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Match Report |
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With the school holidays we found ourselves short of players. Freddie was away as was Elliott and with Charlie leaving the team it meant we were down to 11 players. Federico had also let me know a while ago that he was going on holiday but he was able to show outstanding commitment to play the first half before making a dash to the airport to catch his flight. We lined up with George in goal and Joe, Matt and Luke at the back. Pat and Josh were on the wings with Áedán and James in the centre. Ollie started behind Adam and Federico. We knew we could get a good result if we passed the ball as Queens Park had struggled to cope with our passing football in the quarter final back in January. The first half was important as we needed a lead before we went down to 10 players. We started quickly and looked dangerous. We were however taking too many touches and not passing the ball quickly enough. We won a number of corners which meant we could try out our routine from training on Tuesday. The first was a complete shambles but ironically Federico went so close when he reacted quickest but was just denied. The second was textbook as the ball found Joe at the back post who lined up a left foot volley but couldn’t quite connect. Ollie was becoming a bigger influence on the game as he found space to show his outstanding close control and his eye for a pass as he set Pat away down the right on a number occasions with one resulting in a great cross that we couldn’t quite put away. Another ball through found Adam who hit a shot which forced a save from the keeper. We had to be on our toes at the back as well. Their striker broke through and looked to be one on one with George and looking likely to score. However Luke made an outstanding recovery tackle which went out for a corner. It was definitely a goal stopping tackle! We continued to press and look for the goal which would give us the lead. As has been the case for a lot of the season Áedán was dominating the midfield winning every header. After about 17 minutes James dribble into the box and chipped the ball over the stranded keeper into the back of the net. A good goal and one that had put us in the lead. 1v0 NPL. The half continued with us dominating and Josh was doing good work on the left as we looked to use Federico’s pace. A couple of times Federico looked like he had broken free only to be denied by a defender. The half came to a close and we were ahead 1v0. Federico now left us and we were down to 10 players. We didn’t change our shape and had Adam up front on his own with Ollie playing behind. The boys were told to work hard and believe they could play well with 10 players. We needed to attack and defend as a team. The half started and we were a little lacklustre. We were punished after 8 minutes when a routine throw in by Queens Park went all the way across our 6 yard box and the Queens Park player tapped it in at the back post. A very poor goal to concede and we were now in a lot of trouble. 1v1. Not for the first time this season, our response was sensational. We seemed to pull up our socks and start to work hard. We were now back on top and our passing was very good at times. Adam was playing very well as a lone striker and Ollie was linking up well with him. James then picked up the ball in the centre of the pitch and ran the ball into the box. He reached the byline and fired a shot a goal. Amazingly it took a slight deflection thanks to Adam’s determination and nestled in the far corner. 2v1 NPL and we were back ahead! We were now buzzing and passing the ball brilliantly. We were soon rewarded for our passing football when Adam latched onto a through ball and blasted the ball past the keeper. 3v1 NPL and we did not look like a team with 10 players. As we entered the final 10 minutes it was clear the boys were enjoying their football. Adam again latched onto yet another through ball by Ollie. He composed himself and took it past the keeper. It looked like he had ran it too wide but somehow he wrapped his left foot around the ball to put it the back of the net to score a brilliant goal. 4v1 NPL. We could have increased our lead further but instead of passing to team-mates in better positions we were shooting. We need to remember that it does not matter who scores the goals and that the team is the most important thing. We finished the game off and had comfortably won the game 4v1 This was a fantastic performance. To have only 11 players in the first half and then only 10 in the second in which we scored a further 3 goals shows how well we played. It was our last home game of the season and a fitting end to our home campaign. Man of the match went to Ollie who had both sets of spectators applauding with his superb range of passing and close control. Well done Ollie. Well done lads, brilliant today. Lets show this effort and commitment for the remainder of our season. |
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NPL Youth B 4v1 Queens Park League: Epsom & Ewell U11 Div 2 Date: 12th April 2008 |