OMFC Tour to Lisbon Thursday 5th September – Sunday 8th September 2013 The Old Marlburians enjoyed a fine pre-season programme this year, after earning promotion to the 2nd Division of the Arthurian League as Champions of Division 3 last year. Cue an energised squad keen to mix it with ‘the big boys’ and some entertaining and thoroughly well fought games in late August, and it was off to Heathrow Terminal 3 to catch the 8.30 BA flight to Lisbon, where none other than the great Benfica lay in waiting. A late Thursday evening arrival into Lisbon and it was straight out to sample all that the Potuguese Cervejarias could offer. Sparkling value is what ensued with 750ml of Sagres for 3 euros a bargain too good to turn down. Unaccustomed to the continental technique of hitting the town after we would normally be tucked up in bed saw the OMs finish Thursday evening/Friday morning as late as 4.30am – but I suppose we were there to be taught a lesson by technically more adept sides…ideal preparation for what lay in store on Friday. A cultural day in Lisbon saw the lads taking pictures with locals, signing autographs and fulfilling their commercial obligations before meeting to get the ferry across the Terga to Seixal – the training ground of the mighty Benfica. In heat that has caused recent debate about whether a summer worldcup in Qatar is feasible the OMs sweated and worked tirelessly against a technically gifted Benfica side made up of ex-pros and their U19 players. Two players of serious note were Kevin Oliveira, a Cape Verde born player who the club have great hope for, and Fernando Chalana, a 54 year old Benfica legend who was in the 1984 UEFA European Championships ‘Team of the Tournament’, and Portuguese player of the year on two occasions. Formidable opposition to say the least. Bizarrely and much to managers Black and Hare, the OMs came in from the searing heat 1-0 up at the half! Who would have thought! Harry Harvey had finally managed to grab some space down the left and made a beeline for the box, where he cut in and lifted the ball over the Benfica goalkeeper. Without doubt, the greatest moment of his life, so far. Cont... The second half started and it was a case of what we have we hold – this wasn’t going to prove a successful tactic (although we had little choice) as the Benfica possession percentage neared 3 figures, and a surging run into the box saw Tom Forsythe bring down a youngster for a penalty. Up stepped Kev Oliveira to slot home and draw the hosts level. More of the same ensued and with a move straight from the training ground, a ball into feet from Oliveira was nudged back to him from the centre forward and he unleashed a dipping thunderbolt of a shot which HvB had no chance with. A truly stunning effort to clinch the win for Benfica. The OMs headed back across the bay with some ridiculously cheap beers in tow, to be met by a wall of exhaustion, remedied by an hours kip before heading to Lisbon’s celebrated seafood restaurant, Cervejaria Ramiro – well worth it if you’re ever in Lisbon – where we ate our fill before heading to the premier night spot in town to watch Alan Hamilton cement his status as the loosest man on tour. Saturday saw the team head to Cascais – a forty minute commute down the coast from the city and to a warm beach where, to our horror, ball games weren’t permitted! Needless to say, Charlie Laughton was restless and despite doing all they could to keep him entertained, the squad ended up heading for food and drink in the centre of Cascais before heading home to nurse sunburns and get an early night before the 10am kick off the following day. An early morning wakeup call ensued and the OMs headed back to Seixal for their final game of the tour. Niall Alcock had arrived to bolster the ranks and his was a boyish excitement at the quality of the training pitches he was playing on, twinned with an unattractive jealousy to missing out on the Benfica game 36 hours earlier. A 2-0 loss against a team who were out to compete was about the right result on a horribly hot day – the final whistle blew at 11.30, when the temperatures were hitting 30+ degrees under searing sunshine – to round off a tour which has done much to boost the fitness of the OM players, as well as meet the contractual obligations we had to our sponsors of spreading the word of Thyme Cookery School to mainland Europe! Special mention should go to Harry Harvey who left the field with 20 minutes to play panting and claiming that he had a new found respect for central midfielders. Again, Nick Horowitz and Tom Forsythe marshalled the back four well, but it was a spark of brilliance from eth Portuguese attacking midfielder who eventually unlocked the defence. As it stood, we had played two, lost two, scored 1, conceded 4, but enjoyment levels were on another level as it was agreed that OMFC would aim to replicate the tour next year. All in all, it was a thoroughly enjoyable long weekend in a great city, with two games played in fantastic conditions against superior opposition – exactly the way a pre-season tour should be. Hopefully it will stand us in good stead to tackle the might of the Arthurian League Division 2 opposition, and that we’ll be plying our trade in Division 1 by the time I write the next tour report. .