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Stadium of Light: A Samba Bucket List Experience

  • Jul 8
  • 3 min read
The full Samba Foundation FC squad for Game 15 in matching black t-shirts, gathered together on the pitch at the Stadium of Light, home of Sunderland FC, with red and white stadium seating behind them.
A second group photo of the Samba Foundation FC squad in black t-shirts on the pitch at the Stadium of Light, taken from a slightly different angle.

The Samba did things a little differently for Game 15 as we decided to dip our toes across the border into England. We travelled to the Stadium of Light, home of Sunderland FC, to play in our largest stadium to date with a massive capacity of around 49,000. The grass was being cut as we arrived, and the sprinklers were switched on, making the surface absolutely perfect for a Samba game of football. It was an energy-sapping occasion, though, with pitch-side temperatures reaching a scorching 28°C!


First Half


The Blue team came out of the traps flying and grabbed an early lead. Johnny Cairns slipped the ball to Dirk Otway, who did brilliantly to fend off two defenders and toe-poke it home.


The Yellows soon stepped it up and got back on level terms when Rich Rintoul played a lovely ball over the top for Jon McGraw. McGraw ran onto it and beat the goalkeeper at the near post to make it 1-1.


The Yellows then flipped the game on its head to go 2-1 ahead. Paul McPherson caught the Blues out with another great ball over the top, which Kyle Boggie latched onto and fired home.


With the half-time whistle fast approaching, the Yellows extended their lead. Selos found Bobe Boyd, who curled a stunning effort in from 20 yards out for the goal of the day. 3-1 Yellows at the break.


Second Half


The second half really sparked into life around the hour mark. Aaron Robinson received the ball from Dirk Otway inside the box and smashed it into the roof of the net to make it 3-2.


It turned into a quick-fire double for the Blues as Johnny Cairns found the net from inside the box after a neat pass from Otway, levelling the game at 3-3.


With fifteen minutes to go, the Blues completed the turnaround. Some great team passing saw Johnny Cairns go one-on-one with the goalie, but he unselfishly cut it back to give Darren Rintoul an easy tap-in.


Minutes later, the Blues scored their fourth on the bounce. It was another incredibly unselfish goal, this time with Dirk Otway cutting back to give Robbie Simpson the easiest of finishes for 5-3.


The Yellow team rallied hard in the heat and pulled one back in the 89th minute. Bobe Boyd's shot was parried by the goalie, but it fell perfectly into the path of Selos, who tucked it away to make it 5-4. The Yellows pushed for a dramatic equaliser, but the Blues held firm to walk away with a hard-fought 5-4 victory.


Full time: Blue Team 5 - 4 Yellow Team.


Highlight of the Match

Welcoming another sibling group into the Samba! Damian Otway joined his brother Dirk in the setup today, making this our 8th sibling group to play for the foundation.


Man of the Match

The Sunderland coaches were watching and decided to pick a Man of the Match from both teams.

Blue Team: Johnny Cairns

Yellow Team: Bobe Boyd


Amount Raised: £880


SQUAD

SAMBA BLUE

Kevin Fettes's Team


Mark Boggie (C)

Johnny Cairns ⚽️🅰️🅰️🏆

Alex Cameron

Andy Coventry

Kevin Fettes

Mark McLeod

Ian Midwinter

Dirk Otway ⚽️🅰️🅰️

Darren Rintoul ⚽️

Aaron Robinson ⚽️

Robbie Simpson ⚽️

Ross Taylor (GK)

Leighton Thomson

Jonny Watt

SAMBA YELLOW

Paul McPherson's Team


Kyle Boggie ⚽️

Bobe Boyd (C) ⚽️🏆

Barry Chambers

Joe Dickens

David Donald

James Ebbs (GK)

Bailey Forbes

Jon Laidlaw

Jon McGraw ⚽️

Paul McPherson 🅰️

Damian Otway

Rich Rintoul 🅰️

Selos ⚽️

Eugene Taylor


Proud to Support: Andy's Man Club


A huge thank you to Andy's Man Club for their kind words following our match in Sunderland. Playing at the Stadium of Light was special in itself, but being able to raise and donate £880 to the incredible Andy's Man Club made the occasion even more meaningful.


As a team, we're proud to support suicide prevention awareness. For every match, we wear Andy's Man Club t-shirts to warm up in, helping spread their message and encourage conversations around men's mental health.


Andy's Man Club provides free peer-to-peer support groups across the UK, working to end the stigma surrounding men's mental health through the power of conversation. Their message is simple but powerful: #ItsOkToTalk.


If you'd like to support the fantastic work they do, you can donate directly via their JustGiving page.



 
 
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