Derrick placed the ball on the penalty spot and took three measured steps back. The goal keeper with his six foot two inch, eighty kg frame looked huge in the goal, like a wall stretching from one end to the other. The boisterous crowd that had been shouting for the better part of ninety minutes had gone silent. This was it. The final kick to decide the game.
A game between St Vincent’s And Loyolas was never just a game. The two sister institutions founded by Jesuit priests were considered two of the best schools in the city. Vincents had a longer history, a more storied past with alumni that included famous sportsmen and politicians and entrepreneurs and media personalities. It had a better record in both academics and athletics but over the past few years Loyola was catching up and in some cases surpassing its rival. This had been especially true on the football field and in the annual Ricklin cup match held between the two schools. Three years in a row, Loyola had won, the last game being particularly humiliating with a five nil thrashing at the Loyola campus. Tempers had flared after the game with the players, students and some rowdy ex-students joining in the melee. It took a concerted effort by the staff of both schools intervening with threats of suspending everyone involved that finally calmed the situation down.
This year no one outside the school had been allowed and the local police were called in to ensure that there would be no violence. At the beginning of the fourth period the students were lined up in rows and led up to the stadium by teachers who cautioned everyone to be quiet and well behaved. Shortly after two buses with the junior college students from Loyola arrived. The boys and girls were ushered by their teachers to the other half of the stadium. The two teams stood ready on the pitch shuffling nervously as the principals shook each others hands. Someone in the stadium shouted, Loyola chia bailala bo, and that was met with a chorus from the other side that went, Vincents chi fatli zigzag zigzag. The teachers tried to calm the crowd but their voices were drowned by the huge roar that errupted from either side. The referee blew his whistle and the game started.
It had been a scoreless but enthralling contest, with both sides coming close to scoring multiple times. Greg in his red tracksuit flying across the goal made several spectacular saves, Gulshan with his towering presence at the back thundered clearances, the tenacious team captain Vijay Raghavn marshaled the midfield defense and Ansen’s creativity controlled the offense, with Derrick and Bradley on either flank and Sanjay poaching in the center. Father Oesch walked the sidelines shouting out instructions and encouraging the players to hold their formation and push harder and faster.
In the eightieth eight minute of play an innocuous clearance by a Loyola defender lobbed in front of Greg. He rushed off his goal line to catch it but before he reached it, the ball bounced in front of him and looped over his outstretched arms. He turned back in horror and watched the ball head towards the open net. Just then Andrew came flying in and slid across the goal mouth to steer it away. Just as the Loyola center forward was about to tap in the ball, Gulshan brushed him off. As the Loyola forward tumbled in the six yard box, the supporters yelled for a penalty but the referee waved it off. Ansen gathered the clearance and rushed towards the opposite goal dribbling past two mid fielders, and then slid a through pass bisecting the defense towards Derrick. The goal keeper sensed the danger and charged towards the ball but Derrick got a touch just before him and tried to leap over. The goal keeper stretched his arms but failed to make any contact with the ball and instead sent Derrick sprawling into the dirt. This time the referee had no hesitation in pointing towards the penalty spot. The crowd roared with half the stadium cheering and the other howling in disapproval.
The referee raised his arm and blew his whistle. Derrick took two running steps towards the ball his eyes locked towards the left top corner. As he neared the ball he swung his left foot and the goal keeper anticipating the kick flung his entire body leftwards, but Derrick side stepped the ball gently in the opposite corner with his less dominant right foot. Everyone watched as the ball gently rolled over the goal line and then the entire team ran towards him lifting him up in the air.
The goal keeper dusted himself off and walked towards Derrick extending his hand.
“I’m Ratnakar,” he said, “well played.”
Derrick shook Ratna’s hand, “I’m Derrick,” he replied, “yeah man, good game.”