Not easy to have a team willing to go for it after so many players leaving. Easier, when you belong to a club who generates that whether you want it or not.
Team: R. Eyssartier, M. Guarnaccia, F. Bon, G. Manfellotto, T. Golightly, A. Gary, S. Friederichs, N. Pereira, T. Si M'Hammed, D. Mineo, N. Lambers, D. Claudino, A. Pryce, S. Van Dijck
It’s been an emotional year.
Some of us felt the need to take some important decisions to the detriment of the team’s best interest:
We had one guy who decided to travel around the world.
Another who thought it was time to play for the vets.
Another who had already left us having anticipated the Brexit.
Why others moved to Austria will always remain a mystery.
Another who couldn’t convince his knees to keep playing football and preferred cycling mountain after mountain.
Several who got married. (One of us event thought that he could rightfully leave the team based on this…)
Others who welcomed a new child.
And last but not least, our French cousins in Brussels who somehow "survived” the harsh (but fair?) French bashing in Belgium after football’s biggest misunderstanding of the early century.
Nobody is perfect..
Oh yeah, and the training pitch moved from Brussels to somewhere where we were welcomed by chickens and cows, corn fields and the feeling of having taken a "day off” after crossing the normally much better protected Flemish border. The Schengen visa had once again shown its value.
First game was lost.
Second game was played against a team we had lost against two weeks before at home (0-5).
That day, Fred came to pick me up at my place before going to Chaussée de Lennik in Anderlecht where we thought relatively opportune to spend the best of the week and get our first three points of the season.
I like Fred, he’s a charming guy who comes from a country that he calls "Frensse”. I had never heard of it, don’t know where it but if all these guys are like him it must be a good place to be.
In the dressing room before the game, the usual suspects were singing, dancing and laughing..
No way we were gonna win this game I thought to myself.
My hope to win was considerably increased when I heard the line-up.
Romain, Massi, Fred and Guido defending our goal and in front of them the one and only big Lebowsky.
Two Italians, two French (now I remember those guys) and a Chilean "Dude”. Playing badly would be the first step to victory. And playing bad we did during the first 20 min.
But conceding a goal, no, no way.
And when strikers and midfield somehow started waking up and delivering we actually create scoring opportunities.
Our beloved and newly adopted playmaker Nuno gave MoM a lovely opportunity to score but a bad pass from the latter to Lele was easily anticipated and gone was the first real opportunity.
Our most dangerous weapons, on both sides, Tom and Toine, (T&T), were not used adequately. They had to work too much and too low necause the strikers were not able to keep the ball.
When (I have no idea where that came from) a deep ball was intercepted by MoM one dribble and pass gave Lele the opportunity to score the 0-1. Lele is not the kind of guy who misses that kind of opportunity. 0-1.
It must be said "Union something don’t know what anymore” didn’t deserve this. Jim, our ex-team-mate, was strong on the ball, in constant movement, and the hosting team was better but yeah… Double Italy/Frensse defense stood in their way.
If I write that at that time Fred had already clashed with one of their players, they will think we or he did it on purpose. That’s not the case. #thisisamansworld
Half-time. Tarik, our newly appointed captain, demanded more, knowing that our magic bench was about to make the difference, which you could have expected from an Italian British and Brazilian guy but not necessarily from a guy coming from the (don’t remember his country) it’s something like the Nhederlhahndtz (a name that can only be spelled that way).
Anyway, Sioux, immediate threw himself into the game, and after dealing with both defenders and referee, was given a lovely through ball by our, despite his recent wedding (and consequently lifetime sentence), smiling Brazilian (who so clearly affected by his eternal damnation initially forgot to put on his shield pads…) , killed the game with a finish that im sure his country, wherever that might be, would have loved to have these recent years. 0-2.
Ale was warming up, clearly to replace Fred in order to have a bit less frenschse players on the pitch.
But against all odds and increasing anxiety from the considerable amount of fans who made the effort to be present, MoM was asked to leave the pitch for rendered services. The fans were lost and became crazy. People demanding to be reimbursed, chairs thrown around, fire fares, police and firemen having to intervene. Not a pretty sight for the children who had just found someone to be inspired by.. (this is a pretty accurate version of what I remember).
Only one way to generate peace. Put even more talent on the pitch, and there he was, Ale…(His parents were present and serene..) classy like an Italian, willing like a UK soldier, came on and didn’t need much time to put all of us at ease 1-3.
Yes, "Union something don’t know what anymore” scored the 1-2 a few minutes earlier and yes, it had certainly something to do with Mom leaving the picth.
1-3, final score.
I remember more of what happened afterwards.. singing, laughing, beers, Tom and Lele’s girlfriends, Toine’s brother…thank you for coming and supporting us.
RBBFC 2 strikes again.
Not easy to have a team willing to go for it after so many players leaving. Easier, when you belong to a club who generates that whether you want it or not.
"On va chanter, on va danser, c’est Gary, Lalalala”
bestdayoftheweek
Your reporter and MOM, Flamby
Ps: since when did the # replace the "ps”? Think about it. Or don’t, I love you. The season having just started, writing a match report also gives me the unique opportunity to go take a short step back and report onbeeing
