My over-50 soccer team faced a very talented and physical Russian team this morning. They failed, however, to put much effort into warming up for the 8 am start. I suggested to my teammates that we come out very intensely and look for an early score. Within the first two minutes, I stripped a wing-back and went in for a one-on-one with the goalie. Unfortunately, my shot was wide (read: I choked). Two minutes later, I sprinted into the box to meet a high cross for a beautiful header that gave us our first score and redeemed myself for the earlier miss. The game remained 1-0 until the final minutes when we slammed the door shut with another goal. I returned home after a nice post-match barbecue with the guys and opted to give my rather beaten-up body the rest of the day off. I was so adrenaline-charged during the match that I am not quite sure when I picked up this rather painful turf burn.