Tim Gould is still moving chess pieces in his head.
Gould had a lot to digest after watching the Mississippi University for Women’s men’s soccer team play East Central Community College in an exhibition match Aug. 23 at the downtown Columbus Soccer Complex.
All 31 players on the Owls’ inaugural roster saw action, which Gould has since reviewed in an attempt to formulate a game plan for the team’s first matches of the season. The W will kick off its first season at 6 p.m. Friday against Huntingdon College, a NCAA Division III school in Montgomery, Alabama. It will play at 5 p.m. Saturday at LaGrange College, a NCAA Division III school in LaGrange, Georgia.
Gould said the exhibition validated a lot of the thoughts he had about his squad and gave him plenty of things to focus on leading up to the start of the season.
“I think our energy was there and we competed, but we didn’t have a firm grasp of where to be in certain situations,” Gould said. “I think what stood out was we wanted to hold the ball a little bit too long. We weren’t advancing the ball. We rarely skipped a line. If our defenders had it, they played it to the midfielders and not directly to the forwards on occasion like you need to have to vary your attack. We were a little too predictable.”
Gould said practices following the match have focused on having more passing patterns to use and not following the same tactics. He said the Owls have done that in more 11-vs.-11 training sessions to branch out from the initial small-sided games the players used early in the preseason.
Gould said the Owls also have worked on playing the ball wide more and being more direct and more unpredictable.
“We have been on the field and scrimmaging every day,” Gould said. “We have probably played a minimum of 30-45 minutes every day toward the end of practice. We have given them different passing patterns to go up the field to where we have guys finishing. We didn’t have time to do that leading up to the exhibition.”
Gould said former Caledonia High School standout Chandler Lester, who played with Will Jones in their first two years at Northwest Mississippi Community College in Senatobia, is one of former captains as voted on by the players. He joins senior Jacob Johnson, junior Paxton Bounds, and freshman goalkeeper John McGee in that capacity.
“We have a goalkeeper, a center back, a midfielder/winger, and a center forward,” Gould said. “I thought it was great we have leadership across the board and across the field.”
Gould said Lester likely will be a mainstay at center back. He said Lester is a “positive” guy who has the experience and physicality needed to anchor the defense.
Gould said Jones is working back into form after having an issue with his knee entering the season. He said Jones’ physical ability has improved “drastically” in the last two weeks, so he wouldn’t be surprised if Jones earns more playing time for longer stretches.
Gould said former New Hope High standout Nathan Wilson played at holding midfielder and will have a key role. He said Wilson could see time at a variety of positions.
Gould said former Columbus High players Kyle Rodriguez and Jomaryee Brown and learning how to play at the college level and getting better every day. He liked what he saw from both players, as well as freshman Tahjmon Sparks. Gould said Sparks likely was the player who “surprised” him and stood out in the match against East Central C.C.
“I knew he would work, but he did a very good job of winning possession and holding possession for us and making a connection,” Gould said of Sparks, who played forward. “He is constantly moving. He would make a pass and spin out and keep playing. We didn’t have enough of that in the exhibition match. Taz brought us some much needed energy, and he has definitely earned himself a lot more time this weekend.”
Gould said Sparks has played more at holding midfield and outside back since the exhibition.
Gould said he plans to use as many players as possible this weekend to keep legs fresh for the back-to-back games. He also said the Owls are beginning to get flows in rotations and player groupings, so he hopes to continue to solidify team chemistry.
After taking time to tweak the Owls’ passing patterns, Gould hopes his team shows an improved ability to attack more consistently and to be in the right places defensively, especially off goal kicks.
“Looking forward to this weekend,” Gould said. “I think the guys are ready. Some of them, in a way, were not pleased with the result from the exhibition. When they saw it on film, they saw they weren’t doing some of the things they thought they were doing on the field and could take some ownership and pride in fixing those problems.”
Follow Dispatch sports editor Adam Minichino on Twitter @ctsportseditor
Adam Minichino is the former Sports Editor for The Commercial Dispatch.
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