Preseason friendly, July 29, 2007
Midorigaoka 3 YC&AC Over-35s 3
One, two, three…
Four. Four of us, there were, in total, for the game against Midorigaoka.
Fortunately, captain Sadao Hosogai had duped five footballing friends into joining us, and we were able to field a multi-coloured team of nine for this meaningless preseason friendly.
YC&AC Over-35s, sort of. Click picture to see more.
It was clingingly hot and humid on Sunday, and the heavy atmospheric conditions induced an almost instant, soporific exhaustion—in this player at any rate.
Midorigaoka, by contrast, looked sharp. These boys are in the middle of their season, and their slick passing and coolness on the ball showed exactly why they are currently top of the Kanagawa Senior League, Division 2.
Midorigaoka’s excellent No. 10—an inspiration to us all
For all Midorigaoka’s possession, however, it was YC&AC which created the better chances in the opening stages. Unfortunately for YC&AC, most of those chances fell the way of old Diego Birtles here. Midorigaoka were altogether more clinical in front of goal, and by the end of the second third we were 3-0 down.
What happened next was extraordinary.
Extraordinary
Ten minutes to go and Marcos Pereira skips through a tiring Midorigaoka midfield… A cross is half-cleared and the ball lands at the feet of loan signing Hotto Shotto. Twenty yards out, the peroxide blonde pulls the trigger. The ball fizzes through a crowded area, crashes down off the underside of the crossbar, and… and Buddy Ferrie muscles into position.
Eyes wide and nostrils flared, Buddie leaps above his marker and [nod] nods the ball into the top right-hand corner of the net. 3-1.
Minutes later, YC&AC finally spring Midorigaoka’s offside trap (play that too often without a linesman and you’ll get caught eventually!), releasing Marcos down the left. The Brazilian duly dribbles into the box, looks up, and drills a shot past a flat-footed MG keeper. Cue much raising of eyebrows among the Midorigaoka defenders. Cue extra spring in the stride of the Over-35s. It’s 3-2. Game on!
…
The referee is looking at his watch… There’s a YC&AC attack of sorts… Something scruffy happens out on the right… Somehow the ball is bobbling through a thicket of legs in the six-yard box… And… It’s… BUDDY FERRIE!
And as Buddy wheels away in celebration, the referee blows the final whistle. 3-3 is the final score and Midorigaoka look sick.
Refuelling
Two of the four YC&AC heroes rounded out their Sunday back at the Club, where they enjoyed a fantastic thunderstorm featuring a light show that ran for what must have been an hour.
Also enjoyed were large portions of an excellent curry buffet, which I mention because you really have to check this out, team. The spinach thing is the highlight—fresh and zingy—closely followed by the lamb—sweet and succulent…. Competitively priced, too.
Thanks are owed to Kambayashi-san for the deal with the very excellent Shin-Yoko Football Park; to the fine footballing friends of Sadao for enabling us to have a game; and to Midorigaoka, for their sportsmanship.
By Alex Hendy
Teams:
Midorigaoka: Unknown
YC&AC: Buddy Ferrie, Alex Hendy, Sadao Hosogai, Marcos Pereira + friends
Goals:
Midorigaoka: Unknown
YC&AC: Buddy Ferrie (2); Marcos Pereira
Man of the match: Hotto Shotto. The wee man worked tirelessly for the cause and was the force behind the YC&AC resurgence. Sign him up, Sada!
Attendance: Two adults and three or four children
Posted by Alex 