บท 161: Soccer 2
"Mmm, alright. I need to digest my food anyways before I head back to the dormitory to take a nap." Ming accepted his invite. In his heart, he was curious to watch Ming Yue Guang coach little kids anyways.
"Perfect. let us set off now." With a grin, Yue Guang gestured for Ming to follow him.
The pair took the bus and headed off to the Sports Park.
When they reached, Ming Yue Guang was already on the soccer pitch awaiting the arrival of his little juniors. He had been training them diligently for the past 6 months and today was the last game before his Head Coach comes back from his operation. It was a sad day for the children as seen from their faces.
There is a saying that children are not born liars. It was evident that they were rather down and sad that Yue Guang would be leaving their side soon. Ever since the University student had joined their little league team as a coach, the practice sessions and drills were all filled with fun and laughter. Ming Yue Guang would try his best to interact with the children and make sure that everyone was cared for and included in every training. It wasn't that the previous old coach was bad but more that the coach was in charge of multiple teams and wasn't able to give his full attention to the children.
"Coach Ming, can you please not go?" A little boy who had a cute bald head asked in a depressed tone. His nickname on the soccer team was Monkey. Usually, he was as playful and loud as a monkey, yet today, the boy wasn't being himself. Many of the children here were the same as Monkey. They were all unwilling to part with their young coach.
"Guys come on…" Ming Yue Guang looked at the group of children that had lost their spirit. They looked like they had lost the Little Leagues tournament. The young coach had to do something to bolster their morale. "It is not like I will be gone forever. Even when the old coach is back, I promise I will come back to visit, okay?"
"But that is not the same anymore." One of the children complained.
"Yeah, I know it is not the same. However, didn't you boys say that you wanted to become like coach?"
"Yes.." All of the children here aspired to become like Ming Yue Guang. They had seen his skills before and had tried to challenge him in a soccer 1 vs 1. Obviously, Yue Guang triumphed over them all.
"Then do you remember what is the coach's most important virtue?"
"Honesty." Everyone said together in a low tone.
"I can't hear you!"
"Honesty!!!"
"Since you know that, has coach ever lie to you?"
"No!"
"Then why are all of you guys so unhappy?" Ming Yue Guang gave off a warm loving smile, "I already promised that I will come back to visit, didn't I? Not only that, this being my last game, would you like to send me off with a smile or a frown?"
"Smile!"
"Then turn that frown upside down and head onto the field to do some warmup!" With quick wits and thinking, Ming Yue Guang was able to rally together the children and got them all hyped up for the match. Their frowns disappeared and they were more or less behaving like their usual selves."
Ming had been watching the whole scene unfold before his eyes. His eyes never left Ming Yue Guang. There was a sort of magnetism in his voice that kept Ming attracted. The way he treated the children was extremely honest and real. There wasn't any sugar coating. When Ming Yue Guang came back to the stands to drink water, he noticed that Ming's gaze never really left him.
"You saw everything that happened just now, didn't you?" Yue Guang asked.
"Yes. I can see that the children really love you."
"Haha, really? I'm sure any coach would be able to attain their love if they put in more time and effort into getting to know them."
"Maybe. Maybe not. You were the coach that gained their respect and gaining respect from children is already one of the biggest compliments anyone can attain." Ming watched as the little boys kick the balls from one side of the half-court field to the other.
"Thank you for that comment, Ming. I just see myself in these children and would think to myself what would I have wanted as a kid." After drinking water, Ming Yue Guang ran off onto the field, "Hey, I'll be leading the warm-up for 15 minutes. So you can just sit in the stands and wait for me to return."
"Alright." Ming smiled and nodded. After the warmup, Ming Yue Guang blew his whistle to gather the children up. There were passion and vigor in his gestures. The aura of an inspiring leader. All of the children gave their undivided attention as they listened to his strategies and who would be playing in the first half of the game.
When the match was about to start, the children who were not playing and Ming Yue Guang left the field, while the rest of the little league players were in position for the game. The referee blew his whistle and the match begin. Watching from the sidelines, Ming realized that he was the only one sitting down on the bench.
All the children were standing up and screaming their lungs out, cheering for their soccer mates. On the other hand, Ming Yue Guang was gesturing and shouting out instructions for the players on the field. Only now did Ming realize that being a coach was just as tiring as being on the soccer field as a player. It was interesting to see Yue Guang run up and down by the sidelines so that the children could hear and understand his instructions clearly.
By the tenth minute, the boy nicknamed Monkey scored for the team. Ming Yue Guang jumped in the air and cheered ecstatically. The mood from earlier on was long forgotten by the children playing in the match and now, they were just having fun and being themselves. Only at the end of the game did reality seep in little by little. Although many of the kids stayed strong till the very end, there were still several others that started crying at the thought that their coach was leaving their sight.
"Guys… There is no need to cry. Come here." With open arms, the children flocked into Yue Guang's embrace. Ming watched as the big brother comforted all of his little brothers. Eventually, the crying had infected other children and even Yue Guang couldn't help, but tear up a little. It was an emotional morning. On the way over to the Sports Park, Yue Guang had purchased a box of Jelly drinks for the children to drink on the way home. With one last sweet goodbye, Ming Yue Guang left the Little Leagues team. The young man came in as a coach but left as a big brother.
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