On April 10th, at Toyota Park it is time to
strike! Strike the matches that light our BBQ grills for tailgating. Strike
fear into the hearts of the few travelers from San Jose as they enter a sea of
RED! The Chicago Fire will strike the match that will ignite the spirit of our
city’s soccer fans.
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Chicago Fire soccer is officially back
with OPENING NIGHT this Saturday and not a moment too soon! Take it
from someone that was at the game last game of 2009 against now
MLS champion, Real Salt Lake -- the suspense of those final moments
could have only been heightened with a drum roll! Too bad “Conan O'Brien Show”
drummer Max Weinberg didn’t bring his set with him to the park. After
the semi-final was decided by a penalty kick…this season
couldn’t start any sooner!
I’ve played soccer my entire life! I played
throughout elementary, middle, high school and in College on club teams. So how
did I arrive at this sport? If you grew up in a Jamaican household like mine,
soccer (football) is most likely the sport you’ll know before any other. This
was my experience. Although I was exposed to many sports as a child I instantly
recognized a certain level of passion that came with being part of the soccer
community.
Whether watching Bob Marley play ‘Keep Up’ in a music video, out kicking with
friends or hearing father scream at the TV, “KICK Di’ #$@% baaall my yute!”, I
knew this game was special... Yah mon’, it’s a passionate sport and that
passion runs deep through the island of Jamaica, the city of Chicago as
evident through the Fire fans at Toyota Park, and most of our PLANET.
We Fire fans will start this season with some new features. You’ll see a new
Chicago Fire scarf design, new player jerseys and even a few new faces on the
pitch! I recently got a chance to talk to our newly drafted goalkeeper from
UCF, Sean Johnson on the ‘B96 Morning Show’. He is also of Jamaican descent
(Ya’ rude bwoy!!!) and very aware of how special Chicago is. He’s a big fan of
Canadian rapper ‘Drake’ and I’m already taking the steps to make sure he gets a
track played during the game on Saturday, JUST to make him feel at HOME at
Toyota Park!
So on Saturday come to the home of Chicago Soccer and grill a burger, fold a
taquito, lace up your boots and lets start the season! Shout out to SECTION 8!
The craziest most dedicated group of people in the sport!
We love our players, we love our city, we love our SOCCER!
WE ARE THE FIRE!
