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MATCH REPORTS |
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Games played on: Sat 27th Mar 2010
| 1stXI v Old Latymerians 1st XI |
| Drew |
Score: 3-3 |
League |
Home |
| Scorers: Jackson T (pen), Anthony, Codd |
Report: Yet another drawn game but not without incident. If the game had a been two halves of 40 mins each it would have resulted in a fairly mundane 1-1 scoreline, but the final 5 mins of each half produced most of the action. In a fairly even first period we took the lead after 20mins when Codd's twisting run in the box were brought to a abrupt end by a clumsy challenge and Tom Jackson confidently converted the resulting penalty. Old Lats equalised soon after with a well taken goal from their no.9, and as we approached half time, 1-1 was fairly reflective of the balance of play, however just before the whistle Lats snatched the lead and almost immediately added a third! The manager's words of "wisdom" prepared for a 1-1 scoreline were now in tatters! However our positive response after the break deserved an early reward but we just couldn't apply the finish touch to our pressure, then a break through another penalty but unfortunately the chance was squandered. As we approached the final few minutes thinking it wasn't to be our day and the 2 goal deficit looking beyond us a long clearance by Fajardo was latched on to by Anthony and we had a goal back. We pressed forward in the dying moments and a long throw by Will "Delap" Mabbett was nodded on by Douglas to Codd to head home from close range. Justice was finally done and the spirit the whole team showed right to the end was brilliant.
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| 2ndXI v Old Lyonians 2nd XI |
| Won |
Score: 6-1 |
League |
Away |
| Scorers: |
Report:
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| 3rdXI v Polytechnic 3rd XI |
| Won |
Score: Won 1-0; Drew 0-0 |
League - DOUBLE HEADER |
Away |
| Scorers: Mays |
Report: After the cup success in the last two weeks it was back to league business this week and right backing the thick of it as we traveled to Chiswick to face Polytechnic in a ‘double header’. This meant we were to play two sixty minute games and aim for three points in each to re-ignite our league campaign once more.
Our preparations turned to disaster on Saturday morning and we found ourselves with only 10 fit players for the two games, so it was always going to be an uphill battle.
Game1
Being a man down and knowing there were no fresh legs to come in for the second match, our tactics were to play a containing game and keep good possession when we had the ball.
We started the game very well, everyone getting a touch on the ball, using it wisely and we managed to control the tempo of the game from the off.
Playing up on his own Masy was always going to be integral to any attacking threat we would pose. It was important that he held the ball up and brought the supporting players into the game and he was doing it brilliantly as we took control of the game.
With Masy managing to keep the backline occupied on his own, Naim was able to pick the ball up from deep with space in front of him and from the first moment he collected the ball you could see the panic spread through the opposition. His pace and dribbling ability taking him past two or three on most occasions and often resulted in a free-kick as the Polytechnic players struggled to keep up.
We knew there would be times where the home side would have spells of possession and we would need to be strong and organised at the back and we held our shape well.
Although we created some good opportunities we were unable to make the breakthrough before half time, but we certainly felt confident we could get a result.
We held the initiative into the second half began to impose ourselves even more on the game. Bobby Hankins was pushing on through the middle and linking up with Masey and Naim, as the game developed he was beginning to make things happen, retaining the ball well and picking out some lovely, probing passes.
We finally managed to get the break through we deserved mid way through the half and it was Masy who got the goal is hard work deserved. Chasing down a ball through the middle he managed to get there between the defender and keeper and prod the ball towards goal. For a moment it looked as if the keeper may get back to claw the ball away as it rolled agonizingly towards the line, however it had just enough pace to beat him and we now had a lead to defend.
The best way of stopping the opposition scoring is to keep the ball and we continued to do this for long periods.
When the home side did attack we were able to shut them out and limit Darren to very little work and we saw the remainder of the game out with few concerns.
Game 2
The plan was simple, same again please, we knew that we could keep the ball and cause the opposition problems, it was just a case of having the energy to go again as the extra workload of being a man down would inevitably take its toll.
The home side had the luxury of being able to freshen the team up with a few changes and the new energy made a difference as they spent longer periods in our half and used the space on a big pitch well.
Though we were having to dig in more often and defend our third we were still creating good chances. Everyone having to put the yards in, we got to half time all square, starting to feel the strain but also that we had enough left to grab a goal.
The second half continued much in the same vein, our ten brave men having to find the energy and resource to push for the winner, while at the same time keeping an organised defensive shape to maintain our clean sheet.
With Tom reverting back to centre half alongside Hockley it gave us a solid platform to build on as both were strong in challenge and composed on the ball. They were being flanked by the evergreen Micky Byrne and Alan Amato at full backs, both settled in to their stride early on and provided great support, still going strong as we entered the last ten minutes.
In front of them Ben McMullen covered plenty of ground in doing a screening job, breaking up play and providing cover where needed when the home side found space in our third, allowing players to push on and support.
We had the better chances to take the lead but tired legs and minds were probably the biggest factor in us not being able to convert them for a second win and another valuable three points.
So taking everything into consideration, four points from the two games was a great result and huge credit to the players for the effort they put in.
Man Of The Match: Game 1- Masey / Game 2 – Naim
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| 4thXI v Old Esthameians 4th XI |
| Won |
Score: 4-0 |
League |
Away |
| Scorers: |
Report:
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| 5thXI v Old Finchleians 7th XI |
| Drew |
Score: Postponed |
League |
Home |
| Scorers: |
Report:
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