On a Saturday, the 2nd of April, we had a 6 aside futsal tournament for both our Over 16 and U16 team. Almost 30 different schools and teams took part of this tournament, which lasted the entire day. For our over 16 team, we were part of group C with 2 other schools. When we first got there around 8:30 am, we waited almost two hours before the tournament started. Before kick off, all the teams got on the field for team photos, and to get into an organized line to start the tournament with the Sri Lankan national anthem.

We were supposed to have our first game within the first 20 minute of the tournament, but one of the teams in our group did not manage to make it, which gave us an automatic win and a clear path to the quarter-finals. After about an hour of waiting and a bit of planning, we had our very first game. Starting off a bit nervous and shaky, we were not able to score a goal in the first half. However, going back in strong and confident, we scored 3 goals during the second half of the game, putting us at the top of our group.

Before playing our quarter-finals game, we had to wait almost 2 to 3 hours which gave us time to chat, relax, and to get some lunch. Somewhere around the afternoon, we finally had our game, which definitely caught us by surprise. One major flaw we had was our confidence, as we were almost sure that we would beat our opponents. But without our lead defender, the other team managed to score a goal against us. Unfortunately, we didn’t have the discipline to score an equalizing goal.

With the feeling of defeat, we were taken by surprise that we had a second shot to win a plate instead of a trophy. Trying to regain our confidence and energy, we switched up our formation and positions. Our opposing team were able to score the first goal of the game. But a minute later, we were able to score an equalizing goal. However, by the end of the game, we lost by 2 goals to 1 which eliminated us from the tournament.

For the rest of the tournament, we showed us much of our support to the under 16 team who managed to make it to the finals and win the trophy. The entire tournament ended around 8:30 pm, which brought a close to our long, active day.

Learning objectives:

LO5- With this long tournament, I was able to recognize the importance of working collaboratively in times of difficulty. Even when we were down and angry with ourselves, we managed to encourage each other and to boost our morality.