Life is a Blast for David Bascome in Baltimore, Maryland, and so were the sparks flying inside a sold-out 1st Mariner Arena on Saturday night as 16-year veteran collected his second MISL Championship ring.

The night’s pregame ceremony had Bascome, accompanied onfield by sons Kata and Khalan — his third child, Kyle, remained in the stands — pick up a gaudy, three-diamond encrusted gold ornament, while the banner signifying Baltimore’s third title was raised to the rafters.

And the reigning champs proceeded to punctuate celebrations, scoring four times unanswered in the first five minutes, strolling to a 18-12 victory, evening their early season record at 1-1.

It was an emotional moment for Bascome, who had dedicated last season to the memory of a departed friend, the emotions of this loss and the joy of fulfilling the task set out flooding back as he obtained his reward.

“Everybody knows the reason for me going for a championship last year was dedicated to Paul Kitson, it really meant a lot to me to complete that task,” said Bascome, relaxing at his Perry Hall apartment on Sunday. “Last year, going through the play-offs and achieving the task, it all came back and really hit me as I went up to receive the ring, that walk from the bench seemed really long, but it was a proud moment, one you don’t want to end.”

Asked if the second time was as satisfying as the first, Bascome, a member of the 2003-2004 championship outfit, noted it to be equally special, and more stunning the fact that the club even managed to get into position to win after a stormy second half to the season, which saw then coach Tim Whittman banished from the league for two years after he violently attacked a referee.

“It’s just as special as the first one, but it’s amazing how things work,” Bascome began. “Because, if you would have asked me about our chances of winning a championship 10 games before the end of last season, I would have told you that they were slim.

“Everything changed, our coach got suspended, Danny took over, but you can’t alter fate, some things are just meant to be, and so it was for us.”

Indeed, the whole day was one of celebration for the Bascome family, with Kata, a burgeoning young soccer talent, enjoying his 13th birthday with a party at the stadium, and then running out with his father and brother during team introductions.

“It was good to have my sons there, to celebrate my youngest one’s birthday and then have him get the chance to run out with the team,” said Bascome, who toiled for 12 seasons with the now defunct Harrisburg Heat for 12 years before signing on with Baltimore as a free agent in 2002. “So it was special for him and great for me to have my sons share in the celebration.”

Yet, Bascome is not yet ready to close shop and wander into the sunset — winning never gets old, and so, he has embarked on yet another quest for the sporting ‘Promised Land’.

“This is my second championship in three years and it’s come late in my career, so it doesn’t seem old to me at all,” said Bascome. “But it’s coming to an end and I’m about to move on, so this is good in that I can share, in my latter years, this experience with the younger guys and look to leave on a winning note.”

Yet, Bascome was not willing to offer the ‘retirement speech’, although he did intimate there to be a leaning in that direction.

“I’m pretty sure this could be my last season,” hedged Bascome, who has a one year playing contract signed prior to the season. “But it’s tough for me to make that call, I haven’t made any official announcement previously, and I’m not saying that now.

“I have a lot of things going on, with me being an assistant coach and having those responsibilities and the organising of the ISL (Island Soccer League) things may be pointing in that direction.”