Week 9 BONUS coverage: 12 stout-hearted lads make a brave stand in Cantona O40’s 4-0 defeat to table-topping Hudson.

The O40's contest their own Battle of Thermopylae

Each incarnation of Cantona team is marked by games that seldom feature glory, acclaim and riches, but provide an abundance of suffering and perseverance. It’s the showing up that is heroic on those days and they make for a great story retold for years. With what stories do we put our children to bed? With what tales do we establish our credentials as reliable, dependable teammates? You’ve heard them (perhaps too often):

·         the Mother’s Day 8 in New Hampshire,

·         the blazing hot day in Saugus with 8 men, while Scribe cooled his toes in the Manager’s kiddie pool,

·         the mid-week makeup melee in Fitchburg,

·         the snow game in Burlington,

·         the Easter Nine in Franklin where we damn near forged our own miracle.  

These stories and more carry us forward as brothers. They speak of who we are better than any crisp cross-field pass or top-corner blast from distance or goal-saving slide tackle.

There are archetypes to each of these storied games, as old as story itself:

·         Arduous Homeric journeys to exotic and far-flung places.

·         The halt and the lame, making perhaps ill-advised return from injury to soon

·         The energizer bunny, tirelessly expending effort and carrying the faltering among us

·         The hard man, sure to share the suffering with the opposition, reminding them we will be no pushover and the points must be earned fairly.

·         And always, always, the keeper. The man who must stand as last line of defense, retrieving the ball and starting again once we are breached.

Thanks boys, you suffered for the shirt today. Read the names below and raise a glass when you see them next. Listen to their tale, it’s sure to be a good one.

Lineup: GK: Viking, Defense: Professor Paul and Brother Greg, the Blade and John Moran Mid: Dono Ariagato Adriatic, Maz, and the tireless Dan Chase (and chase and chase forever…) Forward: Owen C the break-dancing machine, Francois the flying Frenchman, and McQuade (better nickname pending)