The Soccer Game part 1/3

The Soccer Game part 1/3

Edilors' Note.  Soccer,  sometimes  called  association  football,  is one of the  three main  types of football,  the other  two being  rugby and American football, and is aer2 popular  in many parts of the world. It differs from the other  football  games principall2  in  that the players are almost never allowed to touch  the ball with  their hands but only to kick  it or hit  it with other parts of the  body.

Win Mg is  in high spirits as he waits for  the beginning of  the soccer match his team is to play against Kaingdan Primary School. Looking around  at his teammates, he  feels quite satisfied. He's a forward player, and he knows  that  the players on his  team have confidence  in his abilities.

In the match against Shwe Kanyinbin Primary School his team won with a score of three to one. That was quite a victory  for Win Mg's  team, and Win Mg himself had shot two of the goals. Also, in their match with Tawlay Village, they had won by a score of two  to zero, one of the goals being made by Win Mg.

Now  the eastern skies are black with rain clouds.  It's going to rain hard soon, but the  team hasn't arrived  yet. On each side of the  field  the fans are  restless. They have come  from all the neighboring villages-paddy  farmers,  planters,  cowherds, monastery  schoolboys,  shop owners-it's  quite a large and varied  crowd.

The goals are made of bamboo  posts, standing  tall and straight at each end of the field, holding nets between  them. The ground  is a sandy  soil that gives  the players a good grip for their  feet while  running.

"Here they come !" someone  shouts  from  the crowd.

The other  team and a number of other people can be seen coming out of  the gates of Kaingdan Village, walking  slowly and leisurely. Their coach, who is already on the 6eld,  turns to Win Mg and says: "Well, are you  ready to play? Do you think you can beat us?"

"We're going  to do our best to win," answers Win Mg.

"We've be en  training hard."

By this time the Kaingdan  team has  reached  the  field,  just at the appointed time. Win Mg's team had arrived  a little early. The  referee,  a high school  student  from a nearby town, walks toward  the center of the 6eld, and the audience  comes to life with wild shouts.

Both teams walk  toward midfield.  The captains of the teams  toss a coin while the referee watches. The Kaingdan team gains the southern  end of the  field, and Win Mg's  team has the northern.

The  referee whistles  to signal the start of play. Tun Khin boots the ball  to Win Mg. Win Mg dribbles the ball and passes  it on to Hla Kywe. The opponents  tackle  them. Both sides are fighting hard  to gain  the ball, which  rolls  to and fro around midfield.


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