Greyhound 0 - 2 Oaks Athletic (All leagues cup round 1)

Given that we had beaten Greyhound in the league the previous week this may not sound like a shock result, however from within the Oaks ranks most would admit this wasn’t a game we expected to win – and nor was it one we would be losing any sleep over. This is the cup competition which is contested by all teams across the five divisions of the Thurrock Sunday League. There are a handful of teams who you would say have a realistic chance of winning this cup, and The Oaks are definitely not on that list. We also knew that the winners of this match would be playing Premier side Legends in the next round, so an abrupt end to the victorious team’s cup run was in store. Not only did the reward not merit the effort required to win the game, but player unavailability had made avoiding a heavy defeat, let alone winning, seem unlikely. I won’t divulge the identity of the Oaks player who epitomised this opinion and stated that “I bet they’re going to feel really smug when they smash us!” Whose feeling smug now Deano (oops!)

The player situation was so desperate that Gollum was asked to come out of retirement, and with Jamie not appearing the lanky one was promoted immediately to partner Nathan upfront. I understand you might be wondering what terrible thing must have happened to Sharpy for him to miss a game, but family comes first, and a trip to Portsmouth was required for our top scorer. As it happened Milesy had twelve players to choose from, and went with the following starting eleven.

ppppppppppppppTyrone (GK)

pDeano (RB) Milly (CB) Rob (CB) Eye-Ball (LB)

pBill (RM) Jimmy (CM) Stu (CM) (c) Aaron (LM)

pppppppppNathan (CF) Gollum (CF)

Subs: Scott

Apparently football is supposed to be a game of two halves. Thanks to Mother Nature, and in particular the gale force wind blow from one end of the pitch to the other, this was a game of just one half – and it was the half the Oaks were defending in the first half.

Despite the low expectations, pulling on the Oaks shirt seems to install a sense of pride in all who wear it, and we definitely weren’t going to go down without a fight. I think Milesy summed it up when he likened the first half to the Battle of the Alamo, with our penalty area being under siege from the first to the forty fifth minute. We hardly had a sniff of the ball, and when we did regain possession we struggled to keep it for more than one or two passes. However, thanks to some dogged tackling, and a couple of good saves from Ty (including a one-on-one when Eye-Ball had put the striker clean through) the score was held at nil-nil until half time.

I should really correct one inaccuracy at this point, as Ty was the one Oaks player who had plenty of touches of the ball, mostly as he collected the ball from the basketball court behind the goal thanks to Greyhound’s inept finishing.

The mood in the Oaks camp at half time was surprisingly upbeat. It was apparent that the weather was going to have a major bearing on the outcome of this game, and the common consensus was that Greyhound had thrown us a lifeline by not gaining any sort of numerical advantage having had the elements on their side for the first 45 minutes. As well as the twelfth man who would be wearing Oaks colours in the second half, the thing that was going to really give the Oaks the edge was the fantastic team spirit and togetherness that was evident between all twelve players who played a part in this game. The first half had been littered with errors, but not once did any player moan or berate one of his team mates, and the only words exchange were ones of encouragement.

With the weather deteriorating by the minute our chances were looking better and better, and when Scott (who had replaced Aaron at half-time) ran down the left and put in a superb low cross that was met by a diving Nathan at the front post, we all thought our vice captain had headed us into the lead. However, the linesman had other ideas and flagged Nathan off-side. Now, I’m usually pretty pragmatic about these decisions, and will argue that the linesman has made what he feels is an honest call. However, in this case I’d then have to argue that Henry honestly thought you were allowed to use your hands to keep the ball in play. There is no way this goal should have been disallowed, and not only were the Oaks denied the lead, but Nathan was cruelly denied the goal his finish deserved. To make matters worse the dodgy hip that had been troubling him throughout the game was now aggravated further in the process.

The response to being cheated out of the lead was once again superb; we just picked ourselves up and got straight back at them. The reward finally came when the Greyhound keeper failed to deal with a cross when the ball was played back into the danger zone following a corner, and with the help of Gollum and the crossbar, Deano was on hand to poke the ball home for his second goal of the season: 0-1.

At this point it is advisable to forget everything that is written in the first paragraph of this report. This was now a game the Oaks were more determined than ever to win, and the tables had definitely been turned on those pesky Mexicans. The combination of the weather and some brutal tackling was gradually battering Greyhound into submission, and when they did get any where near our goal their advance was either brought to an abrupt end by the Oaks defence unit, or Ty was on hand to snuff out the danger.

The game clinching moment came with about 15 minutes to go; Bill played a delightful ball over the defence to put Nathan clear on the right, and he let the ball bounce before unleashing a venomous volley which was nestling in the top corner before the keeper could get off the ground. Remember this one when we are talking about goal of the season at the end of the year: 0-2.

It was only right that the weather had the last laugh, with horizontal rain growing heavier and heavier, and finally being replaced by horizontal hale stones. Fortunately the referee blew his whistle, and following some quick hand shakes we were able to run, with a smile on our faces, to the safety of the changing rooms.

Perhaps the lack of pressure we felt to get a result from this game helped, but this was one of the most enjoyable games I have been involved in. Whether it was watching Gollum shrink to a pigmy trying to head the ball or Aaron and Stu sliding into each others shorts, this game epitomised what Sunday football is all about: getting battered and drench by the weather and living a deluded dream of footballing excellence. Bring on the Legends!

I’d usually pick out a few-stand out performances at this point, but only mentioning one or two contributions would do a disservice to the other nine or ten players who also deserve praise. We shouldn’t forget Milesy’s contribution in making the inspired decision to move Stu to the holding role – truly Capello-esque. It’s also worth highlighting that this game puts to bed any doubts about the Oaks strength in depth. Those who stepped up to the plate in the absence of others did a truly superb job, and will definitely cause Milesy some head-aches if available for selection next week.

Eye-Ball

Next Match – Sun 29th November Cup Game v Linford Wanders @ Corringham Rec (Away).

Goal scoring chart (with one lot of appearances to be added)