The old adage about football being a game of two halves was never truer after this away game on Sunday. A game packed full of twists and turns started of with a surprise when it became obvious that it was not Clinton we were going to play but a Brazilian select! And after 30 mins of the game you could have easily convinced me it was the actual Brazil team as they swept into a 4-0 lead. Rapid passing and swift attacks straight down the middle of the field easily beat the well practised Madison offside trap, even though at least one of the goals looked remarkably offside. Even with the majority of possession going to Brazil, the Madison team did come up with a few great counter attacks; Ronnie hit the post with a ripping shot and Carlito looked a certainty to score when he was one on one with the goalie but, both chances came to naught. The half time whistle was a huge relief for the beleaguered Madison team and a much needed break to allow the coach to come up with a game plan that could counter the silky Brazilian play. As the second half started Madison had a more attacking posture and actually put the Brazilians under some pressure with some good saves needed by the goalkeeper to prevent Madison opening their account. However, even this early in the second half it was clear that something had changed and a goal was coming. And sure enough, after a huge clearance up field from the defence, Sebastian latched on to the ball, raced into the penalty box and lashed a shot past the Brazilian goal keeper. Even though the score was still 4-1 the goal was a great boost to the confidence of the Madison team and it was no surprise that they added to their tally when "striker of the season " winner Jorge ( pictured above) scored a great second goal. It looked like a strong come back was on the cards now but those hopes were quickly dashed when Brazil slotted in a fifth goal against the run of play. With ten minutes left in the game and 5-2 down it looked like the script had been finally written. But that script was quickly torn up when a great break down the left by Sebastian followed by a great cut back pass into the penalty box allowed yours truly to volley an angled shot past the despairing arms of the goalie. 5-3 now and the clock ticking down, surely Madison could not come back! But that crazy thought became ever more realistic when another great spin and volley by guest player, Brian ( pictured above with a fan) smashed into the Brazil net. There was only one minute left in the game when the unbelievable became the inevitable when player of the match, Sebastian went on a solo run and thumped the equalizer past the unbelieving eyes of the Brazil defence. The referees whistle blew almost immediately to end a remarkable game and a remarkable come back by the Madison team.
I've not played in many 5-5 draws, in fact maybe this is the first, but it felt really good at the end of the game. This is likely to be the last game of the summer season unless our coach Mr T arranges another game. If not, it's been fun, and I'm certainly looking forward to the Fall season!
Don't forget to vote in the midfielder of the summer season vote!....Jody's the strong leader so far
I know most of you will not care one bit but the Scottish Premier League starts it's new season 08/09 this weekend. Celtic play St Mirren on Sunday and are aiming to win the league for the 4th consecutive time! Their biggest rivals, Rangers, have been knocked out of Europe already and are desperate to win the league to keep their disgruntled, and largely ugly, fan base happy. Aberdeen, Dundee Utd, Hearts and Motherwell seem to be the perennial "also rans" in this league but you never know, one of them may have a good enough run to pip Rangers to second spot. I will give you selected highlights of Celtic's progress as the season starts.
