Our first outdoor practice on Sunday was... underwhelming. I had high hopes for attendance and productivity, given that it was our first chance as a team to be out on the turf and in full gear. However, a few key absences and a injuries caused us to have to go half-line instead of full team. I must admit, I was somewhat discouraged after that showing. On the bright side, however, those who were in attendance gave great effort as we hustled from period to period and they definitely got better.
After a quiet Monday, on Tuesday I decided to take my new wheels for a spin!
Anders Larsson, Predators RB, was kind and generous enough to lend me this bicycle while I am in Kristianstad. I decided to cruise down to Contact Sports to make use of the pump to top off the tires and check in with Tyson and the other guys about that night's practice.
As has been the case lately, things were pretty busy at the store. Ben, Sorin (on the phone above), and Emil are busy taking and filling orders while Tyson runs the show. In the above picture you might also notice some boxes and bins. In this preseason period Tyson and the guys have been busy taking weekend trips to tournaments and teams out of the area to make sales, take orders, and deliver equipment. Tyson and Emil were in Stockholm this past weekend visiting clubs there, so one of the orders of business today was restocking the store from what was taken up north.
Tuesday's workout (I say workout because it was a conditioning/speed training session, not a football practice) was disappointing, as well. I can only suspect that because it was not a strictly football practice that guys were less excited about it or held it as less important. As usual, the guys who were there put in some great work and increased their agility and overall conditioning. Lukas Klang, a very good offensive linemen who has been generous with his time to act as OL coach while recovering from a knee injury, and I also spent some time with the OL going through some techniques and schemes.
On Thursday I took another ride to Contact Sports to print up a practice plan. The ride there was uneventful, even as the wind started to pick up a little bit.
While in the shop, and talking to Tyson, things got a little more Nordic outside:
Just in time for my ride home, it started to snow and even stick! I immediately regretted my choice to take the bike today, but pressed on in what was probably the least pleasant bike ride of my life. It wasn't snowing hard, but it was pretty windy and that makes it feel that much colder. It had only been snowing for less than two hours when I got home, but the landscape had already shown some change.
Before Thursday's practice, I was picked up by Anders and Ben. I forgot to mention in my previous blog, but these two had invited me to join them at the gym. Somehow, Anders was able to get me in free that first session, and it was nice to get back into weight lifting again, something I haven't done consistently since I stopped playing high school football. Friday we returned to the gym and I joined for the 6 month duration of my stay. Anders has promised to help me "walk the path of the Wiking" and grow to be as buff as he is before I leave Sweden. Ben is a little bit more subdued about our weightlifting sessions, but puts in hard work nonetheless.
We trudged through the slush to the gym on Thursday before practice. Ben is also helpful in deflecting the Wiking's ire when I miss a session...
After our workout, we headed straight to Liviushallen, the indoor facility we've been using on Tuesdays and Thursdays. Here Tyson and Lars Dahl (U17 DC and possible Senior LB) talk football while the Seniors warm up behind them.
Thursday's session was definitely our best work yet. We had key absences again, with a number of players being called in to work, but our front seven got some good work in. Chris Guillen (Tyson's son and U17 QB) helped us out and is seen here handing the ball to Anders in an inside run period.
I felt really good about the progress made by those in attendance Thursday night. In my 2 weeks back in Sweden, it is again becoming frustrating, though, to see practices ill-attended in EuroBall. It's hard to get across how critical practices are to improvement and success, especially in football where everything must be coordinated between players whether you play offense or defense. Individuals can show great potential but will never meet it unless they put in the time. It's incredible to think what we could do as a team or in Europe in general if football here was structured like high school football in the States.
After a late night enjoying as much as I could (thank you CBSsportsline.com!) of my favorite sports day of the year (the first day of the NCAA Tournament), I received an invitation Friday morning to meet Shawn Cordeiro for lunch. Kristianstad appeared to still be mired in the wintery haze of the previous day as I walked to the Centrum to meet him for Chinese. It is an interesting dynamic now, between Shawn and I, in that we are both heavily involved and invested in football in Sweden and, of course, in the teams with which we are affiliated. However, since we are now competitors, when we talk about football we are both very careful not to talk about anything specifically relating to our respective teams. I'm sure this dynamic is one experienced by many coaches who have worked together and remained friends despite moving on to new jobs, but this is probably my first such relationship. Nevertheless, it is, of course, pleasant conversation.
After lunch I took the opportunity to stop in at Musikbörsen, a kind of Swedish Guitar Center, that is a few blocks from my apartment. I have come to realize in the last couple of weeks that I am already starting to miss my guitar and, thus, am on the hunt for one to play while I'm here. There was a decent entry level Cort guitar at Musikbörsen that felt pretty good, but I hope to look a little more in Höör on the recommendation of Jonas Grip.
After a trip to Maxi, I returned home to enjoy a delicious Swedish fika, featuring these heart shaped pastries that are basically pie crust filled with a layer of custard and dusted with powdered sugar. More basketball followed that night, with the #2 seed Fighting Irish of Notre Dame defeating the #15 seed Akron Zips, who hung around the entire game and caused me undo stress. After the first two days of the tournament, by bracket is functionally busted and my bracket selection ineptitude continues. However, as long as the Irish survive I will be more than keenly interested and my goal of waking up regularly before 9am will be thwarted by late night basketball.
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