Dropped!

According to Graham’s initial email I was standing in for a regular keeper who was away for a while, so I was expecting to find that I was no longer needed for the 4s at some point. When Graham’s availability email came around this week I asked him to let me know asap if I wasn’t needed because I had another game on offer.

This was in fact a lie. I did not have another game, but I wanted Graham to feel perfectly ok about letting me go if his regular keeper was back. I don’t know what his regular keeper is like but he’s definitely better than me. As it turned out I needn’t have worried about Graham torturing himself over telling me I was dropped.

I got a text from Jason also asking me to play for the 3s. I said to Jason that he and Graham can fight over me.

From: Steve Rawlinson
To: Graham Clark
Subject: Re: Availability this Saturday

Graham,

I've just had Jason after me for the 3s.

As Churchill said: "Never in the field of human endeavour has there been so much effort, by so many, for so few saves." I'm paraphrasing a bit.

I told him I was down to play for the 4s and to get in touch with you.

steve

When the teamsheet came out I was down to play for the 4s. Then, at 9pm on Friday I got a text from Graham saying their regular goalie was back and I wasn’t needed.

Now, I’m not saying I wouldn’t have done exactly same thing in Graham’s position. In fact, I definitely would. Bring an actual keeper to the match or hang on to the gaffe-prone dickhead who has conceded 16 goals in his last two games? Tough one, that.

I was still gutted though. In fact I quite surprised myself at how disappointed I was. For the first few games I was dreading it, but clearly I’d come to look forward to the game, even if, as seems likely, I was going to be picking the ball out of the net more often than I was going to be obstructing it on its journey there.

I bet their normal keeper keeps a clean sheet, saves a penalty and scores a hat-trick. Bastard.