Sgt. Largent":1j9w6r5a said:
Uncle Si":1j9w6r5a said:
I'm sure the women not diving has very little to do with their athletic or acting ability.
They don't dive because its not a part of the women's soccer culture. It may become. But it's not right now. I wouldn't look for reasons. I coach lot's of girls. It's just not part of how they play. The less they see it at the higher levels the less inclined they will be to mimic it as they grow older
As a coach you should be more inclined to appreciate it for what it is.
I do see diving with my girls, but like I said 90% of them aren't good at it, so they don't even try.
I know it's a dirty little secret in the sport of soccer, but diving is an acquired skill that takes a player decades to master. Guys like Ronaldo and Suarez aren't amazing divers because they were born with that skill. They've been perfecting the art of diving since they were probably 8 years old.
The women's game just hasn't had enough time for it's players to master diving. I'm sure if you go back to men's professional soccer in the 40's and 50's, you'd hardly see any diving, if at all. That's kinda where the women's game is now as far as diving is concerned.
I'm a bit surprised by your take on it.
The girl's dont try because it's not in their mindset to try. It's not part of their soccer DNA. It's not that they are limited physically. They don't approach the game the way in which the men do. you see it in a lot of different aspects. I have a few on my team that try and dive. many don't. Why? because the two that do are good at it? Or because they think its part of their game while the other's don't? (and to be clear, this is simulation/diving, not going down under contact.)
Why don't the women take on defenders like Messi and Ronaldo? Because they haven't mastered the art? Or because they play a different way?
If you go back to the Men's game in the 40s and 50s you won't see diving because the game was far more physical. It was played differently. Contact was more acceptable. It was more viscous. Diving wouldn't get you anything (except a stamp) The game has changed. its more free flowing, more fluid, "prettier." Today, players feel it gives them an advantage. They didn't adopt it because they were learning.
and it's not as difficult as you're making it out to be. It's not "acquired"... some guys just do it. most do not. It's a mental choice as to how they view the game and their role in it.
Playing through college we all "could" dive. Some of us did. Most of us didn't bother. Why? Because it wasn't how we approached the game.
You're trying to find a timeline reflective of the men's sport without acknowledging the key differences in the way the game is played between the sexes, between the continents, and between the ages. If you approach your coaching this way you are greatly impeding your own ways to make your team (your daughter) better.
Just my opinion. the sport can be rooted in traditionalist nonsense and ignorance. I could go on for days.
My thought on the way in which the women approach the game is they recognize the strengths of their merits over deceit.