On the 18th of April (Thursday), we had an early breakfast to prepare for our Xishan district football tournament at 08:00 am. It was a sunny day that greated us upon our arrival. There were students from 17 schools, so the matching area was excessively crowded. Under Coach Li’s instruction, we got into shape and got our group photo taken with opponents and referees. Our first opponent was Northeast of Wuxi Tong school. The players there were generally tall and strong, but we were confident in our team strength.
As it was the first match of our tournament, we were quite nervous. The first 5-10 minutes was a tough tussle. The neutral balance of the score was broken from our play. I received a ball from the left side, subsequently I dribbled around one player and took a long range shot which went into the bottom left corner. Since the first half of the game ended, we were leading by 1:0.
In the second half, we got a penalty kick. I took the kick and scored. We were leading by 2:0. However, the problem came after when our defenders lost concentration. As a result, our opponent gained two goals consecutively. This was the time in which we had realized that it wasn’t over yet. We focused on our game again and finally created another goal. The final score was 3:2. Our team started off with a victory.
The second match of the first day was with Tianyi school. They were known as the runner-up of the tournament of the previous year, hence our level of trepidation had increased. Nevertheless, we could handle it as we had won the first match and we were certain of our ability. The first half of the game ended with our lead with one goal. In the second half, we scored two more, and the final score was 3:0. The previous champion had to go home, and this game implied that we had the opportunity to win the championship.
The final match of the day was in the afternoon. We had a quick lunch and took a rest under the shade of the trees. Coach Lee told us to take a nap for an hour in order to perform well in the next match, which was deciding whether we are going to the final on the next day or not, therefore we were highly motivated. We woke up 40 minutes before the game and warmed up. We played a “monkey” game as our routine before every match. Unlike the first and the second games, this game was quite special as various players scored goals. 4 different players a goal each in this game, which had made a score of 4:0. Of course, this score was possible due to our defenders’ firm defending.。
By the end of the three games, we were completely exhausted. Each game was 30 minutes long, hence we played a total of 1.5 hours of games under the strong sunlight of Wuxi. Our skin got burnt, and some of us were injured. Nonetheless, we were all happy as we got into a final, which was our initial objective.
At the end of the first day, Coach Lee blew his whistle on the collection. First of all, he congratulated us for winning three games and getting the chance to compete for the first place the next day.Then he told us to pick up all the rubbish that could be seen on the playground. So all the players were picking up litter on the playground that they could see, and while we were doing that, I saw students and teachers from other schools starting to join us.
On the second day, we followed the same schedule as the first day in the early morning. Our first game was 9:30, so we could warm up with our fresh mind. Coach Beltrame came to support us this day. He gave us much valuable advice as a professional football player, which helped us a lot. The first match of the second day was Chaqiao school. Despite the match was a tough game, especially for the first 5 minutes, we started to dominate the game, as I scored two goals before the end of the first half. With the lead of 2:0, we easily finished the game in the second half with two more goals of mine. The final score was 4:0. We were very happy as we won with a big lead.
After lunch, the final match of the tournament was waiting for us. It was between Wuxi Xiehe and Wuxi Cangxia kicking off at 13:30. We took a nap before the game as usual. Red Bull drinks prepared by our Coaches were also very helpful and enabled us to perform well.
The second day’s match was a round-robin match, because in the first match we won 4-0 against Chaqiao, Chaqiao 1-1 Cangxia, so we only need to draw with Cangxia to win the championship. But we refused to draw and had to beat them head on.
The final match was definitely the best match of the entire tournament. Both teams were foused and it was a very entertaining match. Cangxia was the one which scored the first goal. Our defenders lost concentration for a moment, while Cangxia’s attacker did not miss our mistake. The score was 0:1. It was the first time that our opponent was leading. Some of us got anxious and our plays were starting to be rushing. However, I knew that we needed to get a hold on ourselves to play our game. Therefore, we started keeping our pace and play our way.
2 minutes before the end of the first half, we got a free-kick. This was the opportunity in which we could tie the points. I carefully aimed at the top corner and kicked it as hard as I could. The ball went through the Cangxia’s wall of players and to the top corner where goalkeeper could not save the ball. It was a goal. The socre is now 1:1.
During the break between the first half and the second half, all we could do was believing ourselves that we could win it and remind ourselves to collaborate.
The second half was a stage of Xiehe. Our attackers were sharp, midfielders were dynamic, and defenders were firm. We dominated the game by scoring two more goals. The match ended with the score of 3:1.
We were now the champion of the tournament! We celebrated our victory together. Everyone was extremely excited. We received the trophy and took a photo of victory. We were so proud of ourselves!
We received a message from Coach Beltrame saying, ”You deserved to win based on your hard work, teamwork, and desire. I believed that our team was the best team in the competition due to your training and willingnedd to listen and learn “. I would like to say special thanks to Coach Jason and Coach Steve for their hard work and dedication. I am sure that they were also very proud of us!
There was a lot of pressure on defenders and goalkeepers because of the goal was very big, but it was good for our attack too. Chris scored 14 valuable goals, Messi helped Chris score 10 goals (including free kicks and penalties),Stephen had three assists and a goal, Desmond had two assists and a goal!
There was a lot of pressure on defenders and goalkeepers because of the goal was very big, but it was good for our attack too. Chris scored 14 valuable goals, Messi helped Chris score 10 goals (including free kicks and penalties),Stephen had three assists and a goal, Desmond had two assists and a goal!