Hugin Vikings made the trip to Hythe knowing this was always going to be a tough ask. Unfortunately with at least 5 players missing through injury, holidays and illness we were playing with a team largely playing out of their regular positions.
The day started off badly with the opposition manager notifying me of them not having a referee, so he reffed it himself, he did ask if I wanted to ref and I declined.
The game kicked off and Hugin Vikings started in their usual lethargic way, not pressuring as a team, not getting the tackles in as a team and it wasn't long before Stars and Stripes got through and goal and narrowly missed.Reece went to take the goal kick and then told me the ball was flat, I went and got one of our own balls and got the Referee to change it over.
Hugin didn't get close enough to the players they were marking and it wan't long before the long balls were kicked over the top for the forwards to run on to. Hugin were lucky again and got it clear.
To be fair to Stars and Stripes the grass was so long that you could not play passing football anyway as it got stuck in the grass, kick and run was the only way to play and it was only a matter of time beofre it started to pay off for them.
Balls continued to come over the top and Hugin failed to defend them, Stars and Stripes went 2-0 up on about the 20 minute mark.
Stars and Stripes were very physical in the challenges and the ref appeared to let these go un-noticed however was quick to pull up the Hugin players if they got involved in a tackle or two. They managed to get another to make it 3-0 then shortly after the referee pointed to the spot for a penalty.
This effectively killed off any chance of Hugin getting back into the game.
This resulted in the Hugin Vikings players becoming aggrieved with the decisions instead of just getting on with the game. The half time whistle went and the lads were still questioning the referee, which to be honest is not like them.
In order to try and diffuse the situation I went and refereed the second half myself.
The game kicked off and Hugin Vikings gave it a go but the damage was already done, Marcus Debling played excellent in defence, heading away corners etc and really giving his all. Galin Ivanou gave 110%, one minute clearing his lines at the back then up front having a go on goal he really did put a shift in and was my man of the match.
Stars and Stripes continued to dominate the game and almost broke through the defence again however this time the forward went through the back of the Hugin defender Tom Skinner and committed a foul. I blew the whistle for a free kick and was greeted with shouts of "F*** Off ref", " Thats F***ing Bo*****S ref" and some other top remarks.At this point I did then question if anyone else had anything to say and as ever it was all quiet on the touchline.
Funny thing is though when you speak to the players they know themselves it was a foul, still a shame that you still get parents acting like that at kids football matches.However they are never there to ref the match for you even though they are clearly EXPERTS in the game themselves which is a shame as we need top referees like these people to help grassroots football out!!!
Stars and Stripes put another 3 past Hugin and ran out worthy winners in truth. The second half was a much calmer affair and was played in better spirts in all honesty.
Hugin Vikings will need to toughen up in order to give these a proper game in the return fixture.
Man of the Match Galin Ivanou.
