There were contrasting scenes of despair and jubilation and a peculiar buzz at the Ja-ahrena. Visiting Aztun Veela pummelled the home side with 7 goals, Hiraizumi-DreadlockClub clawing back 4. Veela's new manager left the pitch to chants of: "He's wet behind the ears and he leaves them in tears. Mark Villa! Mark Villa!"
In a post match interview, despite the triumphant win, Villa was edgy. "We came here to win. So, we win. 7 goals. No flukes. 7 fantastic goals.The team showed me today who they are, and who they want to be. I did not spend 15 years in a monastery counting grains of rice for nothing. Although yes, I did a lot of counting. Perhaps almost one million grains. What I learnt was patience. Also, dedication. Also, the importance of singlemindedness. And these are all qualities I will bring to this team."
There was no patience shown by Villa's attack on this occasion. It took just 9 minutes to find the goal, a stunner from Sverre Odenberger. From that point on it was cat and mouse, Hiraizumi-DreadlockClub pushing back behind the pace, often tantalisingly close to drawing level and regaining control, only to fall behind. Again and again. At the 68th minute it was 5-4 to Veela, and they sealed their win in the last with goals from Stone and Jedisson.
Despite the big win, some of Villa's selection choices were surprising, perhaps some might say reckless. The 17 year old keeper Poncela looked out of his depth and the defence in front of him unsteady. This was compensated by the mastery of Veela's midfield, and the intense zest of the attack, dominating the game from start to finish. And while Poncela made two important saves, his profligacy cost Veela 4, and this could be a weakness against more astute opponents. "The goalkeeper isn't simply and only about making saves." Villa insisted. "Poncela made his presence known. When you look at a mound of one million rice, when you hold each grain in your fingertips, and study them, contemplate them, encounter them, one by one, how will you ever know them again, once you have returned them to the mass?"
The press room was silent, perplexed. As were the home fans, the home team, the stadium staff. The away fans filtered away chanting, "He enjoys counting rice and his managerial skills are very nice." Even the chanting was delirious and off-tempo and kind of anti-chanting. A peculiar evening all told. Very peculiar indeed.
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