What Did They Expect ?


Over the Thanksgiving four-day holiday there was a huge youth soccer tournament in the Phoenix area. A soccer tournament during Covid? There were about 500 teams that had signed up to play in that tournament, and only 40 of these teams were from Arizona. This means that about 460 of these teams were from out of state, and most were from California.

Why would one or both Socal parents drive approximately 300 miles to Phoenix, spend two or three nights in a hotel, eat three meals a day in various restaurants, all to watch their child or their children play soccer? Likewise, those who were from Norcal had the same hotel and meal expenses in addition to round trip airline tickets to Phoenix? Why?

I am sure that there would be a multitude of varying answers as to the why, but in general they went because the kids wanted to play soccer . . . or perhaps, more precisely, the kids needed to play soccer.

For you see here in California, “those who know best” mandated that the kids could practice soccer, but they forbade participation in any competitive games. When I first heard of this ridiculousness, I immediately asked why myself why someone who basically appeared  to know little if anything about kids and sports would be in charge of something like this. 

What did they expect them to do?

Is this an example of simple naïveté or just plain-ass dumbness by “those that know best?” I have my opinion, but I will let you make up your own minds. 

If in two weeks there is an increase in Covid cases in California, these same dumb asses will tell us that it is because not enough of us were wearing masks indoors between bites of turkey. I doubt that we will hear anything from “those that know best” in Sacramento about the 460 youth soccer teams that they essentially forced to Phoenix. If the Phoenix youth soccer tournament is mentioned, those who went will be castigated for going by “those that know best.” 

In response, I say, “What did they expect?”

One wonders if California youth traveling out of state to play competitive  sports is limited to “soccer crazies?” Err . . . no, actually there were two youth baseball tournaments in Yuma, Az. in October and two more scheduled for December. If the youth who are into baseball cannot play games here in California, I would fully expect that California teams would travel to Yuma.


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