Winter Sport

The World Cup is approaching. I have embraced my inner nerd and have created a fantasy league. http://tippingandfantasy.wwos.com.au/FANTASYWORLDCUP. Follow this link and get involved in the competition entitled The Rosebud Chalice and the magic password is wedonttrain. For your perusal I have posted a write up that I had done previously for our little Pub League soccer team. While I am only quasi familiar with the nomenclature of soccer, what I lacked in specific expertise I made up for in enthusiasm and undulating sentences. 

I send out my most sincere apologies for the lateness of this match report, but I felt I dearly needed the extra two weeks to learn the actual aim of the mythical game known as soccer. I’m not really familiar with the jargon of soccer nevertheless I will regale you with the tale of our journey to the realm of Warilla, the home of the as yet undefeated competition leaders, The Lake View Lakers. Upon arrival at what turned out to be quite a picturesque field, tucked away in the suburban madness, we were greeted with a crime scene involving police tape and one of those crime scene chalk lines that you usually see on crime shows on telly when someone has gone and died. Was this a good sign from the football gods? To think that shells had been raining down the previous night the way that some had predicted powerful and precise shots were set to rain down on Drew’s closely guarded net once we had heard news of their previous wins of 11 and 12 nil. Despite these somewhat foreboding omens we decided to press on.

We underwent out weekly training session of passing and shooting wildly over and around the goals 2 minutes prior to the start of the game and were then primed to begin. The Ref came over and introduced himself and offered a sporting gesture of some pregame small talk, including a spiel about us all just being there for a bit of fun. I instantly took this with mistrust and an indication of him being terribly inept at refereeing, which was soon proved accurate as he actually interpreted one of Nicks throws as legal. We Kicked off an quickly the Lakers demonstrated why they were feared for their combinations across the leisure coast pub league, linking passes and beating out defenders seemingly at will. 

However, as has become somewhat of a tradition for the Rose Buds, we lifted to meet the tempo of the opposition and began shralping some of our own passes together. If there were any chicks present, it’s safe to say they would have been digging it. During these stages it was the skills of ring in hellman Duane and the presence of Frenchy that really stood out and kept us well and truly in the game. Drew as usual was kept busy, not due to a lack of enthusiasm from our defenders, but through the speed of their rippo striker (kind of this Lakers version of Kobe Bryant) and in keeping with his reputation he was up to every assignment. However, after a plethora of close calls the aforementioned striker finally put one away.

Showing the fighting spirit usually reserved for semi final matches, the knowledge and vision of Sammy and Satch, the power of Hanni and Marshall, the speed of the McMullen duo and the determination and crisp passing of Ballsy and Knot Head the Rosebuds enjoyed a period of sustained dominance, where myriad chances were created and culminated in a certain goal bound shot being stopped by the hands of one of the defenders who happened not to be wearing the goalies jersey. I do not know much about soccer, yet I am certain that this is breaking at least one of the fundamental rules that the game is built upon and should be at least punished by a penalty. However the Ref waved play on and amid our protests the Lakers counter attacked and scored almost immediately. This sparked further protests as our defenders maintained the linesman aka their coach, had missed a blatant off side, though I am in no position to judge on this, as this rule is far more complex and beyond my knowledge of the game.

Soon after the halftime whistle was blown and after some oranges and inspirational words from Captain Camo the Peg Leg, we were back out there and sure we were not out of it. The second half was more of the same, with both teams dominating for periods and having their share of chances. Declan Fetta and Liam continued on their strong form from the first half and in my mind were the two stand out performers of the day, making crucial interceptions and offering clean service that built the foundations of our counter attacks. The pivotal moment of the half, possibly even the game, came from a well-directed corner from the boot of Sammy. It curled in nicely and beat the keeper and in the scramble that followed the ball hit both posts and, in the minds of every Rosebud in the vicinity, crossed the line. Once again the ref saw differently and the Lakers keeper claimed the ball, practically from the back of the net. 

And so the score remained two goals to nil at the final whistle. The Rosebuds had travelled away to the league leaders and while we had been beaten, we had certainly not been broken and will be able to build on the positives taken out of this strong performance.