There hadn’t been this much commotion about a name on a team sheet since Ronaldo (the Brazilian one) in the 1998 World Cup final (Allez les Bleus!). Cringleford Vets’ new Home ground at Easton College was buzzing with excitement & anticipation. From the Away teams’ dressing room came the regular sound of toilets flushing…….a Watton player suddenly developed a twitch in one eye…..he was the right back. In the Home dressing room there were a lot of middle-aged men breathing in & contemplating Gym memberships. New signing Darren Huckerby was back to renew an old partnership with Norwich’s favourite Welshman Iwan Roberts.
I’d asked my boy that morning, advice on what to say in a team talk in the company of such footballing greats, he suggested… “Pass to Darren Huckerby”…so we went with that….and within seconds, in a sign of things to come, Hucks burst through the heart of the Watton defence & found himself one on one with the keeper, he obviously felt it impolite to score so early on and so looked round for his old hunting partner Roberts who unfortunately was too busy polishing his new white boots.
The Home side unsurprisingly played some lovely football orchestrated once again by the tireless Grahame Murty in Centre Midfield. Murts has very quickly become an invaluable player for Cringleford, encouraging the slick passing, possession football we all like to play. His vocal contribution is just as important as he talks the team through the whole game. At one point Limon received the order to “stay still!” ….and was still waiting for permission from Sergeant Major Murty to move half an hour later!…. However it was beginning to look like, despite having near total control of the game, with most if not all of the possession, that the breakthrough wasn’t going to come, especially as Iwan & Hucks seemed reluctant to score too easily…..Ecky soon put a stop to that nonsense! Another cartoon-like burst of speed down the left wing saw Hucks fizz the ball across the face of goal for the grateful Frenchman to slide in at the far post. Floodgates officially opened. A tidy finish by Murts, a second for Ecky (postage stamp!), and a goal for Roberts at the end of another fine move saw the Vets go in at half-time 4-0 up.
The second half provided much of the same, with Cringleford’s classy football enthralling a delighted record crowd (Jack, Matt & Phil). The big Welshman up front, white boots gleaming in the autumnal sun, was a joy to watch & to play alongside. Iwan Roberts is a class act….not only does he have a delicate touch for a big man, an effective simplicity in his play & great vision, but he is also one of the nicest, most genuine guys (never mind ex-footballers) you’re likely to meet. He got his trademark headed goal courtesy of a Ben Potter cross, who as a life-long Norwich fan, is probably still re-enacting the moment in his living-room.
An unfortunate injury to Murts meant that Cringleford did lose their way for a brief spell & Watton got the goal that their valiant efforts deserved. A great Ball played in from the right was met with a smart header from the Watton forward which had to be inch perfect to beat Big Stu in goal. Watton deserve great credit & should be applauded for the spirit in which they played this game. They battled to the end & played with great commitment without seeking notoriety with silly challenges on big names (..apart from the bloke who crocked Murts! ;-) ) Well done Watton.
The Highlight of the game was probably when a 30 yard pass was pinged over to Huckerby on the left wing; …as he was closed down by the right back, he shaped to volley first time into the box, but instead did a controlled volley to himself & once again sped off down the wing to create yet another chance, leaving the poor defender bemused & still staring at his feet.
More goals came. Super-Chef Hickman who had shown the full range of his culinary shots in the first half, the “soufflé” the “vol au vent”..the “banana split” etc..….showed with a magnificent drilled finish into the bottom corner why he is our top scorer & how despite recent quality additions to our attacking line, we’ll be relying on his goals for a title challenge. Another couple for Ecky served up on a plate by Hucks, & a fine finish by Mark Dennis almost finished the scoring until Huckerby finally decided that it might be an idea to get at least one goal, having just remembered the Peroni per goal promise made before the game, and fired one in off the post. 10-1 to Cringleford.
Forwards were obviously more in evidence in this game but more than deserving of a mention are the solid displays of Centre backs Rudi, who won everything in the air and played out from the back with quality & accuracy, Mark Dennis, as always stylish & reliable, and Simon Nicholl always top quality in any position. It was great to welcome back Ben Potter who showed as ever full commitment & energy at left back, & Ginge at right back had another very good game. Mick Sanders in Centre midfield is a like a fine wine (insert joke here)….& is consistently (& has been for many years) one of our best players. Finally…..Stu the Barman, despite ballooning a Hucks cross over the Bar…was a constant threat with his blistering pace & ability to get into dangerous areas…& he makes a mean Margherita! .......(I think that’s everyone!)
During post match discussions it was unanimously agreed that Hucks could easily still be playing for Norwich, as fit & quick as a 25 year old & a display proving the old saying that class is permanent.
The Crowd & Mr Roberts had to be reminded several times how many goals Ecky had got….4…not 3…4....definitely FOUR!!!
The Watton players celebrated what was evidently the most enjoyable defeat in their history.
In a dressing room “after-shave off” Ecky’s Cartier beat Iwan’s Chanel by a sniff.
A real treat for Cringleford who are becoming stronger game by game…the only disappointment being the injury to the talismanic Murts…..but with some very tough tests ahead, what we really need is a nippy right winger….any ideas?
