A rollercoaster of an afternoon awaited Kiwi FC and their loyal supporters as the boys made their long-anticipated season opener away from home in the sun at Regents Park in the derby against the Gorillas. There was a buzz of excitement about the camp, even Robbie forgetting to bring the bibs to assist with warmup was a non-factor as the lads were just relieved to be back out on the pitch after Lizzy pulled her hammy and the team drawing a bye the week prior. With many new faces in the squad and not much more than a few pub sessions to build up team chemistry prior to kick off, the boys knew they had to put in a monumental shift against a well-drilled opposition who already had the luxury of a couple game’s worth of fitness under their belt. Conditions were in our favour as the boys set up in a 4-4-2 diamond formation, looking to play some attractive, passing football and play through the middle of the park where we had the numbers advantage. The boys started strongly and played the better footy in the opening spell, looking good playing to feet when we were going forward and scrambling well in defense. We looked the better of the two sides, creating some good scoring opportunities, but the early season rust was apparent as the boys couldn’t capitalize on their chances when presented with a shot on goal. Rubbing salt into the wound, it was the Gorillas who opened the scoring with a goal against the run of play, scrambling it home from a couple yards after we failed to clear our lines. 10 minutes later, and it was a case of deja vu as the boys couldn’t clear their lines and a cross found its way to an unmarked Gorilla at the back stick to put the opposition 2-0 up. Heads didn’t drop and we got stuck back into our work, the Gorillas titanic-like midfield were turned in circles as we continued to try to play positive footy and counter Gorillas long ball tactics that wouldn’t look out of place on a cold wednesday night in Stoke. Before the half, Kiwi FC were awarded a penalty after the Gorillas captain finally gave in to Jev’s harassment all half and bent over for him in the box, forgetting the ball was underneath him as he handled the ball in the box. Not phased by the endless complaints and reenactments of doggy in the box by the Gorillas players, Fionn stepped up and coolly slotted the penalty home to pull the lads back into the game. The Gorillas, clearly rattled, started putting in some meaty challenges, with the boys meeting this aggression and giving it back, with Jev, Conor and Xavi picking up yellows in the process. 2-1 down at halftime and all to play for in the second half. We started off the second half like the first, playing some positive footy for the first 15 minutes or so and matching the gorillas intensity and aggression. Unfortunately, although preseason pub sessions are great for building team chemistry, they also don’t help with fitness levels and the boys found this out the hard way as the game became very open and end to end. Our lines grew further and further apart as the legs started to go and as we grew more desperate for an equaliser. The self subs started to roll on and a couple more debutants were added to the Kiwi FC ranks as we chased the game. Continuing to commit numbers forward, Gorillas managed to get in behind our scrambling defense on the counter and despite some unreal saves by Keiran
that kept us in the game for as long as possible, eventually Gorillas managed to capitalize on their chances as the scoreline blew out in the last 20 minutes. Not helped as Jamie’s first act after reluctantly coming back on the pitch at CB was to stick out a left mit in the box and concede a penalty. We kept pushing right till the end, with debutant Liam setting up Oliver with a well-deserved and well-worked goal to make the scoreline slightly more respectable at 6-2. The whistle blew for full time, with the lads ruing not capitilizing on some good opportunities early on and not pounding the pavements enough over the offseason. A hard day at the office against a decent side that we’ll no doubt have a better crack at when we meet later in the season. Nevertheless, there were lots of positives to take out of the game and good individual performances, with big bad Jev picking up MOTM for his efforts. The boys were off to the pub to debrief and properly induct the debutants into the Kiwi FC Familia. Lots of chat about Strava thrown around as the lads look to improve fitness levels before next weekend. Buzzing! - Sam Collier
