My son and wife ventured into my FLGS before the holidays, and surprised me with this little gem on Christmas morning.

I had actually been considering the game, as my 10-yr-old son has played soccer for a few years now, but the lack of info on the Geek and the low rating made me a little leary.

I'm happy to report that the game offers just what it promises, a fast-paced game that captures a lot of the feel of the game.

When I finally tore him away from the Wii long enough to play, I still hadn't read through the rules, but luckily it was not a problem, as the rules are simple, straightforward and intuitive, leading you through the flow of the game step-by-step.


After a practice kick-off, we were confident that we had the rules, and decided to play a 60 minute game of two 30 minute halves. The practice kick-off taught us that the included electronic timer (very cool!!) is better used for in-game play, so we set the timer on the microwave to 30 minutes and took to the field.

He kicked off, and using advancing techniques that made the coach in me proud, he scored on his first drive, making two direct kicks and winning every battle that occurred.

After his initial score, I decided to play a little more aggressively, and made a quick drive at the goal. My drive was good, but my shot was blocked, and resulted in a goal kick, which allowed him to roll 2d6.

the ball sailed over the half line where my defenders were woefully unprepared for his attack. Luckily he spun a corner kick on his score attempt, so I was able to pull three pawns from anywhere to help block the kick. I placed them in places where he had pawns, hoping to thwart his direct pass attempts. It worked, but he still won the battle and spun again for a score!

Down 2–0, I rolled a 6 on my kick-off sending the ball deep into his territory where I had no chance of recovering it. He had a low roll though, and I recovered mid field and advanced in for a score from the "long range" position (marked by the stars on the board).

It was back and forth for the remainder of the first half, with no further scoring.

The second half saw him scoring 3 more to my 1.

Final score, me: 2, my son: 5.

But it was a good time, and I can't wait for the re-match!

Some of my thoughts after the game:
The game features an 8-space spinner in the middle of the board to determine whether or not you score on a drive. I thought this was a little silly and prefer the included scoring dice that accomplishes the same thing, but my son liked the spinner, and the spinner liked him.

My favorite part of the game, is how quickly it moves.
If you're not familiar with how game play works, I'll briefly explain.
If you are on offense, you first roll a d6 and move one of your pawns (one that doesn't have possession of the ball).
This simulates the moving into passing position that I tried so hard as a coach to drill into the heads of my players.

Then you roll a d6 for ball movement. If you can get the ball to one of your pawn's spaces, it's a direct kick, and you immediately roll the d6 again for another ball movement.

If the ball goes to an empty square, you roll a d6 and try to move a pawn to the ball. (They have to arrive by exact count, and can only change direction 1 time.)

Regardless of the results, the defense rolls a d6 and tries to get a pawn to the ball. If 2 both teams end up at the ball there is a battle.

In a battle, both players roll a d6, highest roll wins and gets possession.

Now where the game really shines fro me is with the timer. The very nice electronic timer that comes with the game isn't just shiny chrome, it's a necessity to get the most out of this game.

Once you roll a d6 to move a pawn or the ball, the clock starts, and you only have 60 seconds to decide which pawn moves where, or where the ball is going.

60 seconds sounded like a whole lot to me, but believe me it goes fast when you're trying to figure out how to get your pawns in the best position or get a pawn to the ball.

This time limit makes the game truly exciting and creates a real sense of tension. After a couple of times of both of us running out of time and not getting to move a pawn, we threw analysis paralysis to the wind and just started making more gut-level decisions, which is far more realistic in a game about a fast-moving sport.


Conclusions
This game is fun!
I NEVER liked sports or sports games until I had kids and starting getting involved through them. I still wouldn't consider my self a sports fan, but I am a fan of this game.
It is simple and fast, so I don't have to "dumb it down" or house rule it to be able to play with kids or non-gamers, but there is still enough tactics and decision making that adults aren't quickly bored with it.

I was a little nervous at first about playing a 60-minute game, and even considered playing a 30 (2 15 minute halves), but the game never drags, so a 60-90 minute game is not unreasonable even if you are playing with kids.

The rules offer a couple variants, including a version that gives a + to the defenders die roll when battling for the ball. I like that concept, so I'm anxious to play with that variant next time.

I rate this game a solid 8/10, and can't help but think that the game's low rating is more a reaction to the manufacturer's initial resistance to BGG rather than a reflection on the quality of the game.

If you are a fan of soccer, or have kids who enjoy soccer, this is a fast, fun game to get you through the off season.