Today we traveled out to Vicarage Road Stadium in Watford to watch Watford FC take on Everton. The weather was warm, a great day for a football match. The stadium was nearly sold out as black and yellow filled the stands. It was a beehive, but as you looked around there was one packed section of royal blue (the Everton colors). Once the game began, Watford took the lead early with Adam Masina scoring in the 10th minute, and then they continued to dominate as Roberto Pereyra expanded Watford’s lead to 2-0 in the 42nd minute. The Watford fans were ecstatic while the Everton fans had gone completely silent. Everton wasn’t out though, and they managed to score twice in extra time before the first half ended. Yerry Mina put the ball in the back of the net for Everton both times. Songs rang out from the visiting section, silencing the home crowd into stunned submission. Coming out in the second half, Watford still seemed to be a marginally in control given that Everton was playing a man down for the majority of the second half. (Fabian Delph was sent off for receiving two yellow cards. We seemed to be heading for a draw until Theo Walcott capitalized off a Watford turnover and a few nice passes on the counterattack to score the game winning goal for Everton in the 90th minute. There was nothing more that Watford could do with 5 minutes of extra time due to Everton adopting a very defensive playing style for the remainder of the game. Home supporters were left speechless after the game winning goal and many of them began to yell out in anger and disappointment. The away victory pushed Everton to 9th in the premier league table, while the devastating loss dropped Watford down to the 19th slot (out of 20). Given their unfortunate position in the table thus far, Watford seems a candidate to be relegated to the Championship after the conclusion of this season unless the club can find a way to dramatically turn things around. Overall this was a fantastic experience for our group because it allowed us to once again experience high level English football, however, this time we were able to do so from the unique vantage point of sitting two rows back from the pitch, and with two teams whose playing style was more rough and opportunistic than the skillful, methodical style of a team like Manchester City.
Tag: Matchday
Harlequins Rugby Clinic and Game
Today’s exciting experience took place in Twickenham, the home of Harlequins Rugby. After many of us experienced some struggle with a train diversion, the whole crew finally arrived outside of Twickenham Stoop Stadium a bit before 11:00, at which point we were promptly taken to some open practice fields nearby. There we met some coaches on the Harlequins staff, who would lead us in a clinic to give us some basic knowledge of both rugby itself and the skills and tactics used in the sport. Due to some rain the previous evening, the grass was fairly wet and gave way to mud very quickly—perfect conditions for rugby. We started off with some simple games that really focused on passing and finding space, but every so often a new rule or two would be added, and before we knew it, we were playing rugby! We were not allowed to tackle, but even so, most people found themselves on the ground at least once. As a result, once we concluded what was a fantastic session of rugby, we were all caked in a layer of mud.
Afterward, we walked back to the stadium, where we had the pleasure of meeting Mike Brown, a fantastic player for both Harlequins and England’s international team, who is currently nursing a knee injury. He answered any questions we had about his rugby experience and gave us some solid thoughts on his career. Next, we were allowed into the home changing room, which was “fully dressed” meaning all of the players’ uniforms and gear were set up in their locker. It may not have been quite the size and scale of the Arsenal changing room that we saw two weeks ago, but it was certainly a nice space. We then changed out of our muddy clothes (not in the player changing room, unfortunately) and got lunch in the stadium food area, which had a surprisingly large selection of different food stands. Finally, after resting a bit for about an hour, the game ceremonies began—actually, we began the game ceremonies! We had the amazing opportunity to carry the massive team flag out to the center of the pitch as the players came out and fireworks shot off behind us. This game, Harlequins vs. Saracens, was one of the most important of the year as the teams have a historic rivalry; it was truly a fantastic experience to be right at the center of it. We hurried off the pitch and moved to our seats as the game began, and what a game it turned out to be! Harlequins ran away with it, winning 41-14 in an action-packed match. The game capped off an awesome day in Twickenham, where we truly lived out the full rugby experience for a day.
Trip to Manchester
Yesterday we had the opportunity to see a top-tier premier league match in Manchester when Manchester City took on Crystal Palace at the Etihad Stadium. The day started with an early wake up followed by a stressful run through the unfamiliar national rail section of Euston station in downtown London. Luckily, everyone in the group got through the turnstiles with enough time to get comfortable for the two hour high-speed train journey ahead of us. When we arrived in Manchester, we had some time to explore the area. Most of the group used this time to see the National Football Museum. Connor Kelly said the museum “…was helpful for someone who is new to the sport. It had all sorts of cool artifacts from some of the first ever jerseys to a replica of the original World Cup.”
Jerseys from the 80s at the National Football Museum, including one from the Chicago team of the NASL Iconic Jerseys in the National Football Museum Some revolutionary jersey designs hanging in the National Football Museum A wall showing some of the most iconic jerseys in different colors The 1992 USA World Cup jersey
After the group was finished at the museum, everybody met to be a part of the fan march. This was where a huge group of Man City supporters, led by a marching band, walked from a park in central Manchester, all the way to Etihad stadium. The atmosphere was exciting and it felt like we were part of the locals supporting their team. Etihad Stadium had a more futuristic atmosphere than Villa Park or even Tottenham Hotspur stadium. The huge spires around the stadium dominated the skyline for miles. The difference was night and day compared to the old school structure of Villa Park, and despite the Tottenham Hotspur stadium being newer than the Etihad, the ultra modern design of Manchester City’s home ground was more physically impressive than Tottenham’s, in my opinion. One commonality between the three was the loud and involved fans cheering for both of the competing teams. At every game we have been to so far, all of the fans have all provided a high-energy environment to the match, and Etihad was no exception.
The game kicked off at 15:00 and right away, the underdog Crystal Palace club overwhelmed Manchester City with impressive defense and Palace found themselves with a 1-0 lead at the end of the first half. Towards the end of the second half, we saw one of the most exciting 10-minute stretches of the whole season. Manchester City striker Sergio Aguero scored back-to-back goals at the 82nd and 87th minutes, to give City a 2-1 lead. Then just three minutes later Palace deflected a shot off of a Man City player and tied the game for a final score of 2-2. It was an incredibly entertaining game and a final score that very few people would have predicted. After the game ended, city fans were distraught and rushed out of the stadium while the Palace fans stayed around to chant and send off their team. We then left the stadium and walked back to our station and caught our train back to London.