BLUESTONE BOYS FROM BRAZIL , DOMINATE IN DUNSTON.
A-ROSE -TAFFAREL
SPOORS-ALVES GRAINGER-LUCIO MCDONALD-ALEX HOWE-CARLOS
STOTT(c) -SOCRATES
BENNETT-DUNGA K-JOHNSON-KAKA
MCKENNA-ZICO TABOUN-RIVALDO
MELDRUM-RAMARIO
SUBS = EMMERSON-EMERSON , BATEMAN-BEBETO & DONKIN-JUAN.
A BIG TEAM SHUFFLE SEEN ROSE PLAYING HIS 2ND GAME IN THE STICKS . SPOORS CAME BACK INTO RIGHT BACK , GRAINGER AND MCDONALD PARTNERED IN THE CENTRE FOR MISSING MCDONOUGH AND DOUGLAS. STOTT TOOK ON THE ANKERMAN ROLL AND THE REST OF THE MIDFILED STAYED THE SAME AS LAST WEEK. MELDRUM PLAYED UPFRONT BY HIMSELF FOR MISSING BIRDMAN.
THIS FORMATION WASN'T AS NEGATIVE AS LOOKED ON PAPER WITH THE BLUES USING OUTLETS IN TABOUN AND MELDRUM AS THE WHOLE TEAM KNEW THEY COULD RUN ALL DAY. THE GAFFERS DECISIDED TO PACK THE MIDFILED AS USUAL AS WE WERE AWAY FROM HOME AND USING STOTT EFFECTIVLY IN THE ANKERMAN ROLL AND HE PLAYED BRILLIANT ALL GAME AND DIDNT MOVE FROM THAT SPACE AND WON EVERYTHING IN THE AIR AND MADE THE DEFENCES JOB ALOT EASIER . GATESHEAD ALL GAME WERE OUTRAN IN THE MIDFIELD WHENMCKENNA STARTED THE CHARGE OFF 2 MINUTES FROM THE KICKOFF WITH A STRONG CHALLENGE ON THEIR DEFENDER AS IT LIFTED THE TEAM STRAIGHT AWAY. ALL GAME THE DEFENCE DONE WHAT THEY WERE TOLD AS THEY MAN MARKED ALL THROUGH GAME AND DIDNT PLAY THE OFFSIDES AS ASSISTANT MANAGER TOLD THE BOYS TO PLAY A BIT DEEPER. MELDRUM GOT A GOAL AFTER 15 MINUTES AFTER HE PLAYED OFF THE SCRAPS N POACHED THE DEFENDER TO SLIP THE BALL PAST THE KEEPER FOR 1-0. GATESHEAD TRYED PASSING THE BALL ABOUT BUT COULDN'T AS THE BLUES MIDFIELD WAS GRAFTING WELL AND KEPT PINCHING THE BALL EVERYTIME AND BREAKING UP THE FIELD. GATEHEAD WERE FALLING TO PIECES AS TABOUN DONE WHAT HE DOES BEST AS GOT HIS HEAD DOWN N RAN AT THE FULL BACK AND AGAIN THE BOY COULDN'T HANDLE HIM AS HE WAS BROUGHT DOWN IN THE BOX. JOE GOT UP N FLUNG THE BALL TO MCKENNA AND MCKENNA COOLY STEPPED UP AND PUT THE BALL TOP LEFT KEEPER NO CHANCE FOR 2-0. THIS LOOKED LIKE BLUESTONE WERE GUNNA BE UP 4 OR 5 UP BY HALF TIME BUT GATESHEAD NEARLY GOT ONE BACK AS THE FORWARD GHOSTED THE BACKLINE AND GOT IN BEHIND , ONLY TO STRIKE STRAIGHT AT ROSE. THE GEORDIE BOYS WERE TO BE PUNISHED FOR THAT MISS AS UP THE OTHER END GREAT WORK FROM MELDRUM TO KILL THE GAME BY HALF TIME AS HE STRUCK THE BALL PAST THE KEEPER'S FRONT POST FOR 3 AND HIS BRACE. HALF TIME CAME AND THE MANAGER'S WERE SPEECHLESS AND HAD NO COMPLAINTS ONLY TO MENTION ONCE AGAIN ABOUT THE WALDRIDGE GAME A FORTNIGHT BEFORE.WHEN THE LADS WERE ALL TOGETHER WE FELT IN CONFIDANT MOOD AS I THORT "GOD HELP THESE THEY GUNNA GET PUNISHED BIG TIME".THE BLUES WENT BACK ON EARLY AND WANTED TO STICK THE SWORD INTO THEM A BIT MORE . THE SECOND HALF I FELT A BIT FOR OUR RIGHT SIDE AS MOST OF THE PLAY WAS GOING DOWN HOWE N TABOUNS SIDE BUT IT WAS WORKING! . IT LOOKED TO BE A TRAINING SESSION ALL 2ND HALF AS SHOOT AFTER SHOOT CAME IN AND MELDRUM DENIED HIS HAT-TRICK AS HE HIT THE POST AND BAR . SPOORS ALSO FROM RIGHT BACK HIT THE POST FROM A CORNER , THE GATEHEAD KEEPER COULDN'T HANDLE THE PRESSURE AS HE CAME OUT FIELD AND THEY PUT ANOTHER KEEPER IN AS IT TURNED OUT THE LAD THEY BROUGHT OUT WAS THERE BEST PLAYER SAID IT ALL. MORE SHOTS CAME IN AND REALLY SHOULD OF BEEN IN DOUBLE FIGURES AS JOHNSON MISSED A FEW GOOD CHANCES AND TABOUN CAME CLOSE ALSO. IT WAS A GREAT POSITION TO BE IN FOR THE MANAGER'S AS ALL THREE SUBS CAME ON AS LADS WERE GETTING TIRED AND ALL DONE WELL . AT THIS TIME LOOKING OVER TO GOALKEEPER ALAN ROSE HE LOOKED LIKE HE WAS GUNNA COLLAPSE AS HE WAS SICK IN GOAL TWICE AND END UP DOING HIS KNEE BUT PLAYED ON AND HELPED TO A WELL DESERVED CLEAN SHEET AS HE PULLED OF A WORLDY SAVE A FEW MINUTES FROM TIME. THE SCORE MAYBE SHOULD OF BEEN MORE BUT A RESPECTABLE SCORELINE LOOKS ALOT BETTER TO ME. GATESHEAD NEVER LOOKED LIKED SCORING THROUGH OUT AS THE DEFENCE AND STOTT WERE TREMENDOUS.....
GAMEPOINTERS - THE BLUES WERE TO STRONG ON THE DAY , GREAT ATTITUDE BY EVERYONE , RYES BRACE , OUTLETS ON THE LEFT , ALANS SAVE AT THE END , HITTING THE WOODWORK THREE TIMES , STOTT'S PROTECTION OF THE BACKLINE WAS EXCELLENT & MAINLY THE CLEAN SHEET.
DIVE OF THE WEEK - MR KEVIN JOHNSON A 8.5 MY FRIEND HA.
NO GAME NEXT WEEK THEN THE SEMI FINALS WEEK AFTER VS WALDRIDGE PARK.
