A letter to the editor:

I am writing to you in the hope of gaining some well-deserved recognition for the San Juan Youth Soccer teams and coaches who have represented our island so well this fall and will continue to do so until their season ends in early December.

These teams play in off-island leagues against other teams who play year-round soccer and often have 50+ players turn out to try out to make the team. In spite of this, our teams play heroically, ferociously, and have a lot of fun. They are a joy to watch and make our island proud every weekend.

The following e-mail was received regarding Bob Leytze’s Girls U-15 team and is representative of the spirit and determination that all four SJYS teams exhibit.

“I am the head coach of the NSC Saints, your opponents in the game last weekend in Bothell. I wondered if you would mind passing this e-mail on to the coach (Bob Leytze), and would appreciate it if he would read it out to your team at their next practice or game this week.

“I am from the U.K., and so my apologies to you for referring to the game by its correct name!

“We have played all bar two teams in the new league to date. In all of those games we have played hard and fair and in the true spirit of competition. We do not try to run up scores against any teams we face, as we don’t spend a lot of time considering the score-line as a true reflection of the performances of both teams.

“I would like to state that having seen the performance of your team, and the manner in which they played the game on Sunday, passing the ball on the ground and building from the defense, that you were one of the best footballing teams we have played so far. I think that the philosophy of coaching you obviously follow shows in the way you play, and I have every confidence that in time it will repay your team with results.

“Every one of your players contested for the ball and played fairly and tough, which we respected very much from our sideline. You have an excellent goalkeeper who would grace any team in this division. Your players’ performance, though not yielding the result you probably wanted, was, from a tactical point of view, better than most teams we have seen. You don’t thump the ball long and rush and eventually it will pay dividends for the technical quality of the individuals in your team.

“We at the NSC Saints wish you success in your remaining games, and encourage you to continue to play the way you do. We look forward to playing you again some time in the future.”

A well deserved round of applause for the following coaches and teams: Bob Leytze, Girls U-15; Kevin Porter, Boys U-14; Declan Place, Girls U-14; Paul Hopkins, Girls U-13.

Thank you to these hard-working coaches and amazing players for representing our island so well!

Maureen McNally (a very proud soccer mom)
Friday Harbor