… but just barely. We scored to tie with just a minute left, after we had trailed for almost all of the game.
Our main goalkeeper Carlos was indeed injured from last week’s late-game cleat-massage by an opponent, and that became my job. And we were missing a number of good players. Quickly we were down 2-0. The first goal I had little chance on. It was a close-in scramble in the box, the ball came onto an opponent’s foot and he drilled it into the open side before I could even react. Shortly after, they scored another on a beautiful curling corner kick that squeezed in under the cross-bar. I might have gotten to it, but one of my own players blocked me on the line trying to head it out and I had to let up.
Maybe a third of the way into the second half, we finally scored, and now it was more of a game. Whereas the other team was all over us in the first half, we were now pressing. Half way though the second half, we had a water-break. I sat down against one goal-post and had some water as the teams walked off the field. It was a beautiful evening, and I had the warm summer sun on my face. I closed my eyes, turned into it, and then mentally said a short prayer and spiritual blessing that has served me very well in the past. I sat there completely relaxed for over a minute, soaking in the sunshine, until the whistle finally blew and the game was on again.
For the next little while after the break, the other team hit the cross-bar, missed a few close-in shots, and I made a couple of tricky saves. And then a miscue by my defenders. There was another scramble in the box and the ball had squirted in behind two defenders. I called for them to leave it and almost reached it, but one of them tried to clear it and instead turned it over to an opponent. I was out of position and it was an easy goal. Now it was 3-1 and not looking good.
But we kept pressing and getting excellent opportunities – missing many good ones. I was able to make another key save on a re-direction off a header that came in hard right at me on the line. Finally, with about 7 or 8 minutes left, one of our players broke through, deked around a defender and scored a nice left-foot goal from a sharp angle. But he injured himself on the play and had to leave the field. We were now additionally down a player. All the while, knowing we were running out of time, whenever the ball was kicked out near the goal, I ran hard to fetch it, whether it was a goal kick for me or a corner kick for the opposition. And then it all came down to the last minute. One of our players crossed the ball from the left side of the field over to the right forward, Pat. Pat brought it down, took it in deeper, and then shot toward the goal. But he shanked it a little and it popped high, floating towards the far goal-post, and also carried by the wind. Another forward, Victor, was running hard toward goal, reached the ball just as it was about drift out of bounds and headed it beautifully down just inside the post. Game over.
Although I had way more miscues and messy moments than I would have liked, it was satisfying to make enough key saves to keep the team in the game, and at least finally salvage the draw. It was a good, clean game, without the usual bitching and complaining from either side or any chippiness. And you couldn’t have asked for a lovelier summer evening.
Cheers,
Allocator
a.k.a. George Parkanyi
