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It was a tough game. It was also the final of the Concacaf tournament and the score was 2:1, Canada’s Fleming taking the lead in the 42nd minute after a goal from Horan early on in the game and the equalizer by none other than Christine Sinclair shortly after.
The halftime talk in the locker room had been brutal. Vlatko had told them that they needed to get their shit together. Christen, Tobin and Pinoe just glanced at each other. The latter had already played the first half with Lloyd and MacDonald completing the forward trio, but they hadn’t really been able to amount to anything. The only player on the team that had been able to convert her shot had been Lindsey.
“Heath, Press…you’re starting the second half so go warm up, Lloyd, MacDonald…you’re out” Carli had already opened her mouth to protest, but one cold glance from their coach stopped the oldest on the team from saying something.
Christen and Tobin just nodded at Vlatko and left the locker room to go out on the pitch. After a few minutes the rest of the team appeared on the sidelines, just before the referee signaled that the match would continue soon.
The two girlfriends went to the bench to strip down to their jerseys. Then they joined the other 9 players that would be on the field in the second half in the huddle they had formed.
“Alright ladies, we got this. Defense” Pinoe looked at Ali, Sonnett, Becky and Abby “keep an eye on Fleming and Sinclair.” She got a few nods in response. “Lindsey, keep the balls coming like you did in the first half, one of us will actually hit the ball and shoot on goal” Lindsey grinned at Pinoe, her blow against Lloyd and MacDonald not missed by anyone.
Lindsey was playing center mid in this game and she knew exactly how to get the balls to the forward trio. She’d done it a thousand times before.
“JJ, Sam…make sure they don’t even get to pass to their forwards.” The two women nodded, too.
“And lastly Pressy and Toby”, Tobin grimaced at the nickname “go and show them what you’re made of! We need some more golazos from you Pressy!” With that the team put their hands in the middle and shouted their famous Oosa chant once more.
Now it was show time. And they did not come to play…or well, they did. It took the whole team a few minutes to find the way back into the game but after 10 minutes they got their first chance. Lindsey passed the ball through Sophie Schmidt’s legs right to Pinoe, who was waiting for it on the left side of the field. The pink haired woman took off in a sprint, the ball at her feet.
When Desiree Scott stepped in her way she quickly pretended to pass the ball into the middle, where Christen and Tobin were already waiting in the box, but chipped it over Scott’s foot further down the sideline. Both Christen and Tobin raised their arms in the box, waiting for the cross, which came seconds later. Christen jumped into the air at the near post, Zadorsky right behind her, but the ball came too high. It dropped right to Tobin’s feet, who had already gotten ready to take the shot when she suddenly fell to the ground, clutching her ankle. The whistle was blown by the referee immediately. After a few seconds Tobin got back up, shaking her head at Buchanan, who was the one to foul her. They’d get a penalty. And the defender got a yellow card.
Christen came rushing over to Tobin asking her if she was okay. Tobin just nodded.
Now it was Pinoe’s turn to score. She got the ball, placed it on the penalty spot and took a few steps backwards. Meanwhile the midfielders as well as Tobin and Christen got ready just outside the box, in case Pinoe missed.
But Pinoe had never missed a penalty before. After the whistle blew again she ran towards the ball and in the moment her foot hit the ball she knew it would go in. She saw Labbé, Canada’s goalkeeper, jumping towards the right side of the goal, exactly where she aimed her shot, but Labbé was too slow. The ball went in right next to the post.
The rest of the team ran up to Pinoe, hugging her and congratulating her on the penalty.
“No time to celebrate yet, we need another goal first” said their captain.
Above them they could hear the announcer: “Aaaaaand in the 61st minute a goal for the US from number 15…Megaaaaan”
“RAPINOE” answered the crowd. Meanwhile the teams got ready for kick-off.
Pinoe’s goal had sparked something in the whole team. Their passes were better, opportunities kept coming, their shots on goal either stopped by Labbé or missing the goal by inches. That’s how Tobin found herself on the way to the goal once more in the 78th minute. Only Chapman between her and Labbé. She slowed down, trying to dribble around the defender, when she saw Christen starting to sprint towards the box, where she could pass the ball into the open space. A quick scissor and she was past Chapman, but again, she didn’t get far. The defender, desperate and agitated, just slid between her legs from behind. Tobin fell to the ground once more, getting up immediately and walking towards Canada’s number two, who had already taken a few steps backwards. The referee blew the whistle and got out the yellow card.
Before Tobin could reach the defender she felt a hand on her shoulder, causing her to turn around.
“She’s not worth it Tobs” Christen told her, gazing deeply into her eyes. Tobin huffed, but she knew that her girlfriend was right. They’d get their revenge with the next goal.
When everything was sorted out Tobin positioned the ball where she was fouled. Free kicks and corner kicks were her forte. The other players, except for Ali and Sonnett, who were behind her in their half of the pitch, were lined up right outside the box, waiting for her signal so they could run towards the goal.
She took a breath, raised her hand and kicked the ball, which curled right into the center of the box, hitting Julie Ertz’s head. But it went out after hitting the crossbar. They’d have to try again and they would definitely need a new approach.
Tobin already had an idea so she quickly gave Christen a signal so she’d know what to do. It took them a few minutes to regain possession of the ball after Labbé’s goal kick. Jessie Fleming actually came really close to scoring but Ali could kick the ball out of bounds by slide tackling her opponent.
They didn’t have that much time left, they were already in the 87th minute now when Lindsay took the ball from Schmidt, quickly running up the field. Then she passed it to Christen, who was wide open. But Christen didn’t keep the ball, she transferred it to Pinoe on the wing, who sprinted down the sidelines.
Again, Christen and Tobin were running into the box, now only Tobin raising her arm. For a millisecond the short haired woman with the ball at her foot got confused, but she kicked the ball across to Tobin. Christen was only a few steps behind her. The ball came down right to Tobin’s feet once more but instead of trying to shoot on goal she flicked it back to Christen with the back of her heel. Nobody had expected that, so all Christen had to do was tip it in.
Christen raised her arms in celebration, but dropped them again shortly after. She could hear a piercing scream right next to her. Tobin was on the ground again and it did not look good. She was clutching her ankle once again. The goal still counted because the referee had given them the advantage, but Christen was furious now. She ran up to Buchanan who had been the one to foul her girlfriend once again.
“What the hell is your problem?” Christen said and slightly shoved the defender, who dramatically dropped to the ground. Christen felt a hand on her shoulder, but she shrugged it off, trying to get closer to the woman on the ground. Before she could reach Buchanan, Pinoe stepped in front of her.
“Pressy, calm down. Tobin needs you.” Christen huffed but turned around to walk towards her girlfriend. When she got to her, the medic had already iced her ankle. Christen crouched down, placing her hand on Tobin’s shoulder, stroking it lovingly.
“Are you okay, love?” her voice had grown really quiet. She could see that it had to hurt, Tobin’s face was contorted with pain. The older girl however, only gritted her teeth before answering: “I’ll be okay, babe…the medic says it’s gonna bruise and hurt like a bitch, but otherwise I’m fine” a small smile stretched onto her face. “It was actually quite sexy to see you march over there that fiercely”, Tobin grinned. Her ankle was now in the back of her mind.
“Keep it in your pants, baby” Christen laughed and helped her lover get up. They slowly walked back into their half of the pitch, their team mates now coming up to them to congratulate their forward on the goal. The referee also came up to Christen to give her a yellow card, but she was unfazed by it. She knew that her reaction had been unprofessional but in the moment she didn’t care. She’d be more careful next time.
Moments after the Canadians kicked off the ball again they heard the whistle blow. They had won the Concacaf tournament. Oh and of course they would go to Tokyo, but they had already known that after they beat Mexico in the semi-final. Now they could relax, celebrate and…in Tobin’s case, recover from the match.
Thankfully she had Christen, who always took such good care of her. Tobin was sure that she would be back to a hundred per cent in no time.
The following days the hashtag USWNT was trending on twitter and tumblr. Of course the brutal foul and what had followed was being discussed by the fans. Close-up gifs from Christen and Tobin made it possible for the fans to read their lips. The words “baby” and “love” finally got them all the proof they needed. So not only the team that had played the night before, but also the fans were able to celebrate a victory.