-Chris
On Friday, the Fellas travelled to Kings Park Sports Ground to face USRC and attempt to maintain the winning start to the season. The line-up was fairly unchanged from the previous week, with the exception of D-Cheung being introduced in the center with Justin as Howard was moved to the left wing. The floodlights were on, atmosphere was set, and the referee blew his whistle to start the game.
The Fellas came out strong, applying pressure and instantly establishing their presence on the game. Possession was easily dominated from the start, and it really did not take long for the opening goal to arrive. As the ball was lofted into the area, Cedric flicked on the ball over the keeper, then proceeded to follow up the his play by heading it into the goal from close range. The team proceeded to knock on the door but were unable to get it past the keeper till later in the half. On a counter attack, de Laiglesia was able to take advantage of a defensive lapse, and with a bit of luck, able to dribble past some players and finish into the bottom right of the goal net. This second goal must have been an alarm call for the home side, as they started to become more threatening. They played a very direct game, booting the ball up field, and having their fast forward, No. 3, run after it and try to make a chance. This proved ineffective for them, as Bear and Flo closed him down
ever so easily. The problems came when the Fellas started to give away freekicks and corners. In one of URSC's counterattacks late in the half, they managed to get a foul 35 yards out, slightly toward the left side of the goal. The midfielder for URSC managed to place it in the top right corner, and Mullens, obstructed by the mass of people in the area, was unable to keep it out. The Fellas ended up having to weather the storm for the final few minutes till the ref blew for half time.
With a speech that seemed as if it had come out straight from "Gladiator", de Laiglesia was able to stir the emotions of the players, and ultimately motivate the team for the second half. The effects of said talk did take some time to settle with the players, as they attempted to keep their head up from the goal just before half time. Some important substitutions were make just before the half and during the half, as Mark was brought in for D-Cheung and Adrian brought into the right side. The changes did help in trying to restore a lead but were unable to prevent URSC's equalizer. Early in the half, URSC had a corner that was crossed into the edge of the area, where their lanky defender headed towards the goal. This ball was then headed by their captain into Mullen's net from the penalty box, and the Fellas were back to square one. Super sub Shaka then came on for Cedric, and in the next play, were able to get lead back. As he recuperated the ball in the middle of the pitch,
he proceeded to go towards the opposition's goal. With no defender really applying the pressure, he was able to get to the edge of the area and get a shot onto the target, and the keeper was unable to get down to it fast enough to prevent the ball fro entering. After the goal, the game changed dramatically, as the Fellas proved to be too strong, with Shui and Doug preventing any crosses from getting into the area. Shaka made a chance by giving through ball to de Laiglesia who was only able to hit the post. In a collision between Shaka and the keeper, URSC were required to change their keeper, who proved to be a better keeper then the last, considering he was a defender just minutes before. Finally, in the closing stages of the game, the Fellas got a freekick almost in the identical place as URSC's first goal. Doug stepped up to the ball and beautifully placed the ball above the keeper's head to make it 2-4. With the Fellas now in control, they were able to get to the finis
h line without too much of a hassle.
Fellas are now top of the league, and it was great to see the chemistry both on and off the field, as the team went for dinner and drinks after the game. Lets keep this up boys, and work on those damn set pieces! As always, it was a pleasure playing along side you all.
Lineup: Mullens; Shui, Bear, Flo, Doug; Jase, Justin, D-Cheung, Howard; Ced, de Laiglesia
Goals: 1st Half- Ced, de Laiglesia; 2nd Half- Shaka, Doug
