2025-10-18, 08:51 PM - Word count:
After the long months and exhaustion of playing all over the world, the end of the season was finally here. We would have one more match against last-place Inter London, and even though we'd already locked up sixth place in the Minors division we had a very outside chance to move up to fifth place as well as wanting to send the fans off with a victory on our own field. I still wasn't totally sure where I would be playing next year, but I hoped to make a good impression on the management for the future with my play. While it had taken me a little bit to get settled and adjust to the level of play, I'd picked it up well in the second half and had 6 goals and 4 assists, more than enough to be satisfied with my first season of work.
We pushed hard for the first part of the match, but ultimately it was London that got on the board first on a feed in the penalty area. It wouldn't be long until Rova got the equalizer, Takahashi converting a pass from Alex Stain at the left goal line in the 28th minute in a play that had become so regular over the second half of the year. London got the lead right back less than three minutes later on a shot that tipped off Takahashi and the post before going in, but just before halftime Heung-Man Smalls tied it at 2-2 with a clean shot. I hadn't had the best first half myself, but we still had the home-field advantage and the momentum on our side.
In the 48th minute, we got our first lead of the match when Tepoztli took a nice pass in the box and fired it home, and then in the 73rd minute we got another chance. Takahashi took a pass and fired a cross into the box, where both Tank Denstro and I were charging towards the goal. Denstro had gotten a boot on more of these plays throughout the year, but this time the ball landed on my foot in a perfect position to score and make the match 4-2.
With only a few minutes left to go in the season, Dissa Pointment intercepted a goal kick and the ball was quickly passed ahead to me. I had a wide-open lane to the net and fired the shot home, making the score 5-2. I'd made something of a habit of scoring incredibly late in games where it didn't matter (something I'd had a laugh about with Caitlin, who had done the same thing in the Quebec City Citadelles' run to the SMJHL championship), but it was still the first two-goal game of my career and the best possible way to finish out my rookie year in the SSL Minors division. London got a goal in the 94th minute that did nothing but shorten the margin, but a couple minutes later the final whistle blew on mine and Rova's first season of play in the SSL Minors division. We'd exceeded all our expectations to finish in the top half of the table, and I was excited to see where the next steps of my career would lead.
We pushed hard for the first part of the match, but ultimately it was London that got on the board first on a feed in the penalty area. It wouldn't be long until Rova got the equalizer, Takahashi converting a pass from Alex Stain at the left goal line in the 28th minute in a play that had become so regular over the second half of the year. London got the lead right back less than three minutes later on a shot that tipped off Takahashi and the post before going in, but just before halftime Heung-Man Smalls tied it at 2-2 with a clean shot. I hadn't had the best first half myself, but we still had the home-field advantage and the momentum on our side.
In the 48th minute, we got our first lead of the match when Tepoztli took a nice pass in the box and fired it home, and then in the 73rd minute we got another chance. Takahashi took a pass and fired a cross into the box, where both Tank Denstro and I were charging towards the goal. Denstro had gotten a boot on more of these plays throughout the year, but this time the ball landed on my foot in a perfect position to score and make the match 4-2.
With only a few minutes left to go in the season, Dissa Pointment intercepted a goal kick and the ball was quickly passed ahead to me. I had a wide-open lane to the net and fired the shot home, making the score 5-2. I'd made something of a habit of scoring incredibly late in games where it didn't matter (something I'd had a laugh about with Caitlin, who had done the same thing in the Quebec City Citadelles' run to the SMJHL championship), but it was still the first two-goal game of my career and the best possible way to finish out my rookie year in the SSL Minors division. London got a goal in the 94th minute that did nothing but shorten the margin, but a couple minutes later the final whistle blew on mine and Rova's first season of play in the SSL Minors division. We'd exceeded all our expectations to finish in the top half of the table, and I was excited to see where the next steps of my career would lead.
<center><img src='https://i.imgur.com/X6cSRMC.jpeg' border='0' alt='user posted image' /></center><br><center>Sig by Pandar</center>
