Soccer and US Top Athletes

[Yankee_Vol]

Originally Posted by rockytop9808

No hockey players argument here?

Not even close

[trevols81]

Aerobically, it is very close between soccer and basketball players if we are discussing who are the better athletes.

[rockytop9808]

Good hockey players play several shifts at a full sprint with contact for well over 20 combined minutes/game, coupled with an 82 game season. Not to mention they're required to have outstanding balance, which should be a metric for athleticism.

I don't know that I'd cut them out instantly.

[Hayezb]

Originally Posted by n_huffhines

Not really true. In soccer defenders and strikers get tons of breaks. It's not like they're running all the time. They are frequently standing around, or taking light jogs. Hopefully your centerbacks are only sprinting a few times per game. Everybody on the court needs to be pretty active at all times, both offensively and defensively. That's not true on the pitch.

If your team is good at possessing the ball, then yes, center backs do have moments of standing around. But not the defense as whole. I played outside back in club/college and that is not true for that position.

While some lazy forwards do tend to stand around, it's not the case on most teams. Forwards need to be constantly checking back to help on D and receive the ball from the midfield.

[n_huffhines]

Originally Posted by Hayezb

If your team is good at possessing the ball, then yes, center backs do have moments of standing around. But not the defense as whole. I played outside back in club/college and that is not true for that position.

While some lazy forwards do tend to stand around, it's not the case on most teams. Forwards need to be constantly checking back to help on D and receive the ball from the midfield.

Everybody gets opportunities to stand around (midfielders not so much). It's not just lazy players. My team, RSL, pushes their outside backs upfield all the time, but they still get chances to stand around and catch their breath frequently. If Beltran has the ball on the right side, the other outside back, Wingert, is walking/trotting basically until they swing the ball to him, or turn it over.

[orange parmejohn]

where do rugby players fit in?