Today morning, I managed to go and see Soda and his Tervarit Blacks side play a friendly football match against the Tervarit B Juniors trained by Englishman, Mark Dziadulewicz (formerly of AFC Wimbledon - 1978 - 1980). The B Juniors won quite handsomely 4-1, mainly because they took every opportunity to score when the ball came their way.
Soda played part of the game. He really needs to fix his fitness.
Natural talent is just not enough when going up in the football world. Players have to be where the ball is before anyone else. That depends on speed and stamina. That, unfortunately, requires very very hard work and dedication. Turning up at team practices does not provide that ingredient. Team practice is where teamwork is built, not personal performance capabilities.
It was reallly refreshing to see the young members of Mark's team sprint hard and get to the ball before their opponents. That made them a much superior team to the Tervarit Blacks. Mark knows dedicated talent when he sees it. That is why he has chosen the players for his side.
And, in football, one must love to hold on to the ball, dribble, and make the best pass at the right time. One has to draw away a defender before making a crucial pass. It is not enough to send the ball on to the next player as soon as it touches the foot!
Joanna and Daniel spent their first day in Oulu at Kampitie.
Both of them loved it. Joanna was able to enjoy the feeling of home - having her mother cook them French fries and lolling of the sofa, with the smell of "home" around her, while her younger son was busy enjoying everything, especially his grandmother carrying him all over the place and sharing all the wonderful things that she has put in place for her grandchildren - butterflies, dragonflies, goldfish and thousand and one other delights.
The ice cream was enjoyed by all. Then it was time to go shopping to make sure Samuel and Tony came home to "their home" with a similar homely feeling.
The day was busy for Joanna as all her friends sent her text messages welcoming her back to Finland. It appears she is going to have a very busy summer enjoying it in the way you only can in Finland!
Later in the evening I spent quality time with Joanna and Daniel at their home, just relaxing and enjoying that wonderful grandfather feeling! Was Annikki jealous?
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