Sunday 20th March vs. Costello Cougars

No complaints with the weather today - probably the best weather & conditions we've had since the autumn. Both Kieran & Peter were otherwise engaged, so we had a squad of ten on show today, which meant every player would have to work that bit harder than normal.

Unfortunately Benson injured his thumb in the warm-up, so Dylan generously stepped forward & volunteered to be the keeper for the first match.

Match 1

Straight from the kick-off it was clear we were up against a good team as they pinned us in our own half for the first few minutes. As it proved throughout the morning, good defending was the key to success & we managed to keep their attacks at bay. Benson, JoshL & Taylor all put in calm, assured performances & Dylan put in a great display when their attackers broke through.

After a goalless first half, both teams pressed hard to break the deadlock & it always seemed it would take some good play or a great strike to open the score. Thankfully for us, we scored first when Joel smashed the ball into the back of the net from just inside the penalty area.

Undeterred, the Cougars came back at us & at times it took all our outfield players to keep them at bay. Just as we thought we'd done enough to hold on for a win, after a clearance by our defence one of their players made a pass that went all the way through to their lone forward who scored with what proved to be the last kick of the game. Although it was a bit disappointing to lose such a late goal, on balance 1-1 was probably a fair result.

Match 2

Determined to win the second match, we kicked off at a high temp & immediately carried on with the great passing we'd showed in the first game. We were unlucky not to score on several occasions but (as has happened in several matches this year) we were thwarted by a goalkeeper who was on top form.

Despite our pressure, Costello had plenty of chances themselves & William put in another fine performance, stopping them from scoring including a couple of point blank saves. Ewan was outstanding for us, putting in a very accomplished performance all over the field.

Again the first-half was goalless & into the second-half it seemed both defences were going to dominate & prevent any goals. However, we managed to go one-nil up when Ben broke away from the half-way line & selflessly played a great through-ball to Harry who ran on & poked the ball past the keeper into the corner of the net.

The boys were obviously delighted to go ahead late in the game & almost immediately doubled the lead when some great team play was finished off when JoshC's shot was too strong for the Costello keeper.

Now, full of confidence we had no problems keeping the opposition at bay & held on for a well deserved 2-0 win. From where I was standing, these were probably two of the most enjoyable matches I've seen us be part of this season - it was really great to see us compete so well against a really good team & to see all the boys playing so well as a unit.

The penalty competition was dominated by the penalty-takers - there wasn't a penalty spot & the penalty area seemed a bit smaller than what we are used to, so the keepers were hard pressed to keep shots out.

This week's Man-of-the-Match title was deservedly awarded to Benson who put in a great all round performance, including some of his trademark solid tackles.

I also ought to pay tribute to our fantastic supporters who, week after week, provide the boys with great encouragement & support. From the opposite side of the field, it was a delight to hear our supporters cheering & applauding the great play on show. And the supporters are also quite a persuasive bunch - apparently one of our more "persuasive" supporters almost convinced John to award us a penalty - nice work Ian :-)