| 04.05.17 PSV – Allihopa 3-1 (1-0) Team: Hans Håkansson, Patrik Alexandersson, Jacob Applinger, Henrik Augustin, Nils Sandström, Staffan Lundholm, Daniel Eskils, Jeff Kinkle, Johan Thornton, Perniclas Bedow, Ludwig Bell Goal scorers: Nils Sandström 1 Fans: Viktoria |
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| For
a little over two decades, orthopedic surgery has been my life. I
grew up with a keen interest in bones and when I entered university,
pre-med was the only logical option. While most find the rigors of
medical school an exhausting chore, for me it was the cat’s
meow. I eagerly awaited each class to learn more about bones; how
their marrow produces red and white blood cells, their growth from
osteoblasts, etc. Every year, the International Association of Orthopedic Surgeons (IAOS) has their conference in the Poconos, and this year, yours truly has been invited to lead a symposium on osteoblasts and regenerative medicine at a lovely resort in the famous Pennsylvania mountain chain. Needless to say, this is a great honor and I’ve looked forward to the event for months and have prepared what I see to be a stellar presentation. You must be able to imagine my disappointment then when on Tuesday morning, because of a slight delay to the flight on the first leg of my journey to Newark International, I missed my connecting flight and was unable to make it to the conference on time. I wasn’t just disappointed -that’s an understatement - I was furious, lashing out at the hapless stewardess who happened to be the bearer of bad news. But you can surely understand, for you have your heart vested, as do I, in a small football club from Stockholm that began the season with the greatest aspirations and has recently experienced a series of disappointments. A loss to Catolica followed by a lackluster draw against BK Speeders have tested Allihopa’s character and resilience. Any problems Allihopa may have had on Monday were not for lack of enthusiasm. The return of last year’s winner of the Allihopapriset, Daniel Eskils, from his journeys south of the equator clearly energized the squad. As did Perniclas Bedow’s decision to play after missing three matches with an injured leg. Allihopa were able to field closet to a full squad, missing only Peter Hedlund and Marcus Söderlund (still on loan in Göteborg). The match began with a menacing Allihopa attack that put PSV on the ropes. Allihopa looked deadly and before even breaking a sweat, it looked as though it was our match to win. Seconds later the unthinkable happened. On PSV’s first attack they scored. It wasn’t a spectacular goal and the ease with which they scored was shocking. Allihopa’s players, on field and off, looked more stunned and confused than angry and immediately set their sites on leveling the match. At numerous times it looked they were about to do so. The midfield of Eskils, Nils Sandström, Staffan Lundholm, and Jeff Kinkle skillfully brought the ball up the pitch and Bedow, Johan Thornton, Ludwig Bell, and Jacob Lapidus all looked dangerous on the wings. Several shots went just wide or at the keeper. Kinkle had a strong free kick go just centimeters wide and several Allihopa counters looked likely to produce a goal. Alllihopa continued to have troubles putting the ball in the back of the net however and we went into the break down 1-0. Still, Allihopa looked likelier to level than PSV to increase their lead and there wasn’t the slightest sense of dejection on the bench. The frustration clearly visible last week against BK Speeders had not yet emerged and Allihopa looked upbeat taking the pitch to start the second half. Early in the second half disaster struck once again. A PSV player went down in the box and the referee pointed directly to the spot. The call was disputed to no avail and PSV’s player slammed the ball into the back of the next leaving Hans Håkansson without a chance. Allihopa’s frustration began to slowly mount and their play suffered. While still playing good enough to create a number of goal opportunities, they didn’t have nearly the same kind of possession or passing game that they had in the first half and it wasn’t until Sandströms incredible solo effort in the second half, dribbling by every player on PSV twice only to cleverly poke the ball in the by the keeper from an impossible angle, that Allihopa looked likely to score. Sandström’s brilliant goal clearly shot some new life into the squad but after continuing to press PSV’s steady defense to no avail, their game once again began to deteriorate. PSV’s third goal once again left Håkansson helpless and sealed victory for the home side. This may be a contentious claim but I do not think that Allihopa played badly on Monday. They played against a solid side, yet to lose a match this season, and until the last five minutes, Allihopa looked capable of pulling out one or even three points. If only one of their numerous shots in the first half went into the back of the net, the match may have developed in a drastically different fashion. It would be foolish to blame Lady Fortune, and idiotic to blame the referee, but a few centimeters here and there and talks of any kind of crisis within Allihopa would sound absurd. Annuit coeptis maybe, but one should not forget the trials and tribulations through which God, or the Gods, often put their earthen vessels. It is a gift as well as a curse and it is important that Allihopa see this predicament as an obstacle to overcome rather than let it become a self-fulfilling prophecy of destruction. As Bell put it after the match, ‘Jag vet att Allihopa kan spela ut alla andra lag i serien. Vet Ni?’ And as an orthopedic surgeon, let me say this: broken bones do heal and are even capable of becoming stronger. Is Allihopa in crisis? We will have to wait until next Monday’s match with struggling PPP to find out. Man of the Match: While Nils Sandström wasn’t necessarily better against PSV than in prior matches, his outstanding solo goal was top class and was one of the few highlights in an utterly depressing result. The Exterminator has been an honourable mention several times for the coveted Man of the Match prize and it’s due time his hard work and outstanding play is rewarded. Dr. Mats Viktorsson |
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