Kei Kamara celebrates goal, newborn

It’s a tradition as old as the game: have a baby, score a goal, celebrate by pretending to rock said baby. True to form, Kei Kamara performed the time-tested celebration on Saturday.

The lanky striker got his third of the year when he headed home a Lee Nguyen corner kick in the 18th minute. Kamara used the moments that followed to send a special message to his newborn boy.

“It’s the international baby rock. You cannot not do it,” Kamara explained. “My dad played soccer and I don’t think they had videos back then, but if they did, I hope he did one for me.”

Saturday was a return of sorts for Kamara, who missed two away games to be with his pregnant wife. On Friday morning, Kamara welcomed his second child, which brought a sense of levity to the 32-year-old.

“Not having him with the group was tough,” head coach Jay Heaps explained. “But having him here tonight, being able to play free and having the baby yesterday, you could see the relief a little when he came to training yesterday – even after being in the delivery room all night. I knew he was going to be ready for the chance tonight.”

A selfless figure, Kamara didn’t want to make this weekend’s result about him, his family, or his lack of sleep, which he jokingly said didn’t matter because he’s a vampire. Instead, he wanted to focus on how good it was to collect full points.

“I don’t want it to be just about my last few days and me having the little one, but it’s been fun,” Kamara noted. “I’m just happy to be back on the field, really, just to help the team and coming back on the field and having three points, again, that’s the best thing you could wish for.”