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The Bard: One Weighted Week!
Sky Blue FC wrapped earned a draw with the Los Angeles Sol and a win over the Chicago Red Stars. Karen Bardsley talks a bit about the adventures of the last week… on and off the field.
Jun 21, 2009 3:25:04 AM
The last five days here in New Jersey have been satisfying to say the least. Sunday, we dominated play against the league leading Los Angeles Sol in front of 4,100 die-hard supporters in the pouring rain. (Well done everyone that made it out to the match!)
We treated our fans to some proper New Jersey soccer - great attacking, confident, aggressive, entertaining play combined with a rock solid defense. We had quite a few half chances, but two or three solid opportunities on goal that we really should have converted. It was disappointing to not have come away from that match with three points, but in our eyes it was a moral victory and a good starting point.
In preparation for the Chicago game we decided to pay New York City a visit, but first we went and promoted our upcoming game at Mulligan's Irish Pub in Hoboken, New Jersey. We hung out for a few hours and watched the opening games of UEFA's Confederations Cup. We then took the PATH to the West Side and met up with one of our teammates on her apartment's fancy rooftop! Exquisite view of New York I must admit. It was surreal to look out and see a skyline of such magnitude. To our left was the Empire State Building and the Chrysler building just behind it, and to our right was the financial district and the Statue of Liberty. Trust me, it was awe-inspiring! You should have seen my face, mouth agape and all.
After reality returned, my stomach grumbled like a perturbed passerby. We decided to hit up a local Mexican food joint to ease or pangs, the tacos were expensive but it was worth it. Anyway, long story longer. A few hours passed and we decided it was time for a bit of a dance. Irked by the urge, we strolled up and down the trendy meat-packing district and eventually ran into Lance Bass (yes, THAT Lance Bass) in one of the clubs, naturally we danced and good times inevitably ensued.
The following day, Readington soccer club was having their annual sign-ups and try-outs. Kelly Parker, Heather O'Reilly, and I attended the event. Naturally everyone clamored for my autograph and security had to be called. It was like a Hannah Montana concert - way too many pre-teens! Things eventually settled down and we gave ink out to the lil' gangstas, along with latex free wristbands, and encrypted pieces of cardboard. I even had the opportunity to meet a lovely little love bird named Rascal (whom had an affinity for pecking teeth and fancied perching itself on my Ray Bans). It had had it's glorious wings clipped, sentencing Rascal to live a life of slavery and mundane house chores. All in all it was a fun event, lots of chatting! Mostly we promoted our game vs. Chicago and had a good time doing it! Hey Readington, you guys are great!!!
The next day was game day! Best day ever! This game was our shortest turn around to date but I didn't feel any "tired" vibes from the team. We were definitely eager for two back-to-back solid performances and we did just that. The warm-up was excellent and the energy carried into the beginning of the game when we (Sky Blue FC) dominated the first half of play and captured an early goal to take the momentum into the second half. Chicago came out extremely motivated and really turned up the pressure ten minutes into the second half.
In the 76th minute, we were all given a few grey hairs, Chicago was given a free kick at the top of the box that had to be retaken because one of our players did her job and charged the ball when the ball was touched. The retake was nearly costly but the cross bar was on our side Wednesday night. We managed to stay solid defensively, and even had a few counter attacks in the later minutes when Chicago decided to switch to a 3-5-2. The game ended with Rosana's lone goal being the decisive factor in the match. Again, to all you 2,600 supporters that made it out to the game Wednesday night, thank you!!!
Well, next up is a trip to the Stress Factory, a local comedy club in Downtown New Brunswick and on Friday a team trip to see The Fray! You know what they say about all work and no play.
Oh and by the way, "Tigers love pepper. They hate cinnamon."
Karen
Karen Bardsley is a goalkeeper for WPS side Sky Blue FC. Her column, “The Bard,” appears weekly on Goal.com.
For more on Women's Professional Soccer, go to Goal.com's women's soccer page.
We treated our fans to some proper New Jersey soccer - great attacking, confident, aggressive, entertaining play combined with a rock solid defense. We had quite a few half chances, but two or three solid opportunities on goal that we really should have converted. It was disappointing to not have come away from that match with three points, but in our eyes it was a moral victory and a good starting point.
In preparation for the Chicago game we decided to pay New York City a visit, but first we went and promoted our upcoming game at Mulligan's Irish Pub in Hoboken, New Jersey. We hung out for a few hours and watched the opening games of UEFA's Confederations Cup. We then took the PATH to the West Side and met up with one of our teammates on her apartment's fancy rooftop! Exquisite view of New York I must admit. It was surreal to look out and see a skyline of such magnitude. To our left was the Empire State Building and the Chrysler building just behind it, and to our right was the financial district and the Statue of Liberty. Trust me, it was awe-inspiring! You should have seen my face, mouth agape and all.
After reality returned, my stomach grumbled like a perturbed passerby. We decided to hit up a local Mexican food joint to ease or pangs, the tacos were expensive but it was worth it. Anyway, long story longer. A few hours passed and we decided it was time for a bit of a dance. Irked by the urge, we strolled up and down the trendy meat-packing district and eventually ran into Lance Bass (yes, THAT Lance Bass) in one of the clubs, naturally we danced and good times inevitably ensued.
The following day, Readington soccer club was having their annual sign-ups and try-outs. Kelly Parker, Heather O'Reilly, and I attended the event. Naturally everyone clamored for my autograph and security had to be called. It was like a Hannah Montana concert - way too many pre-teens! Things eventually settled down and we gave ink out to the lil' gangstas, along with latex free wristbands, and encrypted pieces of cardboard. I even had the opportunity to meet a lovely little love bird named Rascal (whom had an affinity for pecking teeth and fancied perching itself on my Ray Bans). It had had it's glorious wings clipped, sentencing Rascal to live a life of slavery and mundane house chores. All in all it was a fun event, lots of chatting! Mostly we promoted our game vs. Chicago and had a good time doing it! Hey Readington, you guys are great!!!
The next day was game day! Best day ever! This game was our shortest turn around to date but I didn't feel any "tired" vibes from the team. We were definitely eager for two back-to-back solid performances and we did just that. The warm-up was excellent and the energy carried into the beginning of the game when we (Sky Blue FC) dominated the first half of play and captured an early goal to take the momentum into the second half. Chicago came out extremely motivated and really turned up the pressure ten minutes into the second half.
In the 76th minute, we were all given a few grey hairs, Chicago was given a free kick at the top of the box that had to be retaken because one of our players did her job and charged the ball when the ball was touched. The retake was nearly costly but the cross bar was on our side Wednesday night. We managed to stay solid defensively, and even had a few counter attacks in the later minutes when Chicago decided to switch to a 3-5-2. The game ended with Rosana's lone goal being the decisive factor in the match. Again, to all you 2,600 supporters that made it out to the game Wednesday night, thank you!!!
Well, next up is a trip to the Stress Factory, a local comedy club in Downtown New Brunswick and on Friday a team trip to see The Fray! You know what they say about all work and no play.
Oh and by the way, "Tigers love pepper. They hate cinnamon."
Karen
Karen Bardsley is a goalkeeper for WPS side Sky Blue FC. Her column, “The Bard,” appears weekly on Goal.com.
For more on Women's Professional Soccer, go to Goal.com's women's soccer page.
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