April 2, 2010
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2010 Bangkok
Bangkok 2009. The first game. The first second. The first goal of the tournament conceded. The fastest in tournament history. Not – it must be said – the Red Lions’ finest moment. But did it get better from then on? No. It shaped our weekend.
All those kind-hearted souls who were busy pampering to those unfortunate homeless girls that they found wandering the streets of Pad Pong and Nana Plaza would have missed the audacious 60 yard lob, over the flailing keeper. Such acts of selflessness often go punished. No wonder it’s called the City of Angels, with so many men eager to offer shelter and breakfast to young ladies who are unable to afford meager accommodation of their own.
But it’s 2010. A new year, a new tournament. The Lions have learnt from the mistakes of the past – we’ve entered the 7-a-side vets tournament, the goalkeeper will be glued to his goal line, and not in a central midfield position like last year, and there is a rumour we might actually be able to field a full team.
Chairman, goalkeeper, and loud-mouth extra-ordinaire, Rob “Howler” Fowler is under strict instructions to stay between the sticks. Defensive stalwart George teams up with veteran Red Lion Tony Hewitt, who is flying in from Shanghai, getting time away from his wife under the pretense of a business trip, and Mr Red Lions himself, Paddy O’Sullivan. Paul “Ginger” Hemingway is making his debut appearance at the GAS Easter tournament, and without putting pressure on him, we’re expecting him to be the one sober Lion on the pitch.
A strong midfield combination of captain Andy Rooney alongside the bouncing Czech, Frank Beloch will run rings around all opponents, especially in the warm up. Pairing up with the Germans Mirko Messner and Volker Nagel, the midfield resembles more a nuclear power station than a dynamo.
In a break from footballing tradition, we’re not planning on bringing any attackers. History has shown us that prying our own pole-dancer away from the professional pole-dancers has proven impossible. We’ll just leave Rob “Polack” Iwanicki in the bars. He might turn up late afternoon for the final game, once he’s sobered up just a little.
