This morning our family woke up and got ready for our annual tradition of going and spending the day at my son’s year end soccer tournament. This year we were quietly optimistic as they had a 2-8-3 record this year.
However, after three hard fought mini games they found themselves in fourth place and heading to the semi finals to play the top ranked team that had just beaten them 3 to 0 in the last game of the preliminaries. Not having an official team name all season they all got together for a cheer and adopted “Cash Money” as their team cheer and team name. Something in this cheer must have inspired them because they quickly took a 3 to 1 lead in the first half. In the second half a very suspicious handball call against them brought their opponents a goal closer and eventually, the number ranked team tied it up. After holding them off in the extra period, the game went to a shootout and Cash Money was flawless in their shots and two great saves by their goalkeeper had them going to the finals.
The finals were against the Redshirts, a team that Cash Money had not beaten all year and the team that had the best record after the regular season. The Redshirts were stacked with a full 10 substitutes and swapped in the whole team, which after 4 hardfought games was a huge advantage on this hot Sunday. Cash Money’s top goal scorer was suffering from muscle cramps and they were down to 3 substitutes in this final but somehow they managed to make it to the end of regulation and the extra period tied 0-0 and it was off to penalty kicks…again.
As a father of a player in the gold medal game that is in penalty kicks, I can tell you that it was as stressful as watching your favourite hockey team in a sudden death playoff game. But this team seemed to be made for penalty kicks. A small group of sharp shooters could only be equalled by the other teams, but Cash Money had a lanky cat between the pipes and after saving the first shot by the Redshirts, we knew that what was thought to be impossible was about to happen. The shooters were unstoppable and as the Redshirts took their 4th shot they were in a position where a miss would cost them the gold. Their player lined up … shot … and bounced it off the left goal post and out.
Cash Money had taken the gold. After a sub par season, and a mediochre qualification, T-Bone and his teammates turned on the jets when it counted and are now the proud owners of a Gold Medal. I want to give special kudos to their goalkeeper for an outstanding job in the penalty shots and to T-Bone who pulled a hamstring muscle 3 days before the tournament and played a great set of games in constant pain. I know he will be sore as can be tomorrow, but he has a gold medal to help with the healing.
Congratulations U19 Men’s Champions, Cash Money.