Monday 6 August 2007

My Secret Soccer Life

Okay, most of you know my position on soccer as a whole. Unless Beckham or Cristiano Ronaldo is personally showing me soccer stuff, really – I could take it or leave it.

However, little did I know that the soccer people were working their own underhanded magic on me, and I didn’t even realize it.

It started with the FIFA Youth World Cup. Peter bought tickets for all of the Ottawa games. Peter told me how many people in the soccer club were also buying tickets, and that the World Cup was going to be some awesome soccer. When he asked if I wanted to go, I said yes.

And before you think it was a waste of a perfectly good ticket, I guess I should tell you that I enjoy live action sports – pretty much no matter what the sport. Well, except for tennis and golf. Please. How exciting can that be?

Anyway – I thought that all the countries coming together in Ottawa would be a really cool thing to see, and I was right. The FIFA Youth World Cup was some mighty awesome soccer.

The way those players move their feet and control that ball is something that even I can appreciate. It’s such a different game from what I’ve seen before (like that’s been so much soccer). My eyes were opened completely to the beauty of professional level soccer. And I didn’t even care that Beckham wasn’t on the field.

Lord help me, I might be turning into a fan!

When the U.S. / Brazil match was played, Peter and I showed up like Romeo and Juliet – Peter in his much deserved Brazilian colours, a Brazilian fan for many years. Me? Well, let’s just say that finding red, white and blue in my closet wasn’t such a stretch. And we went to the game that way. Holding hands and getting more than a few double-glances and chuckles. The U.S. and Brazil walked up to our seats in the stands. The teams took the field, and the game began.

And I cheered the loudest when the U.S. beat Brazil. Man, those boys can play soccer. It’s a beautiful thing to see.

I booed with everyone else as we got seriously tired of the Argentinian drama falls, and other poor sportsmanship behaviour at these games. We chatted with fans around us, mostly families from the Carleton Place Soccer Club. It’s like we had our own section. Lanark County was representin’!

Peter recorded all the out of town games. As he watched them (mostly by himself), I found myself asking what happened when he gave a yell, or I would make him rewind the game to show me the goal I’d just missed. I watched the last two games with him, and they were awesome to see. I still wish the Czech Republic had won. I’m so over Argentina.

Something is happening to me. I don’t’ know quite what it is, but it scares me

I have to go. The Boys Mississippi Invitational Soccer Tournament is next weekend, and I’m on the planning committee.