Futboli

We’ll finally share some pictures of Chris as a Kenyan footballer… they are quite overdue, since they are from that first weekend’s game. The RYDAS F.C. are a fun group of guys who I had already really enjoyed joining their practices. As we told Lesley’s mom, we thought the team name was simply like “riders” but with the somewhat unique Kenyan spelling that we see sometimes. We did not recognize at first that it is the acronym of the Ribe Youth Development Association we have partnered with in coming here! So, it is quite fitting that I joined them and not another team.
However, I apparently did not get fouled enough to merit more play; we’ve been hoping to get more pictures of me playing, but the guys want to win. Therefore, a few of the players and I have not gotten to play. I’ve begun joking with Tito that I think we need to be winning by 3 goals for me to have a chance to play again. Well, this past week, we did not have game a game (thankfully, since we spent the weekend in Nyali again), but the weekend before, the guys did win 3-0! Just my luck that it was the week that I had been sick with a bit of a cold/minor flu (they seem to call everything with a sniffle or cough the flu though), so I hadn’t practiced all week and was not prepared to play.
Fortunately, I had caught a ride to the game with Tito, or else I would not have gone, because the game was in the next town over, which the team walks over an hour each way to get there! The other time we had a game there, I walked with them, did not play, walked back with them, and was completely exhausted. I can’t imagine how tired the guys who played most of the game must have been! I would not have made it when still trying to kick that cold, but was sure glad I went in Tito’s car because it was great fun to celebrate with the guys.

Even the goals were quite exciting! Here is a brief recap: well, we missed the first one since we arrived late (after helping a truck with Obama’s “Yes We Can” slogan on it with a flat tyre, so sadly “no they couldn’t.”) However, it was scored by one of the guys I’ve gotten to know a bit, so it was great to congratulate him at halftime. The second goal occurred when our striker was tripped in the box and blasted the penalty kick past the goalie. Then, in the second half, Jimmy, our captain who invited me to play with the conversation I shared in the blog and I’ve also gotten to know a fair bit, took a great shot from the corner of the penalty box across to the far post… barely too far rebounding off the post to another attacker who one-timed it out of the air over the goal. I was jumping up and down on the sideline in excitement and then disappointment. Just a little bit later, Jimmy’s efforts were rewarded with a beautiful head ball to the upper corner of the goal on a cross from the corner. It was all so fun to watch… I’ll continue enjoying practices and let you know if I play in a game again.