The Rise of the Iron Wall!-Chapter 51: Stealing the First Blood!
It was still the fourth minute since everything started, and the game was still quite young here. Usually, in this period, the teams that played would approach things slowly, trying to get the players into the zone first before they started to hit the accelerator.
However, the game between Hakodate Nishi and Ritsumeikan definitely didn’t follow that pattern.
No, just in four minutes, both players had already exchanged some heavy blows here, with Ritsumeikan showing how big a threat their attack was by a quick attack after the kickoff happened. It was exactly like their blitzkrieg strategy, and Hakodate Nishi was so lucky that Higo was able to stop it, as conceding a goal quite early would just hurt them mentally.
Then came the counterattack from Hakodate Nishi, and while no shot-on-target had made yet, they got a very good chance right then, a free kick at a close distance, albeit at a difficult angle.
"Come on! Make a wall!"
"Roshi, you are the perimeter! Get to the right a little bit!"
"Don’t you dare let the ball through that side, okay?! Keep your eyes open and jump!"
Seeing the opponent’s goalkeeper setting up the wall, Hiroshi and Makino, the two executioners of this free kick, were currently whispering to each other.
"Do you want to take it directly, or do you want me to act as bait?" The captain asked, hand covering his mouth as if he was afraid that someone on the opponent’s side could read his lips.
Hiroshi pondered for a moment before shaking his head firmly. "No, they have already seen my eyes. They know I am going to take it. Just stand next to the wall and get ready to duck when I am about to take the shot."
This was a common strategy in a free kick. One player snuck into the opponent’s wall—even though they could only do that in the perimeter, not between the opponent’s players—and when the free kick taker shot the ball, he would duck instantly, creating more room for the ball to get through while also distracting the opponent’s goalkeeper from reacting in time.
Makino nodded silently, chiming in with Ritsumeikan’s wall while also pushing them subtly to put more pressure.
"Hey, hey, Sensei! Look what he is doing here!" Someone from Ritsumeikan High complained, pointing at Makino accusingly. "He is pushing us, you know?!"
Of course, a shameless person he was, Makino just shrugged innocently. "I just want to help them adjust their wall, Sensei! Look, they are overstepping the line you created!" He pointed at the ground, especially at the wall that passed through the line the referee sprayed before.
The referee narrowed his eyes dangerously at those two.
"You, don’t try to test me here. Step back, and no pushing the line." He growled dangerously at Ritsumeikan players. "And you," Then he pointed at Makino. "You are the team’s captain, you know the procedure. Don’t try to act on your way, just listen to me."
"Yes, Sensei..." Both players nodded innocently, as if they were not going for each other’s throats a moment ago.
This small clash was just another little episode in a football game, something that didn’t look important in a grand scheme, but in that particular moment, was a big deal. Now that Makino was able to occupy the perimeter, Hiroshi had an easier target to aim at.
Fweee!
Once the referee blew the whistle, he took a deep breath, doing his run-up a little before trying to curl the ball with his instep foot. The moment Makino saw the ball coming, he ducked instantly. Hiroshi hit it quite low, and the power itself wasn’t that impressive. If Makino failed to react, the ball would definitely deflect off him and bounce wildly, which would be dangerous for the team.
However, his presence was the key here.
With Makino ducking out of nowhere, Ritsumeikan’s goalkeeper couldn’t really time when the ball would come.
The distraction was a huge success, and the goalkeeper failed to react in time. Coupled with the tricky angle and a sharp curl that Hiroshi added to his shot, it forced Ritsumeikan’s goalkeeper to jump in desperation.
Thud!
Unfortunately, he was still a millisecond too late, as he could only feel the ball brush past his gloves. It was a small deflection, and usually, that was enough to save the team from conceding a goal. This time, though, it was not enough. He could only watch as the ball hit the net gently, giving the first point of the game to Hakodate Nishi High.
Fweee!
The moment the referee blew the whistle, everyone knew that the goal was valid, and hell broke loose.
"YES!" Hiroshi clenched his fist, punching the air excitedly.
"Damn, Hiroshi! You are a monster, you know that, right?!" Makino laughed heartily.
"Yeah, damn it! You have to teach me that!" Hori rubbed the boy’s hair exasperatedly.
For a moment, all the players with the black-and-white jerseys gathered around Hiroshi, celebrating the amazing goal together. On the back, Higo also applauded, finding the scene to be relieving since it was he who initiated the counterattack. Fortunately, the team didn’t disappoint here.
Kumiko also showed a relieved smile.
Even though she had never shown it, the girl was quite nervous as the game began. After all, the opponent was a team that managed to drag Sappotani into a penalty shootout.
However, she believed in her team. They had been preparing for this for a long time—even though it was under the disguise of preparing for Sappotani—and they had already expected an early goal from their side.
After all, it was common knowledge that Ritsumeikan High often sacrificed their defense to overwhelm the opponent with their offense, so that left a glaring weakness on their back. Fortunately, Hakodate Nishi managed to steal a point here, which would make things easier for the rest of the game.
’Now, all we have to do is simple,’ The girl smirked, giving a signal to Fujinaga on the back. ’Initiate The Great Wall Operation, don’t let them get closer or even breach our defense. Let’s see if we can do something that only Sappotani’s new team could do, seal Ritsumeikan High’s offense for 90 minutes full!’
