Group C: #1 US #2 England

This game took years off my life. Years and I wouldn't trade it for anything.

There was a point late in the game- our captain Boc was completing another great tackle...I was preparing myself mentally and emotionally for the fact that we weren't going to make it through...when all I could think was, "we played our hearts out." That's what this team does and it's tough to beat that. And if/when you do, there's no way US fans won't be proud of their team.

When you think about our team today, there were soo many who had standout performances:

Bradley- so solid, so much poise, so proud I have his jersey. I loved all of our players' approaches to free kicks. On each kick, one of our guys would step up and tell the others, "I got this." Demps did it, Landon did it and Bradley did it and he took one heck of a strike.
Edu & Feilhalber- If they were one player, they'd be the greatest midfielder on the planet.
Jozy & Gomez & Buddle- never feared having the ball, brought so much energy and life to the team. They were unlucky at times and blew chances at others, but man, for not having heard of 2 of them before 3 months ago, they brought it.
Our D- each one came up with at least one monumental play- Boc's world class clearance late in the game comes to mind.
Howard- clean sheet and his throw was effectively an assist.

I learned that I really do like Beasley. There was this one lady at the Draft House who was obnoxious throughout the game but once Beasley came in, whenever he touched the ball would yell, "Beasley, you suck!" I realize people were tense and she obviously followed the team, but she got into a screaming match with another lady. And I didn't remember how much I liked the Beas until I noticed that it was very nearly me.

But none of that mattered once stoppage time hit.

The moment Donovan scored was the best sports experience I've ever had and is something I'll remember for the rest of my life. Mark, to answer your question, yes I had tears in my eyes. It was a roaring explosion of joy. I hugged my dad, Keith, and Ashley for probably 2 minutes in individual and group hugs. We went from being on the brink of elimination to winning our group... in 12 seconds. That's how long it was between Howard's (phenomenal) throw and Donovan burying the biggest goal in US soccer history (so far). To quote Pete's text: I have no words.



Bring on Ghana...
Timmy
Dolo Demerit Boc Spector
Donovan Edu Bradley Benny Demps
Jozy