“A good coach will make his/her players see what they can be,” said Ara Parseghian, an american football player and coach for the Notre Dame Fighting Irish. Ara is trying to tell us that a coach will show the player who they become if they work hard enough. My soccer coach, Matt Fimmen, not only showed me what I can be if I work hard enough, but he also pushed me to work harder. He assisted me to where I strive to be. Matt Fimmen is the coach that has impacted me the most. The three ways that he has impacted me are that he was my first ever soccer coach, he moved me up to JV in eighth grade, and he taught me a valuable life lesson.

We all know that when the player first signs up for a sport, the first coach may not be the best coach or your favorite coach. That’s not how it was for soccer. One morning, my mom came up to me and said that she got an email from Sue Safe, Danny’s mom, saying that Danny would like to see if I would like to try summer soccer with him. I said,“Why not?” and I got myself signed up. Later that week, I check the team rosters and Danny and I were on the same team. Our team color was red. I check the coach slot and it said Matt. I was kind of hesitant because I’ve heard that name before but I’ve never met him before. I haven’t been on a soccer team since I was around five years old, so I didn’t know what it was going to be like. I showed up to practice and I met Matt. My parents and Matt talked while I went over and hung out with Danny. After they were done talking, Matt came over and we started practice. I knew that practicing consisted of drills that usually are boring and slow, but he actually made them exciting and competitive. We had a game later that night and we won. Throughout the season, Matt made the games fun to win and he made me look forward to practices. Going on to postseason games was fun because we got to kick some butt. We also created a name for our team color, and that was the big red shed. The idea behind the name was that no one could tear the shed down, it was indestructible. The championship game came up, and it was a close one, but we ended up with the win. Matt knew what potential I had and he guided me throughout the season with using my skills. After our championship game, my family went up to him and thanked him for how much time he has given into making soccer enjoyable for me and my team. This has impacted me a lot as a person because Matt gave me a newfound appreciation for soccer. I then wanted to try out for school soccer. I signed up and played for the Bombers Junior High soccer team.

So, eighth grade fall sport sign ups come up and I sign up for in season soccer. We have one week of tryouts and then on the last day, which is usually a Friday, they announce the eighth graders that get moved up to JV.

Throughout the week of tryouts, only six eighth graders came to try out, which increased my odds a ton. Friday came up super fast. They announced that the JV players from 8th grade would be Nate, Isaiah, Jed, Hayden, and Gavin. I was so happy that I made it and I was super stoked to have Matt as a coach again. Since I knew Matt made soccer enjoyable, I was eager for what Matt had to offer. We get to our first day of practice and it was a blast. JV was one of the most fun teams I’ve ever been on. I asked Matt why he pulled me up to JV, and he said that he has seen what I’ve done on and off the field. We set a lot of personal school soccer records, and that made Matt and the team proud; although, we didn’t do the best that season.

Then the season comes to an end, and so yet again I wait another year for soccer to start up. Soccer comes up August of twenty-seventeen, and we hop right back into the swing of things. Game day came against PIZM, Pine Island Zumbrota Mazeppa, and we were ready. The game went a little bit later than expected, so it got a little darker. The game ended and we lost two to one. We walked over to shake hands with the other team. After we went through them and the ref, their coach came over to us and started ranting at us saying that we were stupid on thinking that we could’ve kept playing. Then nicely, Matt tells him that both team’s players could see. He also said that most importantly, the ref could see. The ref also came over and said that condition was playable. After their coach walks away, Matt turns to us and says that school will never have a coach like that for any sports. A coach should never complain at anything, especially if they are winning or already won the game. Matt said that no matter what, he will always be a caring, smart, and supportive coach, and that he will never let his madness get to him like it did to the other coach. What has impacted me is Matt taught me the life lesson that no matter what, any coach cares for his player. They will go to far lengths just to help the player get better and to protect your school name and colors. Any good coach will also show their team colors proudly. We ended off the season well and with a goodbye from our goalie, Caleb, who has moved away to Illinois.

Matt has been a great coach throughout these past few years, and he has impacted me in three ways. My first year, he taught me how to love and have a passion for the game. Next, he moved me up to JV and he showed me my potential and how to use it in the game. Finally, he taught me a very important lesson that goes for any sport. Coaches do actually care. They want to help their team be better players. They will go to extreme lengths to accomplish their goal. What is so important to me is that these things not only apply to my sports, they apply to my daily life. The lessons and impacts that Matt has given me not only affect soccer, but they also affect what I do in my daily life for at home, at school, at events, etc. Now Matt will still have me as a player next season, and he will keep shoving me that extra mile, he will keep me on my feet. He does these things that he signed up for because he is a coach.  Coaches have that one main goal and they will complete it. Matt has made my life a little bit easier through these impacts. Now I know what to do in different situations because he has taught me what to do through these impacts. He gave me an easy way to look out at life. Do you want an easier way to look at life?