Improved results

Photo: Bibbi Forsman

Results improved after the slow season start, for the latest three games 6-0, 18-0 and 5-0. To follow results in the series, girls 16 click here and and girls 15 here. Right now we are leading and in third place, but there are still many games to e played.

This was a nice late summer evening at Slottskogsvallen, last Wednesday.

celebrating ullevi

Photo: Cornelia F.

The sports arena Ullevi celebrates 50 years this year. Last Wednesday the Swedish and French National men's teams played a friendly game as part of the jubilee. Azalea BK was invited to manifest youth soccer along with other clubs. It was well worth a little rain and even if Sweden lost 2-3 it was a fun match to watch.

Azalea player in the Swedish National Team!

Photo: Per Schillander

Our very own Sofia H. will attend the next training camp for the girls 15 Swedish National team in September. She will be the only Göteborg player. Sofia has been an Azalea player since 2000 and we are so very, very proud of her!

F-93 jubilee

August 16 was a day to celebrate, exactly eight years since the first F-93 training. This is one of the earliest photos in the web archive. 2001, match against Mossen.

A new season started

We played our first series game for the season last week. Qviding beat us. Maybe we were more like happy house cats than hungry lions, after the successful USA CUP adventure. We had better focus the second half and there will be other chances to fight.



Clever spectators created a nice shelter from the soft rain.



Photo Bibbi Forsman

Great cookies is some comfort after a lost game (and bananas). All parents take turns keeping the "fikabord" filled for the home games. "Apelsinplan" has been our home field this season. The grass is as green as it can be here, perfect.

Norwegian/Swedish jokes

Click here to read about how our dear neighbours make fun of us (USA Cup blog post). Exactly the same jokes are told the other way around :)

E.R. special

Here are the photos we didn't dare show moms and dads at home before they could see for themselves all girls are fine:



We happened to be the USA Cup's medical center's most treated team 2008. The staff at the center were incredibly caring and helpful. They took care of knees, feet, stomachs and heads as well as heat stroke, an infected spider bite and an asthma attack. We are all fine now!






This is the board used to keep track of and direct the ambulance cars to different fields. Field L2 "the Swedish field" had visits twice.







Photo: Bibbi Forsman and Pia Dybeck

Record for one day: three pair of crutches for one knee and two feet.

Record for one match: team Passion's quarter final with four players from our team and three from the other. Hope they are all fine too!

Being treated was free, but x-ray, crutches and medicines we had to pay for. Nearest pharmacy most conveniently located at Super Target, where we hang out for lunch anyway.

Welcome home!

A whole committee of welcoming parents and friends met us at Landvetter airport, happy to have us back again. And we were happy to see them, of course, and glad to show them the trophy.

The girls each got Azalea coloured roses. All coaches and chaperons was presented with other nice prizes by the parents. Anders got the most over all prize of first bringing the idea of going to USA CUP up two years ago.

Saying hello to the families also means saying goodbye to the team. Our trip is over but not our adventure. In August trainings start again and then the series begin again and there are matches and...

Thank you!

Photo: Bibbi Forsman and Ulf Svensson
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Last day in Chicago, bags stuffed with the shopping we did now and then over the last days. And the cooler comes to Sweden, maybe it will replace the "fikabord" at games?

But much more important than stuff we bring; we are filled with lovely memories, e-mail addresses to new friends, knowledge of another country, the sense of new flavours. And a trophy, joy and passion for the game of soccer!

To all families, guest players and new friends we met: Thank you for making this trip unforgettable! Thank you for giving of your time and sharing your homes! We are overwhelmed and will keep you dear in our hearts.

Hope we all meet again!

Sight seeing Chicago

While in Chicago we stayed in families with girls from Team Chicago, in Aurora and Naperville. Again we were overwhelmed by the hospitality that stretches longer than any of us could imagine. Most of all it was nice to meet the family of Julianna, who played with us all week in USA CUP.



Our new families had organized a sightseeing trip for us in Chicago. Early morning rise to take the train down town after the late night in Rolling Meadows, so well worth it. An incredible sunny, happy ride on top of the sightseeing bus and a day we'll never forget. And we managed some shopping that day too...




















Photo: Bibbi Forsman

Some of the families met up downtown Naperville for dinner afterwards. Naperville is something else than skyscrapers, a pretty, lively little town with old buildings and green trees. This was our last evening together, we are both homesick and sad to leave, all at once.