Hey polo fans!
Like the headline in the sports section of today’s local paper said, “USA dominated, then fell, then lost.” This headline says it all. In the first three chukkers, the team was flawless and had all the momentum working in its favor. The only complaint I had was they were missing too many goals. With the Chilean team getting a lot more knock-ins than they would have liked to and us getting only a few, it showed that our offense and defense was dominant. The score of 3-0 for USA at the end of the first half did not portray the true essence of the game. As I walked over to the players’ tent I only had one fear; that because they were so dominant they would forget the game plan and begin trying to showcase their individual abilities. This is exactly what happened in the 4th chukker, as my fear became a reality.
Team USA
As Vince Lombardi said, “you win or lose on your discipline and mental toughness.” It seemed that all the men did not heed my caution to not allow themselves to believe that the game had already been won, but to continue to play a disciplined and mentally tough game. This seemed to be the longest chukker of the game, as play after play Chile jumped on the opportunities we handed them by our lack of discipline and teamwork. Due to these opportunities, Chile outscored us 4 to 0 in a matter of five minutes, taking the lead with a score of 4-3.
As I looked into these shell-shocked players’ eyes as they walked back on the field for the 5th chukker, I knew it was going to get worse before it got better. Even though it appeared the boys had rekindled their ability to work as a team, it seemed they had taken on a sense of desperation which led to us getting into unnecessary foul trouble. Luckily, Chile only scored two of their penalty shots ending the chukker with a score of 6-3.
In the 6th and final chukker the USA men gave it their all; once again they came together and demonstrated some fantastic teamwork to dominate the chukker. With incredible defense that stopped the Chilean offense cold in their tracks, the boys took every chance to shoot at the goal but only managed to capitalize on two goals, ending the game with a score of 6-5 for Chile.
Once again, as I walked to the tent I didn’t know what to say or how I was going to say it, as this was one of the most frustrating games to coach because we lost the game for no reason, Chile didn’t win it. Each player seemed to know the mistakes they had made before I could say it, as they greeted me with an “I’m sorry coach.” As we gathered in the tent, I thought I’d better turn this into a learning opportunity instead of a lecture on screwing up. I told them since they all understood what they did wrong, they should put in their back pockets and pull it out next time they are dominating a game so that they don’t make the same mistake again.
Despite their mistakes, I am still proud of team USA, and am looking forward to coaching them tomorrow in our final game against Australia.
Go USA!!!
Coach Muldoon