HerrFutbol

Its not part of the game. It is unsporting behavior. The player should be required to leave the pitch. If play stops due to a referee blowing a whistle for an injury, the injured player is required to leave.

Yes. Absolutely. It seems as if they are trying to pull and NCAA and put teams in districts and regions to spread out the talent. I believe this is wrong. Region should be based upon location and size of school only. Merrol Hyde and Goodpasture do not belong in District 8 based upon their location. Likewise, Jackson County doesn't belong in District 7 with the Chattanooga schools. It is gerrymandering in order to allow certain teams a better chance at attaining a region birth.

I am not saying they are cheating. I am simply stating fact. The resource pool for the magnet schools is larger given their location. Yes, the county schools in the boondocks need to take steps to actually teach the game instead of just rolling out the balls. I also, disagree with the way TSSAA creates districts. Merrol Hyde should be in District 9 along with Goodpasture. Jackson County should be District 8 instead of 7. The gerrymandering that occurs during the district creating process needs to stop. Schools should be in a district based upon school size and location. It seems like they are trying to distribute the teams based upon talent. This makes it difficult to travel, and it benefits teams like Merrol Hyde by placing them in a district that has very few travel team players.

Its not so much the fact that the school is recruiting or has extra special athletic talent, but that those school generally have access to USSF/TSSA approved travel squads. The technical training that these players receive on those squads gives them an extreme advantage when playing against county schools away from major cities. It truly is a David/ Goliath scenario, even if the Magnet school is smaller than the county school. Its all about resources. Many county schools don't have the tools compete strategically against the city schools. They stay competitive in some cases because of their raw athletic talent, but can't break through the district or region level because of a lack of training.

Do you consider Magnet Schools public? They are, but then again they are not. They do not have the same student pool to choose from when conducting try outs. Usually these students are exceptional at something. They also have class time devoted to their sports. They are supposed to be diverse, but I see them as a way of segregating (maybe not by race or religion, but by ability). I probably sound like I am whining, so I will stop here. I could be totally wrong about magnet schools, if I am, someone please educate me.

Put a quick player as a permanent shadow on #13, and he loses his mojo.

I take my heaping of crow and chew it gracefully. Well played WHH. Good luck in the region. I am a general fan of soccer. I stand by my original comments though. If White House had been against Heritage, I still would pick WH. High School sports are not professional. There are so many crazy factors that figure into making through the playoffs. Look at what happened to Goodpasture. Lost 4-0 to Livingston. Then Livingston turns around and plays a great game against Merrol Hyde and only drops by a 1-0 decision. District tournaments is when the magic happens. WHH apparently has not ran short of theirs yet this season.

All I can say is that from seeing both teams play in person in multiple games against various opponents, WH is much more composed than Heritage. They play more as a team. Heritage has speed and some decent ball skill, but they do not play as a unit as far as I can tell.

Yeah, those are some pretty shaded glasses. I say realistically WHH vs WH in Championship. White House will win 2-0. Heritage is good, but lacks discipline and can be real mouthy on the field. I expect a few yellows to fly. White House played a good game against a good Merrol Hyde last night and tied 1-1. Should be a great tournament.

Some good district match ups this week between Goodpasture and Merrol Hyde, Macon and Livingston. Should be interesting. Also, Central Magnet only beat Cannon Co. 1-0. What's the deal there? Was Central missing players, or did Cannon just play a really good defensive game?

A couple of ties last night. Livingston tied Goodpasture 1-1. Macon County tied Merrol Hyde 3-3. I see that does little to shake up the district standings, but Livingston and Macon could be making strong pushes to the finish line.

I have learned to not underestimate anyone. The game is played at Cannon. The field will be a factor. I doubt Cannon wins or ties, but I have seen stranger things happen.

That win locks up the regular season for Central Magnet. Unless they implode and drop 2 games to Smith Co. and Cannon Co. They very well could face a challenge with Cannon. They are very physical, and their field will benefit a lesser skilled/more physical team. The sand lot makes it very difficult for ball handlers. Livingston, Goodpasture, and Macon are the sleepers for this district. Anyone of these teams could get on a run in the tournament, and let their momentum carry them past either Central or Merrol Hyde. Should be fun to watch unfold.