Tag Archives: sports

Opening Ceremonies

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You could see, hear, and feel the significance of tonight’s World Cup Opening Ceremony. Colorful flags painted the dimming sky with the vibrant colors of nineteen countries. Bursts of cheering broke the constant hum of people singing their nation’s anthem or talking amongst themselves. Pride exuded from each player as they held their heads high and entered the stadium, covered head to toe in team gear or their country’s traditional dress,

The following nineteen countries are participating in the 2013 World Cup:

Australia, Austria, Canada, England, Finland, Germany, Haudenosaunee, Hong Kong, Ireland, Isreal, Japan, Korea, Latvia, Netherlands, New Zealand, Scotland, Sweden, United States, and Wales

Before the ceremony began the organizers brought all the teams into the field house to escape the heat. When the teams first arrived, most took team pictures and stayed together. Within a few minutes, people started drifting and players from different teams began mingling and taking pictures with new friends.

Amber Falcone with the team. Amber coached at Vanderbilt University and bonded with the team when Vanderbilt played Ireland in Rome this past June.

Team USA & Ireland

Everyone we met was friendly and as excited as we are about being here and getting started. This level of lacrosse demands an incredible work ethic, determination, dedication of time and energy, and a driving passion. Every team dreams of winning the gold medal and wants to represent their country in the best possible way. These common beliefs and understanding unite us, even though we are competing against each other and there are many different cultures present. They form a common thread for all of the nineteen teams to grasp. So while we may not all speak the same language, we understand each other as fellow athletes and competitors. And ultimately, win or lose, we will leave with new friends from all over that may be friends for life.

We followed Hong Kong out to the pitch where we were greeted by cheering fans, including my adorable girls from my club team at home called Scout. The ceremony procession led us in a circle, allowing us to watch the Haudenosaunee team perform a traditional song and dance. There was something special and unforgettable about standing in a circle with all the teams, their flags waving. The ceremony began with a blessing from a local elder of a nearby tribe. They went on to welcome the teams and thank the organizers for all of their hard work. Different people took oaths on behalf of the players, teams, and referees.

My eyes kept being drawn to the flags. I love watching them dance gracefully in the air telling a story of their country with just a piece of cloth. Rebecca did a fantastic job of holding the flag all day. Near the end of the ceremony her flag went rogue and was waving in all directions. She told me that all the other flags were “well-behaved” while her flag was being “naughty”. I almost lost it because it was very true. I looked around to find all the other flags waving gently in the wind while Ireland’s flag wouldn’t stop moving in every direction. True to form, Ireland cannot stand to be ordinary. Even our unruly flag.

Once it was over, we headed home after seeing friends and family. We are ready for our first game tomorrow against Latvia. We play at 10 am and we are excited! Everyone else is in bed, so I will sign off now so I can be sharp on the sidelines.

Thank you to all the Ireland supporters out there! Here we go, Ireland, here we go!!

Check out the great photos from Game Day of the opening ceremonies. I borrowed some of their photos here, and they are quite excellent. What a great way to start the tournament!

GO IRELAND!!!

 

 

 

Playing as a Team

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Day 5: Ireland vs. Switzerland, W 20-5

Solid win over Switzerland. It was not our prettiest game, but we were still able to pull out twenty goals from many different shooters. My roommate Meabh, #7, and Aoife, #11, both scored their first international goals, and Aisling, #10, was tallying up the assists. I nearly went nuts when Meabh scored. I was out at the time, but otherwise I would be caught on film jumping all over the place.

With Aoife and Meabh celebrating their first international goals! Awesome job!

Vanessa, Caroline, and I all had four goals on the day and hope to repeat that trend again today against Wales. With the draw against the Netherlands, we were hoping that our goal differential would be better, placing us in third going into the Quarterfinals. Germany only beat the Netherlands by one, so we move on to take on the reigning European Champions today at 5 pm. More to come about that.

We had a rocky start to the game yesterday, our mood matching the overcast day. Luckily, we picked it up with some key saves by Amy in net and found more of a rhythm on attack. The refs are very conservative with calls, so we have had to be really disciplined when it comes to just about everything. Checking is pretty much out of the picture unless you want to end up four meters behind with annoyed coaches on the sidelines.

This check against England wasn’t called, but I am opting for body position from here on out.

The photographers are slacking on posting photos from our last three games. I hope that they put some up soon, so you can see us in action. Hopefully they will at least post some pictures from the men’s Quarterfinals against Germany. The men lost to Germany in regular play by one goal in triple overtime. Yesterday, they came out with fire, putting Germany on their heels and scoring relentlessly. The took the win and my voice. I was screaming and singing so loudly that my throat is raw. Our team supported them in full effect, including using a drum, flag, and even some face paint. That’s how we roll.

Getting ready to crush Germany!

Random fan celebrating the victory!

After the game, we came back to the hotel to prepare for our big game today. Luckily we have until 5 pm to prepare to be giant killers. The men’s game yesterday reminded us how heart, determination, and fire can be the perfect ingredients for success.

Wales is an excellent team. So are we. We just need to put sixty minutes of excellent play together and leave everything on the field. Then, no matter what happens, we will be proud of the outcome.

While I’m staying positive mentally, my body is betraying my hidden nerves. My stomach is all over the place and my dreams were filled with lacrosse. We need to play with the same defensive composure that we did against the Netherlands with the attacking prowess as we had against Austria and Switzerland.

I was honored to get the “player of the game” for marking out the Netherlands best player. Shifting to straight defense felt like coming home in a weird way since I played that for most of my career. However, I have to admit that notching some goals has been really fun as well. I can see how attackers love finding the back of the net. So far Laurie, Vanessa, Katelin and I have received player of the game, though there are many other players who are extremely deserving as well. Caroline and Devon both being prime examples for their play all over the field.

My hope for today is that the entire team receives the “player of the game” honor. Meaning we all play so well that it would be impossible to select an individual. It starts with the draw. Sixty minutes. Composure. Determination. Heart. And the will to win.

LET’S GO IRELAND!

Playing with Heart

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Day 3: Ireland vs Germany, L 7-14

Hustle. Heart. Sweat. Tears. Frustration. Excitement. Exhaustion. Teamwork. Together.

This sums up the match yesterday for us against Germany. It was a frustrating game, to say the least. The score does not reflect how close the game actually was. The score also doesn’t tell you how many fouls were called on Ireland for sneezing in the direction of the Germans. It doesn’t tell you how many times we worked hard to get the ball back, celebrated intensely with a goal, and how many hits we took. The score doesn’t show how much we improved as a team with every passing second, and how much we learned from the loss.

Hopefully our game today against the Netherlands will.

Against Austria our word was “pride”. Yesterday against Germany it was “heart”. While the game did not end with a victory, we played with heart. And I’m proud of that.

The Morris sisters smiling in a huddle against Austria

The men’s team won in four overtimes against Finland 8-7! Go those boys in green. They have been at our last two games supporting us, and it makes a big difference. It is quite something to hear people singing to you while you play. As I have said before, the support between the men’s and women’s team is special. It sets Ireland apart from other countries.

Men’s goal against Sweeden. Two wins in a row!

Here are some good pictures from the Austria game. The pictures have not posted from our game yesterday. When they do, I imagine that they will show us throwing our bodies all over the field. Ironically, I was thrown down on the field hitting my head on the turf and Germany got a yellow card warning. I did a quick stick to goal with just me and the goalie and got a yellow card for dangerous propelling. Hmm…

The bruises look much better in real life. Shows I’m using my left a lot!

Great triple team. Please note V’s face. Classic! Warrior!

Ok off to beat the Dutch. Wish us luck! GO IRELAND!

Irish Pride

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Day 2: Ireland vs. Austria, WIN 19-3

YES! A “W” for Ireland.

Today we played like a different team than we did against England. We were more relaxed, energized, and confident. The energy started well before warm-ups and carried us through the cool-down. From the first draw, we were focused and intense, doubling the ball all over the field and working together on attack.

Our three captains, Rebecca, Katelin, and Robyn, came up with a great idea to write “Pride” on our wrists to remind us why we were here and what we were playing for. Not only did it make for cool photos, but it helped when I was tired or frustrated to look down at my wrist to find inspiration to stay positive. Dig deeper. Push harder.

I played midfield again, scoring five goals…a new high for me. It is great to play on both sides of the ball. I normally prefer attack or defense, leaving out the running in between the restraining lines. However, I am enjoying the new challenge of taking the draws and playing middie.

My teammates are so supportive and fun to play with that it makes the game much more enjoyable. Caroline, who is going to Vanderbilt, had another impressive day scoring five goals as well. Even though she is the youngest and I am the oldest, the age difference doesn’t factor into our friendship on or off the field. She plays for a rival high school at home, and it will be great to cheer her on in her senior season when we return.

My friend and teammate Laurie got player of the game against England for her defensive efforts. The fact that our coaches planned in advance to bring us shirts for the “player of the game” shows how deeply they care about us and Ireland lacrosse. Their commitment, encouragement, and coaching makes a significant difference on and off the field. As we do to salute other teams at the end of the game, give me three cheers for Laurie: Hip Hip Hooray, Hip Hip Hooray, Hip Hip Hooray!

Today we play Germany. They beat Austria by a similar margin, and I imagine it will be a tough game. They are very fit, tall, and athletic. So are we. Looking for Green to pull out another win. Yesterday was a good day for Ireland with the men’s team beating Sweeden 12-4.

Wish us luck for another repeat. GO IRELAND! BEAT GERMANY!

 

 

 

And so it begins…

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Day 1 of 8: England vs. Ireland

Yea…about that…

The match did not go as well as we had hoped. We lost by a significant margin. It was a very physical match, and judging from my photo, the fouls were flying both ways. I have two massive bruises on my head and let’s not even talk about my arms. The fact that a major foul of mine was caught on film is not a plus, but I consider us even after the bruises my teammates walked away with. Well, maybe not completely even…

While it is never fun to lose, I know that the team made major strides today. Considering the fact that it was our first time ever playing as a team, plus the fact that we are playing the fourth ranked team in the world, I think we handled ourselves a bit better than what the score reflected.

I have a laundry list of things to work on (guess I will add “no cross checks” to the list), but mostly I need to remember to have fun with this amazing group of girls. I get in my head and frustrated when I really play better and enjoy myself more when I’m not calculating all of my mistakes. Who benefits from doubting myself? The other team. I certainly don’t.

We are getting prepared to face Austria tomorrow at 5 pm. Hopefully, I will have good news to report. It won’t be worse than today, so that’s already a plus!

After the game I spent some time with my mom and dad in downtown Amsterdam, the city of crazy bikers. Cars trump bikes and bikes trump people. Basically this translates to watch out. Pedestrians do not have the right of way, and a bike may hit you because you’re moving too slowly. No joke. When I took a team here last summer two of my girls were hit. I think it has gotten worse.

My dad arrived today in time for the game. Such a trooper. He arrived at the field, bags in hand from the overnight flight, ready to cheer on his team. Exhausted, my mom and I got him settled into his apartment after the game. I was starving, so my mom and I went in search of food, one of my favorite things in the world. My experience with the food so far has been subpar, at best. We were recommended to try a local Dutch restaurant called Moeder, “mothers” in Dutch. How fitting. We had a great meal for the second day in a row. Success.

Yesterday the team went into Amsterdam, and I stole away for a little over an hour to have lunch with my mom. Instead of hitting one of the tourist traps, we asked a local man where the best place for pasta was in the area. We ended up at a cute Italian restaurant off the beaten path with loud Italian waiters paying tons of attention to us and shouting undecipherable things to each other in Italian. Felt pretty authentic.

After another good meal tonight, I met up with the team to cheer on the men against the Netherlands. They gave it a good go, but lost the lead with one quarter to go. Hope that the luck of the Irish will kick in for both teams tomorrow!

One of my favorite things about wearing green and playing for Ireland is the camaraderie. The Irish bleed loyalty and teamwork. After every match the men’s team goes over to their fans, clapping to the fans in appreciation of their support. The women’s team sings “Ireland’s Call” to our supporters, which chokes me up every time since the song drips with country pride. Mine grows daily.

Off to bed to rest up for our big game tomorrow. I think that we will come out fighting from the first whistle. GO IRELAND! BEAT AUSTRIA!