1 post tagged “human foosball”

We came, we saw, we fought hard.

That's the story of the Human Foosball competition just last Saturday, 27 January 2007. It wasa day of miracles and also heartbreak. Last minute goals, disallowed goals and dramatic cheering really heightened the atmosphere.

But first, we had a no less interesting session where challenging questions on faith were answered by our top mentors. Here's a clip we managed to sneak, and it really helps answer some of those nagging doubts you've been having about service in church:

 

 

Then, in the second period of PYP, the games began. You can see our coverage of that here in the pre-match round-up and catch some of that excited cheering. The arena was set, the teams were ready. Who was going to win? The first round match-ups pit Peter and Andrew, whilst Stephen would take on James (your very own group.)

Pre-Match Interviews:

 

As you can see, the stage was set for what was going to be a really, really competitive Human Foosball challenge. And here are clips from the match between Andrew and Peter:

 

 

It was a tough fight (everyone always says this even though it was easy for one team ;)), but Peter triumphed in the end 2-0 thanks to goals on either side by 'The Kid' (can't remember his name) and Yen Ling ensured maximum points.

Up next, was JBJ versus Stephen. Coverage here is divided into two halves:

 

 

Stephen shocked James with an early goal coming from Kayson, smashed into the net just beyond the reach of JBJ'ian goalkeeper Cyrus. But James stepped up to fight, to end the half 2-1. A goal apiece from our strikeforce of Jason and (I forgot who else scored, can someone help me out here?) ensured that James would go into the second half with a slim lead.

 

Kick-off was tense for the second half:

 

Would James prevail? For a moment, it looked like they wouldn't. Massive substitutions meant an unfamiliar-looking line-up in the midfield. Early into the second half, James conceded the equaliser to a superb placed shot by (again, I forget who). The fighting was onerous. Stephen pressured James at every inch of the way. But, we would prevail. Just as the closing seconds were happening, some magical stuff happened and a timed midfield pass was slotted into the Stephen goal, past a pedestrian Michael Loo. GOOOOAAAAALLLL!!! And the crowd went wild.

So it was to be a Peter - James final - Go JBJ!

As the third-fourth playoffs were being played, we took the time to interview the managers from both Peter and James to see what they thought their chances were in the Final:

 

 

Clearly, both managers were going to be banking on the form of their strikers - the on-fire Chong Yen Ling and the untested Thiagu.

Could two players really make a difference? Only 30 minutes of game time will tell. And so, the match kicked off:

 

 

Both managers had the wisdom to field untried and untested "fresh" players in the first half, giving some team members fresh and valuable experience. It's extremely important to let members participate in the games, so our victory becomes theirs.

A rousing start to the final saw heavy contests in the midfield with Peter taking advantage of their slight experience to drive the ball forward often. But it was James that struck first. Like a bullet, James commander Jason Boi struck the ball into the back of the Peter net, only to have it disallowed for a foul in midfield:

 

Meanwhile, Assistant Commander and Manager Cyrus Liew held the opposition back on the other end of the court, stopping more than his fair share of shots.

 

Back on the other end, Jason put the ball in yet again as James confidence built up. But, yet again, it was disallowed for a foul somewhere in the middle of the field. Still, both teams battled hard.

Yet, all the hard work was to be undone with a momentary lapse of concentration in the final minute of time. An unblocked pass from Ernest through to the Peter attack saw striker Dillon putting the ball into the James net and ending JBJ's hopes of glory.

That said and done, we're still proud of our achievement andd 300 points is nothing to sneeze at. Plus, today was the first time we wore our spanking new T-shirts and there isn't another group that can match this identity. Have a look at this:

Have something to say? Post here, or e-mail james.brotherofjesus@gmail.com.