The Times - Serving Waitsburg, Dayton and the Touchet Valley

Prescott High School Principal and acting WP combine AD Jody Thew anticipates that this soccer season will be another successful one for the Tigers, who had a magical first year as a WP combine program in 2010.

We hope she turns out to be right. But judging from preseason preparations so far, we have some reservations about this prediction.

Last year, the program was headed by Rick Hamilton, a very experienced soccer coach, who knew how to take the raw talent many of the players had developed since childhood playing pickup games, street soccer and later club soccer, and turn it into a well-disciplined scoring machine that beat one opponent after another.

He was aided in this effort by a junior but nonetheless experienced local soccer coach, Bart Baxter, who was almost a second parent to many of the players and knew how to inspire them emotionally.

Hamilton wanted to stay on with the combine, but needed full-time work in the form of complementary teaching and coaching assignments which the district was unable to offer him.

It's hard to fill the shoes of a veteran coach like Hamilton, even for the likes of a solid assistant coach like Baxter. But at least the combine had a choice between Baxter, who was popular and effective with the kids, and another candidate, teacher Mark Grimm, who ended up with the job and whom we mean no disrespect.

But in our opinion, the combine opted for the less qualifi ed of the two.

Even though Grimm has other coaching experience, he does not know soccer and reportedly has never coached it. Grimm, who is supported in his role by assistant coach Jay Potts, is said to have asked the young players themselves about some of the fundamental rules of the game.

It is true that the combine only recently appointed Grimm as head coach and that he hasn't had all that much time to prepare. However, players have noted to an observer in their soccer community that Grimm is struggling with the challenge of how to best train them for the season and that they have become dispirited by what they see as a lack of proper training guidance in a highly specialized sport.

Thew said Grimm is also one of the players' academic teachers and therefore a good choice in helping them keep up their grades during the year, an important requirement for participation.

She would not elaborate further on the school's selection of Grimm over Baxter.

Last year, Baxter made himself available to help Hamilton assist the players in their homework after school last year and thus keep up their grades, doing so without formal teaching qualifications but with apparent success.

Fewer players signed up for the sport this year and even fewer have been showing up for practice, at least in part because the students who live at Vista Hermosa are still wrapping up their club soccer season.

In 2010, however, the two coaches worked directly with the club coaches to make sure the players could use their school soccer practice to stay in shape for the club games so they could still get ready in time for the season.

Hamilton and Baxter also made sure the Tigers' soccer field was in tiptop shape. A Times reporter who made an attempt to interview Grimm discovered the field was hard and the grass was poorly watered right next to the healthy looking ball fields.

Thew said one of the sprinkler lines broke and the problem is being addressed. Meanwhile, we hope the dry conditions of the field do not lead to injuries during the practice of a sports in which falling and sliding occur regularly.

We also hope that the contrast between this year's preseason preparations and last year's doesn't reflect dwindling support from the districts for a sports program that has opened a door for many students who weren't attracted to high school athletics before and now have an incentive to perform better academically to keep playing.

We feel the combine needs to do everything it can to give these students the best possible training and resources to build on last year's historic first season.