eighty of the fighters are average. In soccer, there are players that make the team and that’s good enough for them. They stand on sidelines. They may even play sometimes, but they never make an impact. This could be you if you are willing to settle for just making the team. If you stop working hard and training on your own once you make the team, you won’t live up to your potential. You’ll just be part of the eighty that got there, but never really amounted to anything great.
Nine of the hundred are the real fighters. These are the players that have the individual soccer skills. They train hard. They’ve done the drills, both at practice and at home after practice is over. They play well. The team needs them. They make an impact, and they will be remembered for that.
However, one warrior is the most important. He has the skills. He has worked hard to be the best that he can be. However, the one thing that stands out about him is that he makes everyone better, including the 9 great fighters. This is who you should try to be.
Every team has one or two players that simply make every around them better. They can dribble, they can pass, and they can shoot. However, they don’t just stop with having the skills. They encourage their teammates. They communicate on the field, letting the other players know what is going on around them. They understand that sometimes making a run is important not because they get the ball, but because they are drawing off a defender so someone else on the team can get open. These players don’t drag everyone down with their negative attitudes and frustrations. Instead, everything they do is focused on building the team up.
The problem with this is that focusing on everyone else is hard. Sometimes you have to sacrifice making yourself look good to make the team look good. It’s not glamorous to run to the sidelines to draw off a defender. It feels so much better when you beat 4 players with your dribbling skills and score (no matter how many times you lose the ball attempting it). Just remember, making a great pass is just as important as shooting on goal. Setting your teammates up for success is just as important as being successful yourself.
When you are on the field, ask yourself – “Is what I’m doing going to make the team better, or is it just building me up?” “What can I do for the players around me to help their game get better?”
Remember – when they get better, you get better.
Be the one
– Justin
