Brand new goals, vintage old skills: a nail biting draw

After the surgical intervention of the gardening team coordinated by Thomas the pitch was as green and even as a billiard table with 23 players calling the shots. Things like bad bounces of the ball or Kids taken out from the holes with a ladder were confined to the past.

The brand new goals looked like a fitting ornament to such a ‘parterre de roi’. It was a 12 v 11 game as the 14 a side last week bonanza is now averaging down to more normal level.

Few clouds in the sky did the job. Everyone was only too eager to put his mark on the game and to hit the net first to cash in the 100 bonus point to fast track his way to the MOTM award. Just to put things in contest 100 points can help in day where the winner grabs only few hundred points but too often we are talking thousands of them growing to the millions in the Master Games.

Anyway the honour fell on Johannes who scored after only a few seconds talking everyone by surprise. Such was the speed that Colours questioned the validity claiming they were not ready yet, to no avail as the goal stood putting the Orange in front while fans had barely the time to sit in the stands.

The early adrenaline was not spared throughout a match that went to the wire and kept everyone guessing who would ultimately have the upper hand.

The game was graced by the presence of three super young Kids, in fact three super Kids: Victor and Arkady, back from their Chelsea mascots duty, were ever vigilant upfront and kept the Orange defence on red alert. On the opposite front Arman put his mark on the fight by ruthlessly punishing his Dad and putting his team in front. The future is bright.

Colours started with an unorthodox 3-4-4 and few questioned ‘why only three in the back’ only to find the answer when they realised the three were Andre’, Chetan and Hossam. They were so comfortable in the back that in turn they ventured up the field to inflict damage resisting the easy option to just give the ball to Yassin who then had the opportunity to focus his running closer to goal.

The striking pair made by Ziad and Nizard was untested: while the latter was preceded by his reputation of terrorising defences, little was known about Ziad other than what he showed his last and first crowded match. It didn’t take long to figure out that this Kid has the full kit: quick feet, easy dribble and good shot. Him and Yasin restored order and put the Colours in front: 2:1.

The score could have taken bigger proportions had not Federico saved on the line what looked like a sure goal, as well as Alessandro shown his trademark shot stopping repertoire.

It looked like the game could have gone one way from there on but predictably is not what Football Dads and Kids are about. Bookmakers know it full well and thrive on such volatility cashing in at every game. They know know more about every single player than their WAGS.

This time and not for the first time it was Giacomo to turn the tide with a hat trick. His confidence boosted by no less than Jannick Sinner: the tennis star admitted that a while ago as a sort of confidence booster he made a conscious decision to physically look like Giacomo. No prize for guessing whether that was a wise decision or not. Giacomo’s goals lifted the Orange mood allowing the team to go 5-4 into the golden goal.

There is no need to explain what the golden goal does to players: suffice to say that players dejected, bruised and beaten until few seconds before all of a sudden find the stamina, rage and will to win that deserted them during the game. Orange went an inch close to prevent that when Hannes imperious header from Johannes corner just shaved the bar. Perhaps Hannes was still tuned to the old goals, wider but shorter.

Colours took the blessing as a warning sign and made the most of the next counter with Yassin emphatically scoring the umpteenth golden goal celebrating with the jubilant Colours’ crowd.

The Man of the Match award was very much a fight between the two top scorers, Giacomo and Yassin, with only few votes separating them. At the recount the Italian, perhaps helped by the new Jannick liaison, had the upper hand helped by his Dad to bring home both the hat trick ball and the weekly coveted trophy.

ORANGE-COLOURS 5-5

GOALS
ORANGE: Johannes,  Giacomo (3), Arman
COLOURS: Yassin (2), Ziad, Nizard, Andrea M

TEAMS
ORANGE: Alessandro, Hannes, Federico, Thomas, Julien,  Johannes, Bijan,  Giancarlo,Francesco, Arman, Giacomo
COLOURS: Tony L, Chetan, Hossam, Andre’, Andrea M, Al, Jonathan, Yassin, Ziad, Nizard, Victor D, Arkady

write-up by Giancarlo Castelli