Sunday, November 7

Burger Flippers Unite - Eitan Wins A Game

Again I spear-head the Guy Fawkes fireworks BBQ which always turns out to be good fun and this year no exception. The forecast for "torrential rain" and "gale force winds" but instead it is a beautifully clear and chilly evening perfect for star gazing. We serve up 250 sausages and 350 char-burnt "beef burgers." Blech. James, second from the left, takes the Gold-Star since he flips with left arm in a sling following a bicycle accident that left him with a couple of broken ribs and a busted shoulder. We rake maybe £1200 for the school.

Eitan's KPR plays Spelthorne for the second time this season on Strathem's home pitch. The game deadlocked at zero with 15 minutes to go when Eitan draws a foul. He lines up for a free-kick about 20 meters from the goal and nails a perfect curving shot that "drops" into the upper left hand corner of the net - gooooaaaaalllllll! The goalkeeper frozen, nothing he can do, while the boys and sidelines silenced. Yep, that is my son. I anxiously hope KPR hold on for the victory so the boy's strike will count. As Juerin, father of Maxime, notes with a chuckle: "He should retire now." I ask Eitan what he was thinking before his kick and he tells me: "David Beckham, when he scored the goal against Greece." Recall Beckham's strike occurred with one-minute left of stoppage time and sent England into the 2002 World Cup final. It curled into the top corner of goal-box. And while, ahem, a bit less dramatic Eitan held a mental picture of what he wished to do and did it. We have taken a few drubbings this season in the higher division but today Coach happy.

Madeleine brings "Rusty" and busies herself on the sidelines keeping warm and the dog under control.