Night Game in Pom Grasia

This was an experience that I can not due justice with my words but i will try.

Soccer in Haiti is much different than in the states. Here we play on small fields with small goals. The fields are dirt and the goals are metal or wood. Dimensions are maybe 30 yd x40 yd for the field and 4ft x 3 ft for the goals. There are 4 field players and a goalkeeper on a team. The goal keeper can not use his hands and if he does the opposing team gets a penalty shot from half field with no goalkeeper in the goal. The game is played very fast and your touch on the ball must be good to survive.

Sunday during the day preparations were made for the game by the players in our village, Lagossette. This includes organizing uniforms, buying bags of water from town and putting them in a cooler, and finding shoes for all the players. Don't be fooled by the poor accommodations, these guys are very skilled and all could have started at Calvin.

The game was scheduled to start at 7pm, it gets dark around 6ish. The players and some supporters congregated by our gate at 7:15pm to head to the game. Transportation was one moped but we had 6 guys so 3 guys hopped on with the cooler and headed to the game while me and two other players walked through the dark. I can't tell who i am walking with because they are black as night. Anyways the moped comes back and picks the rest of us up and we speed down the dirt roads leading to Pom Grasia.

We arrive to an environment that i have never played in. The field is surrounded by a fence consisting of cactus and partially cement wall. There is a guy taking money at the gate that lifts the rope for us as we ride right up to the team bench. I am the only white person among over 100 people surrounding this tiny field. The atmosphere is exciting. People before the gate are gambling, food is being cooked, vendors are selling goods, and two huge speakers are blaring music atop a large cement slab used for a stage. I can taste the ash from whatever is being cooked and the dust is settled into my lungs. The lights are a string of light bulbs that dangle from wooden poles. The whole setup is powered by a generator which goes off twice while waiting for the game to begin. That means everything goes black and you can't see a thing.

More and more people stared making there way in through the gates paying 1 Haitian dollar which is equivalent to 20 cents US. The field is now surrounded with people 4 people deep. The fans are on the end lines and next to the goals. One side of the field is all cactus and you can play off the cactus. Also, i was told to push opposing players into the cactus when i was on that side of the field.

The game is delayed an hour because both sides cannot agree on a referee. The ref is decided on an is sporting red shorts and a Micheal Jordan jersey. We have been warming up for 45 minutes and i had sweat through every article of clothing I have on. Our jerseys are yellow with green lettering, green shorts, and yellow socks. My teammates change on the field but one of my teammates, Toto takes me to a more private place to change into my shorts. The shorts are very short and pairs nicely with the jersey. I wear number 9. Laura comes out of the crowd and takes a team photo.
The game begins and i am starting even though the coach has not seen me play before. The game is very fast paced and physical. Its loud from the fans and the guys on the mic doing play by play. He uses my nickname "Blan" which means white. I play ok and get a shot which the goalkeeper saves. This shot gives the crowd confidence in the white guy. It seems impossible to score. I get a handful of cactus which makes me a little angry and then begin to get physical. Physical play is encouraged and my teammates were also very physical. After an intense first half of 0-0 we all bit off the corner of a plastic bag and jugged some water. I opted to sit the second half because i was exhausted. So, I took my shoes off and gave them to another player to use for the second half.
I sit the bench and have 3 sets of hands touching my back, arms, and head. I feel claustrophobic and its like 100 degrees but i don't know what to do so i sit and focus on the game. The game remains scoreless and goes straight to penalty kicks. These are taken from half field with no goalkeeper.

We win on penalty kicks and the place erupts into an instant dance party. Reggae music is blaring and i am in the middle of the field with my teammates jumping up and down. The crowed lifts me and other players on there shoulders and start spraying water everywhere. This celebration lasted twenty minutes straight. The dancing was incredible and the players along with the Lagossette fans danced off the field and on to the street. Every one was so happy. The procession continued back toward our village. I got picked up by two players on a moped and went speeding through the dark back to the orphanage.

With this win we advanced to the semifinals. Due to my creole lessons in another village I wont be able to play on Wednesday night but hope to play in the finals on Sunday if we win.
This was soccer like i have never seen but i loved it.

-guy who had to pick cactus from underneath his finger nail