Long Trip, Good Win

The Groton team rushed out of classes before lunch to beat the coming Nor’easter and play Tabor on a Friday in cold sunshine rather than in tomorrow’s 40 degree howling wind and rain. Even so, the conditions were fairly rough, as Tabor’s 5 yellow cards in the second half indicate. A strong, athletic team, Tabor also has some fine, skilled players in Haohua Zhang, Quentin Doggett, and Jack Marvel. These three looked to combine often, and any dead ball was dangerous.

 

But it was Max Strong who took a Walker Davey pass just over midfield, beat his man, and sniped a right-footed shot that caught the inside of the far post. Our luck having been what it was lately, the entire bench inhaled so deeply that the trees on the other side of the field bent our way. The ball ricocheted off the post and across the mouth of the goal..wait…wait before hitting the side net and everyone exhaled, knocking over a dog-walker across the street.

 

The game was often thunderous, and after a nice spell in the first half, Groton found and lost its rhythm through the second, though the Groton midfield was winning the battle. In the 55^th minute, Davey served up a wonderful dead ball to the far post where Jack Goodrich headed it home.

 

The two-goal lead brought welcomed relief, and Groton looked poised for a third, but it was Tabor’s Zhang who got free on a corner and headed a ball toward the far post. A lunging Groton defender got a leg on the ball, but he couldn’t quite clear it, and Tabor found themselves back in the game.

 

At this point, it was one of those classic late season finishes: a raking light, deep cold settling in, and the field lit by the red numbers on the scoreboard as much as by the sun, all the while players furiously tried to turn events their way. With the win, Groton takes a much needed, hard earned six points from the week.