The University of Alabama at Birmingham Athletics
Men's Soccer Player Diary
8/15/2003 12:00:00 AM | Men's Soccer
Aug. 15, 2003
DAY TWO - Jose Rayo
The UAB men's soccer team is currently in England where it will play five games against professional soccer teams. While in England, the players were asked to keep a diary of the day's events and their thoughts. Each day, uabsports.com will post a player's diary and keep a running record of the trip.
On Thursday, August 14, the second full day in England, senior Jose Rayo was asked to keep a diary of the day's events. Below is what he wrote:
DAY TWO - Jose Rayo Day two was a lot better than the first day. We were not as tired and we were looking forward to our first game. We began the day by having breakfast and then going to the practice field which is a 15 minute walk from our hotel. The weather was great and the field has a great view of North Wales and Liverpool. It was a pretty short practice, but long enough for our freshman to get used to our style of play. We then returned to the hotel and rested up for the game. We ate our pre-game meal which I still am not sure of what it was, but it tasted good.
At 6 p.m. it was time for us to head to our game which was in Connahs Quay - about a 20 minute bus ride from the hotel. The field was very nice and the weather was perfect condition for a soccer match. We were looking forward to the game the whole day and we were anxious to see what the new players had.
The whistle blew and I was ready for the game to start. I could tell right away the other team had under-estimated us. We opened the game with a quick goal in the fourth minute. I scored the first goal with a bicycle kick that went over the keeper's head. Jarbas Carlos crossed the ball and Kareem Morgan set the goal up for me. It was a great goal to start the year. That got us going and that's when the goals started piling up. We ended up leading at the half, 3-0, and winning by a final score of 5-0. We were very proud of the results and for the first time we played together, we were all pleased.
After the game, there was a reception for both teams and fans. They served sandwiches and I ate a liverwurst sandwich. I didn't know what it was until I finished the sandwich and I stopped eating after that. We then decided to go to McDonalds because we were all still hungry and the liverwurst didn't fill us up. After dinner, we came back to the hotel to sleep. There are about three dozen sheep outside of our hotel room which make noise all night long, but has been a running joke since we arrived. Overall, day two was a success considering the good training session and the victory over the Connahs Quay Nomads.
Before I leave, I want to dedicate my first goal to my family back home in Houston, Texas and in Cardenas, San Luis Potosi. I'd like to send shout outs to my Houston boys back in Birmingham and to all my friends as well. Holla back!!!
