By Neil Barry Jr.,
At the conclusion of a major final, presentations are made, awards are given and photographers rush to capture the winning team in their new found glory. The champions’ portraits are highlighted in press reports and history records only one winner. Absent from the limelight are the runners up, who, despite their previous efforts, failed to surmount the final hurdle. In this way the underlying bittersweet question of every final is probably which team will be asked to move aside for the final picture to be taken.
Such miniature events are the one’s most commonly associated with the pressure associated with a final,
