As the final whistle blew at the F4Football Dome on the night of May 24, all of Union Omaha (players, staff, fans, even good old Mr. Hawkins himself) came together to embrace each other in a frenzy of joy and ecstasy. The players dogpiled on each other, the fans spilled their beers on each other, and the staff clapped and hollered from the club canteen as they encouraged their beloved team through the TV. Through a mix of hard work and certainly a heaping amount of luck, Union Omaha reaches the final of the French National Trophy for the very first time in their history.
元気さん, his assistant coach, and captain Jonathan Braithwaite appeared in a short post-match conference to speak about their expectations and feelings about the achievement.
“Just to be able to play in the final of such a prestigious French tournament is already something we’re all honored to participate in,” Braithwaite calmly noted, “but we need to make sure we’re at our best on June 2 if we truly want to make history.”
“I think Narlex and Sporting Alsace are truly one of the best French sides,” 元気さん said, “a side that will truly be hard to beat. They’ve had a much tougher run to the final than we have, so a win against them will be monumental and a true testament of the will and hard work that the boys have made this season.”
Here is each teams’ respective journey to the final:
Union Omaha
Round 6: Union Omaha 1-0p Match Giraffes
Round 7: Union Omaha 3-0 Cetus Royals
Quarter-Finals: Union Omaha 1-0p UNION Paris
Semi-Finals: Crux Sinkers 0-2 Union Omaha
Final: Union Omaha v. Sporting Alsace Football
Sporting Alsace Football
Round 6: Sangria Legs 0-2 Sporting Alsace Football
Round 7: Sporting Alsace Football 1-0 Pineapple Shadows
Quarter-Finals: Breizh-Île 0-1p Sporting Alsace Football
Semi-Finals: Sporting Alsace Football 1-0 Bits’n Pieces FC
Final: Union Omaha v. Sporting Alsace Football
All eyes on 元気さん on June 2nd.
Take care everyone,
T