Clapham Alexandra FC arrived at RegentsPark, home of London Zoo to face S.S Ladzio at the lions den. The Alex turned up in buoyant mood after recording 3 wins on the bounce and they were looking to extend their incredible run to continue their charge up to the top of the league.
A tigerish team performance allowed The Alex to take control of the game from minute 1 and they never relinquished their grasp until the ref blew the final whistle on a chilly afternoon. With just 12 men to choose from, stand in manager Woody picked a strong team; Gandi’s hands were as save as ever and his kicking reliably unreliable. The defence of Fordy, Will, Beef and Kingy made the game look all so simple, clearing any danger with aplomb. The Alex’s midfield of Stroudy, Allcott, Daisy and Woody were winning everything and creating chances at every opportunity whilst Rob and Mantell were working hard and getting their rewards upfront.
Throughout the first 20 minutes or so The Alex were in irresistible form, playing some of Ruud Gullit’s “sexy football,” exquisite sweeping team moves were occurring all over the pitch and it was one of these that The Alex grabbed their first goal of the day. The ball went from left to right a few times before it popped up to Daisy on the edge of the box who clipped it delightfully over the left back for Woody to run on to and finish fantastically well into the bottom corner of the net. Replays show there was 25 passes to the move and the crowd were heard whispering it was the best team goal ever seen….at Regentspark!
The Alex with the wind in the sails continued to press, Allcott was pulling the strings in the middle of the park, Wood and Stroudy were terrorising their respective full backs whilst Rob and Mantell were chasing every ball and creating goal scoring chances for fun. Corners and shots arrived thick and fast and eventually the pressure told. A 15th first half corner bounced around in the box and Rob cleverly slipped his marker and nodded in from a couple of yards out – 2.0.
Unfortunately, just before the second goal, Fordy went down after an innocuous challenge and had to be replaced by the hard working Oli Miller. The second half started in similar fashion to the first, The Alex were pressing hard all over the pitch, pressurising the Ladzio players and reaping the rewards. On the odd occasion the Ladzio players did creep forwards, centre backs Will and Beef were in a dominant mood winning every header and sweeping up any loose balls.
Stroudy, now at right back was charging forwards whenever possible and it was his pressure, along with Oli Miller who helped make it 3-0. Miller with a licence to roam, won the ball high up the pitch, forced a mistake from the Ladzio keeper and passed the ball into the open net, 3.0.
However, the best was saved till last as the whole Alex team poured forward sensing there were more goals left in the game – and they were right! An excellent all round performance from James Allcott saw it capped with a scintillating finish. The ball landed at his feet on the edge of the box and he closed his eyes, swung his right leg hoping for the best…and it flew past the keeper into the back of the net, 4.0.
The Alex continued to pass the ball around as they looked to run down the clock. A momentary lapse in concentration allowed SS Ladzio to grab an underserved goal but at 4.1 the team can be proud of their efforts. Another win and another convincing victory – bring on SWAG this weekend!
Marching on Together #alexwalkonwater
