My Dream Goal!!!!!

I played football this past Sunday at Juhu beach yet again. I was tired from partying on Friday night and watching two movies, my legs hurt, but that footballer in me gets up when it is time. Without fail.

So there we were, 6 of us at Juhu beach, and we found a similar number of players to start a game with. We conceded two goals early. Miserable defending. And the first one started with me losing the ball to a young fellow in the opposite team. I was determined to make amends. So I aggresively attacked. And I was doing well, their left-back was having a torrid time with me. I was getting past him with ease. Anyway, I ended up scoring 4 goals, and that was the total that we scored and the match ended in a 4-4 draw. But this post isn't about the game. It is about that one goal that i scored. One unlike any that I have ever scored. And one that I replay in my mind over and over again, and smile every single time.

We were defending. They had a corner and most of my team was back. I was standing at the virtual half-way line as all good strikers do, waiting for a loose ball. The corner was taken, it fell to one of team-mates feet. He looked up and saw me, and hit the ball towards me. As the rolling ball came towards me, I turned without touching it and let it run, and I ran behind it. Since most of their team had gone up for their corner, there were only two defenders and the goalie behind.

I saw one of those defenders running up towards me. I heard his team-mates screaming from behind, ordering him to stop the ball, or me. As we drew close, the ball between us, I dont know where I got the inspiration from. I have absolutely no idea. It just came as a flash. With just a few feet left between him and I, I touched the ball with the outside of my right foot (my first touch) and the ball glided untouched through his legs. And I was past him from his right side in a flash. One obstacle done with.

As I continued on past the defender, I saw the goalie running up now. And as he got close, I again hit the ball with the outside of my right foot and it went past his left, along the beach sand into the bottom left corner of the goal. And it went in.

I was in love with myself in that instant. Since I was still running, I continued past the goal, turned back towards the playing area and took my jersey off, and did the entire 'swinging-the-jersey-above-my-head' run.

That was the goal that made it 3-3. There was this little argument from the defender who had the ball go thru his legs about how it wasnt a goal, but his own team mates shut him up before I needed to. And I felt good.

We planning to play tomorrow as well and the footballer in me so wants to. But my body is pretty stiff, and my toes hurt too. Oh, did I mention that we were playing barefeet?

Such should be a week end...always.

I have had a few frustrating weeks now. Work has been really slow. Not many auditions happening, so of course not much work. And to top it all, with those '3-day' week ends...most of my corporate buddies were planning something or the other and I was getting to hear about it. I have postponed any plan of a vacation indefinitely. I intend to get some good work, and only then go out. Though, with all the frustration, I needed a break. So I decided to ride down to either Pune or Daman to refresh my mind a bit.

I hoped Ankit would ride down with me, but a little rain on Friday and his own tiredness and laziness, he used as reasons to avoid the Saturday biking saga, and left me going to sleep a very frustrated man. However, I was frustrated enough to do the ride alone. That's the thought that accompanied me to sleep.

Saturday - 5 am.
I woke up. I went to my window and looked outside. I was searching for one star. One star alone, that would show me that it wouldn't be a rainy day, and one star that would prove to Ankit that he was an a**hole. I didn't find it. The entire sky was cloudy. It just added to my frustration, and my fear. I called my trip off. I slept.

Saturday - 8:30 am.
I woke up. I wandered into the hall, where my father was watching the news. He says, 'Check this out. The Goa Highway is shut because of floods. There is a bus stuck somewhere and they are trying to evacuate people from there.'
Great. Exactly the kind of news that my parents would love to hear, knowing their son was out on his bike riding 150 km. At this point, I kinda realised that Ankit's so called 'premonition' about rains was right. But I wasn't going to let him know. Not just yet.

I left my house at 11am, determined to make the most out of my day. I knew if I stayed home, I would do nothing except browse the Internet and play football (video game). I made a trip to Shoppers Stop, to return broken Allen Solly sunglasses. I expect them replaced. Then I went to Versova to get a cheque for something I had done 2 months back. Then I went to 4 bungalows for an audition, which was to start at 2, but eventually did so only at 245 because the lady conducting it was late.
From there i headed to my friends place in Amboli. The same friend, outside whose house, I had left my beloved Reebok DMX one night...only to discover them stolen an hour later. This time, I took off my shoes inside. She made lunch, which was very nice, and I spent my afternoon and early evening there. After that it was a bike ride to Powai, another short trip to Saki Naka to get Chicken Tandoori, and then I was home. Asleep at 11 after dinner. I had a reason.

Sunday - 6 am.
I woke up. It was drizzling outside. I got ready, called my friend, met him got into his car and was on my way. TO PLAY FOOTBALL! We were to play at Vile Parle, but only 7 people turned up. So we went to Juhu beach. As I walked from the parking area towards the beach, I was greeted by...heaven.

The clouds had descended onto the sea, the wind was powerful and chilly, the rain drops were cold and huge and hit hard against my van Nistelrooy jersey, the waves sounded beautiful, yet meek because of the wind. This was already heaven, and it just got better. I had a football at my feet. I fell in love with the beach, a beach in Mumbai, where I had thought beaches sucked, and I know of a few others who still think the same. But I am in love with the beach. And I intend to go there as many early Sundays as I can.

We found a group of guys who let us join in and we played. I scored two goals, always helps. At the end of the game, I had sand on my jersey and shorts, so I went into the cold sea water and got it off. It was still raining. We left, it began to rain harder. We stopped for the quintessential chai and wada-pav. Instead of heading over to my place after, I went to Ankits. I was sure if I went home, I would just laze around. The rains we rent subsiding at all. Plus, I had to get the whole 'pissed-off' issue done and dusted with. So there I went. Confessed that he had been right about the rains, and it was just more frustrating when the plan did not work out. Freshened up and went to a couple of auditions. Then back to his place, within no time heading to catch a movie (not that good)...then back to his place...chai and aloo pakodas...then watched football, Arsenal Vs Blackburn, and Liverpool Vs Chelsea...good football. Then chicken curry and rice as dinner. And the entire day it rained. uffffff....just too much awesomeness in one day.

Reached home at 1030 pm Sunday. And was too tired, and too happy and a little wet on the bum because the ric didnt have those covers on the side.. What I couldn't get in Daman or Pune, I got right here. A lovely weekend. I am refreshed!