Have to brag on my U10 kids a little bit. We just took out last year's regular season champs, and a team that hadn't lost in multiple seasons. Got an early lead and beat them 4-2.

We usually play a 2-3-1, but today we spent a lot of time in a 3-2-1 or 3-3, with one of my weaker (lazier) players as an extra central defender. It went really well. He was more engaged than usual, and my two stronger DFs were able to cover for his usual mistakes.

It did blunt our attack a bit, but really helped clog up the middle and limit the other team's scoring chances.

Things we still need to work on...

I am still struggling to teach my kids to "contain" on defense, and not just poke at the ball when an opponent's dribbling at them. My son has pretty much figured it out, but that's due to a lot of individual backyard coaching. Nobody else on the team really gets it. That alone would probably eliminate 25%+ of the goals we allow.

Still need to get my attacking players taking more shots from outside the box. They did better today, but we still passed up some chances we shouldn't have.

How'd everybody else do this week? What are your teams working on, and what have you found helpful so far this season?