Day Two
The Shots faced a Nepal Army XI in Kathmandu, and then set off for Pokhara, where they will be based for the remainder of their stay in Nepal. Striker Dan Mellors again takes up the story…
“I think today was probably going to be our toughest day, mentally. It’s been another exhausting day, but I think the team are excited to finally reach our final destination.
“We were up at 6am to travel to our friendly against the Nepal Army XI but now we’ve got it out of the way and it feels as though the team are starting to adjust to the attitude and the weather.
“The game itself was a frustrating one; it was that old cliché of the result not reflecting the match – we hit the crossbar and we had two penalty appeals turned down. We had everything against us, with the travelling and getting up early, and whilst it’s never nice to lose I think we achieved what we set out to.
“Obviously as a striker my job is to score, so on that note my own performance was disappointing, but I was happy with my contribution and, more importantly, I was happy with the team’s performance. On another day things could have been very different – I hit the crossbar, Brandon had his one-on-one, and we looked dangerous from set-pieces. After the game we were all wondering how we didn’t win.
“We then made the six hour drive from Kathmandu to Pokhara and the drivers out here are insane! The bumpy roads made it near-impossible to sleep, too. It’s certainly different, but the hotels have been really nice, and the hospitality wonderful. Everybody is so down to earth, and we know that we are new to them as well.
“They treat us like we are celebrities. We were told that we’d be experiencing a different culture, and so far everything has live up to our expectations.
“We now play our Gold Cup quarter-final on Monday, but our schedule hasn’t really changed – we still get up tomorrow to train, and play another short friendly against Sahara FC, who have already been knocked out of the Gold Cup.
“If anything, playing a day earlier could be a blessing in disguise, rather than having to wait even longer. We’re eager to play, it’s why we’re out here.”
