In this day and age of Twitter, Facebook, instant text messaging and downsized attention spans 6 minutes may seem like an eternity. But in Manchester, England something special happened. It was only a blip that most likely went unnoticed by many Americans, but one that was celebrated and savored by fans of the Blackpool Seasiders, fighting valiantly against the multi-million dollar champion Manchester United to remain in the Premiership.
At stake for Blackpool was permanence in the Premier League. A loss would condemn them to relegation in the second division Championship. Manchester United struck first taking a 1-0 lead on a fortuitous strike by Park-Ji Sung. Blackpool did not give up and kept pressing forward in attack, which led to a free-kick. The inspirational captain Charlie Adam scored a magnificent goal to tie the game at 1-1.
In the 57th, the extraordinary happened. Gary Taylor-Fletcher, following brilliant dribbling by David Vaughn, back-flicked the ball into the goal, completely befuddling Edwin Van der Saar, the Manchester goal keeper. It seemed surreal. I yelled in joy and disbelief. David had slain the might Goliath. This was no millionaire who scored past a world-renowned keeper. The goal was scored by a former waiter and barber who had to work hard to get where he is. He is no product of the manicured soccer academies that so many of these wealthy teams have. For 6 minutes the throng at Old Trafford was stunned into silence as their world was rocked to its very core. "How can this be?" "Our side was supposed to win without breaking a sweat," were some thoughts that went through their mind. For 6 minutes The Blackpool dream lived on.
But alas, the moment was not too last as Manchester United came back to tie the game and then win it 4-2. Reality, unfortunately, does not allow for the Davids to defeat the Goliaths, it seems.
Nevertheless, I am proud of Blackpool. I came to love them for their attacking spirit and pride in what and who they represented. The EPL will not be the same without them and I hope that they make a return to the EPL very soon.
At stake for Blackpool was permanence in the Premier League. A loss would condemn them to relegation in the second division Championship. Manchester United struck first taking a 1-0 lead on a fortuitous strike by Park-Ji Sung. Blackpool did not give up and kept pressing forward in attack, which led to a free-kick. The inspirational captain Charlie Adam scored a magnificent goal to tie the game at 1-1.
In the 57th, the extraordinary happened. Gary Taylor-Fletcher, following brilliant dribbling by David Vaughn, back-flicked the ball into the goal, completely befuddling Edwin Van der Saar, the Manchester goal keeper. It seemed surreal. I yelled in joy and disbelief. David had slain the might Goliath. This was no millionaire who scored past a world-renowned keeper. The goal was scored by a former waiter and barber who had to work hard to get where he is. He is no product of the manicured soccer academies that so many of these wealthy teams have. For 6 minutes the throng at Old Trafford was stunned into silence as their world was rocked to its very core. "How can this be?" "Our side was supposed to win without breaking a sweat," were some thoughts that went through their mind. For 6 minutes The Blackpool dream lived on.
But alas, the moment was not too last as Manchester United came back to tie the game and then win it 4-2. Reality, unfortunately, does not allow for the Davids to defeat the Goliaths, it seems.
I have also followed Blackpool this season and they were quite a story. I guess they held onto Charlie Adam during the last transfer period figuring he could keep them in the EPL. Too bad.
ReplyDeleteRelegation battles in the EPL are fascinating because of the TV money. The pressure to 'stay up' is amazing because of what relegation can do to a club's finances. Fortunately for Blackpool, they haven't spent a lot so they probably do have a decent chance of making it back to the EPL soon.