That was my greeting tonight to a small group of Everton staffers and photographers who looked a little shocked by the cold breeze that accompanied the Everton and Juventus practice sessions at AT&T Park. They obviously hadn’t been briefed on the fact that a July evening on the water here is no day at the beach. (Mark Twain once wrote that the coldest winter he ever experienced was a summer in San Francisco.)
I have no vital information to share in this column, just the sheer pleasure of seeing my team for the first time in person. Thanks to a teammate with a sponsor’s connection at Guinness, I was one of a couple dozen Everton fans admitted to the closed practice sessions, and the only one to stay through both. It was a very special evening for a Yank whose only exposure to his team has been on TV. I enjoyed it hugely.
The young Everton staffers had time to chat during the Juve practice, and they couldn’t have been nicer. We talked about the wind, Alcatraz, Kevin Sheedy, and how impossible it was to find Everton kit in the US, and the young lady handed me an Everton scarf as a gift. Shortly thereafter, a cheerful-but-chilled photog from the Liverpool Echo named Colin asked me to pose with my new swag, probably because I was the only Evertonian in the stadium at the time. (If you see a really goofy photo in the morning Echo of a bespectacled doofus holding a blue and white scarf over his head, that’s me.)
Juve’s practice was surprisingly intense. It was great to see an old man like Buffon flipping back and forth like a youngster in the save drills. Juve’s listed roster was 27 players, including four keepers, but they had a 28th player on the field – Carlos Tevez has joined the side. He was all over the place during a 12-on-12 half-field scrimmage, and he was the only player on either side tonight to come over to the fans in the stands, signing autographs and posing for photos with a couple of kids. My friend’s teenaged son, who had somehow snuck onto the sideline during the scrimmage, bagged a Tevez #10 autograph. A great score, and very classy by Tevez.
(I thought another kid had actually snuck into the scrimmage itself, but it was Sebastian Giovinco, all 5-ft 4-in and 130 pounds of him. This is one guy Osman could beat up.)
The Everton fans had filtered into the stands by the time our boys took the field, and I got to hear an accent I had never before heard in person. Watching the practice was a huge thrill, tempered only by the fact that Martinez conducted his half-field scrimmage on the opposite side of the stadium from where the supporters were. I was wishing for binoculars.
Some observations:
RM really, really emphasizes quick passing, and the players are really enjoying it, no-one more than Coleman. There was a lot of noise and banter. Kone looks really fast, but the quickest guy on the pitch was... no kidding... Naismith. Over 20 yards he looked as quick as young Deulofeu. The kid Stones also has some serious acceleration.
I hadn’t seen Barkley shoot. Wow. The ball just screams. He missed one and hit the wall, and it echoed through the stadium like a sonic boom.
Baines got a haircut.
Robles is an amazingly accurate kick. He side volleys his punts with backspin, and in a save-and-kick drill he was dropping them right on target from 60 yards.
Because tied games will go to penalties in this tournament, the whole team took PKs at the end, with the keepers alternating. Howard stopped just about everybody except Jelavic. And the two guys you definitely won’t see taking PKs tomorrow night will be Fellaini (scuffed past the post) and Hibbo (soared majestically into the seats).
As promised, nothing useful... just a longtime fan’s giddy pleasure. Can’t wait for the game tomorrow night.
Reader Comments (51)
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2 Posted 31/07/2013 at 07:57:10
3 Posted 31/07/2013 at 07:55:58
4 Posted 31/07/2013 at 08:14:18
5 Posted 31/07/2013 at 08:35:20
Get in there Mike and if you can keep all us green (with envy) bluenoses updated they will be a pleasure to enjoy reading.
Up the toffees!
6 Posted 31/07/2013 at 08:59:39
I remember a American Cricket writer for the Guardian. Brilliant
7 Posted 31/07/2013 at 09:22:50
Re Giovinco, like Messi he proves you don't have to be a 6 footer to survive the modern game if you have the skill. Osman shows it too in patches, but sadly not often enough.
Mike, maybe you'll grab an away shirt if you bump into the staffers again when it's released.
8 Posted 31/07/2013 at 10:26:52
Please do a match report mate (buddy) - especially on how many Blues / Juve fans turn up and who you think looked good for us.
How did you come to follow God's own team?
9 Posted 31/07/2013 at 10:43:54
10 Posted 31/07/2013 at 10:51:51
If he's looking sharp, then this could be down to his full fitness returning and confidence. As an Everton supporter, I wish him a good season. Hopefully other ToffeeeWebbers will give the lad a chance; clearly he was not right last season.
11 Posted 31/07/2013 at 11:13:27
12 Posted 31/07/2013 at 11:17:52
13 Posted 31/07/2013 at 11:23:04
14 Posted 31/07/2013 at 11:22:49
15 Posted 31/07/2013 at 11:45:04
http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=9ZXelXpHYWs&desktop_uri=%2Fwatch%3Fv%3D9ZXelXpHYWs
16 Posted 31/07/2013 at 11:49:57
17 Posted 31/07/2013 at 11:37:22
18 Posted 31/07/2013 at 11:56:17
Biggest thing you can gleam from a team in amateur football is what foot they kick with. You can then work out which foot they'll shoot with and defenders can just wait for them to shift it onto their stronger foot.
19 Posted 31/07/2013 at 11:59:20
As Sam asked, any more opinion on what you saw Deulofeu do?
Bye the way, your no doofus if you have the good sense to support Everton!
20 Posted 31/07/2013 at 12:02:50
21 Posted 31/07/2013 at 12:11:07
22 Posted 31/07/2013 at 12:32:06
23 Posted 31/07/2013 at 12:30:20
Amazing city and an amazing country and so cool that my team are over there now.
Anyway, thanks for the report, I enjoyed reading it and cant wait for the match.
24 Posted 31/07/2013 at 13:04:29
25 Posted 31/07/2013 at 13:26:58
I'm guessing this might be you?
http://i1.liverpoolecho.co.uk/incoming/article5388335.ece/ALTERNATES/s1227b/TMCL300713EFCFANS-7-5388335.jpg
26 Posted 31/07/2013 at 13:54:20
27 Posted 31/07/2013 at 14:06:47
Please keep the reports coming, I can live vicariously and rationalize by putting the money 'saved' toward a trip home to see the two old ladies in my life, i.e. Gladys and me ma.
Sing loud, we will be watching ...
28 Posted 31/07/2013 at 14:16:33
29 Posted 31/07/2013 at 14:33:20
"Scrimmage" - LOL
30 Posted 31/07/2013 at 14:44:30
31 Posted 31/07/2013 at 14:39:23
At least, that's what the Oxford Dictionary says, but I reckon it's a cross between a "scribble", a "mammoth" and a "cabbage".
32 Posted 31/07/2013 at 14:35:35
Sorry about all the Americanisms, like scrimmage and doofus... I don't speak enough English english. Believe me, I needed some translations of what I was hearing near me from the... scousers?
Jim Potter, it was watching Kevin Sheedy at the World Cup that made me an Everton fan, around the time English League games began appearing on TV here. That's why he came up in the conversation last night.
Sam Hoare, sorry, can't tell you any more about Deulofeu because I had so much trouble spotting him. As I mentioned, the players were a long way away and usually facing away from us, and of course no numbers on shirts.
Peter and Stuart, yes, that's me. (Cringing). My only excuse is that Colin the photographer asked me to pose like that. No wonder he was laughing all night.
In fact, from the photo series on the Echo site, you can see there was lots of laughter last night. Fellaini was particularly funny, ripping off his shirt and slamming it to the ground after he missed the pen.
Gerry Quinn, thank you. Actually, for many years I was what you folks call a journo... sports reporter for American TV stations around the country.
I will definitely file a game report, and a report from the pre-game gathering of Everton fans at Pedro's Cantina, where I hope to have the honor of meeting Lyndon himself.
33 Posted 31/07/2013 at 15:10:38
34 Posted 31/07/2013 at 16:17:10
35 Posted 31/07/2013 at 16:46:04
36 Posted 31/07/2013 at 18:53:09
Consider yourself an honourary resident of Kirkdale, which is next to Walton and about 200 yards from the ground!
Well done mate.
37 Posted 31/07/2013 at 19:46:46
38 Posted 31/07/2013 at 20:24:57
Enjoy your night Mike, and also Terry White, formerly of Crosby now of San Jose, getting the chance to watch his beloved Blues.
39 Posted 31/07/2013 at 20:59:32
Glad 'scrimmage' has been explained though (I was a little nervous for a moment).
40 Posted 31/07/2013 at 14:04:59
It's good to know we are cultivating a following on this side of the pond.
Like Gerry I am sitting here like a schoolboy waiting for the match to start.
Unfortunately it's not on Fox Sports until 23.00 Eastern time so I have to decide whether to watch Everton TV or wait till later for the big screen there again maybe I'll watch both.
I guess that's why they call it the blues.
41 Posted 31/07/2013 at 21:07:19
42 Posted 31/07/2013 at 21:01:06
43 Posted 31/07/2013 at 21:01:06
44 Posted 31/07/2013 at 21:18:06
45 Posted 31/07/2013 at 21:18:37
And very enjoyable report
46 Posted 31/07/2013 at 21:20:56
47 Posted 01/08/2013 at 00:23:26
Jim Lloyd, thanks for the honorary citizenship of Kirkdale and Walton. Hope to show my Blue passport and visit in person someday!
Well, off to the game to beat up an Old Lady.
48 Posted 01/08/2013 at 01:00:07
49 Posted 01/08/2013 at 07:07:40
50 Posted 01/08/2013 at 15:25:45
Heading to San Fran in a few weeks!
Oh well, guess I'll just go to Goodison instead.
COYB
51 Posted 01/08/2013 at 22:45:35
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1 Posted 31/07/2013 at 07:37:18
The report is not useless at all - thanks for that. I have been to that stadium once for a base ball match about 12 years ago - beautiful location next to the sea. It was called something else then (Bell something ???)
You will have the English wondering what you mean by "scrimmage". In rugby there is a thing called a "scrum" and a skill called "scummaging" - essentially a lot of large men shoving each other around in a contest for the ball.
I had assumed the American word "scrimmage" meant something similar. But I guess not.