Last Sunday, February 2nd, the IE Madrid Women’s football team played their fourth game. The IE team played without a coach since Dario, their coach since September 2019, left for exchange. Not only they didn’t have a coach, but they only had one substitute. Notwithstanding, the women played one of their best games and the final score was 3-3.
Before the game, the women got together and agreed on their strategy. Pary gave a real pep talk and motivated everyone. The women started the game with a strong mindset. No one was there to tell them what to do, they had to rely on themselves and on each other. The first 2 goals scored against them were irritating. They could have been avoided easily. Then Pary scored their first goal. But the opponent scored another goal, a good counter-attack, before the end of the first half. During half-time, the women talked and shared what they thought went wrong during the first half. They decided to improve and to avoid making the same mistakes. And it worked. Not only did they keep a clean sheet, but Ainara (a.k.a Turtle) and Hugrun scored two more goals. They could have scored more, and won the game, but some shots were unlucky. Proud of their game, they congratulated each other and decided to celebrate. In their opinion, they won the game.
Not having a coach might have motivated the women to play better. They had to follow their instinct and listen to each other. They played with a strong mindset and an amazing spirit. They encouraged each other, and if a mistake was made, they wouldn’t blame it on their teammate. When they noticed something wrong, they shared their concern.
Some of them believe that they don’t need a coach during games anymore. Being left on their own obliged them to give their best. Not having someone yelling at them or telling them what to do, forced them to be more aware of the game and think more about their next set of actions. The team vibe is beautiful and unique, and little by little, they are making it their strength. The women are positive about the upcoming games, especially when from one game to the other, the score improved from 2-16 to 3-3.
