The Mighty Weekenders stepped back in to the fray against an improving Collegiate side, looking to keep their unbeaten record intact. Things werent looking good 5 minutes before the match when they were scrambling for numbers, while the school boys ran slick drills at the other end of the pitch. Weekenders started much brighter, in a break from tradition, and piled on the early pressure. The battle hardened midfield pairing of Geoff Smith and Kane Thomas both went agonisingly close with long range strikes. But as we have seen this season if you dont capitalise on your domanance you will pay. This proved to be true as Collegiate took the lead, completely against the run of play, although the finish was powerfully struck home. This didnt affect the Mighty Weekenders as they have dug themselves in to much deeper holes than this in the past. Sure enough Smith equalised, tiptoeing through the Collegiate defence after some nice build up play. Captain Thomas took this on board and he soon put Collegiate ahead. Paddy Mullins made a last ditch tackle, with the ball bouncing to Thomas who, without missing a stride, smashed it home passed his forlon keeper Lower. The last 10 minutes of the half proved a struggle for the men in red. They continued to give the ball away cheeply, after having worked so hard to get it back. They basically ran themselves to a standstill, creating so much more work than they needed to. The Mighty Weekenders found themselves down at half, despite having the better of the game.
The half time talk was about holding on to the ball, playing smarter. As the Mighty Weekenders were without any substitutes they wouldnt be able to outlast their teenage oppossition. The second half was much improved. Weekenders were back on level terms after arguably one of the better team goals they had scored, with the ball starting at the back, some tidy passes strung together before Fraser Kinnerley put evergreen Tarf Pohio away. Pohios shot crawled teasingly over the goal line. Collegiate scored a lucky goal after a goalmouth scramble, with Lower having the ball stabbed home off the tips of his gloves. It was all or nothing now for the Weekenders, who bombed forward in great numbers desperate for the equalising goal. This came in the 85 minute, a loose ball falling to Pete Ellicott who calmly slotted it home. 3 -3 in an most entertaining game. This may prove to be a vital point in the pursuit of championship glory. A special mention must go to the ref, none other than Danny Jonas, who controlled the game well, otherwise the game would have been without an official yet again. Who knew he had it in him!
Now on to the biggest game of the season, Castlecliff United.
MOM
3- Sam O'Leary
2- Kane Thomas
1- Paddy Mullins
Captains Choice
Tim Waite
