My son is a keeper and I have no idea why he likes it, to be honest. He normally doesn’t like high stress environments. He does like the physicality of it. It has taken much more work with extra training and much more mental conditioning to understand that missed goals are not always his fault - even when a-hole parents say so.
I have trouble enjoying games because I am usually stressed watching balls being kicked at his beautiful face. All in all, you have to be crazy to be a goal keeper or goal keeper parent!

Anonymous wrote:Also, it is a really important position, but other players and parents only seem to focus on it when something goes wrong vs. when the goalie does something right.

The parents of goalies are stressed, the goalies themselves thrive with what the rest of us call pressure. A goalie who is good is not only athletic, but smart. Sees the field in a way most don't, and can help guide teammates with appropriate chatter.

Anonymous wrote:How many GK parents on this forum have had their kid lit up for 8+ goals in a half or match? How did you help them deal with that? Are they still a GK now?

DD is less upset about that then when she lets it in a soft goal in a tighter game. Difference is when 8 get by her it’s because the whole team isn’t playing well and she’s had to make a dozen saves too

She got into it because the position made sense to her. It’ll sound funny, but she was never quite comfortable playing on the field. I haven’t really asked her point blank about what she enjoys about it. I’d guess the ability to see the whole game and give direction would be one part but in general just the challenge of keeping the ball out of the net

but may really

Anonymous wrote:How many GK parents on this forum have had their kid lit up for 8+ goals in a half or match? How did you help them deal with that? Are they still a GK now?

They'll know when the defense quits on them. Mine wouldn't blame herself for goals 3-8, but my really blame herself for 1 and 2 which leads to the team giving up.

Anonymous wrote:How many GK parents on this forum have had their kid lit up for 8+ goals in a half or match? How did you help them deal with that? Are they still a GK now?

I wish you could have the video of that entire game. That way you can breakdown every bad defensive play from forwards, mid fielders , and backs leading up to goal. Any coach who knows anything will be able the show the breakdowns to the team and parents to show how every kid is responsible for each of those goals.

Anonymous wrote:How many GK parents on this forum have had their kid lit up for 8+ goals in a half or match? How did you help them deal with that? Are they still a GK now?

I'm the PP above with the goalie from a different sport. My kid is very sanguine about those sorts of situations because his performance is irrelevant to the outcome. He tends to shrug and get on with his day. Maybe he will say "yeah, we sucked" after the game. Mostly he doesn't even bother. I'm not sure he cares. If it's so lopsided, he could not have affected the overall outcome. He doesn't like those games, but largely because they are tedious at that point.

The tight games where he lets one in are worse, especially if he feels he made a mistake. But even so, after an hour of playing Minecraft with friends online or putzing around with his various hobbies, he is typically fine.

How many GK parents on this forum have had their kid lit up for 8+ goals in a half or match? How did you help them deal with that? Are they still a GK now?

My kid doesn’t need others to focus on it to know playing keeper is important or if she’s doing a good job.
Also, I have always counted how many goals she stopped, and we talk about that.

And the entire field has the job of stopping goals-keeper is last resort, but for the opposing team to score means many more players than the keeper allowed it to happen. That’s the attitude her coaches have always had and the team knows it.

I think my son likes the challenge and pressure that comes with goalkeeper. When he makes a diving save to stop the game tying goal at the end, it's a real high for him, and comes with a lot of praise from the other players and spectators. The times he stopped a penalty kick are memories that will always be with him. He also likes being a central part of the game - goal kicks, direct player positioning on corners. And he doesn't need to do a lot of conditioning/running.

Anonymous wrote:It's not about identifying as a "soccer player" or not. Obviously keepers are indeed soccer players.

It's about not tying your entire identity to wins/losses or outcomes of games or having the ability to bounce back. Which can be a downfall of a gk or other position.

And you know this because you are a goalkeeper?

It's not about identifying as a "soccer player" or not. Obviously keepers are indeed soccer players.

It's about not tying your entire identity to wins/losses or outcomes of games or having the ability to bounce back. Which can be a downfall of a gk or other position.

Anonymous wrote:I think those are great points. Some people identify themselves as soccer players and play soccer. (There are adults/parents that still identify as such.) Some people play soccer by don't perceive that to be a core part of their identity. Those are the ones who can move along from a game or practice or in-game situation the easiest.

I think goalkeepers can be either one or the other. The goalkeepers who identify as soccer players and play at higher levels have some kind of crazy mental fortitude.

Yes, I think that it must be really hard to be a deeply identified soccer player, and be a keeper at the high levels.

Talented keepers who aren't so identified can rise quickly and do really well, and I wonder if it is just easier for them. I think there are pro keepers who fall in the category of "it's a way to make s living."

I think those are great points. Some people identify themselves as soccer players and play soccer. (There are adults/parents that still identify as such.) Some people play soccer by don't perceive that to be a core part of their identity. Those are the ones who can move along from a game or practice or in-game situation the easiest.

I think goalkeepers can be either one or the other. The goalkeepers who identify as soccer players and play at higher levels have some kind of crazy mental fortitude.

I read this forum because I have a kid who is a soccer fanatic, but I have another kid who is a goalie in another sport, and I think some of the same factors apply. My soccer fanatic kid could never handle being goalie because DC gets far too emotionally wrapped up in the game. But for my goalie kid, at the end of the day, he does not care as much. He is cool under pressure, and while he loves his sport and is very good at it, he sees it as just one part of his life. My soccer fanatic kid got a Danny Rojas shirt because "football is life" resonates so strongly. My goalie kid finds that mystifying.

Years ago the now-retired Vikings kicker Chris Kluwe gave an interview in which he basically said that he became an NFL kicker because it was something he could do professionally that let him spend most of his day playing video games and reading sci fi, and if this world is such that a man can earn a good living by kicking a ball for a couple of hours here and there and giving him plenty of free time otherwise, he was going to do it. That (on a small scale) is how my goalie thinks. He is not going to go pro in anything, but the mindset is similar. He has an ability to block projectiles flying at him that is entertaining for him, people seem to value, and keeps him in good shape. He thinks about it when he is playing. But outside of that, he cares more about his other hobbies, which are extensive.