A long and winding road
It’s a long and winding road to the Master Game. One year of weekly battles, training, injuries, recovery. Playing on mud, snow and dry grass. Welcoming new and old players. Enjoying wins and suffering losses, knowing however that the most important victory is the one against your Kids (if you are a Dad), or viceversa, in the yearly context so long awaited.
The last match before a Master Game is always a tricky affair. Competition for a place in the starting XI is fierce, and every player goes the extra mile to impress his teammates and scare the opponents.
Sometimes this takes a toll. It was the case for Francesco and Hossam, both playing against the team physician’s advice, and ultimately forced to leave the pitch in pain, with the Italian also suffering a twisted ankle. Both of them are now at serious risk of missing the MG.
The bookmakers frantically reacted by changing the odds for next Saturday in favour of the Kids. The thought of a Dads team without Hossam’s direction and Francesco’s finishing looked gloomy, even considering all the other amazing talents on the squad.
Also notable was Daoud, for his absence. Seriously, where is he? And most importantly, will he be at the Master Game? These are questions that need answers soon. In the space of few weeks the Afghan striker has impressed the team so much that it’s now hard to imagine not having him against the Kids (it should be noted that we haven’t asked Daoud if he has sons or daughters, and we don’t plan to do that…)
On a positive note, the Club confirmed that Christian has changed his travel plan in order to arrive back from China just few hours before the Master Game kick off. That’s the dedication that Dads show. He will probably lose some business but hey, in life there are priorities. Christian might be a bit jet-lagged and tired. Let’s just hope he flies in First Class and comes back infused with Confucian spirit. Perhaps we should all get a copy of Sun Tzu’s “The Art of War” to read before the match.
Today’s match was blessed with the unexpected return of Julian from Munich, after a long absence, greeted by the crowd chanting his name. He took his place in the Colours team and delivered an impressive performance, flanked by the likes of Yassin, Nizard and Julien. Good news for the Kids that can count him as one of their players.
However, their Colours squad struggled to contain a spirited Orange team, powered by some of the greatest Kids stars. Seemingly unaffected by the scorching sun, Andrea, Giacomo, Johannes, Ali all proved to be in an amazing shape and dominated the match, scoring four times in succession before half time.
At 4-0 down, the Colours might have needed a little pep talk, but that wasn’t necessary. Our players know that actions speak louder than words. It was Yassin (who else?) to show what Dads can do, scoring twice and serving an assist to Nizard for a third one, reducing the gap to only one goal.
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In the remaining minutes of the game, with the sun now so hot that few meters away three British royal guards collapsed during rehearsals, both teams launched their final attacks, and it was Giacomo to score again, sealing the score at 5-3, and bringing home the MOTM Award.
Immediately after the end, all thoughts went into the Master Game next Saturday. Who will play? Who is the referee (and what is his bank account number)? Will offside be allowed? Will there be water breaks? How many WAGS will turn out? Will the surface (3G Artificial Grass) benefit more Kids or Dads?
To quote another great songwriter, the answer my friend is blowing in the wind (or rather melting in the sun). Let’s enjoy this week separating us from the big event. It will all be clear by 2pm next Saturday!
ORANGE-COLOURS 5-3
GOALS
ORANGE: Giacomo (4), Johannes
COLOURS: Yassin (2), Nizard
TEAMS
ORANGE: Thomas, Giancarlo, Hossam, Andre’, Ali, Johannes, Arsalan Giacomo, Andrea,
COLOURS: Alessandro, Bijan, Yassin, Nizzard, Julien, Khaled, Julian, Arav, Francesco
