Light and Heat (Racing Club v Saprissa)

November 18, 2011

David sat across from Ayida, trying to concentrate on the flame that danced above a tall white candle on the low table between the two of them. It was difficult: her skin glowed like copper in the flickering light and her simple white robe showed the graceful curve of her neck connecting to the strong precipice of her collarbone. As the candle moved, the slight swell of her breasts would emerge from the shadows and disappear again, and his eyes kept flicking from the candle to her and back.

Her eyes were closed and she was swaying slightly, her voice a low chant that David could barely hear, rising and falling in a flowing rhythm. David tried to let go, centering himself on the sound of her voice, his eyes slowly softening and as his lids drooped slightly, the edges of the flame blurred and sparkled. He knew it was just the wick, but it looked like there was a dark shape at the pure white center of the fire, dancing in rhythm to the slowly rising volume of Ayida’s voice.

The flame danced on, white surrounded by yellow fading to a brilliant orange on the edges, a liquid sunrise that pulsed in time with his heartbeat, growing larger and larger. The dark shape in the middle began to move more distinctly, expanding, bulges pushing outwards from the center column of blackness and resolving to what looked like limbs, a whirling, elongated figure that spun and twisted, arms flung high above its head at the center of the fire.

The voice in David’s head that protested against what was happening slowly faded, pushed aside by the immediacy of the experience, by the heat on his face and the slow reduction in the chatter of his thoughts to simple observation. His mind quieted, became nothing but a reflective surface that slowly filled with flame, the pure white center slowly spreading throughout him until he felt like his entire being was infused with light and heat.

He heard Ayida’s voice, muted and distant, and slowly he recognized that she was calling his name, over and over.

He opened his eyes, but it took a few moments for them to adjust and he blinked rapidly trying to bring the blurred shapes around him into focus. The candle had burned down, and the only light was that of the waning moon leaking weakly in through the high window. There was a flash of light and the rumble of thunder, and in that instant David clearly saw Ayida across from him, the flat ledges of her knees pulled up to her chin, her hands clasped around her shins.

Once the echoes of thunder had rolled away, he licked his lips which suddenly felt cracked and dry as if he had been wandering for hours on the beach on a windy day, and tried to speak. His voice would not come, and he swallowed hard before managing a weak “Hey.”

Ayida looked at him a moment and grinned. “Hey. You okay?”

David looked around, the room now pulling into sharper focus: the low table between them inlaid with silver in a geometric pattern against dark, thick-grained wood, the glass cabinet behind Ayida with the lion–claw feet that curved around thick wooden balls. He heard the first heavy drops of rain against the windows, and the room flashed again with lightning.

“Yeah. I think so. I’m starving. What time is it?”

“Just after eleven.”

“What? Eleven?”

Ayida grinned again. “Yeah.”

“That was three hours?” Ayida nodded. “Wow. It felt like just a few minutes.”

“What happened?”

David stretched, his joints popping softly. “Nothing. I mean … something if it was three hours. But I was just watching the flame, and everything turned white.”

“That’s all?”

David thought a moment. “There was a time it looked like there was someone dancing in the flame. But afterwards, it was just white. Warm. Not hot, just warm.”

“Nothing else?” David shook his head. “No other colors, no voices?”

“Just yours at the end.”

“Mine?”

“Yeah. You were calling my name.”

Ayida shook her head. “No. I was just sitting here watching you.”

“Really?”

Ayida nodded. “Are you sure you heard a voice?”

“Yes. Positive.”

“Are you sure it was mine?”

David began to answer and stopped. “I guess not.”

Ayida nodded and gracefully unfolded herself from the floor, reaching out a hand to help David rise unsteadily to his feet. “Let’s eat,” she said, leading him back down the hallway.

November 20, 2011

For the first twenty minutes, the team from Costa Rica looked the more likely to score, dominating possession against their Haitian hosts. Racing Club’s first chance of the game came when a well-weighted ball from Jimmy McNulty set Bidre’Ce Azor free on goal, but the angle proved too tight and his chip came off the back post to Ishmael Butler, whose shot could also only find the woodwork.

Saprissa recovered and dominated possession for the next five minutes, with Josue Arguedas and Wilson Soto keeping possession just outside Racing Club’s box. Finally, Soto launched a shot towards Charley Julien in Racing Club’s goal, but Fouad Guichard was able to clear the ball with a powerful header that sent Azor sprinting up the right side of the field. Azor dodged past Rónald Rodriguez and spotted Butler streaking towards the box from the left. A pass into space and a hard volley later, and the ball was past Kevin Gutiérrez in Saprissa’s goal and the hosts had an early 1-0 lead.

The goal, well against the run of play, seemed to take all life out of the visitors, as if their disbelief that all their hard work could go for naught led to an overall weakening of their will and two minutes later, the focus of the Saprissa back line on McNulty allowed Azor to find a wide open Devon Frederick, who calmly finished for a two goal lead that The Old Lions took into the locker room.

The second half would provide more of the same, with Frederick remaining the star: first he played provider, using a marvelous pull-back to gain enough space to find Edens Chery whose one-touch volley set up Azor’s goal just after halftime and then claiming his brace with fifteen minutes to go with a well placed shot from the edge of the box.

As surprising as the offensive explosion by Racing Club Haïtien over the past two games has been, the victory was keyed by dominant performances from both outside defenders, with Jemieko Jennings and Fouad Guichard controlling the wings all day on both sides of the ball. The win leaves the Haitian pretenders in a shocking position: fourth place in the division, fighting off Harbour View and Herediano for the final playoff spot.

NADII: Yashin
Racing Club Haïtien v Club Deportivo Saprissa, Sylvio Cator
Racing Club 4 (Ishmael Butler 26, Devon Frederick 29 73, Bidre’Ce Azor 48) – Saprissa 0
MoM: Frederick (9.3)
Attendance: 10,209. Referee: Paul Harrison.