Cubs went into the game looking to extend their Club Record winning run to 5 games. Stephen tinkered with his team again with captain and manager both starting on the bench with Callum Ross taking the armband for the day. Dunbar replaced MacDonald at the back, Mejka came in for Stephen in the middle whilst Batchelor dragged himself away from a lady of the larger variety to take his place in his favoured wing role.
The team in purple started well with Baird, Mejka and Dunbar trying to play the ball through Sim and Small on the Cubs left hand side. Our rivals, missing the much maligned McKelvie ;) started to gain a grib on the game however and by the time they struck an opener through a rebound from a Campbell long ranger, they were well deserving of their lead with the Cubs looking sluggish. Stephen rang the changes with Reid and Stephen now supporting a front three of Davidson, Jamieson-Caley and Small. The changes were rewarded not long before the half time with Reid winning a ball he had no right to win in the midfield, driving forward and laying it off the reinstated captain who curled in an absolute pearler into the Toast goal.
Stephen let his team know he wasn't yet amused at the half time and this feeling continued for the first 15minutes of the second half with Toast coming out strong and forcing themselves into another deserved lead. Tempers threatened to boil over when Toast centre back Goddard deliberately lashed out at Cubs captain Ajc away from the referees view in a shocking manner. Stephen and Brebner from the bench were keen to take some bodies at this point but bodies got in the way and the game restarted with a determination creeping into the Cubs mindset and an eagerness to remind Toast that they are our whipping boys finally coming to the fore.
Minutes later we were level, Reid earning his second assist of the day with a lovely ball over the Toast defence to Stephen who had made an unlikely run from deep. The gaffer kept his cool, beating the replacement Toast keeper to the ball and poked the ball in off the post. The urge to celebrate infront of Goddard was resisted and you could tell from this point that this game was tipping in our favour.
Like previous weeks, we always looked dangerous at set pieces with a series of Dunbar throws and Stephen corners being defended well by our rivals. Small, Batchelor and Cruickshanks were then reintroduced and it was the formers much better series of corners which were met by Dunbar with the dominant defender heading one past the post before powering another right into the top corner and putting the Cubs into the lead for the 1st time in the match. Dunbar was booked for his celebration, wapping out his larger than life midrift for all to see in a get it right up you directed at our opponents.
The purple bus was called out from the garage with 10 minutes remaining but for once it was a little slow in reversing and Toast went up the field and equalised. Instead of capitulating like many Cubs teams of the past we just went up the field and scored ourselves to settle the tie once and for all. Cruickshanks and Batchelor battled for the ball on the right hand side and the latter found himself beyond the defence wide on the right hand side. His shot (sorry Batch) found it's way across the goal and Small was there to tap in a late winner for the Cubs.
Toast had one last chance to snatch the win after a retreating Stephen gave away a free kick on the edge of our area but former Toast captain Corder slashed it well wide and the Cubs celebrated what seemed like an unlikely win at one point in the match.
Toast's hoodoo against Cubs continues and I hope they don't ever get a better chance to get over it. Fuck them though, 5 in a row....
#toastareintheirbeds #belliesout #goddardisawank #evenpaulscored #5 #5 #5 #5 #5
