Of all the things we could be doing in Ireland, my our son in law wants to go to a Sligo Rovers game. I was thinking music festival or dinner by the sea. But it is their vacation and we have been here for weeks, so the local soccer game is now the plan for Saturday night. The Sligo Rovers will face off against Derry.

We arrive early and park on the street in front of the Sligo stadium. Our plan is to buy groceries for breakfast at the nearby store (conveniently just across the street) and then enjoy the local atmosphere at the corner pub. It is the place to be before a big game. Season ticket holders show up in Rover Red as the neighborhood comes alive.

By game time, the place is packed. It seems the whole town turned out to see the local lads face Derry on the pitch (don’t let the sports talk fool you, I am uncertain about what we are doing here). A group of middle school boys are sitting in our row. They are joyfully rude in the oblivious way that middle school boys have perfected through the ages. The old men in our section aren’t having it. They are grumpy and rude in the way that old men excel. The boys are told to sod off to their parents. The boys fly paper airplanes into the old men and run laughing through the stands. I am caught up in the drama. This might be fun after all.

Across the stadium, the drumming starts. There are fireworks (even though signs say they are prohibited). An entire section of young men, drum and sing and stand for the entire three plus hours of the game. It is a family atmosphere with grilled burgers and canned soda. We all have a fresh juicy hamburger for what one burger would cost back home in St.Louis City stadium.

There are lots of ways to spend your money in the stadium. So of course our children have to visit the merch store at the half. I tag along. Next door to the team gear shop is a candy store. Across the courtyard are food and drink stalls. There are people selling raffle tickets. I spend time people watching and trying not to get swept up in the crowd.

Finally our daughter comes out of the team store sporting a bucket hat and our son in law has his own bag of goodies. I smile when I see how much they are enjoying themselves. This is something I would not choose do on a trip. It is good to be outside my comfort zone. I don’t love soccer….but I love these kids who are clearly enjoying themselves.

Back in the stands, we cheer and groan with the home crowd. “Let’s go Sligo!” The elderly man behind me say the same phrases so often, my son in law begins his own version of the chant. “Pass the ball ye eejits!” “That’s grand lads!” It is really interesting to watch a game in another place. The same sports ethos with a different cultural feel. Familiar yet novel.

Never mind that I don’t love sports in the same way my son in law does. When Sligo wins and the fireworks start, my heart is full. I am in a country I love with people I love (and several thousand Sligo residents). What could be a better way to spend an Irish evening?