Chapter 98: The Quiet Stands
Sunday, May 23, 2010
By the new day, Crawley had grown quiet, almost strangely so like the town was holding its breath after Niels decided to stay. The excitement of the past week the "Niels Stays!" signs, the loud chants, the red-iced "Niels Loaf" pastries had faded into a calm stillness, like a song gently ending.
Broadfield Stadium stood silent, its floodlights dim, the stands empty except for a groundskeeper pushing a creaky wheelbarrow, gathering stray ticket stubs and crumpled beer cups. The training ground, once full of shouts, whistles, and the crack of footballs, was now still pitches rolled flat for summer, the air thick with the smell of cut grass and damp earth.
The FA Cup run, the roar of the crowd at Wembley, and the unforgettable night when Crawley held off Chelsea, all of these moments stayed in their minds, like distant memories drifting through the soft light of spring.
