FAYETTEVILLE — There are always soccer conversations in my family. When your daughter plays for about 20 years all the way through college and afterward, you've seen a few matches.
There are annual trips to an MLS game, sometimes also to see the national team play. It's fun for father and daughter. Quality time is probably an understated way to summarize the trips. It's quality entertainment, food and just wonderful stuff for both.
I have seen only bits and pieces of the Arkansas' 9-1 start. It's been enough to know that this may be Colby Hale's best team. Injuries wrecked a good team last year, but it didn't keep him from putting together perhaps his best recruiting seasons, including a host of players off of a good Dallas Sting club team.
It's been a fun start that includes victories over then No. 2 Duke and last week's victory over No. 4 Florida - both at home. That has the Razorbacks ranked No. 15 in the coaches poll, great stuff for a state where soccer has long been considered to be underdeveloped. Nearby states that have MLS teams have long been ahead of Arkansas.
I've seen this in places like Tulsa that had an NASL team. Foreign players are signed, take American wives and eventually stay to build strong club programs as coaches. We saw that in Tulsa when Sarah began playing soccer at age 4.
Excuse me if I borrow her expertise as a former all-conference college player, former coach and just pure soccer fan to provide some thoughts on this Arkansas soccer team.
She watches the women's soccer team intently. Well, she watches all the soccer she can. Of course, Sarah played college soccer and was a very good Division II player.
Sarah reports to me that this is a much better attacking team. They still don't have the possession ability that teams like Duke and Florida have, but they have the ability to defend and counter. They are still very good in goal with senior Cameron Carter.
Defensively, they help Carter. They understand to drop two behind the ball on defense every time. They are much longer and taller and better in the air. They have great depth. They have more finishers. They understand how to play together and fight for each other.
They probably benefited from the weather last Friday night against Florida. The field was just barely playable because of the storms that postponed the game two hours. Florida's coach did not want to play in the conditions.
Florida has good players and one great player. The sloppy field probably negated her skill and ability to attack just enough to help Arkansas. The Razorbacks seem to adapt to these conditions and realize they had an opportunity. Florida's All-America player was frustrated by the conditions, the way Arkansas played her and eventually got a yellow card.
There was no doubt that she was out of her game because of those two situations, the field and the tough nature in which Arkansas defended against her. They played her well, luring her into a series of off-side trap calls.
I have not seen a full game. But I trust Sarah's eyes on soccer. She sees a solid cohesive defensive team with the ability to counter and finish. There are lots of ways to play soccer. Sometimes it's about realizing your identity.
What I've seen about Hale, he can mold a team that plays with great work ethic. Work ethic will take you a long way in soccer. I have watched some of his practices. He demands effort. If he doesn't get it, he'll re-start practice or a drill until he gets it.
The culture of the team is to out-work the other side. You will like watching the effort in the girls.
Hale has done a nice job of adding size, speed and ability to the program. He recruited six players off of a very good Dallas Sting team last year. These girls know each other and have blended well with the returning players. Like I said, there is great cohesion in the way they play and the fact that these freshmen have been around each other for many years probably plays a role in that.
The fast start with a victory over Duke in the third game was huge to build confidence. Lewisville, Texas, freshman Stefani Doyle, one of the Sting players, scored the game winner in the Duke game and had four goals in the first three games.
Kayla McKeon, another Sting freshman from Garland, Texas, has six goals and one assist. Claire Kelley of Tulsa has one goal and seven assists.
What makes this team a little different is that they have more finishers. They do not have dominant possession players throughout the midfield, but they will work to win the ball back. And when there is a chance, they don't miss.
They have put the ball on frame 77 times. That's a lot. It can be frustrating to watch shot after shot go high or wide in soccer, not on frame. You don't see that from this team.
They put it on goal and make the keeper stop them. I seems like a little thing, but it's not. Putting a shot on frame is the most difficult thing to do in soccer. When you have players that can put a shot on frame, you are way ahead of the opposition.
The Razorbacks, 2-0 in SEC play, hit the road this week for two conference games. They play at Alabama on Thursday, then visit Ole Miss on Sunday.
Their next home match is Friday, Sept. 30 against Georgia.
If you are a soccer fan, it will be worth checking out.