Peyton Ackley - The Beginning of Change

Chapter 23 - Uzbekistan

I was eternally grateful that we were playing in May because it meant the snow had cleared and the temperature had risen to a bearable environment. Uzbekistan was a new country to me, I'd been to many countries across the world but mostly Europe, so Uzbekistan was my next adventure. The team had been really nice on the trip and Steph sat with me while I had a mental breakdown about 'the flying tin can'.

Steph was absolutely mortified that I didn't tell her about my fears of flying during the flight across from England to Australia, so she's now pledged to sit next to me anytime we're on the same flight. Can't imagine Leah is going to be too happy with the agreement if she is also there, but I let Stephy have her moment.

* * *

"Are you excited for the game?" I asked Caitlin as she visited me in the medical room to have her shoulder strapped.

"I mean yeah, it's the last leg of our Olympic Qualifier journey, but I'm a bit nervous," she replied as she looked down at her feet.

"Why are you nervous?"

"We never do that well without a home crowd," she explained. I nodded my head whilst I continued to strap her shoulder with bright pink strapping tape.

"Okay, you should be good to go," I said giving her a good-luck hug and sending her out to warm up. The atmosphere in the Uzbekistan Stadium was nothing compared to those back home in England and Australia. As I walked out to get a gauge of how the players were warming up, the crowds weren't cheering for them, the stands weren't filled, and it was rather empty. I immediately knew it was going to be a tough game for all of them without the cheering, bustling crowds they were used to.

* * *

Sure enough, I was right. It was painful to watch the team hold the majority of possession without being able to do anything with it. It didn't take a genius to figure out what they would be doing in training next week, but that's beside the point. After watching a slow and painful first half I could see that some of our players were struggling more than usual.

Thankfully as the end of the game neared we were 3 - 0 up and there was a limited amount of stoppage time. The players hobbled off the field clearly fatigued and made their way immediately to the locker room minus the few that stayed behind to sign some jerseys and say hello to some of the fans.

"This isn't right," Steph whispered to me as we walked down the tunnel.

"What isn't?" I asked.

"Look at our team PJ, they're exhausted," she said gesturing around the locker room we were now standing in.

Yes, it is normal for players to be tired, they've been running around for 90 minutes with a limited break but they shouldn't all be this physically and mentally drained.

"Guys!" I said hoping it would be loud enough to get everyone's attention. Turns out it wasn't so Steph told me to stand on one of the benches. "Oi, guys!" I said substantially louder.

All the attention of the players turned to me standing in Steph's cubby waiting to speak. I kind of froze but Steph stood by my side tapping me as an indicator to keep going.

"I want a raise of hands if you guys feel drained beyond usual," I told them. I estimated that around two-thirds of the players' hands went up and the other third was mostly players that didn't take the field. "Is this not ridiculous?" I asked them.

A cacophony of 'yes' and 'yeah' and head nods echoed back at me. To see this many players from different clubs all have the same problem properly solidified that this was not just an Arsenal problem, it was a universal problem.