When Time Stops – Living the Moment over again!

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Today’s Blog Post

(Emma's team - Emma is second from right - first row)

When Time Stops – Living the Moment over again!

She rocked back and forth from her left foot, right foot; tension was building in her body. This was the last moment for the biggest play of the entire season. It was now or never. All the other players had failed, on both teams. Now it all depended on this one final action.

No pressure here. Yah right! At this point my heart had almost stopped beating and I was holding my breath. Come on blow the whistle or Grandpa is going to pass out!!!

My granddaughter Emma has been playing indoor soccer since last fall, keeping in shape for the soccer season coming up. She will be moving up to the U14 Girls team, that is the 14 year old girls team. She tried out for the U14 and was picked as a new player for this coming year.

Now I am not bragging too much… just a little more than usual… Emma is good at what she does in soccer. She plays goal very well. And she also plays forward and defense equally well. She is a versatile player and will fit into any position her coach places her. Most of all she is a team player that loves being with other kids!

Okay, okay – now I am really moving into BRAG MODE. I only have one granddaughter so I need not share my Granddaughter Brags with other granddaughters. I do have a problem with grandsons however, there are 5 of them!

Now back to this game that is happening in front of me.

It is Saturday afternoon, March 3, 2012 – about 3:15 PM. Note that date – it is important to the later telling and re-telling of this story in years to come.

This is the winter in-door soccer league, a recreational soccer group of six teams. Parents are serious about this kind of soccer as well as the coaches that stand there with the players at their team bench. The coaches call out the changes and plays from the team bench. The parents, that always know better, call out conflicting or louder instructions from across the playing area… and when something big is about to happen… they scream and cheer and carry on like ordinary, overly excited parents…all the while sucking back their Tim Horton Coffees.

This game is played inside the large white inflated building that looks like a huge igloo, just west of Peterborough. It is the Lion’s Club sponsored Spiplex Sports Dome. (http://www.spiplex.com/). Inside it is a pressurized by fans(not the parents or grandparents - but the kind that are motorized) that constantly blow to keep the building up .

Emma’s yellow shirted team has played one game in the morning and now at the 2:45 PM. This is the last Saturday and a tournament to decide the final and top winning team.

The yellow shirts are playing the red shirts. The red shirts have a giant of a boy that can kick the ball almost the full length of the field to score points. He alone is a foot taller than Emma! They also have some great strikers that seem to have the ability to keep the soccer ball right on their toe.

By the way this is a mixed team effort where the boys play with the girls – a mixed number of boys and girls on each team. Gender means nothing to these girls either. They can strip the ball away from these gangly, early teen boys with ease. To say the least. They can hold their own!

Oh – and yes Emma stripped the ball from the tall boy a number of times… ahem!... and blocked his goal attempts when she stood her ground in net!

Okay – Triple Brag, Brag, Brag!!!

I have strung this out long enough.

The game’s full time has arrived. The teams are tied One – One. For the final, indoor soccer tournament there has to be a winner. This means a shootout by both teams on the opposing goalie.

Both teams line up on the yellow line which is a few meters out from the goalie’s crease. The opposing team’s player stands inside the half circle in front of the goalie. The ball is placed on a spot just over the line, toward the goalie. When the whistle is blown by the referee, the kicker can try for a goal against the very tense goalie – who is now wound up tight!

Five kickers from each team are chosen to try for a goal for their team. Their team kickers alternate kicking. Red shirt first, Yellow shirt next… with the opposing goalies changing places after each kick.

Out of the Five Red tries – one girl scored a point – making the team score 2. Then out of the Four Yellow tries another girl scored another point – making the team score also 2.

Next came Emma, the last of the Five Yellows to try… in the shoot out.

Are you ready for this… when the whistle blew… the stop action in my head did as well. Emma didn’t kick right away…

Later she told me that she looked at the left corner, then at the ball, then at the goalie, repeating this a few times quickly. Emma psyched out the goalie making her think she would try for the one corner… and Emma then shot for the opposite corner, with ease… and the ball didn’t travel fast at any lightening speed… just directly into the corner away from the goalie’s reach!

A cheer went up… Emma’s kick had won the tournament… The Final Score was 3 for the Yellows – 2 for the Reds. Wahoo!


Oh did I ever tell you that I used to play soccer too. But I never, ever kicked a goal that won a tournament.

I am a proud Grandpa today… and the slow motion is now playing over and over in my head. My granddaughter won the game!

SPECIAL NOTE for Emma’s dad Bruce… who is a Funeral Director… (my Funeral Director BTW) – when I die and you place me in the casket… please make my face up with a BIG GRIN… because I will be reliving the Grandkid stories at the moment of my death….!!!!! Thanks Bruce!

AND Emma you ROCK! And you rock my world girl!

~ Murray Lincoln ~
http://www.murraylincoln.com/