When feet are better than hands
A modest turnout of only 5 players was at risk of jeopardising the match experience. You could see the disappointment in the eyes of the fans who had travelled from distant places to Kensington Gardens to see the champagne football for which FDs are famous.
Luckily, Football Dads are known for their problem solving and social skills, and swiftly recruited four players from a nearby volleyball tournament. Dorian from Poland, Marian from Romania, Tom from England and Mitch (from either Ireland or Philippines, you choose) had come to the park to play with their hands, but were much happier when they were invited to use their feet instead. The four youngsters formed their own team, later reinforced by Luca, and a 5-5 side match was on.
Playing with Bibs, the FDs had the upper hand for the whole match. Andrea on the left side was able to go easily past his opponents and scored three times in succession. Francesco offered glimpses of his class scoring also a hat-trick although he occasionally appeared rusty and unfocused, missing a few easy ones. Bijan and Johannes gave structure and robustness in midfield while Paride provided impeccable coverage in goal.
The Volley players were close-knit and good with the ball, and could count on a very vocal group of fans. They managed to surprise the Bibs in several occasions, scoring six but could never get the lead. After about one hour of play, their times was up as they were recalled to the volley pitch, graciously accepting a 7-6 defeat.
Commentators praised the pace of the play, not bad for a pre-season match, and noted that some of the Dads still indulging in Mediterranean leisure activities were at risk of losing their first-team status if they didn’t come back quickly. A bit naive of them to think so. FDs never actually go on holiday from sport, and when on leave they are actually using their time to train ferociously.
However, it’s true that a change of climate present some challenges, as Francesco confirmed after the match when he was questioned about his occasional lack of concentration: “That’s the effect of spending one month under the scorching Sicilian sun, when you need to slow down and stay quite to avoid over-heating, but do no fear. A couple of weeks under the lovely grey English sky and I will be back to normal.”
BIBS- VOLLEY 7-6
BIBS: Francesco, Andrea, Johannes, Bijan, Paride
VOLLEY: Dorian, Marian, Tom, Mitch, Luca
