Sirened

This was the scene at an Amsterdam bar last night when the Netherlands scored in the waning minutes of regulation to force extra time with Russia. The packed bar erupted in cheer and everyone hugged one another in celebratory relief.

The celebration was not to last though, as in the second half of extra time Russia scored 2 goals to put the nail in The Netherlands Euro Cup coffin. Nederlands, who were the best team in group play, outscoring their opponents 9-1, seemed to struggle a bit in the role of favorite. And Russia, as the underdog playing with less pressure, simply played a little harder and of course, caught a few lucky bounces.

I’ll hand it to the Dutch for being classy though, in a jam packed bar of orange there was a group of 5 Russian fans who periodically chanted Russia, Russia, Russia. The Dutch simply shrugged it off, chanted back and when the game was over and all was quiet except for the 5 Russians, nobody gave them a hard time.

This was the stunned Dutch scene afterwards. But hey, cheer up guys, it could be much worse, at least your not Russian!

photo credit: personal collection

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