“I don’t know if I’m happy or sad,” Coach Stuart Campbell said after the game.
The night started off a little rough. Showed up to the game barely on time only to find my camera turned on inside my bag. Of course, it was dead so no none of those Ansel Adams-esque portraits of the game that I’m sure you’re accustomed to me publishing.
And just like that, the Rowdies were down 1-0 in what was the most important game of the year.
We are tied in the standings with Minnesota, the team we drew 2-2 with in a rare Wednesday night match, but a win would have put us in a playoff position with just a few weeks left in the season. It would have been a comfy place to go to bed tonight, in a world where the Rowdies were a fourth-place team.
I know, I set my dreams sky high.
The Rowdies tied it up with a decadent goal from Georgi Hristov, but it wasn’t enough, and soon Minnesota was back on top.
Minnesota held the lead with the best way they knew how; they parked the proverbial bus in front of the net, hunkered down on defense, and began practicing their synchronized diving moves on the field with gold-medal grace.
It was a crockpot of mixed emotions, because frustration turned to jubilation in the last second when Keith Savage tied the match to salvage a draw. But we wanted a win.
“We couldn’t quite get it going in the second half of the game. It was stop, start, stop, start,” Campbell said. “We couldn’t get in our rhythm. For whatever reason, Minnesota made it difficult for us.”
A slight commentary on Minnesota’s time-wasting tactics worthy of an academy award? Perhaps but Campbell’s pleasantly English demeanor would ever say it out loud.
The emotional rollercoaster took a turn into the eyes of defeat only to lift fans out of dread with a dramatic finish to escape with at least a tie. Keith Savage has once again been crowned the hero of the day.
“He’s got a knack for drifting in and the ball seems to just land at his feet,” Campbell said about Savage.
But Savage showed his trademark humility and took no credit.
“Lucky spot. Right spot, right time,” Savage said. “It could have fallen to anyone. This is one of the best teams I’ve ever played with.”
The draw ensured the Rowdies are indeed still in the hunt for the playoffs, but if there’s one thing this team seems to love, it’s drama and they’ve added to the drama every step of the way.
The fans came out in the usual loyal droves, despite the Wednesday meet up, and Campbell credited them for bringing the team across the finish line. It’s another quick turnaround, but they will have to do it without the help of the fans in four days’ time with a trip to Edmonton, Alberta on Sunday afternoon.
It’s almost hockey season, so hopefully those Canadians will be too busy to give much effort against the Rowdies. I can hope, eh?
This article appears in Oct 6-13, 2016.