I have to start this match report by stating how immensely proud myself and Stu are of the entire team and they way they played and handled the pressure of this game. This was a fantastic team performance and the happiest that both of us have ever been following a defeat!
What I didn't tell the players prior to this match was that a number of people had written us off before we started due to the team we were playing and the league they were playing in. The manager of another team (who shall remain nameless), told me that he expected the opposition to put 10 goals past us and was very surprised when I told him the actual result.
Right from the kick off we took the game straight to Netherton who I believe were totally shocked at the strength and character we showed. At the back Jako had to make a few saves, which he pulled off in his usual fine style and throughout the game he totally commanded his area both vocally and with his positioning. Almost every kick from his hands founds its way well into the opposition half and all of the kicks he took from the ground were taken with vigour and well placed.
Big Dom had the oppositions strikers bewildered with his strength and he held them both in his pockets for the entire match. There were a number of strong clashes which had them muttering words to him which he just shrugged off with a smirk of satisfaction and a look on his face that simply said 'so what'. Marc in only his second full game for us was immense in the defence, working extremely well with Dom in communicating and helping to maintain good control. He pulled off some fantastic tackles and some excellent clearances, playing with superb control for the entire game.
We went two goals down, both from defensive blunders which were probably more due to a bit of pre-season nerves than any real problems in the defence. The first had the ball falling to the feet of one of the opposition's strikers who was able to toe-poke it into the corner past Jako. The second was from a pass across the goalmouth and both defenders took swipes at it which unfortunately missed. Whilst they were still thinking about it the opposition was able to hammer the ball home past Jako in a shot that he had no chance of stopping.
Jacob started as Captain today with some good clean runs and nice passes through to the attack. Being back in a midfield position has meant that we can truly benefit again from his immense throw-ins which at times sailed over the opposition’s heads, one of which enabled Tom to fire off a shot that we were unfortunate not to score with. His recent practices at corners paid off with a couple of very well taken passes into the box, one of which should have really resulted in a goal for us. Ben also started in Midfield and showed great energy throughout the match which helped to keep the ball moving at all times. He played very well and showed excellent strength and character at times which can only help us throughout the new season. He dropped into defence for a spell when Marc took a bad knock and did an admiral job of chasing the ball and helping to keep the opposition out.
Ethan came back tonight and whilst not yet fully match fit, showed great form for the whole time he was on the pitch, performing his usual nifty footwork and great touches on the ball. He released a number of excellent through balls which again we were unfortunate not to capitalise on. He also delivered a couple of inch-perfect corners that had the defence scrambling!
Up front Travis had a really great game for us, showing good strength and ability all the time he was on the pitch. He was a close contender for man of the match for this game and proved how strong his character is when after taking a heavy knock and falling on his shoulder, was able to get up and score our first goal with a beautifully taken penalty which he smashed over the keeper head into the roof of the net.
Our second goal came from Alex who started his first game in his new position as a striker. Although not the fastest player, his head is totally on the game, which he is able to read very well. Previous experience in defence gave him some strength up front that we didn't really have before and he was able to put in some excellent tackles to steal the ball back on a number of occasions. A great team movement saw the ball passed about pitch excellently resulting in a ball from Tom (I think) which he dropped back to Alex. Alex then calmly took a touch to position himself correctly and then effortlessly slotted the ball past the keeper into the bottom left hand corner of the net.
Tom may well have become our new pocket rocket as he sped around the pitch with tremendous energy and made some great plays including a beautiful back-heel which he was then able to turn on and run round the opposition, leaving them standing. He truly deserved a goal in the match and we strongly believe it won’t be long before he’s slotting them away comfortably.
The winning goal of the match, to be fair to the opposition was a stunning over-head scissors kick straight from a corner that Jako was powerless to save. We were proud however that Netherton didn’t outplay or out-pass us and none of their goals really came from any particularly good play. We cost ourselves the first two and their third despite being brilliant was from a set piece. We can take a lot of confidence in this for our forthcoming matches. To be fair to Netherton and to take nothing away from them, they are a good side with some very strong players who can really pass a ball about and we were thrilled to be able to give them a good game. Their manager thoroughly enjoyed the match and we’re both looking forward to a re-match in the off-season.
Man of the match for this game was hard to pick as there were so many great performances and we threw this decision to the parents who were also split. The award by one vote went to our own little Luis Suarez, Marc who really put in a truly fantastic performance and showed how much of an asset he is to our team!
Huge thanks to Kev for refereeing the match for us and as ever another big thank you to all our parents for their continued support throughout-the off-season and in making sure their kids are with us on time. We couldn’t do it without you all. BRING ON THE NEW SEASON - IT’S GOING TO BE A CRACKER
