The Things That I Learned from the New Year League

Last Sunday was the finals for the New Year League for ultimate frisbee. We lost a very critical game (against Team Jogadores). Sigh…

But the game last Sunday was the one where I really leveled up.

I have the throwing skills to be a handler. Well, that’s what the Class A boys (Blue and Sher) and girls (Nina) told me last Sunday. Ever since I started playing disc, my comfort zone was really in running, defense and catching. I’m only half-confident with my throwing skills. Truthfully, I was both shocked and scared at last Sunday’s game when the team captain announced that I’m going to be one of the handlers.

Very thankful ako to Sher for the tips on how to act and move as a handler. He literally crammed me into the role, giving me pep talks and coaching me at every opportunity that I was off-field. It’s really a great feeling for me when he told me in one of his pep talks that I have the talent for handling. My next step should be not to hesitate to throw. Nina said the same thing to me: ”Magaling ka magbato. Kayang-kaya mo yung pwesto (as handler).”

Talk about team pressure.

Babad din ako sa field. Out of the 13 points played, I was in there for ten points. From my last league participation, I would have expected that I’d be down on my backside suffering from leg cramps and sore muscles by the end of the day. Amazingly, my overall condition was still okay after the game.

Despite all our team’s efforts, we lost that critical game 7-6. I have this feeling at the back of my head that I could have prevented that loss --- there was this one goal scored by the opposing team that I could have prevented if I kept to the basic rule of never leaving your eyes off your opponent. I made the crucial mistake of stealing a glance at where the disc will be coming from, and the next thing I knew is that the man I’m defending has already bolted away from me towards the goalzone.

Next time around, I commit myself to playing better.
Perfect the basics.
Remove my hesitations.
Practice.
Practice.
Practice.

And as always, have fun.