This column originally ran in The Standard-Times on July 5, 2004.

By Nick Tavares

Since Portugal's 2-1 victory over the Dutch on Wednesday, there had been a lot of talk and excitement in my family about what was sure to be Portugal's first victory in the Euro Cup.

And these were some of the sounds emanating from the inside of the Tavares living room yesterday afternoon

"What the hell was that?!?"

"Aw, come on!"

"GOOOAA -- WHA -- NOOOOO!!!"

In the end, it was just another disappointing end to a Portuguese run in a major tournament -- and another disappointment for this extended family of Azorean immigrants living in Dartmouth and New Bedford.

We had the backyard barbecue roaring for the close to 20 family members who were here for our Fourth-of-July/Euro 2004 party, complete with hamburgers, hot-dogs and linguica.

And the food was almost enough to make them miss the start of the game.

"Dad, get everyone in, they're starting."

"Wait, five more minutes."

"No, Dad, they're on the field, they're not waiting five more minutes."

"Ohhh, all right, all right."

My dad was picking a 3-1 score in favor of Portugal; his cousin Jorge was more conservative with a 1-0 final -- for Portugal.

There were more predictions that flew around the room, but no one seemed to mind that Greece had already beaten Portugal in this tournament -- 2-1 in the opener.

"No," they said about that possibility. That will never happen again.

"Lightning will never strike twice."

Well, maybe it could.

The first half saw a lot of close calls and loud responses from the gallery of the faithful.

-- Captain Luis Figo won cries of joy from the field after forcing three defenders into coverage and earning a corner kick, but the ball went harmlessly back into midfield and deflated the momentum.

-- When Miguel collided with Pauleta in the box in the 22nd minute to kill a scoring chance, an uncle commented, "I think Miguel is playing for Greece, too."

-- Maniche's near-goal in the 24th minute drew a cry of "GOOOAAA -- NOO!" from the family.

Halftime saw everyone get a chance to catch their breath, take a walk and have a soda (beer), then it was back inside for the action.

The 51st minute saw Deco wheel and deal into the Greek zone, but when he was tripped up and no foul came, the roars were heard over the BBC announcers.

"Deco, Deco, Deco, Deco, Deco!"

In the 55th minute, Maniche attempted to move in with the ball but had his pocket picked by Giannakopoulos, causing Jorge to throw a pillow to the ground.

"Jorge, take it easy," our cousin Luis said. "You're gonna have a heart attack!"

Well, in the 57th minute, there was no taking it easy, as lightning did indeed strike twice -- this time from a corner kick and off the head of Greece's Angelos Charisteas.

And then everyone in the family said a lot that wouldn't make it into a family newspaper.

The mood was lightened a bit when a fan ran onto the field and into the net in the 86th minute, but the feeling of doom hadn't subsided.

Greece's Cinderella story was probably sealed in the 90th minute when Figo had his point-blank shot deflected just wide of the post.

"NOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!"

And a little over five minutes later, the dream was officially dead.

The room emptied very quickly -- so quickly, in fact, that I may have been the only one to see the medal presentations.

To say I was as crushed as the rest of them would be a lie. I'm a soccer fan, but my allegiance is with the United States team, always has been, and always will be.

Two years earlier, I was the enemy when I was pulling for the blue and white to pull off the 3-1 upset in the first round of the World Cup and reveled in showing them (except for my dad, who was on my side) that the U.S. could hang with the Portuguese.

I'm of 100 percent Portuguese decent, but I'm an American first.

But I was watching in 2000 when France beat Portugal via the Golden Goal, and I felt the disappointment then, just like I did yesterday.

This scene, with everyone crowded around the television, cheering on the homeland, will be repeated again, be it in the 2006 World Cup, Euro 2008 or beyond.

And the next time the situation rolls around, the enthusiasm, hopes and expectations are just as high.

And, of course, it'll all work out.

Nick Tavares is a columnist for the Standard-Times.

This story appeared on Page C10 of The Standard-Times on July 5, 2004.