Another tough challenge for the Wolves against a strong Romans side who were the only unbeaten team in the Higham league last season (P18, W13, D5) and had won their opening game of this season 10 - 2 !! We were also without Ollie R and Jacob, whose foot injury meant he was missing his first ever game in 4 seasons.
As the Romans pushed forward they were leaving gaps in their half and Sam, Hugh and William C all made some great clearances to put either Dylan or Ollie clear and both had shots saved or go wide. The Wolves also had a couple of chances from corners with Sam and William W both getting their heads to the ball.
However, after 12 minutes the Romans took the lead. Another break down the right and a decent cross was just out of reach of Cole and, although Hugh tried desperately to clear, the ball crossed the line. 1-0.
The Romans won the ball from the kick off but this time Cole caught the cross and quickly cleared up field to Charlie who played a great cross into Dylan to level the scores: 1-1
Within a minute and the Wolves took the lead. Again Charlie was involved in midfield and passed to Ollie TL who raced into the area and fired in a shot then went in off the post from a tight angle. 1-2.
Although the Romans kept to their passing game, their build up was very slow and allowed the Wolves midfield time to get bodies behind the ball. Nathan tackled strongly and played the ball to Ollie TL. Ollie TL raced into the space behind the defence and walloped the ball into the top corner. 1-3.
Cole became more vocal and organised the Wolves' defence really well. The midfield and defence were dominant and disciplined and William C and Tom cleverly played the Romans offside 3 times as they tried to get back into the game.
Half time: 1-3
The Romans played a bit further back at the start of the second half but this just gave the Wolves a bit more space in midfield and they started passing the ball around really nicely. Five minutes in and Hugh played a great pass to Ollie TL who charged into the box and though his shot was blocked by their GK, Dylan pounced on the rebound for his second. 1 - 4
The Romans didn't give up and the game was being played at a ferocious pace and with both teams fully committed to every challenge there were several stoppages for injuries. But the Wolves were now dominant. Cole cleared up everything that got behind the defence and Irchester only had one shot from a corner that went over the bar.
Mid way through the half, Dylan had a hard, low shot to the bottom corner saved brilliantly by the diving Roman's GK. Soon after Ollie had a shot blocked back to Charlie and his shot was also blocked but this time fell kindly to Dylan who made no mistake for his hat trick. 1 - 5
A minute later with the Roman's pushing forward, Tom played Dylan clear on the halfway line and his nearly 40 yard shot flew into the top corner. 1 - 6.
With ten minutes plus stoppages left the Wolves were still creating chances. Dylan and Ollie had a couple of efforts saved and Sam had a chance from a corner go just wide.
In the final few minutes the Romans got a consolation goal, again from a good cross, and also hit the bar from a loose ball in the penalty area but the game was already won.
Final score 2 - 6
This was a fantastic performance by the whole team against a very strong Romans side. William C was his usual rock at the back and Tom read the game really well, blocking crosses and covering the runners at the back post. Cole's communication with his team mates was excellent and he was much sharper with his distribution. Nathan, Sam, William W and Hugh were tenacious in midfield and gave the Romans no time or space to build a meaningful attack. Their passing was improving too as they started to grow in confidence. Charlie linked up well with the forwards, playing a big part in the first two goals. The Romans gave Ollie and Dylan acres of space and they took full advantage using their strength and pace to create plenty of chances and their finishing today was first class.
