Vikings leave with Spoils!
Can the Bulldogs season get any lower I hear you ask?? Oh yes it can….
The season took a new twist and shout as 3rd division It is It is Vikings came to town and subsequently booked their place in the 2nd round of the Kenward cup, at the hands of the toothless Aytoners.
The Ayton outfit found themselves plugging holes throughout the team with many a fringe player given his chance in Bulldog grey. Sadly the young sprightly combatants were like rabbits in head lights as nerves took their toll and dashed the young boy’s performances. Smart was also seen with a dubious wet patch shortly after kick off, nerves?
On the eve of the huge cup encounter Pluminho was hit with the breaking news on Sky Sports News HD – “Carter out of Vikings clash” as the bang tidy Georgie Thompson reported. Pluminho spat out his chocolate orange with marshmallow hot choc and called his forward. “Whats wrong with you Herd, speak to me bruv” asked Jose. “Gaffer my foots gone blue, I wont be hitting no netters for you tomorrow old boy” said a despairing Carter.
In came Smart, Cook, Hick, Wallace and competitive debutant – Ascough, as the men in grey looked to march through the first round and on to greater glory.
The first period saw the Bulldogs produce minimal goal action of their own, as most moves petered out like Davina McCall’s TV career. Tyler and Wallace failed to put their stamp on the game as they worked on scraps. Wingers Cook and Smart struggled on the flanks as the Town based Vikings opted for the long ball approach, fronted by talisman skipper; Paul Sharp. Sharp is a former Aytoner himself as he donned the famous Alligator shirt only last season, only to be shown the door for a collection of horrific shin and knee’d clearances throughout his play.
Half Time
Ayton Bulldogs (0) v (0) It is It is Vikings
The second half saw the introduction of super sub Martin Atkinson who took his place behind his mentor in the left back position. The mentor in question Mr Carl Sample took up the unfamiliar role of left wing in an attempt to show the younger lads how to run both forwards and back, something Smart was struggling with in the first half as he was often spotted “doing doughnuts with his arms out aeroplane like around the centre circle”.
A needless free kick on 49 minutes gave the Vikings the chance to swing one in. The Vikings sent forward minimal players as the Bulldogs sensed the Vikings were up to something sneaky. In came the free kick, whipped with swiz and swaz. The ball ricocheted up off the turf and was controlled majestically through the defence by the Viking forward JP Watson. Watson had handled the ball, almost slam dunking it in to Dave the Save’s net as he wheeled away the Bulldogs complained to no avail.
Minutes later another hand ball incident caused more controversy than Joe Kinnears Newcastle management career as The Bulldogs again came out on the wrong end of a refereeing hand ball decision.
A Bulldog cross came over and was clearly palmed away and out of the Viking box; ref Adam Linley waved play on. Plumpton issued the V sign as the referee trotted off in front of him, he was having a mare!
A series of substitutions from both sides coupled with the Viking’s delay tactics saw the game become more boring than Leona Lewis on a date!
The Vikings punished Ayton with another set piece on 61 minutes as Dave The Save screamed obscenities to his defensive line, forgetting the no 1 rule of goal keeping “Watch the Ball!”. Over it came and crashed down off Lovell’s goal. A Vikings forward reacted first as Lovell sparked up. A simple tap in for the forward saw the Bulldogs go down by two in quite disgraceful circumstances!
The Bulldogs began to have slightly more possession as they began to probe instead of hacking it anywhere as they did in the first period. Tyler flicked on to Wallace on 63 minutes and Wallace raced clear from The Sharp Shooter and his pals. Baring down on goal Wallace was in, just the keeper to beat when suddenly he stopped, pulled out a snooker cue and looked to knock the ball sideways to a team mate when surely a shot would have been the better option! The opportunity had gone, the best chance the Bulldog’s had in the game had just gone bye byes….
Shortly after Wallace was replaced by Alex Glass, who assured Pluminho he has been “Banging them in at college” and “destroying people with big tackles”. It didn’t take long for Glass to stamp his mark on the game as he shyed out of a tackle with a bigger boy, much to Sample’s disgust.
(Samples Look of Disgust)
Rigg collected a loose ball on half way, looked down from his towering frame to see Sample scampering free in the distance. A slide-rule through ball from Rigg set Sample clear in to the Vikings 18 yard power zone. Sample used his afterburners to great affect as he looked set to take the ball before the onrushing defender, when suddenly a Taliban sniper fired his bolt action rifle from a hidden position and Sample was down. A double Pike + Twist combo from the marauding winger saw him not only score a full house of 6’s from touchline judges Louis Walsh, Louis Spence and Louigi from Super Mario Brothers, but it also earnt him a penno!!
Up stepped Rigg, more nervous than Gary Glitter at a Primary School Halloween Disco as he thundered the ball in to the net to half the deficit.
The Bulldogs had 8 minutes to go, could they huff and puff and blow the Vikings Sharp Shooter back line down?
"In the Goals"(Pic right - Simon Rigg)
A spirited effort led by a Tim Hick left footed worm burner saw the Bulldoggers finish the stronger, as Simon Rigg almost equalised in stoppage time only to see his header from a corner glance wide off his 50 pence head.
The Kenward dream is over for another year as the Bulldoggers go back to league duty next week, and a truly massive battle with Burniston and Cloughton – They’re biggest rivals of recent years!
The “Steven Hawkings Mobile Disco on Wheels” sponsored Man of the Match award goes to Carl Sample for showing great pace, skill and left foot kicking out of play tekkers throughout the affair.
