I am officially in ranks with the world's worst bloggers. When I took the summer off from pursuing my business degree, I forgot how to write. I owe a couple of album reviews, a recap and some thanks for everyone who supported our
Relay for Life fundraising efforts, and there is a host of other topics I have neglected. So what do I do now, in the middle of trying to pay the household bills? I decide to write about football.
Everyone who knows me personally knows I have jumped into the world of soccer - and I do mean the whole world - headfirst, never bothering to come up for air. This leap can be tracked back to my lovely friend Ian. But truth be told, it is
Jeremy Clarkson's fault. When you meet new friends, laughing over
Top Gear escapades, you never know what it may lead to. For me, it lead to
Liverpool FC. My interest was piqued. Then there was the World Cup. I was hooked. Then came the realization that we had a team in
Chattanooga, Tennessee. Chattanooga Tennessee? Really? Now I could see a real live game. And I did.
So here I am, a year later and totally invested in
Liverpool and
Chattanooga FC. What a year to become a football supporter. Liverpool lived through a roller coaster of a year. We survived. We're stronger. We have the best manager on the planet. We are chomping at the bit for the summer transfer hoopla to be over and the next season to start.
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| Saturday, July 9th, Finley Stadium sunset |
Meanwhile, back in the states, it is soccer season. What makes 2200 people show up, with the temperature in the mid-90s, for a soccer game in Chattanooga? It must be love of the game. With sweat dripping off your nose and into your beer, what else could it be? It is Saturday and I was just at Finley stadium on Monday to see Chattanooga FC win a fourth of July international friendly with
CF Monterrey U20. What a game that was! It was a fast paced and well-matched game until the 76th minute when we equalised, and then 86th minute when Tom Webster scored the winning goal. It was a 3-2 victory.
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| Genimar with the world's smallest vuvuzela |
So back to Saturday. This game did not start well for Chattanooga. Our guys were very much off their pace.
Georgia Revolution was up by two goals at the half. Game resumes and they score again. Now we are down by three goals. My friend Genimar and I had joined the merry band of
Chattahooligans and even our noisemakers (yes, I raided my Mardi Gras box) seemed a little flat in light of the scoreline.
With second half substitutions, we picked up the attacks and the intensity and, in a thirty minute stretch, scored three goals. The Chattahooligans were exhuberant! Our team was back. We could still win this thing! But in the 84th minute, Georgia Revolution found the net again and closed the door. The game ended 3-4. Chattanooga had lost its first home game in two years.
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| It can't be all bad! There was even a rainbow! |
All things considered, the result was not the monumental let-down it could have been. The second half was thrilling and exciting. Moises Drummond's blast of a goal my favorite of the three - the other two provided by Luke Winter and Chris Ochieng. We are proud of our team. We know we need to win this coming Saturday in
Knoxville to clinch the
NPSL Southeast Conference Championship. We love this team and we love this game. This is football! We can do this!
Still buzzing over the U.S. Women's National Team's World Cup quarter final victory over Brazil today, I am making a note to myself that up next is a long overdue review of The Walla Recovery's excellent album,
With Trembling. Just as soon as I have recovered from football!
