On a cold crisp Saturday a week before Christmas what is the best thing in the world to be doing?............Playing for B&A.
Everyone knew the score, we can’t afford any more slipups if we are serious about making a charge for the league title and also with the Christmas party we all knew the beer would taste that much sweeter with three points safely in the bag.
The side was almost unchanged from the previous week, the only change being a less than fresh looking ginger pig coming in at right mid for Zac Effron who has flown home to LA for the festive ‘holiday’. Other than Bowlsey and Gandhi’s clown routine in the first minute the first half went according to plan, better than the plan in fact. The Blackham boys were pouring forward at pace and raining down crosses in to the Valour penalty area. It was no surprise that the deadlock was broken after less than 10 minutes. Some great work out on the right to keep the ball in from Pat and then a nice through ball from Bert to Hobbit. The Skipper made no mistake rifling it in to the net from 8 yards. Hobbit had obviously sneaked an extra waffle on to his breakfast plate as he was in delicious form and goals were on the menu. He almost doubled his and Blackham’s lead with a diving header from a Freeman cross but was brilliantly denied by the Valour keeper with an awesome reflex save. Now enter the Ginger Prince. We are witnessing a new dawn for the handsome debonair midfield maestro; since we returned him to his natural habitat in centre midfield he has been running the show. And he was instrumental in the third goal today. He picked up the ball near the half way line and drove forward skipping past white shirts as if they weren’t there before rolling the ball in to the path of an onrushing potato. His shot although well hit should have been comfortably saved by the Valour keeper but he spilled it over the line presneting young man with an early christmas present and a slice of B&A pie. Hobbit was still on the hunt for more goals and got his second slice of pie in his most favourite way, scraps. Again the Valour keeper did well and foiled his first effort from point blank range but the chippy little skipper managed to force it over the line. The Black and red attacks kept coming and with the game mostly being played in the opposing half it gave license for Junior to get forward and support the attack, providing some nice crosses in to the box. And we made it 4-0 before the break with Pat Lawrence tapping one in from a yard out. Not pretty but they all count and come the end of the season goal difference could be the extra point we need.
The half time talk was pretty much “more of the same please” and that’s what we got, for the first 10 minutes at least. Bert seems to be enjoying his new role partnering Hobbit up top and he was having another good game. He capped his own personal performance and the teams with an absolute screamer. A good 35 yards from goal, he controlled the ball, turned and then chipped the keeper perfectly, the ball just barely kissing the underside of the crossbar on it’s way in. A bit like Bowlsey's tongue on Bayley’s lips on the way in to his mouth later that evening. There were plenty of chances for B&A to increase the lead in the second half but Hobbit couldn’t quite find a third and Fergy blazed over from 4 yards. But it was mainly cruise control other than that and the game was closed out. Dan stood up well and made a double save late on to preserve the clean sheet. A very pleasing away win and a quality post game shower, steamiest so far this season. A big thank you to Becky for the yard of Jaffas as well, they really helped get the boys fired up for this one.
The perfect day was then accompanied by the perfect night, with a few beers, a curry, Christmas Jumpers, an amazing secret Santa, some excellent cross weeing, a Christmas tree theft, the most amazing gay kiss I’ve ever seen in real life, the funniest face plant I’ve ever seen, some quality shape throwing and the invention of a new B&A terrace song, “I got the moves like Baggo..........................”
Happy Christmas everyone, let’s keep it up in 2012.
Shower Boys 4 Life
