Congratulations to all of the brothers who helped make the Calgary Diversity Cup 2006 campaign a success. We captured 3rd Place and missed the chance to fight for 1st Place in the final by one goal in the semi-final match against a team which plays in Calgary's highest league. With the game evenly matched and our team even dominating parts of the game, with 10 minutes left, we conceded a free kick just outside of the box and as if in slow motion through our eyes and our bodies unable to do anything, frozen in time, the ball rolled its way into the bottom right of the net. The Semi-Final game reminded us though that we can play against almost anyone. Next time perhaps it'll be us who edges out with a 1-0 win.

We were also honoured with the Cam Stewart Cup given for sportsmanship and excellent conduct both on and off the field. Alhamdulillah, when you make an effort to display good character, people take note. We didn't even know that this trophy existed and I was therefore pleasantly surprised when I saw the email in my inbox after having come back from the tourney. Below is the main portion of the email from the tournament organizer:

"Thanks for attending the tournament; I hope to see you again next year. The true purpose of the tournament is to have fun and interact with members of other cultures and communities, with this in mind sportsmanship is very much an integral part of the tournament. After watching all the games played, my Middle East Police Advisory Committee felt that most of the teams played well and displayed fair conduct; however your team stood out in this regard and best displayed great conduct on and off the field. For this reason your team has been awarded the Cam Stewart Cup, which is a trophy given out to the above reasons. "

I have a personal Flickr account which is essentially an online photo album. I put up all the photos that I have from the weekend onto it so check out the photos and enjoy. If you have any photos that you want added up there just get in touch with me.

FC AI in Calgary Diversity Cup 2006 - photo album (Flickr)