Handball sux!

I know this blog is supposed to be about soccer, but I feel the need to digress to handball.

This season my siblings and I decided to try indoor handball. How hard can it be? we asked. It looks easy enough we said. Well, after the first match we realised it really wasn't, although I maintain indoor soccer is harder fitness-wise (is that a word??).

Since our first few disasterous matches, my brother and his girlfriend piked, leaving Cameron and I, Amanda and Tom and another Cam. We also managed to rope in another player, Daphne. We have been getting better, but we still suck.

We probably needed to consider that none of us really plays arm sport. Well, apart from Tom and his friend Cam. I certainly don't, and knowing my problems with arm/leg coordination I should have heard the warning buzzer in my head screaming THIS IS A BAD IDEA!! I normally fall down at least once because my body rejects the use of arms as a legitimate ball passing/scoring method.

It doesn't help that the game has bizzare rules, like when you shoot and miss, hitting the back net, the goalie gets the ball. So rebounds are out. And goalkeeping is really, well, lucky. It's not like soccer, when you have some chance of stopping the ball. In handball, all being goalie means is that you get hit more often, and when you score, it's worth more points.

Incidently, if you are keeper, you can't score from inside the circle. New rule I learned tonight.

Most of the girls that play are netballers. Not that there is anything wrong with that, but people who know me realise that I have issues with netball. Mostly just that it exists. The only reason that I can see for it existing is that I get to laugh at the boys that play mixed netball and take it seriously. And that side of netball is balanced out by the girls that choose to play in the equivalent of french knickers. Honestly. There is a difference between can and should.

Ok, so back to the netballers. I have only elbowed one of them, but gee, they can be annoying. All that jumping in your face and pulling the ball out of your hands. I just don't understand it. I try not to laugh, but they paralyse me with confusion. By the time I remember to move, they are normally pulling the ball out of my hands or waving their arms in my face. Grr. A good shoulder and they'd be taken care of, but of course, handball is non-contact. Another point against it.

Handball is also taking a heavy toll in terms of injuries. I hurt my arm playing in the 2nd week (although that was thru not being able to throw more than anything else). Cameron has had his head split open and nose bruised, and now Amanda has hurt her finger (I saw hurt because it's 2230 and the x-ray will happen tomorrow). Honestly, where will it stop?

Probably next season, when we sensibly stick to a game we are good at - kicking.

I don't think we will be playing again, but if anyone out there is a budding handball player, please join us on Monday nights. There's still time to win a match or two - hell, we'd take a quarter!!