The Lads are wrapping up their two weeks with us, having watched the championship games on sunny Easter Sunday at Pizza Hut Park. In the Supergroup game, Sao Paulo beat Vancouver 4-0, and the Dallas Texans defeated Solar in an all-Dallas final for the Under-19 division. I hope the British soccer referees here to call Dallas Cup matches have had as lovely a time as my family has.
On Friday night, they treated us to a steak dinner out and thanked us for our hospitality. They also thanked their “coaches,” the men who facilitate their travel and training while they’re here. George McCaffrey in particular was praised, since this is his 20th year to bring refs to Dallas. (That’s George in the photo, with refs Jamie and Payam). He’s cultivated a long list of loyal Lake Highlands families like mine who look forward to meeting their new crop of lads each year and who are sad to see them go each time.
They’ll also be missed by the hordes of LH kids who’ve come over to meet and great them here. They introduced them to country and western dancing and LH’s fine cuisine (their favorite was Taco Bell), and they kept them up late a few nights asking them lots of questions about life back home. It’s been a wonderful experience all ‘round.
