Major's Cup 2008 in Honolulu, Hawaii

Click on the link below to see pictures taken by the tournament host
      http://www.soccerhawaii.com/mayors_cup/index.htm

Some MOJOS taking a mourning walk along Waikiki beach.



Click on the link below to check out a few Mojos scuba diving.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/rainbow_scuba_hawaii/


THURSDAY GAME 1 - TEAM CHICAGO 1 vs FC77MOJOS 1
FRIDAY GAME 2 - FC77MOJOS 0 vs BAYS ALUMNI 4
SATURDAY GAME 3 - FC77MOJOS 1 vs STILL KICKIN 4
SUNDAY GAME 4 - STRIKER HOKU 0 vs FC77MOJOS 3



Mojos Versus Chicago.... 

With this being our first game not to mention against the winners of last years tournament we can say "not bad Mojos"!  We did the Mojos proud here in Hawaii.  The Chicago team consisted of what amounted to big european dudes as they were agressive sending us to the turf whenever the opportunity presented itself.

We started the game as we usually do in a friendly manner but soon found out that we'd better match their aggressiveness of it was going to be a long game.  With both teams pretty evenly matched no goals were scored until a couple of minutes left in the first half when a cheezy call was made on our defender for an inadvertant handball in the box which resulted in a penalty kick in the first half. Kudos to our defense as they were on their A-game stopping the advances of Chicago keeping the Mojos in the game.  So, the first half ended 1-0 Chicago. 

During halftime we resolved not to let Chicago kick us around and started taking the game to them which is what we did.  Right from the beginning of the second half we pushed hard and had Chicago on their heels.  Within minutes Roddy placed a nice right footed shot from the top of the box into the back of the net.  What a celebration it was when Roddy scored as the team as well as the enablers went wild!

The game went back and forth for the rest of the match which ended in a tie.  Overall, a good start and more importantly no injuries as we still have the same number of players.

Game 2: Mojos Fall To Oak Bay Alumni  4 to 0....
Mojos took to the field on Friday to take on the Oak Bay Alumni from Victoria, Canada.  We noticed a few of the Oak Bay team members played against up in Sidney during the Bill Drew Tournament last April.  It definitey shows that our presence is spreading as the soccer world seems to become a little smaller. 

When the game started it was quite evident that the dinner cruise party the Mojos had the night before had taken a toll on the team.  Play was sluggish right from the start and clearly the stamina was not there.  We held off our competition the first half to only one goal which was again a cheezy goal.  The bounce of the ball led to it rolling into the during a scuffle to clear it. 

Even though we were down 1-0 at halftime we kept fighting but clearly we had no energy to keep up with the younger Bay Alumni team.  The second half resulted in 3 more goals for Bay Alumni.  Our next game is against "Still Kickin" a team from California.  After the game we regrouped and headed out to the Yard House Pub for some more beer and food.  After dinner it was off to the "Fire Pit" at the Sheraton Hotel where we enjoyed a night cap and hula / striptease dances from Rock and Joe Westphal.

I am quite confident that we may not be able to beat some of these teams but we can sure out party them.  Oh, by the way our Bus 4 won the "Rowdy" competition on board the Ali'i Kai dinner cruise.
As They Say In Hawaii ... Aloha!

Recap of Hawaii Soccer Tournament:

We departed Tuesday 15 January and flew the red-eye home last night 21 August, getting in Tuesday morning. More than a wee bit tired. Had a wonderful time. The fields on Oahu out-side of Waikiki were great. About 10 of them: grass, flat, big and mostly smooth. Certainly better than anything we play on in Portland. There was one field in Waikiki walking distance from the hotel, which was dodgy and soggy. Temps were 75-85 degrees with a trade wind breeze and no humidity! First two matches were 80 minutes; last two were 90 minutes; four days in a row. We had six subs. Got to play 60-65 hard minutes (objective assessment) each match. Beats daily doubles. There were 12 teams: B.C., Canada (3), North & South California (3), Chicago (1), Hawaii (4) & Oregon (us). Two of the Vancouver, B.C. teams played for the title.

 

Good news is no new lasting injuries for anyone. I did get a cortisone shot the 7th, which really helped. Also got improved tape-job instructions, which also really helped. Am doing lots of stretching and taking anti-inflammatory. Post-match Guinness' especially helpful except @ 0700 hours. Tearing the plantar fascia is no fun, but played on just a few steps short of my normal blazing pace.  Ha! Some liken it to a wee bit faster than the phases of the moon. Others call it blinding slow motion.

 

Bad news is we went 1-2-1. Tied a big, rough tough Chicago side 1-1. They scored on a very controversial PK. We scored on a brilliant crossing, passing play. Banging abound. We should have won. Important news here is the defense shut down their field scoring. Chicago got 3rd this year and was the tourney Champion in 2006.  

 

We then lost to a very young, skilled, fleet Victoria, B.C. team. They had two Irish strikers and centre-midfielder that are the youngest, fleetest 50 year olds (???) I've played against. They had "rope shots" within 30 yards. Two of them found the back of the net. They simply outplayed us, winning 4-nil. However, our Keeper did make some spectacular point blank and diving saves. They did award our Keeper a keepsake team T-shirt as the Mojos player of the match and justifiably so.

 

We then lost to a Los Angeles side that we should not have lost to. We controlled the first 15-20 minutes of play, having 3-4 point-blank shots on goal that the Keeper saved or miraculously veered just outside the post, which continued all match. We then lost our Keeper at the 20th minute on a diving save with a boot to the face/eye. This was worthy of a penalty card but alas none appeared. They then scored, and scored, as we did not defend as well as necessary, and we went down 4-1. The proverbial "...we could not kick the ball into the Grand Canyon, to save our ass, or score at the Mustang Ranch with a fist full of fifties!"  summarizes our play. Our Keeper sustained a right cheek bone black and purple "football boot-birth mark". In a show of complete solidarity, the wives hit the cosmetic store for purple make up. For the final match we all - including wives - sported purple right cheekbones. We directed all inquiries to our ailing Keeper...who rallied to play splendidly the final match...diving left, diving right, one handed saves, soaring clearance kicks. Actually it was the new yellow surfer shorts!

 

We did rally the final day to beat a Hawaii side 3-nil. Another shutout for the defense! They had two African strikers from the Ivory Coast and Nigeria plus a fleet, skilled Jamaican centre-mid named Mascho(sp). Looked like the summer version of the Jamaican Bobsled Team. He has not cut his hair since 1982!!! and it is braided in a 4"+/- diameter dreadlock which went to the ground. He tucked the hair inside his jersey, which made him look like he had a backpack on. We got pics. He was the fleetest of the threesome. These three kept the defense hopping BUT superior skill and conditioning shut them down! Always nice to exit with a win! Next tournament is a 4-match outing in Victoria, B.C. early April. The competition stiffens up a notch or two.

 

We did most all of the touristy stuff on Oahu. Most moving was the Pearl Harbor Memorial. Most interesting was the Polynesian Cultural Centre on the north shore. We spend 3 1/2 hours touring it. There were two hand made canoes: one 150 years olde and the other a 250 year olde model that was there in 1878 when Capt.. Cook "discovered" the islands. Incredible workmanship on both vessels.

 

Richard