Friday 8 October 2021, 9 pm: Yours truly is enjoying a beautiful three-course meal in good company accompanied by red wine and a nice gin to end the evening. Overnight, the combination of all of the above is working its magic in the body of its unsuspecting victim.

Fast forward to Saturday 9 October 2021, 2:30 pm. Just as cyclists throw away all water bottles before beginning the final climb, it is also wise for football players to get rid of all redundant weight before the game. To get in optima forma, 4za’s number 5 decided to go for a number 2. Aiming to screw with 4za’s match day preparation, 4za’s opponents cunningly tampered with the toilet of their changing room, leaving said number 5 no choice but to deal with the remains of last night’s dinner single-handedly. And though the 4za players were unanimous in pointing out that the smell was barely noticeable (green face emoji), they also agreed that it was quite a sticky situation, to say the least.

After all that turmoil, one would almost forget there was a game scheduled that afternoon: Brussels LTC 4 – 4za. 4za was keen on maintaining its winning streak after two good collective performances against Uccle Stendhal 2 and ITT Gecko 2. Coach O’Connor nevertheless reminded the squad that last year’s game against Brussels LTC 4 was far from a walk in the park and, given the state of the pitch, it was safe to assume that the rematch this year was going to be a hardfought battle.

4za was thus happy to field a strong team, starting in the following 3-4-3 formation.

Rodriguez

De Groot, O’Connor, Gidron

Stoop, Brancaleone, Rouxhet, Von Heimendahl

Lodge, Jane-Aluja, Selim

With Lubbe Bakker and first understudy Dos Santos unavailable in goal, Rodriguez offered to fill in the goalkeeper position (and did so marvelously). De Groot, O’Connor and Gidron were "sitting” in defense (yes, pun intended). The four-man midfield consisted of Stoop, Rouxhet, Brancaleone and Von Heimendahl. Lodge operating on the right wing, Selim on the left and 4za’s top scorer Jane-Aluja as striker. With Pavis, Pinkers, Somers and Van Hoorn as substitutions, it was clear that 4za coach O’Connor had a very competitive team at his disposal.

On the heavy Brussels LTC pitch, it was of the utmost importance for 4za to start off on a good footing. And so it did. 4za opened fiercely with Jane-Aluja opening the score early on. A dream start for 4za.

4za however lost its grip on the game and halfway the first half Brussels LTC 4 managed to level the score and even get in a second goal, giving them the lead. It forced coach O’Connor to change the formation to a 4-5-1.

4za were however not impressed as the players knew they would be able to rely on their, uhm, spirit… no, more like their character and dutifulness.. Or… I guess there is no word to really capture this…

As a proof of 4za’s thing, it was once again Jane-Aluja (his 8th goal of the season already!) who levelled the score with a crossed header after a brilliantly taken corner, a couple of minutes before the half time whistle.

2-2 at half time in a difficult game for 4za, during which Lodge, the main target of the opponents’ fury, arguably spend more time on the grass than on his feet, not aided by the referee’s laxity. Coach O’Connor made one substitution at half time: Von Heimendahl, whose calfs were affected by the heavy pitch, went off for Pinkers.

The second half offered more long balls, more duels, less chances (on either side) and no goals. 4za relentlessly tried to impose its game, but to no avail. Somers came in for Rouxhet, Pavis for Gidron and Van Hoorn for Selim, putting their all in to secure the win for 4za.

Last noteworthy action of the game, signed our birthday boy. As the referee seemed to be suffering underneath the burning October sun (Indian summers in Belgium can indeed be quite tricky), Selim generously offered the referee some refreshment. The referee, unfortunately, mistook Selim’s kindness for contempt and promptly presented him his second yellow of the day. We look forward to seeing him again when he gets back from his series of yellow card suspensions, approximately in the beginning of 2022.

Final whistle: 2-2 after an afternoon without a winner, except maybe the local plumber who will be able to charge the home club 4 figures for his urgent intervention. Despite dropping two points, 4za nevertheless stays (joint) top of the league, since direct contenders Omnisport Bierghes were unable to win their game. Both teams will be competing next week at 4za’s holy home ground in Rosières in what will be the first top of the table clash of the season.

Your reporter

Matthias Ethos De Groot