Popis

Sunday Pickup Game (8:7)

Early morning (7:30 AM) Sunday pickup game

It was actually a rematch from last week (2026-07-26). Again, Kondo, Martin, and I wore the same blue jerseys to be on the same team. So many players showed up that Scott had to send some to the adjacent field. We played about 11 vs 11

Poznámka

We conceded an early goal again, but Kondo equalized with a shot into an empty net. We conceded another goal, but I equalized with a shot from an angle into the empty net after Kondo's pass. Martin also got a goal when he controlled the ball with his chest and scored into the empty net (what else:). Another player on our team scored the fourth goal, but we were also conceding goals, so the first half ended 4:4. We had many players pushed up front who were doing nothing and not running, just getting in the way and wasting chances. At halftime, we discussed how to effectively cut them out of the game.

In the second half, Martin made it 5:4. They did not want to allow this goal because the defender slipped:) Martin added his third goal, and even Tony scored a goal. Tony was messing up a lot, but Kondo found a way to get him involved by addressing him directly by name. We were winning 7:4, and it looked like an easy win. But we relaxed, and they scored two goals, and suddenly it was 7:6. They were pressing us hard at that point. We defended bravely. Kondo had a lot of headers, and I cleared two long balls high into the air. Unfortunately, three attackers pushed up front were just cheering for us and not helping at all. So they equalized after the Charlie-Drew combination.

It was 7:7, and we were playing for the winning goal. A lot of players were past their lactate threshold, and on top of that, it was terribly hot (40 C). It looked like the winning goal would not come easily. During one attack, I got motivated and went forward. Tony made a good run, served the ball in front of the goal, and I scored the winning one with my left foot.