Tag: football

That’s it.

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That’s it. After that result at Wembley, obviously, I’m giving up on football.

Aside from the La Liga stuff I watched yesterday after the playoff game.
And the DfB Pokal final last night.

But that really is it.

Well, I did just watch the Girona v Atletico Madrid game.
And I will be watching several (or more) Premier League games this evening after some Villareal v Sevilla.

And then maybe the Bilbao game at 9 tonight.

And that will be that.

OK, maybe the UEFA finals on Wednesday and Saturday.
That’s just dotting the i’s and crossing the t’s.

And then perhaps the FIFA Club World Cup, just because you can’t go full cold turkey. That’s dangerous.

And maybe some more English football after that, because there will be a new season to watch.

But then that’s it. I’ve learned my lesson.

Possibly.

Footy

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With a friend’s sons playing (for two different schools…!?!) at the Wynberg Freedom Cup this long pseudo-weekend, I’ve taken a couple of trips down the road to watch and support them, and enjoy some schoolboy football.

It’s not the usual thing we’re used to up at this end of town, with Rugby, Rugby, Rugby and Cricket being the standard sports of choice, and Football coming in a distant fifth (or sometimes even sixth behind Rugby). But this invitational tournament features a lot of local schools, and several from up country as well, and it’s been well-organised, well-attended and well-supported.

And because of the heavy rain yesterday morning, turning at least some of each of the seven pitches into churned up mudbaths, it very much reminded me of my own school footy. OK, maybe not quite as cold or deep, but somehow every bit as messy. Also, I don’t remember there being a vineyard at one end of our field. Or Table Mountain beyond it. But it’s been a while, and maybe I’ve just forgotten these things.

Thankfully, today dawned much more brightly, and it was almost pleasant (if rather bracing at 9oC) for the [checks notes] 7:30am kick off. Two goals for our protagonist in this one, as his side romped to a 9-0 demolition of a sleepy, lacklustre opposition. Even Oscar put one in.

The semis and finals are all on tomorrow (Saturday) if you want to go through: entry is free.
Sadly, given the actual professional football happening tomorrow, I’ll likely be watching my favourite sport at home rather than out on the touchline. But this has been a nice distraction from building work and everything else at home.

If anything, the pain is getting worse

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A surprise double header for our 5-a-side team on Tuesday night. We literally found out about the second game just as we were heading onto the pitch for the first game. And while we love playing football, a double header is never great when you are a) old and… well… that’s about it, really.

We are the oldest team in the league by some distance. Some of the guys we play against weren’t even born when our team was founded, and I’d wager that I was older than each of the opposition’s dads in our second game.

But we played well. The first game was a really tight affair. It finished 7-8, and we were incredibly unlucky not to get something out of it.

Something other than getting completely knackered, that is.

I had a family thing I needed to get to. The Chilean had a restaurant to go and manage. At least several of our players would like to have gone and drunk some beer.

But no.

It was straight onto the other court and straight back into battle.

Dead on our feet, we somehow, bewilderingly managed to get to 3-0 up at half time. But then, playing into the blinding sun and the (actually rather pleasant) breeze, their comeback came back. Before too long, it was 3-3 and the momentum was only heading one way.

Courage, belief, attitude and an unwillingness to concede again kicked in. It was all automatic: there was absolutely nothing left in our respective tanks. But we threw ourselves in front of every shot, dragged every last ounce of energy to block a run; we left everything out there.

And we got a goal just before the end.

4-3, and our first win since September (it’s complicated, ok?). And it could not be sweeter. We struggled off the pitch to a cold beer. We staggered off to our respective destinations. And then yesterday morning, we reminisced on just how good it felt to win, and just how completely broken we all were when we woke up.

Imagine my dismay then, when I awoke this morning, bright-eyed and bushy-tailed, and then tried to get out of bed. Oh my deity.

If anything, the pain is getting worse.

I’m suddenly dreading tomorrow.

About today

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I ducked out of football tonight after a weekend with an iffy viral thing. Nothing too bad – I just slept a lot. And while I’m feeling much better now, I tried a run this morning, and there’s not an awful lot of energy in the tank. Almost 30 seconds per km slower than usual, and the hills left me broken. So better to prudently withdraw, rather than try to push things too hard and give myself even more from which to recover.

I did get the opportunity to try out my new running jacket, though: this time in proper rain. Because it actually rained quite hard today. And it handled it perfectly. That Water Column Rating of 10 000 mm (I don’t know what this means) really worked well, and the Breathability: well, I know it says 10000 g/m²/24h (again, no idea how this works), but it genuinely felt so much more.

In other news, things are starting to end for the year. Exams are done (finally), piano lessons finished yesterday, art school today. The last singing lesson is on Thursday, and there are only 6 more days of school: mainly for exam paper handbacks, prizegivings, and general end of year celebrations.

We’re away for a few days at the end of next week: a place somewhere in the Swartland with a pool and a hottub and very little else, and I can’t wait. I’ll be working doubly hard in the run up to that little trip so that I can get some blog posts pre-written and ready to go, leaving my time free for relaxing and braai’ing. Some exercise wouldn’t go amiss, perhaps a spot of photography, and there might just be some olives and a wine farm or two on the cards as well, given the region’s outstanding reputation for Shiraz.

It would be rude not to.

But more on that nearer the time.

This evening: United at home to Oxford – one of my old stomping grounds. It’s going to be another late one, but I hope it’s another good one too.

Reset

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I haven’t played football in ages, and I hadn’t realised how much I missed it.

So, when the offer of a Sunday morning friendly came up – and with it, a chance to review the revamped facilities at Hellenic – I jumped at the chance.

This was a good morning, and the social afterwards only added to the fun. A real reset with some great guys. Everyone giving their utmost in the 32oC heat, but all in really good spirit.

The cold beers were never more welcome, and I can’t wait to get back to some regular games as soon as the new season starts.

In fact, all in all, it’s been a very good footballing weekend.

Related: I am BROKEN!