On Sunday 25th August we had a friendly match against a local church side from Cabinda. The event was arranged by Jose 'Gilson' Mourinho who was also the Manager of the Express Malongo team.
The game ended up with a 4-1 loss for Express with the local side's superior fitness coming into force in the second half.
The game was expertly refereed by Juke Keene who dealt with several fierce challenges and kept up with the incredibly fast pace.
The game also marked the return of a once legendary player who came out of retirement to make a guest appearance in the second half. Steve 'Van Persie' Hooper (aka yours truly) displayed that he still had his silky first touch and lethal left foot, and even though his once lightning speed and ariel prowess might have faded, he still contributed to the game, setting up the only goal for the home team............
The game ended up with a 4-1 loss for Express with the local side's superior fitness coming into force in the second half.
The game was expertly refereed by Juke Keene who dealt with several fierce challenges and kept up with the incredibly fast pace.
The game also marked the return of a once legendary player who came out of retirement to make a guest appearance in the second half. Steve 'Van Persie' Hooper (aka yours truly) displayed that he still had his silky first touch and lethal left foot, and even though his once lightning speed and ariel prowess might have faded, he still contributed to the game, setting up the only goal for the home team............
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| Yeah you're smiling now baldy, just wait till after the game.......... |
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| Around 120 people turned up to watch! |
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| Thats it stay on your feet lad, don't dive in! |
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| The visitors bare down on Goal........ |
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| Jose 'Gilson' Mourinho. The Special One, Angolan Style. |
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| Hugh Gallagher looks on in disgust as his Catering Managers display their severe lack of fitness. |
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| The crowd can hardly contain their excitement......... |
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| Capita, Graciano and Casimiro offer their unique form of punditry from the sidelines |
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| Salome and Judite managed to escape the kitchen to support their team! |
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| Hugh offering me some half time advice.....'Don't embarrass yourself Stevie lad'......... |
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| Bring on Mr Steve! His touch and ability are what we need! |
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| Gilson delivers his team talk...hairdryer treatment in Portuguese I think. |
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| Get the ball, run like the clappers and kick it between the white post thingies! Jesus Christo! |
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| Juke monitors another midfield battle, as Kikuma, who starred for Express, is eyeing up another great challenge. |
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| Juke - This really isn't the time to show everyone your 'I'm a little teapot' routine........ |
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| And the crowd go wild! Kind of........ |
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| The Cabinda Church Football team and supporters! Thanks for a great game. |
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| This was not the answer to 'How many times did you touch the ball Mr Steve...........?' |
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| Medical attention please! |
