The Full Meaning

Arsenal making it to the Final of the Carling Cup has come at a great time in my evolution as a soccer fan.  I am now appropriately obsessed and educated to a point where I will enjoy our trophy.  The importance of a Cup win was not always apparent to me. I have to confess ( as I did back in October) that I was not always the most dedicated of Gooners.  Attending cup matches at Jeane's or Big Z's seemed optional - especially when we were playing the kids. And when we lost to Chelsea in the 2006-2007 season was tough but I think that's because it was Chelsea.

The other aspect of my former ignorance is not fully understanding what a Cup was.  In other words, I didn't get the lingo.  At first, I thought it was British idioms being used, and as an American although we speak the same language, I at times don't know what the other is saying.  Then I discovered it's just the culture of the sport.  The MLS has Cups too.  The whole World has a Cup.  Golf and sailing have Cups.  I finally figured it out.  Cup = Tournament.

Zoom in on light bulb turning on over my head.

That's how I explained the importance of today's games to my neices.  They had no idea what a Cup was or even why my brother and I were rooting for Wigan yesterday.  So my lecture was twofold.  A Cup is a tournament that is played out over a span of time, and we want the Blue team to win because of accumulation of points.  Yada yada....we hate Manure...the usual.

I guess it just takes time to assimilate all the information and nuances of a sport you've never been exposed to.  Cricket, for example, looks incredibly complicated even though using a bat and ball and running around after the ball is hit mistakenly looks similar to baseball.  I am daunted to even try and figure it out.  Sidenote - Maybe someday, someone could explain what "The Ashes" are.  I would appreciate it.

Anyway, my knowledge, I think, is pretty complete now and is the reason for my butterflies and excitement this morning.  Arsenal are in a Cup Final.  More importantly, this Arsenal team are in a Cup Final.  The team that for the last five season have been trying to build themselves into a squad that would maintain the glory that comes with wearing the Red and White of the Arsenal.  It's been rough going.  We've had our stop/starts, our breakdowns, our injuries, our doubts, and our impatience with how the team has been built.  We have gotten our hopes up only to have them dashed by inconsistent performances and a lack of mature mentality and winning experiences. But ever so slowly, the team has been morphing as the players have grown older.  I think my maturation as a fan has coincided with the squad's.  So today's final means more to me than it did back in previous seasons.


Because I get it now.

So go get that trophy, boys.  You and I are finally ready for it.