Probably everybody knows by now that Team Strommen lost in the Norway Cup Finals by 3-1. As a foreigner, this event is something of a strange experience. Obviously, I was really upset about the loss to Roa, but the Norwegians on our team were just devastated. For them, the Norway Cup Finals are the pinnacle of soccer achievement, the very epitome of what elite soccer is all about.

D and I found it hard to see how upset all the team was in the locker room after the final whistle. What made the situation worse is that we all knew that we had not performed well. We did no play well at all. How often this seems to happen in the Final Games of Tournaments. Mental toughness so often ends up playing a major part, and this makes losing so much more frustrating. We all know that we could have done so much better.

On the day, Roa was the better team and they thoroughly deserved the win. They outplayed us, especially in the second half.

In the first half I thought both sides were quite evenly matched and the game was a good one. But, once the second half started, we were dominated all over the place. Roa scored a goal early on, when our defenders tried to hold an off-side line and a Roa player sliced through and beat our keeper one on one. Our defensive players signaled for off-side, but I think the Roa player was on-side.

We tied the game up not long afterwards, when Ella made a great run through the Roa defenders beating one in a shoulder to shoulder battle. There may have been a foul, but both players ghave as good as they got. Ella's first shot was parried by the Roa goalkeeper. but she coolly slotted home her own rebound.

Soon afterwards, Roa took the lead again from a corner. I am still not completely sure how it happened, but the Roa player took the corner well, and curved it in. It went directly into the net, and she is right footed and took the corner from the right side. I don't know how she did it.

We had a great play right after, and a chance to tie the score up again, but the goal was called offside. It was a very close call, but once again I think it was the right one, even though it hurts to say it. The last Roa goal was scored from a Kara Lang special. The cross pass became a shot, and there was nothing anyone could do about it. It just flew into the corner of the net. These goals are flukes in many ways, but it happened, and it was the final straw for us. After this, Team Strommen offered little resistance, other than defending our net with everything we had.

Roa deserved to win. However, it hurts to know that we did not play at our best. It sucks and these is not much else to say.

However, what I can say is that our Team Strommen fans were outstanding. I have played in front of some pretty big crowds before, but none have been so vocal, so loud and so passionate. The thousands of spectators in the stands deserve major props for everything they did for us, and I wish we could have brought them home the gold.

After the game the official Cup Final banquet was held. Everyone was dressed up to the nines, and I felt a little embarrassed by my rather plain and simple dress. Next year, when we make the Finals again and win, I am going to buy a much fancier dress.

We all took a long time in getting ready for the gala event, which is a good thing. The banquet is meant to be a good time, and for a while all our players and staff were very upset . We did brighten up a little eventually, and made it to our bus. We drove to a restaurant in downtown Oslo, and the evening was a long one. It was especially long for we limited Norwegian speakers as there were many speeches and none that we understood. Fortunately, the free flowing wine helped our linguistic abilities (or at least, we thought it did.)

At 11:30pm, we were back on our bus, and heading home to Lillestrom and our own party. Now this was an even better good time. Several hundred supporters were all outside the building waiting for us when we pulled up. They cheered, screamed and waved their flags. It was so amazing. The evening was fantastic.

Now, Amy Vermeulen, Diana and I are leaving for a month long trip around the British Isles. We are getting away from soccer for a little while. However, I am so glad that our last night with our Norwegian team, players and coaches, was such a special one. It has been a pleasure to play here for the last couple months. I am really going to miss everyone. Both D and I have made an undertaking to sign again for the 2009 season.

Traveling and hiking should take my mind off of soccer though. After two years of continuous soccer without a break, we are looking forward to doing something completely different. I am not sure what the internet situation is going to be like, but I will do my best to keep everyone updated with our activities and travels. We aim to be back in Canada just before Christmas.

RhianWilkinsonSoccer.com is the Official Website of Rhian Wilkinson.
All rights reserved. All content copyrighted by their respective sources.