Talking futbol ... and football

Steve Michael is in his 11th season as Timberlake High girls soccer coach, and first season as the Tigers’ boys soccer coach.

Both at the same time.

So far, so good.

“I’m having fun; I’m having a blast with it,” Michael said.

Most of the school’s games are girl/boy doubleheaders, so it just makes for a little longer day on the pitch. On the rare occasions the teams play in separate towns on the same day — like on Tuesday, when the boys were home against Lakeland, and the girls traveled to St. George’s — Michael has to make a decision which team to stay with.

The teams practice at the same time, on adjoining fields at Timberlake Junior High. Michael usually positions himself between the two fields, and steps in when necessary. Boys assistant Ron Rojas and girls assistant Sierra Michael, Steve’s daughter and a former Timberlake player, do much of the coaching in practice.

“So far we’ve been successful — not because of me, but because of the assistants,” Steve Michael said.

He said things could get interesting at districts, when both teams could be playing at the same time, on different fields.

Same with state.

What would he do?

“What a great problem that would be,” he said.

TWO WEEKS before Post Falls was to have an open date in football, the Trojans found a team to play that week.

At least, they thought they did.

Post Falls agreed to travel to 2A Fife (Wash.) on Sept. 28. Fife suddenly had an opening on its schedule for that week, as a league foe was not able to field a team that week, said Post Falls athletic director Craig Christensen, who saw on the WIAA web site that Fife was seeking a game that week.

The Trojans tweeted out the schedule update on Friday.

On Wednesday, Post Falls tweeted out the game was canceled. Christensen said Fife (2-1), citing injuries and low numbers, opted to cancel.

So Post Falls will go back to having a bye next week, and play an eight-game schedule in the regular season. Most teams in Idaho play nine, though Coeur d’Alene also has an open date next week, and will play eight games.

All of Post Falls’ other eight games are in the first year of a two-year, home-and-home deal — the Fife game would have been a one-year deal.

Which means Christensen will be looking for another team to fill that open date in late September next season.

NONE OF the current players were even in school yet when St. Maries’ girls soccer team made its first — and only — appearance in the state tournament, in 2005.

Since then, there were some lean years, where the Lumberjacks either didn’t have enough players to field a team, or had to cancel during the season because of a shortage of numbers.

These days, St. Maries is off to a 5-3-2 start, and has dreams of making it back to state.

Last week, St. Maries played defending state champion Coeur d’Alene Charter tough in a 3-0 loss — against a team that has routinely scored double-figure goals against other opponents.

“I tell you what, I was so happy with that game,” first-year St. Maries coach Kenny Osier said. “I came away from that one feeling like we won. To hold Charter to 3 is really an accomplishment.”

Osier kept the score close by packing in his defense, and having just one player up top.

Osier is aware the road to state will be difficult — St. Maries will likely have to beat either Charter or Timberlake to get there.

“We’re not giving up; I’m really hoping to get these girls to get to state,” Osier said. “We have 12 seniors and they’ve worked hard. They deserve a chance to go; I hope I can get ’em there.”

In a one-game deal, Osier thinks his ’Jacks could have a shot at knocking off either of those teams.

“You just never know who’s going to have a great game, and who’s going to be a little off,” Osier said.

Mark Nelke is sports editor of The Press. He can be reached at 664-8176, Ext. 2019, or via email at mnelke@cdapress.com. Follow him on Twitter@CdAPressSports.