The First Whistle

Brooks dropped to his knees with both hands on his head. Mason watched the chaos in the box and said to Hayes, "Their center backs aren't jumping anymore." Hayes did not look at him. "I know." "The first ball isn't there. The second ball is." "I know that too." "Then why not put me on?" Hayes finally turned. "Because right now you're thinking about proving yourself, not winning the match." Mason said nothing. The sentence hit more accurately than any boo. Five minutes of stoppage time. The U.S. attacked wildly and kept arriving half a step late. The final whistle fixed the score at 1-1. In their first World Cup match at home, the United States had drawn.