Way back when

I found a bunch of old videos a while back and, having no clue what they were (honestly), took a punt and had them transferred to video. Only got 5 done, but instead of Debbie Does Dallas and the Adventures of Skippy the Bush Kangaroo, I ended up with a couple of curiosities. 

In addition to the 2005 Champions League Final was an old tape of when I was coaching Ottawa Internationals - and our match against Gloucester Hornets was shown on Rogers cable. We won 1-0, the game was mostly of an appalling standard, but there were a few flashes of brilliance from a couple of players that were really not out of place on the TV. (And not in Canada's Funniest Home Videos either.)

The strangest thing about it was that I had not seen the tape before (it was probably just about the time we transitioned fully to a DVD player). In fact, I hardly recognized some of the players - which is a bit worrying. (I was subsequently grateful to the commentator for explaining that a huge injury crisis had meant seven call ups to the senior team for reserve and U18 players, so that alleviated my fears of early-ish onset dementia a little.)

I was most concerned, however, by a close up of me on the bench, caught right in the act of bollocking someone on the field for being out of position (a habit I used to engage in for the full 90 minutes). The horror of stepping outside yourself and seeing yourself as others see you.

We won 1-0 thanks to a deflected goal after 24 seconds. It was downhill all the way after that.