It takes some serious mental toughness to play two hours of soccer, and to survive that stretch of time is, in itself, a testament to the awesomeness of the women on this year's US Women's team. But it takes a potent combination of toughness, passion, stubbornness, and unbridled desire (is that even a strong enough word?!) to keep playing when you're down by a goal - when the clock has passed its point of no return and will stop at any moment - and when you're not even sure whether you have a fighting chance in hell of getting that win that you want.
To find that combination of emotion and mentality, harness it, and to channel it into a final life-saving goal that was - in form, style, timing, placement, and poetry - absolutely perfect....that's the work of some amazing women. And in the spirit of the Mermaid Cafe and the women that search for it, I give today's Mermaid Cafe award to Abby Wombach and the 2011 US Women's Soccer Team. These women kicked some serious ass today.
In case you missed it, here's the final goal, in the 122nd minute of play, after 90 regular scheduled minutes, two 15-minute overtime periods (=120 minutes), and a divine gift of two minutes of "extra stoppage time" (=122 minutes):
