Day 4

It’s the last day of my soccer adventure. Can you say this has been a blast? For sure. Have I gotten inspired for a story? You bet I have. This was the last adventure I expected to have while I traveled the globe.

So I bet your wondering what went down the last day. I got to the game. There is a famous street that leads to the stadium entrance. It has been a street the fans have walked with their heads held high and sometimes low in sadness when their beloved team lost a game.

This time I had the chance to walk with the fans all decked out in team colors with my official replica shirt and scarf. I had to be dressed the part if I were to cheer alongside the hard core fans.
When I stepped through the gates the energy of the fans was intense. They were already cheering and singing as the team did one last round of warm up on the field below. The sea of red green and white was amazing.

The rival team was on the side in a specially blocked off area with riot police blocking them off. Yes there was riot police and tons of them. The last time these two teams played fans got out of control.
Each side was cheering and trying to psych out the other. I had never seen such immense passion and dedication.

Once the game got started the fans cheered even harder. I’d never seen anything like it.

The first half of the game our team was not doing so well and fans were starting to wonder would we be walking back down that road with sadness in our eyes.

When halftime arrived the fans took time to grab food and regain their strength since since the start of the game they cheered nonstop. Since I had never been to a game i did not know their cheers or songs but you quickly catch on.

Halftime over….the action kicked in….The home team ended up scoring one goal and then the next…We lead the game and everyone couldn’t help but cheer harder. The team had to finish off the season on a high note and a win.

It was so amazing to see the players that I had been hanging out with and talking to for the past few days as they were going full steam ad giving it their all. Seeing them out there on the field fighting hard and getting cheers from the crowd was something spectacular.
I know that soccer is no exception and that all fans cheer for their teams but to be there for the last game of the season and witness it all for the very first time was different.

How did we do? We won….

At the end the players stripped off their clothes and either exchanged shirts with the opposing team or tossed them to the stands for the fans to take as a souvenir from the closing game.
At the end of the match as the players ran around tossing their clothes the fans cheered thank you to the teams coach Ryszard Tarasiewicz. They thanked him for bringing the team to a victorious finish…

I don’t think I have ever seen fans do that at a sports event and it was different.

All in all being in the middle of the game and getting to experience it live is something that I will never forget. I can’t thank the cashier who was kind enough to take me to the teams club and help me have this amazing opportunity, Lukasz Padewski for his kindness and being an amazing host, Andrzej Padewski for his gifts and time, and the players who I had the chance to talk to and get the opportunity to get a glimpse inside their world. What it is like to be a professional soccer player.

I thank you all from the bottom of my heart and I hope that one day when my travels bring me back to Europe I will be able to see you again.

Savannah