Linford Wanderers 0 – 4 Oaks Athletic

pppppppppppppppppScott (GK)

ppAlex (RB) Rob (CB) Deano (CB) Aaron (LB)

Jordan (RM) Gollum (CM) Micky (CM) Eye-Ball (LM)

pppppppppppNathan (CF) (c) Nick (CF)

Subs: Jimmy, Sharpy

Watchers: Parker, Tyrone

Do not adjust your monitors; the Oaks really did return to winning ways and with our first choice left winger playing in goal. With both Ty and Parker on official watching duties, it was a welcome surprise to discover that Scott used to play regularly in goal, and he showed no signs of rust as he put in a solid performance and kept a clean sheet to boot.

Games between the Oaks and Linford Wanderers tend to be close, with 3 of the last 4 being decided by a single goal. This just goes to show what a vast improvement this performance from the Oaks was, as Linford were made to look a far inferior side.

The game got off to a slow start, with neither team really taking control. However, the Oaks soon got into their stride and looked to play the ball to feet, and the determination to experience a win again after 3 straight defeats was evident from the movement and noise from those in blue and black (away strip).

The first chance to score, for the second week running, feel to Eye-Ball, who was relishing the chance to bomb forward from his position on the left wing. As Nick broke down the right, Eye-Ball raced through the middle into the penalty area. Nick then put in a superb cross at waist height which Eye-Ball threw a left foot at, but he couldn’t direct the ball on target.

Having almost set up the first goal, Nick then had a great chance to give the Oaks the lead himself. When the ball broke to him following a throw in, his first time effort hit the post, and rebounded behind off the goal keepers face.

The Oaks had looked very solid at the back, with none of the problems of the previous weeks being evident. Even when Linford did eventually break through Deano was on hand to snuff out the danger with a fine sliding tackle.

With Gollum doing the donkey work in front of the back four, Mikey was given licence to link up with the wingers and front men, and was at the heart of most of the good things created going forward. One such move saw Mikey linking up with Eye-Ball down the left, with a series of close passes along with good movement and even a cheeky back heel from Eye-Ball leading to the Oaks winning a corner. Nathan swung in the corner, and Ty would have been overjoyed to have seen Alex gambling at the back post to steer the ball home from close range: 0-1.

The Oaks maintained their one goal advantage going into half time, despite a wobbly last 10 minutes when we repeatedly gave up possession and let Linford Wanderers have too much time and space on the ball.

The half time team talk was mainly positive, with Milesy re-iterating the importance of getting a second goal to kill off Linford’s challenge.

The second half performance was one of the best from an Oaks side in some time, as we totally dominated the opposition. Eye-Ball’s pre-match banana (and instructions to stay wide when we had possession) seemed to be paying dividends as he ran the Linford fullback ragged. Although I have been told not to be modest about my performance, it is worth pointing out that the Linford fullback was one of the worst we have seen, so just imagine what would have happened if we had a proper winger out on the left. However, the confident and positive approach adopted by Eye-Ball seemed to spread throughout the team, and whereas some weeks we are accused of being too quiet and watchful, the ball was being demanded from all areas.

With the front two being well marshalled by the Linford centre backs, Eye-Ball was the unlikely best attacking option, and he repaid Nick’s favour from the first half by putting the big man through only for the keeper to make a good save with his legs.

With the score at 1-0, Linford were still hopeful of getting back into the game. But these hopes were shattered when, out of nothing, Eye-Ball won possession in midfield and headed towards the penalty area. He held off the opposition challenge before responding to Nathan’s cries with a defence splitting pass to which Nathan supplied his trademark finish into the far corner from the right: 0-2.

This goal seemed to knock the stuffing out of Linford, whilst giving the Oaks renewed energy, and Sharpy – who came on for a run out with twenty minutes remaining – claimed the assist as a scramble in the area saw the ball finally poked home by Mikey with the aid of a deflection. Some tried to claim this should go down as an own goal, but as the original effort was on target the dubious goals committee awarded Mikey his second goal of the season: 0-3.

The emphasis now was on keeping a clean sheet, not only because we hadn’t managed this all season but also because we didn’t want to give Linford any reason to believe they were anything but dead and buried. Defensively we had looked at total ease, with some even comparing Rob to a hippo. Not, I hasten to add, that these comparisons were connected to size or a craving for small plastic balls, but rather that the muddier it is the better he seems to perform. With Deano, Alex and Aaron also putting in assured performances Linford were unable to create much. When they did get a shot on goal Scott was more than equal to it, as he dived to his left to palm one fierce drive around the post and tipped a speculative effort from 35 yards onto the bar. Deano then reacted quickest to clear the danger.

Now there aren’t many similarities between Sharpy and Peter Crouch (he doesn’t have his height or good looks for a start), but just like Crouchy does with England, Sharpy always seems to pop up with a goal for the Oaks. This game was no exception when, rather than attempt to play the ball in himself, Eye-ball played the ball down the line to Nathan who, in acres of space, planted the ball right onto Sharpy’s head to leave him the simple task of beating the stranded keeper: 0-4.

Despite some late unsavouries thanks to the stupidity of Linford’s regular hot-head (which isn’t an affliction suffered by any of the Oaks players of course), this was a really enjoyable game for the Oaks, not to mention a great result. We have a week off next week as Deano leads a band of merry men to Newcastle to celebrate his 30th (sorry 21st) birthday.

I’d suggest they avoid the Pig and Whistle, but then you can almost guarantee they will end up there:

http://www.beerintheevening.com/pubs/s/12/1252/Pig_and_Whistle/Newcastle

See you all in two weeks.

Eye-Ball

Next game: Sunday 28th November Away @ Lakeside v AFC Staggs

Oaks Athletic 1 - 3 Springhouse

The considerable annual turnover of teams in the Thurrock Sunday League means that half the teams in divisions 2A, 2B and 3 are either completely out of their depth, or punching well below their weight. Kaktus are an example of the former; due to two teams folding, last season they effectively finished second from bottom of division three, with just one win and a goal difference of minus 50. Despite this they were promoted to 2B to make room for all the new teams or teams who had folded and reformed with a new name. So far this season they’ve lost 3 of their 4 games, and twice been thumped 9-1. The Oaks opponents, Springhouse, are just one of the many examples of the latter. A team who were playing in the Premier division a few years ago under a different name, and spent last year in the 1st division of the Romford League. So given the league’s policy of putting teams who they consider are too good for the third division into one of the two 2nd divisions (even if they were playing in the Premiership the year before), and combining this with teams relegated from division 1 and promoted from division 3 it becomes clear that there will be very few easy games (discounting the unfortunate Kaktus).

Highlighting this situation is important, as it means that more weight should be given to the performance than the result. Regardless of the ultimate result being the same as the previous two weeks (a defeat), the performance from the Oaks this week was a vast improvement with us playing at the level we should do every week.

In a hope to address the defensive issues of the past few weeks, Milesy changed the look of the side, with Deano deployed in a sweeper role and Rob moving into the five man midfield to give Mikey more opportunity to support Nick up top. With Scott returning, and Alex coming back into the side we had extra strength in both attack and defence:

pppppppppppppppppTyrone (GK)

ppppppppppppDeano (CB)

Eye-Ball (RB)pppppppppppppppMilly (CB) Alex (LB)

ppppppppppppppGollum (CM)

Nathan (RM) (c)pppppppppRob(CM)ppppppppScott (LM)
ppppppppppppppMikey(CM)

pppppppppppppppppppNick (CF)

Subs: Parker, Aaron, Aaron (2)

The Oaks started the game brightly, and showed that they were determined to make amends for the lacklustre performances the two previous weeks. Every ball was competed for, and we did a great job of disrupting the opposition’s flow. We even played some football of our own, and should have taken the lead when Eye-Ball intercepted a pass inside the opposition half, and passed the ball to Mikey who expertly played the ball behind the defence to meet the continued run of Eye-Ball. Now Eye-ball being clear through on goal is about as unlikely as Parker coming home to find the Brazilian women’s beach volleyball team lying in wait for him. Although these two things are very different, Eye-Ball’s reaction was the same as Parker’s would be probably be. Panic, decide you’re not up for the job, and get someone else to finish the job. Unfortunately passing the ball across goal for Nick to tap into an empty net proved to be a mistake, as the referee claimed Nick had benefited from being in an offside position when the ball was originally played through. Despite some debate about the offside rule (which I think centred around Nick’s resemblance to Cristiano Ronaldo) the goal was ruled out, and the chance for the Oaks to take the lead – and for Eye-Ball to open his scoring account for the Oaks – was squandered.

To make matters worse, another bad decision from Eye-Ball soon after lead to Springhouse taking an unexpected lead. Caught in two minds between staying goal side and running with his man, or stepping up to play him offside, the result was that neither was done successfully and the Springhouse winger produced a neat finished when clean through on goal: 0-1.

The Oaks new system can’t be blamed for this, and was actually working very well with every man knowing the plan and executing it as intended.

The Oaks reacted well to going a goal down, and although no obvious goal scoring opportunities spring to mind from the first half, we continued to battle hard, and all were pleased with the performance in the first half.

There was no need to change anything at half time, and although we continued to play well, we went a further goal behind when a rare error form Ty saw a well struck shot slip through his raised hands and trickle agonisingly into the net: 0-2.

Not even going two goals down could dampen the Oaks spirit, and the fact that Springhouse started arguing amongst themselves, despite being two goals up, was a testament to the disruptive effect we were having on their game. Our determination was rewarded when Alex sent in a trademark long free kick into the box, which Springhouse watched sail apparently harmlessly over their heads (see it’s not just us Ty!). However, Nathan had taken a gamble and chased in to poke the bouncing ball past the keeper with the tip of his stud: 1-2.

Unfortunately Springhouse’s two goal lead was restored as quickly as it had been lost, thanks in part to some foul play from the opposition skipper who called “Keeper’s ball” as the ball was swung into the box from a free kick. However, instead of seeing Ty race out to claim the ball, all we saw was the back of the offending player as he raced in unchallenged to steer the ball home: 1-3.

The spirit we continued to show was outstanding, and the determination to challenge for every ball was commendable. It was to be expected that we would get caught on the break, as we pushed forward in an attempt to reduce the deficit, and although everyone dug deep to get back and defend, goal saving challenges from Scott, Nathan and Mikey stand out in the mind. Confidence also continued to be high with Parker even executing a Cruyff turn inside our own penalty area.

The deficit should have been reduced to one goal when Nathan broke down the right and smashed the ball home from an impossible angle, but the linesman decided to give a dubious offside. The decision was possibly influenced by the fact that the opposition had felt aggrieved when, just minutes earlier, Milesy received instructions from the fourth official, via his mobile, to give an offside against Springhouse.

The two negative points were injuries to both Ty and Deano. Ty damaged his shoulder, which meant he missed his first minutes of football for the Oaks since joining at the start of last season. The injury is likely to keep him out for a few weeks which is a real blow. Parker showed himself to be an able substitute though as he pulled off a fine save from a fierce volley, but I’m sure he is wishing Ty a speedy recovery more than anyone. Deano also went off with a “bum” injury, but I’m sure he’ll be ready to go again next week.

Despite some late unsavoury scenes there were no further goals to report, and although all were happy with the performance who knows what the Oaks may have got from this game if it hadn’t been for three avoidable goals. Still, if we play like this against our old rivals Linford Wanderers next week, we’ll have a great chance of returning to winning ways.

Eye-Ball

Next game: Sunday 14 November Away v Linford Wanderers @ Corringham Rec - 1030 ko

Oaks Athletic 2 – 6 Wilburn Wanderers (League Cup)

Despite being only 2-0 down at half-time, it was another lacklustre first half that sewed the seed for an early exit from this cup competition for the Oaks. Many people will tell you that preparation is key, and turning up at Belhus Park to find out we are actually playing at Blackshots – and that we are the home side and had to put up the nets – probably isn’t in the coaching manual. As a result we started the game cold, and 10 minutes late.

With Sharpy on emergency duty only, and no obvious replacement without weakening the side in other areas, Milesy went for a 4-4-1-1 formation with Nathan supporting lone striker Nick.

The Oaks starting eleven looked as follows:

pppppppppppppppppTyrone (GK)


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


Jordan (RM) Gollum (CM) Mikey (CM) Aaron(2) (LM)

pppppppppppNathan (RM) (c)


pppppppppppppppppppNick (CF)

Subs: Parker, Jimmy, Aaron, Sharpy, Aaron (2), Alex

It could be argued that the Oaks had an excuse for being slow out of the blocks, but the reality was that they were knocked onto the ropes by a young and energetic Wilburn side who were doing what we should have been: moving into space and demanding the ball, and giving the Oaks players no time on the ball. As a result, without the ball we were chasing shadows, and when we had it panic set in and possession was given away far too easily.

Despite this the opening goal came from a set piece, which highlighted the uncertainty about how we set up defensively. It was decided at half time that Rob would call the line in open play, but that this would be Ty’s job from set-pieces. However, half time was too late to help with this set piece, as keeper and centre back both attempted to marshal their confused troops. Amongst the confusion the free kick was floated in, Ty came and missed, and the ball bounced off Rob and into the net: 0-1.

Things really didn’t get any better in the first half, with many players being guilty of ball watching, including your esteemed match reporter who found himself in a two on one situation and managed to play both the opposition players onside. Needless to say the striker was gifted a clean run on goal and finished neatly over the stranded Ty: 0-2.

Half time couldn’t have come soon enough for the Oaks, and the riot act was duly read. Two changes were made with Jimmy and Alex replacing Jordan and Aaron (2), who had acquitted himself well in his first start and even had one of the best chances to score, but could only head wide when in a good position at the back post. Alex slotted in at left back with Eye-Ball moving up to the wing, and Jimmy came in on the right wing.

The attitude was much better in the second half, and the majority of the game was played in Wilburn’s half. However, they showed themselves to be as good in defence as we had allowed them to look in attack in the first half. One of the battles of the match was between Nick and the Wilburn captain. Both would definitely be classed as heavy weights in footballing terms, and Nick struggled to get the upper hand on his opposite number.

The other major battle was between the Oaks players and the referee, who was the same man in black who had been blamed for denying the Oaks a point a week ago. Unfortunately he suggested that rather than last week being a one-off poor performance, the problem was terminal and this week was another shocker. Off-side flags were ignored (which made Sharpy as happy as larry), good shouts for penalties against Mikey and two against Nick were ignored, and he basically gave the opposition free licence to kick our striker into next week without punishment. To make matters worse he showed no hesitation in awarding Wilburn a soft penalty after Jimmy made minimal contact with their man: 0-3.

Three nil became four when the Oaks were once again caught out playing to high up the pitch and Ty was again greeted with the far too familiar sight of an opposition player bearing down on him unchallenged. The odds were obviously against him and Wilburn made no mistake: 0-4.

By this time the Oaks seemed to have got their belief back, and despite the mountain now being insurmountable some pride was restored when the Oaks scored following the best move of the match. Jimmy, Nick and Mikey combined on the edge of the area, with Mikey chipping an excellent ball through to Nathan who showed good composure to slot home past the helpless Wilburn keeper: 1-4.

Unfortunately the 4 goal cushion was quickly restored thanks to a superb through ball from Jimmy. This sentence isn’t misprinted, but I should clarify that it was a superb through ball for the opposition rather than the Oaks. This time the Oaks back four can be excused for being caught out, but then you could argue that the high line leaves no margin for error. Deano – who had a great game and epitomised the passion and commitment that is expected of all who pull on the red and black – valiantly gave chase and was desperately unlucky to see the ball bounce into the net off the inside of the post following his last ditch ball winning tackle. 1-5.

The Oaks did pull another goal back when a low corner from Nathan was converted from close range by Nick, but we conceded again when Wilburn broke again, and the substitute headed home from what looked suspiciously like an offside position.

Despite the one sided score line, the story could have been very different if it hadn’t been for the young Wilburn keeper, who had the game of his life. He denied Mikey, who looked to have slotted the ball in at the near post only for a strong hand to come to Wilburn’s rescue. He also denied Parker who shot firmly from the right, and was unlucky not to score his first goal of the season. Add to these saves the unrewarded penalties and it could have been a much closer game.

For a team that prides itself on defence we have conceded an awful lot of soft goals of late. This has been discussed at length, and although we know what the problem is with playing the offside trap, the same mistakes are still being made. Next week the manager will try something different with Deano playing in a sweeper role, and it is important that all the team (and the supporters for that matter) know what the plan is so encouragement and advice can be given coherently and consistently. The spirit and support between the players in the second half was great to see, and if we all get behind each other we won’t have many days like this.

Eye-Ball

Next game: Sunday 7th November v Springhouse @ Blackshots (home) 10:30 K.O.

Rec Rovers 2 -1 Oaks Athletic

The Oaks curse struck again as, for the countless time, a battling win against one of the better sides in the league was followed by a disappointing defeat against one of the worst. We know that the Oaks are notoriously slow starters, but a first half in which we didn’t leave the changing room, let alone get out of the blocks, cost us the game against a Rec Rovers side who made up for what they lacked in skill with determination and spirit.

The manager was forced to make changes to last week’s team, with Scott not available and Sharpy carrying a hamstring injury. He did come on in second half in an attempt to give us a much needed boost, but unfortunately the hamstring didn’t hold and it looks like a bit of a lay-off is required for our star striker.

pppppppppppppppppTyrone (GK)

ppJimmy (RB) Rob (CB) Milly (CB) Deano (LB)

Nathan (RM) (c) Gollum (CM) Jordan (CM) Eye-Ball (LM)

ppppppppppppppMikey (CF) Nick (CF)

Subs: Parker, Sharpy, Aaron, Aaron (2)

The less said about the first 45 minutes the better. We just didn’t function as a team; the ball was given away too easily, the opposition were often first to the ball, and allowed too much time and space when in possession, and good opportunities were wasted due to a lack of composure in the final third.

Still, despite all this Rec didn’t offer much of a threat to our goal, but still took the league when the Oaks were once again caught out playing a high defensive line. All it took was a hopefully ball over the top, and the rest of the story writes itself: 1-0.

No one would argue that it’s important to keep the opposition a safe distance from goal, but playing the offside trap in the Sunday league is always a risky business, especially when condensing the play means that, if possession is lost, the opposition are suddenly in an attacking position with forward and midfield players up on our last line of defence. Defending has always been one of our strengths, and if we keep goal side we won’t get beaten often. Imagine if you were an opposition striker; would you rather Rob was trying to play you offside or have him charging in from behind you as you’re about to collect the ball?

Going a goal down wasn’t enough to galvanise the Oaks, and 1-0 was soon 2-0 when Gollum’s clumsy tackle felled a Rec player in the box. Despite Ty’s best efforts to get the penalty spot moved to somewhere near the centre of the goal (it’s painted on Ty!), the penalty was despatched under Ty’s ample frame and into the net: 2-0.

Now it wasn’t all bad, and the Oaks did create some good chances to score, but were unfortunate to find the Rec keeper on top form. Nathan showed great athleticism and skill to sweetly strike an overhead kick from Eye-Ball’s cross, that went straight at the keeper. Nathan also had another shot saved at the near post following a surging run into the box. Jimmy also had a good effort from range after creating space for himself on the left. We also had a good shout for a penalty turned down when Mikey B was tripped whilst attempting a shot.

Milesy made it clear what he felt of our performance at half-time, and it was no more than we deserved. One change was made at half-time with Sharpy replacing Jimmy and Mikey moving back into the midfield. The rollicking seemed to do the trick, and much of the second half was spent in Rec’s half. Right from the first minute, when Jordan saw a rasping shot from range well saved, it was clear that the second half was going to be a totally different game. The one chance Rec had to kill of the game was a fortuitous one, as Milly’s clearance ricocheted off the opposition player’s face and caught us on the back foot. Fortunately the forward’s shot hit the cross-bar the deflected to safety.

The deficit was halved when Nathan (who actually predicted a goal would be scored) hurled on of his torpedoes into the box where it was flicked on at the front post by Rob, and Deano was on hand to poke the ball home via his right moob. 2:1.

The Oaks continued to pile on the pressure, and chance after chance came and went. The pick of the bunch included Aaron – who had made a real impact after coming on for Sharpy – putting in a great low cross which found Nathan with acres of space at the back post. Unfortunately he didn’t know that he had time to get the ball under control, and his first time effort spooned wide. Nicky also had a good header from Nathan’s corner cleared off the line, and had two good shouts for a penalty ignored.

As if the referee wasn’t unpopular enough already, he was well and truly struck off the Christmas card list when his decision to disallow a goal from Nathan’s long throw basically settled the game. All the Oaks players in the box were convinced the keeper had touched the ball as it flew over his head into the net, but the ref was convinced otherwise, and so the goal was not given. Little did we know that the paparazzi were on hand to capture the Oaks player’s reaction to this decision (it looks like Gollum was the ring leader to me).



So although the performance in the second half was much better, and we should have at least picked up a point, we can’t blame the referee for our poor show in the first half and will need to play much better if we want to compete in this league as we know we can. Despite giving us constant ear ache I should mention that Ty had a very good game, and totally dominated his area. He sets himself high standards, and would have been unhappy at not saving the penalty having guessed the right way, but he should be very pleased with the rest of the game.

Next week we have a cup game, which will be another challenge which hopefully we will rise to.

Eye-Ball

Next game: Sunday 31st October away @ Belhus Park v Wilburn Wanderers – 10:30KO

Oaks Athletic 2 - 1 Little Thurrock Dynamos

The Oaks reacted to last week’s defeat by notching up their second victory of the season in a hard fought battle against a strong LTD side. On a Sunny Autumn morning at Blackshots (where they had still neglected to cut the grass on the pitch to an acceptable length) Milesy once again had a large squad to choose from, and decided on the following starting eleven:

pppppppppppppppppTyrone (GK)

ppJimmy (RB) Deano (CB) Rob (CB) Parker (LB)

Nathan (RM) (c) Gollum (CM) Mikey (CM) Scott (LM)

pppppppppppNick (CF)ppppppSharpy (CF)

Subs: Eye-Ball, Jordan, Aaron, Ashley, Aaron (2)

The Oaks made a much better start than they have in recent weeks, and didn’t actually concede within the first minute. The opening 15 minutes was a tight affair, with neither side creating any clear cut chances. However, this doesn’t mean our physical partnership of Nick and Sharpy wasn’t causing the opposition problems, with Nick especially holding the ball up well and trying to bring others into play. He might be well advised not to wear the shirt with “Kick Me!” emblazoned on the back next week as the opposition seemed to think this was an acceptable (yet ineffective) tactic for trying to dispossess him.

LTD showed on a number of occasions that they had the ability to break at pace, however the Oaks offside trap was working well, and when they did break away it came to nothing. The Oaks had chances of their own, with Mikey seeing a sweetly hit volley deflected just over the bar, and a good free kick from Parker causing all sorts of problems for the LTD defence.

The Oaks were the first to break the deadlock when Sharpy ran on to a ball into the box, and was clumsily felled by the LTD defender. Sharpy picked himself up to firmly hit the penalty kick low to the keeper’s right and give the Oaks the lead: 1-0. Having added to his goal tally for the season, Sharpy’s hamstring decided its work was done, and Sharpy had to be replaced by Jordan, with Mikey moving upfront.

The lead was soon doubled in comical fashion as Nick, walking back from an offside position, raised his hands to signal he wouldn’t attempt to play the ball that was heading in his direction. No whistle was sounded, but LTD thought play had stopped, allowing Nathan to run onto the unattended ball and coolly slot past the out of position keeper: 2-0.

This second goal was a real bonus, as LTD were looking good defensively, with their keeper coping well with Nathan’s long throw in, and more of the play being conducted in the Oak’s half. However, with a two goal cushion we had given ourselves a great chance of getting something from the game.

Unfortunately the lead was halved before the interval when the LTD winger went to ground inside the box whilst being shepherded away from the goal by Deano. Those who criticised Deano for his rashness, when there was minimal danger, were soon turning their attentions to the referee as the LTD player nobly admitted that he had tripped over his own feet. However, the penalty stood, with the winger soon reverting to mere peasant as he stepped up to stroke the ball into the net: 2-1.

Milesy was thoroughly pleased with the first half performance; we were in the lead and had shown that the apparent defensive frailties suggested from the week before were simply a blip. Just the one change was made at half time with Parker being replaced by Eye­-Ball, which was no reflection on what had been a fine performance, but with a lead to protect the gaffer probably felt Parker’s creativity and attacking flair would be wasted and a more defensively minded primitive full back was required.

As predicted LTD threw everything at the Oaks goal in the second half, but all was repelled with every ball being fought for, and every man doing his bit. With such a slim margin between victory and defeat, the defence had to stick to their first job, and the full backs in particular couldn’t afford to get forward. This made life especially difficult for the wingers, but we are fortunate to have two young lads in Nathan and Scott who were prepared to work their socks off to get forward and support the strikers when we had possession, but also to get back and defend when we didn’t. Then in the middle Jordan and Gollum were competing for every ball, with Gollum in particular having his best game of the season; I don’t know how he does it, but he seemed to be everywhere and was a constant thorn in the oppositions’ side.

The back four were also working well as a unit to repel all that LTD could throw at them, and when they did get in behind Ty was on hand to smoother the ball, or pull off a superb one handed reaction save. The one blemish would be mistaking the LTD player’s face for the ball when, in the heat of the moment Ty reacted following a 50:50 challenge where he got to the ball first. Suprisingly the soft “baby’s bottom” like feel of Ty’s mittens weren’t appreciated by the opposition player – or the referee – but fortunately the situation was pacified before handbags were drawn.

So with 20 minutes to go, and the score still at 2-1 to the Oaks, it was time for another of those game defining moments. I should warn you that I’m not going to apologise for the self-indulgent and biased account of what happened next.

As a mediocre Thurrock League “footballer” (note the inverted comma) - whose primary contribution in most games is to make life unpleasant for annoying, skilful, young wingers, stand on the half way line for corners, and head the ball onto the running track – I often wonder if, and how, I could ever experience the feeling of performing a single act for which I would be given the credit for winning the match, and be hailed a hero by my fellow team-mates. Let’s be honest, it’s unlikely to ever be for scoring a screamer from 30 yards in the dying seconds or beating three men before rounding the keeper and sliding the ball home. Perhaps more likely would be taking the ball in the face from point blank range on the goal line, or boring the opposition into submission by making them sit through a slideshow of my recent band camp exploits. I never thought that when my moment came, leading to being greeted by a chorus of cheers on entering the changing room, that it would be for receiving a straight red!

I didn’t have much time to think as the LTD forward raced clear through the centre, and I darted across from my left back position, but what I did know was that I was the only one who could intervene to prevent him (and his team mate who was next in line) from becoming odds on favourites to potentially snatch at least two points from the Oaks. I also thought I might have a chance of making a clean tackle and winning the ball. Whilst the first thought was correct, the second was more wishful thinking, and as I slid in the ball was poked forward leaving just the player as the optional target. Having now been reminded what the first thought was, optional was erased, the target was hit and went crashing to the ground. The ball rolled harmlessly into Ty’s hands, and the whistle was blown.

Now the referee had shown himself capable on more than one occasion of getting the simplest decisions wrong, but not even he could fail to deduce that, as the last man who had prevented an obvious goal scoring opportunity, I had to go. I’ve never even been booked before, so Deano’s advice on how to receive your marching orders whilst keeping your dignity in tact was very welcome (although I did choose to keep my shirt on).

I must confess to feeling quite embarrassed at the reaction of my team mates and managers as, rather than the red card being seen as a punishment for serious foul play, it was hailed as a reward for a courageous act. Apparently I had “taken one for the team”.

Now obviously for this act to qualify under the “match winning” category still depended on the outcome of the subsequent free kick, and the courage and determination of the ten men who were left to fend off the advance LTD hordes. As it happened the free kick sailed harmlessly wide, and despite their best efforts LTD couldn’t find a way through to goal no matter how hard they tried. The Oaks actually managed to create some match clinching chances themselves, but although Nick showed a great touch and close control, the shoot button seemed to have been disabled.

The game ended like a scene from 300, with Rob literally throwing himself in front of the opposition to prevent a goal, and picking up a juicy shiner and cut lip for his efforts, and Aaron being sprawled on the floor clutching his tackle (I should add this was totally unrelated to Rob’s shiner). This was symbolic of the considerable effort all had put in to hold out for 20 minutes with 10 men, and came as an important reminder that it is always the team that wins the game.

Eye-Ball

Next match: Sunday 24th October away @ Lakeside v Rec Rovers – 1030 KO

Oaks Athletic 4 - 7 George and Dragon

ppppppppppppppppTy

ppDeanppppppMillyppppAlexppppAaron(Bass)

Keri(c)pppppMikeyBppppppGollumppppppJordan

ppppppppppppNickpppppppSharpy

Subs; Scott, Terry, Jimmy Not Used; Parker, Aaron, Ash

With last weeks thumping victory still fresh in our minds, the Oaks were confident of producing a good performance against a young and athletic George team. Unfortunately within the first minute Oaks yet again conceded an early goal. This goal was to be repeated 6 more times in similar fashion with the George attackers breaking the high Oaks offside trap and sadly left Ty exposed. That is all you need to know about them!

The Oaks managed to hit back from the early setback to actually take the lead themselves, although in reality this was as good as it got. These goals come courtesy of 2 close range strikes from the in form striking duo of Nick and Sharpy. George and Dragon come storming back into the game to regain and extend their lead either side of a cooly taken penalty from Nath which come about from a foul on himself. All this drama led to the crazy half time score of 6-3 to George and Dragon.

During half time Milesy took off left back Aaron and replaced him with new boy Terry and Van der Weed come off for Scott. The Oaks were in determined mood not to be embarrassed second half and went out and gave the George a tough game with some crunching tackles and a more high pressure approach. This change paid off and the Oaks kept the second half score 1-1. Our goal come from Jimmy who had replaced Sharpy and he produced a cool turn in the area and then swivelled round to fire the ball home to restore some Oaks pride and to cap a great half hour by the midfield maestro.

The Oaks can take some heart from the fact that we are still scoring and the goals are coming from all over the pitch. If we take this scoring form into future games i'm sure the wins will return. See you all next week and hopefully Eye-ball will return as trying to remember the details of this match was a nightmare!!

Parker.

Oaks Athletic 9 - 1 Kaktus

It’s probably easiest if I start by addressing Kaktus’ contribution to this match. Firstly they were gifted an undeserved lead as the Oaks kicked off, and whilst keeping possession the ball found itself at the feet of our ever reliable goalkeeper Ty. Possibly Kaktus’ first touch of the game then followed as Ty’s attempted clearance rebounded off the striker’s backside and rolled into the bottom corner: 0-1.

The opposition’s only other highlights were a first half shot that hit the post, and a second half effort which brought a good reaction stop from Ty. For the rest of the match they were mere spectators as the Oaks ran riot to record their first win of the season in emphatic style.

The man with the hardest job was manager Milesy, who had to choose a starting eleven from eighteen available players. The team he went with included two players, Nick and Mikey, who were making their league debuts for the Oaks with both having already impressed in pre-season and last week’s narrow Essex cup defeat.

ppppppppppppppTyrone (GK)

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


pKeri (RM) (c) Gollum (CM) Mikey (CM) Jordan (LM)

pppppppppppNick (CF) Sharpy (CF)

Subs: Jimmy, Alex, Parker, Aaron, Scott, Ashley, Aaron (2)

It would have been easy for heads to go down given we had gone behind so early, but last week’s strong performance against supposedly superior opposition had convinced most in the Oaks ranks that we have the squad to perform well in the league this year. As a result the Oaks were soon back into their stride and Kaktus were totally dominated all over the pitch. The familiar looking Oaks back four were playing well as a unit and mostly successfully playing the offside trap to nullify Kaktus’ hopeful ‘ball over the top’ strategy. The midfield – orchestrated by new man Mikey B – competed for every ball, and found space for each other to keep possession for long periods. Then upfront Sharpy, who is keen to regain his title as Oaks top scorer, was already showing a good understanding with big man Nick, with ‘big’ being an understatement! This pair are going to be a formidable partnership, and I’m just glad I’m not defending against them! Having said that, those who remember how Eye-Ball was born will remind me that being on the same side as Sharpy doesn’t mean you’re safe!

It wasn’t long until the Oaks were back on level terms when Mikey B showed good determination and skill to turn his man on the by-line and put in a low cross which was slid home by a combination of Sharpy and the defender. The dubious goals committee credited Sharpy with the goal, and I don’t think anyone would argue: 1-1.

The Oaks were now well into their stride, and took the lead when Eye-Ball slid in to win the ball on the half way line, with the ball finding its way to Sharpy. He then put Nick clear with a perfectly weighted through ball, and the big man showed he has good feet and a steady head as he rounded the keeper with ease to slot home for his first goal in Oaks colours: 2-1.

Not to be out done, the other league debutant was soon to cap a superb performance with the Oaks’ third goal. We’ve been trying to get Mikey to join the Oaks for a couple of seasons, and he is already showing that our persistence was well worth it. Mikey’s hunger for the ball and composure and strength whilst on it meant that he was at the heart of everything good that the Oaks did. Whether it was giving the defence an out ball to get play moving up the pitch, or linking up with the front men and wingers to set up goal scoring opportunities, you just couldn’t keep him out of the game. On this occasion he decided to go for goal himself, but whilst most thought Mikey’s sweetly struck - though not overly powerful - left footed shot from the edge of the area would be easily dealt with by the Kaktus keeper, the keeper was equally confident that the ball was going wide. The reality was that he actually politely let the ball pass him and into the corner of the net: 3-1.

They say that behind every great man there is a great woman. This may be true in the ideal world, but in reality great women are hard to come by. However, Gollum definitely does his bit for the Oaks, and his willingness to sit in front of the back four and anchor the midfield or drop into the defence gives others the licence to get into the box, and when the ball was only partially cleared following another Oaks attack red shirts were queueing up to score. As it happened, on this occasion the ball fell at Nick’s feet and he finished with aplomb from 8 yards: 4-1.

Such was the Oaks dominance that the half time team talk mostly turned into the meeting of the dubious goal committee, but Milesy did find the opportunity to remind us that complacency could be costly, and the last thing we wanted to do was give Kaktus any hope of a comeback. Just one change was made with Scott replacing Nick, which meant Jordan moving into the middle and Mikey moving into a familiar role upfront with Sharpy. It’s unfortunate that a recurring back problem prevented Scott from pursuing the career in the Army that he had worked so hard for, but their loss is definitely our gain and it was great to have him back following a short lay-off with a broken foot.

The introduction of Scott meant we now had natural width on both sides of the park, and when combined with the constant threat posed by skipper Keri on the right, the Kaktus full backs were having a torrid time. It was therefore no surprise that, when a partially cleared cross saw the ball bouncing at the edge of the area,the ball was subsequently flying into the top corner courtesy of the outside of the right boot of the newly named Rafael van der Weed: 5-1.

It’s worth drawing to your attention that the Oaks had now scored five goals without a corner or long throw in sight. Well, that was never going to last and we were soon treated to the familiar sight of Sharpy and Rob both attacking the ball from Keri’s corner, but thankfully they combined to steer the ball home, with Rob being credited with the final touch: 6-1

Not to be kept out of the action, Ty set up the Oaks 7th and Sharpy’s second, when his long clearance caught the Kaktus defence unawares, and Mikey left the ball for Sharpy to calmly lob over the keeper: 7-1.

Sharpy then secured his (slightly dubious) hat-trick, when the Kaktus keeper made a mess of another cross and Sharpy was on hand to force the ball over the line: 8-1.

There was still time for Deano (complete with suspected broken jaw) to open his tally for the season as he burst into the box, where he was fed by Keri and finished superbly with a side footed shot across the keeper. His obvious joy at scoring may have resulted in shooting jaw pains, but I suspect it was worth it: 9-1.

I shouldn’t finish without mentioning Ashley and Aaron(2) - who also made their debuts in the second half replacing Mikey and Sharpy. We also musn’t forget Parker, Aaron, Jimmy and Alex who didn’t get on this week. These lads are Oaks through and through and know that their loyalty doesn’t go unnoticed.

While I don’t want to spoil the celebrations of what was a superb performance, it is worth mentioning that Kaktus effectively finished 2nd bottom of the 3rd division last season with one win and a goal difference of minus 50. Promotion to league 2b seems unfair on them, and I do wish them all the best for the coming season. We’re going to come up against much tougher opposition – starting next week with George and Dragon – but that said, if we can consistently play with the same conviction and desire we showed in this match, we will be a match for anyone.

Eye-Ball

Next game: Sunday 9th October 1030 KO @ Blackshots (home) v George and Dragon

Oaks Athletic 2 -3 Prittlewell

pppppppppppppppppTy

ppDeanopppppppRobpppMillyppppppAaron

Nathan(c)ppppGollumpppppJordanpppppParker

ppppppppppMikey BpppppSharpy


The Oaks first competitive fixture of the season saw us have our usual first round defeat to a team from a higher league, who should not really be in our part of the Essex Cup. Today the lucky team was Prittlewell of Southend's first division.
Before the game we had to go through a Champions League style handshake before kick off. This was the closest we got to the opposition in the first couple of minutes! Prittlewell took advantage of the Oaks pacey left hand combo to go 1-0 up with barely a minute played! This gave us a chance to show our famous fighting spirit and Oaks only had to wait 20 minutes or so to draw level.
Jordan took the ball down 30 yards from goal and looped a stunning shot over the keeper into the onion bag. In fact the shot was so good that the first thought on most of our minds was, "did he mean it?" :O)

The oaks were now settled into the game and we appeared to be going in at half time all square. Unfortunately this was not to be the case. Ty conceded a penalty and the ref told Ty he thought the Prittlewell striker had dived! Work that one out! Anyway the spot kick was cooly dispatched, which to be fair was made more impressive by the fact that Gollum was virtually on the penalty spot by the time the striker struck the ball, such was his enthusiasm to be first to any rebound!

The second half bought many changes, the subs were Parker off for returnee Alex White at half time, Gollum for new boy Nick about 20 minutes later and Jimmy came on for Aaron shortly after this.
This meant that Alex slotted in at left back with Jimmy in front of him and MikeyB going into the middle with Nick up top.

The second half really sprung into life during injury time. Alex up on the edge of the area for an Oaks set play had the ball land perfect for a stunning goal from the famous ONE FAT LEG. In fact it was so good that we all thought...... You get the idea! With the ref looking nervously at his watch and the prospect of missing his afternoon game, he decided to let Prittlewell have one last attack. A throw to the edge of the box led to another Alex/Jordan style shot into the top corner and that was that for another Essex Cup run.

It was not the result we wanted, but if we play that well in the league, then surely we have got a chance this year?

Todays report was by Mr Parker, due to Eyeball being away blowing his own trumpet!

End of season round up

Better late than never...

The Oaks finished the 2009/10 season comfortably mid-table, but maybe a disappointing finish given our fine start to the season. However, the usual injuries and disappearance of key players means those who stood by the club should be proud of their contribution.

One sad note is the retirement of club captain Stuart Hand. He has been a great servant to the club, and we hope to see him at the pub at some point at the very least.

The end of season drinks was a well attended affair, and I vaguely remember that top goal scorer Nathan rightfully received the Player's Player of the year award, with Milly Swopping Milesy's Manager's player award. There is no doubt that both were thoroughly deserved, and we hope they both have another fantastic season in 10/11.

Eye-Ball

AFC Blackshots 6 - 0 Oaks Athletic

The season finished early for two of the Oaks players as we finished the match with 9 men, playing much of the match with 10. While the Oaks had nothing to play for in this game, Blackshots needed to grab the league title from Anchor Tilbury – who had turned up in force to make sure we gave it 100%. There was no denying that most of us preferred a particular outcome, especially with there being more than one family connection between the Oaks and the opposition. However, Steve put out a strong team, and resisted the temptation to play people out of position for the last game.

pppppppppppppppppppTyrone (GK)

ppppJimmy (RB) Milly (CB) Eye-Ball (CB) Deano (LB)

Jordan (RM) Gollum (CM) Stu (CM) (c) Rob (CM) Scott (LM)

ppppppppppppppppppppNathan (CF)

Subs: Aaron, Casey, Sharpy

The Oaks started well, and for the first 20 minutes were able to contain a determined Blackshots side, with a bit of help from the post and some good reactions from Ty, as a deep cross hit the far post and game back along the line for Ty to kick away. Blackshots finally got the lead they needed when the Oaks weren’t quick enough to close down the player in the box, who was able to shoot low past Ty: 1-0.

Blackshots were now well and truly on top, and soon extended their lead. As if things weren’t bad enough the Oaks then went down to ten men; Eye-ball successfully intercepted a low cross, but rather than clearing the ball up-field, only managed to slice it behind him at pace. Deano’s instinct took over, and he palmed the ball down thinking it was on root into the net. The referee took no sympathy (despite a number of Blackshots players showing commendable sportsmanship to try and convince the referee to not show a red card), and sent Deano off. The resulting penalty was converted: 3-0.

The referee was central to the match now, and seemed to take a real disliking to the Oaks, perhaps thinking the rowdy lager swigging Anchor fans were actually our supporters. He even managed to irate Eye-ball, as the competitive left-back was penalised for what was seen as a rash challenge when attempting to block a ball up the line. The rest of the match became a bit of a waste of time, as frequent bursts of the referee’s whistle added to the numerical disadvantage effectively ended the game as a contest. The Oaks continued to battle in vain, with the frustration becoming too much for Nathan who was sent off for telling the referee what we all really thought of him.

Eye-Ball

Oaks Athletic 2 – 1 Pegasus Coryton B (League game 19)

This was always going to be a different ball game to the previous week, with Pegasus having to adapt to playing on the Oaks much smaller pitch. As it was, this game was as close as the previous week but with the Oaks being the more likely team to take all three points.

An opener from Nathan, and late winner from Rob gave the Oaks a much deserved win. Unfortunately I wasn’t there, so can’t give the full lowdown but do know that special mention must be given to Ty; it’s not often that a goal keeper scores, and even rarer for this to be from within their own area. It’s just a shame that it was Pegasus’ keeper who scored. I’m sure Ty has plenty of excuses…

Eye-Ball

Goal scoring chart:

l

Pegasus B 1 - 1 Oaks Athletic (League game 18)

It is a shame the season will be finished after a further two games, as the Oaks built on the fine win in the last game to gain a hard fought point against a good Pegasus side. The trips to the Pegasus Club are always pleasant, with the well kept pitches, large changing rooms, warm showers and on site club house. The match itself lived up to these high standards, and was a really enjoyable 90 minutes. It must have been good to keep Milesy away from the club house, as he chose to stay and watch the following side step into battle:

pppppppppppppppppppTyrone (GK)

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


Casey (RM) Gollum (CM) Stu (CM) (c) Jordan (CM) Scott (LM)

ppppppppppppppppppppNathan (CF)

Subs: Aaron, Parker, Jimmy

The Oaks started well, and looked to make full use of the large pitch. With Casey providing pace on the right, and Scott adding some trickery on the left, Nathan was well supported and we looked like we could cause them trouble on the break. It was clear that Pegasus were keen to play nice football as well, and frequently looked to play intricate 1-2’s and defence splitting passes. However, the Oaks had enough pace at the back to deal with the through ball, and were able to frustrate the opposition by breaking up play in midfield.

The effort put in by the Oaks in the opening half hour was to be rewarded as Stu found space in the middle of the park to collect Eye-Ball’s throw in, and lift the ball first time over the defence where Nathan rose, with his back to goal, and headed the ball over the advancing keeping and into the back of the net: 0-1.

The Oaks were a crossbar width away from extending their lead before half time when Nathan once again rose to win the ball in the area, but his bullet header had everyone beaten but the woodwork.

Not content with just being the best player for the Oaks, Nathan also appeared to want to be the best player for the opposition, as he played a defence splitting pass that was up there with Eye-Ball’s recent efforts. Fortunately Milly and Eye-Ball were able to snuff out the danger, and the Oaks were able to hold onto their one goal advantage up to half time.

The effort put in by the Oaks in the first half on a much bigger pitch than they are used to looked to have taken its toll in the second half, as we struggled to keep possession, and were on the back foot for most of the 45 minutes. Still, we were resolute in defence with Deano in particular being colossal in the centre of defence having replaced the injured Milly.

On the first occasion that Pegasus did break through Ty was on hand to pull off a fine save with his legs and the danger was subsequently cleared. When the equaliser did eventually come there was nothing Ty could do, as a quick break following a corner for the Oaks had left us short at the back, and when the ball was played through to the striker the offside trap was finally beaten, and the number 10 was left with the simple task of slotting the ball home: 1-1.

With Gollum having his best game of the season in the defensive midfielder role, we continued to frustrate Pegasus, and were even able to create a couple of good chances to re-take the lead. The first saw Rob head goal wards from a corner, but unfortunately his effort went straight at the keeper.

When a ball behind the Pegasus defence left the Oaks with a two on one situation, for a split second spirits rose as the onlookers thought we had a great chance to snatch all three points. However, what we actually saw can only be compared to watching the Hairy Bikers attempting to run up the travelator after having eaten a full English (double bacon and black pudding). Parker actually had the edge on Aaron and the one chasing defender, but perhaps he thought he was being chased by Ulrika Johnson, as he decided to attack the defender rather than the ball and the chance was lost. Oh well, it was quite funny anyway.

Well played everyone, and enjoy the re-match.

Eye-Ball

Note: I only added two goals for Nathan for the last match rather than three, so have added two this time.

Lakeside0 - 3 Oaks Athletic (League game 17)

The Oaks bounced back from the disappointment of the double defeat the previous week to record their seventh win of the season in style.

I didn't play in this game so can't give a full lowdown, but for some reason Nathan was keen to fill me in on the major highlights (could it be because they all involve him scoring?).

The team was as follows:

pppppppppppppppppppppppTy (GK)

pDeano (RB) ppppppMilly (CB) pppppRob (CB) pppppParker (LB)

pCasey (RM) Jordan (CM) Stu (CM) (C) Gollum (CM) Scott (LM)

ppppppppppppppppppppppppNathan
Subs: Aaron, Jimmy

Nathan's first goal came following the breakdown of a Lakeside attack. The ball broke to Scott on the left who spotted Nathan's run and played the ball past the left back into his path. Nathan compared this run to watching Michael Owen, by which I assume he didn't mean it resulted in him dislocating his knee without another player in sight. On collecting the ball Nathan turned inside to beat the defender and let rip with a venomous shot which rendered the keeper helpless: 0-1.

There weren't any more goals in the first half, but Deano did confirm that he is actual Bill Oddie's love child, and the uncanny resemblance when he grows his beard isn't just a coincidence. On this occasion Nature Watch consisted of Bill Junior rescuing a worm (possibly a slow worm), and attempting to encourage cross species breeding between a flock of geese and some passing ducks.

The travelling fans had to wait until the second half for the Oaks to extend their lead, with Nathan leaving the keeper red faced as he latched onto a through ball and curled the it over the stranded keeper and into the net: 0-2.

The win was wrapped up when Casey showed fine skill to avoid two Lakeside players and took advantage of the high Lakeside defence and Nathan's superior pace to play in the in form striker, who fainted one way and then the other to once again bamboozle the goal keeper and finish into the empty net. This completed Nathan's hat trick, and means he has now scored 8 in the last 6 games, and 16 for the season. Who knows, with three games left to play he might even better Sharpy's total of 21 for last season: 0-3.

Congratulations to all involved in this fine performance, and thankfully we don't need to remember about the clocks going forward next week as we don't have a game.

Eye-Ball

Scoring chart

Anchor Tilbury 3 - 1 Oaks Athletic & Oaks Athletic 1 - 4 Anchor Tilbury (League games 15 & 16)

You'll have to excuse the briefness of this report, but recalling the events of this double header brings back the sort dark and disturbing images that I can only imagine would be comparable to waking up to find Parker laying naked next to you smoothered in strawberry flavoured Angel Delight.

To get that awful image out of your mind I will describe the one bright moment before breezing over the other 119 minutes and 50 seconds of misery. The Oaks kicked off, passed the ball around the midfield and worked the ball to Jordan on the edge of area. Weeeeed then unleashed a dipping shot which sailed over the keeper and into the net off the underside of the crossbar. Only 10 seconds had been player, the opposition hadn't touched the ball, and Jordan had scored one of the goals of the season. Those who think this story surely couldn't have a sad ending obviously haven't seen Bambi.

Although Anchor looked dangerous going forward, Eye-Ball still felt they needed some help and gifted them the equaliser by underhitting a backpass which was easily intercepted and worked into the goal. From here it was all down hill, and the first of the two matches was eventually lost 3-1.

The second match wasn't much better, but there was a glimmer of hope that The Oaks might grap a point when Nathan once again found the back of the net when he beat the keeper to the ball and headed over him and into the goal making the score 2-1. However, injuries to Kenny (t.y.) and Scott saw The Oaks reduced to nine men and they ended up losing 4-1.

It's not so much the two defeats that made this such a disappointing 120 minutes, but the manner of the defeats. We may well have played to our best and still lost both games, but as it was this was probably our worst performance of the season. Anchor's enthusiasm and desire to win seemed to intimidate us, and we just rolled over and let them dictate from start to finish. We lacked the hunger and commitment that you can't win a football match without and simply didn't function as a team. This might sound a little melodramatic - it is only the Thurrock Sunday League afterall - but this wasn't a fun experience and to think that we all paid for the privilege must make us some sort of masochists.

Whether we win, lose or draw we can still enjoy ourselves in the process if we can honestly say we have given 100% for each other and the team. Good luck for Sunday, and I hope you have fun.

Eye-Ball

I don't usually mention other results but I just wanted to congratulate my brother's team, Mustang (good team rubbish name), who beat Ockendon Motorspares 3-2 in the Ted Fairchild Cup last week. Apparently they didn't expect a 2nd division side to give them much trouble. That'll teach them.

Scoring chart:

Oaks Athletic 1 - 2 Rec Rovers and Rec Rovers 2 - 3 Oaks Athletic (League games 13 & 14)

The first double header of the season would have left most Oaks players with mixed feelings whilst they chewed on their Sunday roast. I think there would have been some disappointment that we hadn’t been able to replicate the display from two week previous, but also some encouragement from the fact that we rallied to win the second game and take a share of the points.

Milesy had the luxury of 16 players to choose from for this double header which, compared to the bare eleven for the opposition gave us an immediate advantage. The fact that it was a double header meant that everyone would have the opportunity to be involved, and Milesy showed his superb man management skills by ensuring every player got at least 60 minutes (equivalent to one game) on the pitch. For the first game he understandably started with the same eleven who performed so well against Belhus:

pppppppppppppppppppTyrone (GK)

ppppEye-Ball (RB) Milly (CB) Deano (CB) Parker (LB)


Jimmy (RM) Gollum (CM) Rob (CM) Jordan (CM) Scott (LM)


ppppppppppppppppppppNathan (CF) (c)

Subs: Kenny (the younger), Casey, Aaron, Stu, Landon

There must be something galvanising about the air at Belhus Park, as normal service was resumed at Blackshots with The Oaks being slow out of the blocks and struggling to make the passes count or settle into any sort of rhythm. The early pressure nearly all came from Rec Rovers, who took the lead midway through the first half when their forward struck a rasping shot following a corner. Ty did well to get his finger tips to it, but could not prevent the ball from nestling in the back of the net: 0-1.

Little improved in the first half, and by half time the Oaks were two nil down when the same striker who had put Rec Rovers in front evaded his marker on the by-line and put in a low cross that was neatly finished from 8 yards: 0-2.

No one would have been more frustrated at this first half performance than Milesy, who must have wondered how deploying the same tactics that had seen us win 4-1 in the last match now saw us 2-0 down inside 30 minutes. He made three changes for the second half with Casey, Aaron and Stu replacing Jimmy, Jordan and Gollum. We also reverted back to 4-4-2 with Scott moving up front to offer Nathan some much needed support.

The game definitely opened up in the second half, and the Oaks started to dominate possession and chances. With the exception of a fine one handed reaction save, and a bit of tom foolery in the penalty area, Ty had very little to do. However, we still struggled to create any clear cut chances in front of goal, and when the opportunity did arise to shoot hesitation and a lack of conviction meant these chances went begging.

The Oaks did finally get a goal with the final kick of the game, when a long throw in was scrambled over the line by a combination of Aaron and Rob. Although Rob thought he had the ball over the line before a goal was actually awarded, Aaron was credited with the decisive poke and with it his first goal of the season: 1-2.

After a ten minute break it was time to do it all again for the second of the double headers. Milesy changed the team around to make sure everyone got a fair go, and went with the following line up:

ppppppppppppppTyrone (GK)


Kenny (t. y.) (RB) Milly (CB) Deano (CB) Aaron (LB)


p Casey (RM) Jordan (CM) Stu (CM) (c) Scott (LM)


pppppppppppNathan (CF) Landon (CF)

Subs: Eye-Ball, Parker, Rob, Gollum, Jimmy

The Oaks starting eleven were definitely the fresher, with six having already played no more than 30 minutes. Add to this the fact that this was one of the most youthful sides the Oaks had fielded in some time (I won’t make any exceptions), and you would hope Rec would be made to work extremely hard to get anything out of the replay.

Those expecting a “however” moment will be disappointed, as the Oaks took full advantage of their extra energy, and started to find time and space on the ball that had eluded them in the first match. This meant they grew in confidence and finally started playing some really nice passing football. This game also saw the first start in at least 3 years for our very own American export, and it seemed his time on the other side of the pond playing ‘soccer’ had done some good as his touch, hold up play and awareness frequently brought others into the game and meant we posed a much greater threat in attack.

In a complete reversal of the previous match it was the Oaks turn to take the lead, as Nathan pealed off his marker to race on to a ball over the top and hit a cracking trademark volley across the keeper and into the far corner of the net. Nathan’s finishing has improved remarkably this season, and from my position running the line I had a perfect view of this sublime finish: 0-1

With Nathan and Landon linking up with the wide men the Oaks were getting a lot of joy down the channels, as Rec Rovers appeared to have run out of steam. It wasn’t long before The Oaks extended their lead with Nathan once again breaking away down the right and into the box. Landon had got himself into a good position in the box, but wasn’t needed in the end as Nathan’s attempted pass hit a divot which redirected it into the bottom corner: 0-2.

It is worth mentioning that, whilst Nathan was grabbing all the headlines, Milly was having a superb match at the other end of the field, which meant Rec’s one attacking threat was completely neutralised. It seems sleepless nights and dirty nappies are the perfect preparation for the job of defending on a cold Sunday morning. Thanks to Milly and the overall team performance, Rec looked dead and buried. However (there had to be one), they were handed the footballing equivalent of 10 litres of Red-Bull when a goal was bundled in through a sea of bodies in the Oaks area. All involved were convinced an offside decision should have been given, but when the ref consulted the linesman (aka Parker) he had to admit that he had been distracted by the pink elephants jumping hurdles on the adjacent running track: 1-2.

With a comfortable 3 points now looking like it could become a disappointing 1 (or worse) some managers may have been reluctant to make wholesale changes, but Milesy kept with his plan to rotate the team and give everyone a game. To this end Jimmy, Gollum and Rob came on for the second half to replace Aaron, Deano and Milly. The Oaks looked the stronger team again in the second half, and extended their lead when a fine cross from Landon would have fallen invitingly for Nathan if it hadn’t been for the intervening defender. Unfortunately he was more determined to upstage Nathan’s finishing rather than clearing the ball and headed the ball into the top corner: 1-3.

The remainder of the game was all about missed chances and final nervous moments. The stand out chances to put the game out of reach fell to Landon and Casey twice. Firstly Landon took up a great position in the penalty area to meet a cross from Casey, but perhaps forgot which way he was shooting as the powerful header we expected turned into a lame back pass. Space was starting to opening up in abundance, and twice Casey took advantage of this to latch onto cross field balls and create goal scoring opportunities. The first time he turned inside onto his favoured left foot and, with only the keeper to beat chose power over placement but came closer to breaking a window in one of the flats than the net. The second time Casey chose to stay on his right, but unfortunately the end result was very similar.



The nerves came in the last five minutes when the ball was threaded through to the Rec Rovers’ striker, who turned his man and slotted home: 2-3. As if things couldn’t get any worse, with 53 seconds remaining Rec won a throw in a dangerous position, which consequently turned to a corner. Fortunately this came to nothing, and The Oaks were able to run down the clock and secure the win: 2-3.

It was really encouraging to see so many players turn up for the Oaks this week, especially when other teams seem to be struggling for numbers at the moment. Hopefully everyone enjoyed the matches and with another double header next week our enthusiasm and commitment will be doubly important.

Eye-Ball


Next Match: Sunday 14th March AWAY @ Blackshots v Anchor (double header) 11:00 K.O.

Belhus Park Athletic 1 - 4 Oaks Athletic (League Game 12)

The Oaks returned to winning ways on Sunday in emphatic style, with a 4-1 victory over bottom club Belhus Park Athletic. Amazingly this was our first win since November, and came off the back of our two heaviest defeats of the season (losing 7-2 twice to Stanford). The awful weather and boggy conditions could do little to dampen the spirits of those in the red and black, and I’m sure everyone would agree that this is the most fun we’ve had on the football field for a while.

Perhaps the improved performance and result can be partly attributed to Milesy’s astute tactical decision to move Rob up into a five man midfield and play Nathan as a sole striker:

pppppppppppppppppppTyrone (GK)

ppppEye-Ball (RB) Milly (CB) Deano (CB) Parker (LB)

Jimmy (RM) Gollum (CM) Rob (CM) Jordan (CM) Scott (LM)

ppppppppppppppppppppNathan (CF) (c)
Subs: Aaron

The extended warm up granted to the Oaks thanks to Belhus’ lack of enthusiasm for putting up the posts, and the ref’s evident reluctance to take off his track suit, seemed to be exactly what we needed. For the first time in ages we were actually quick out of the blocks, and looked the far better side in the opening exchanges.

The two previous thrashings had obviously been character building experiences, as you could almost taste the determination from all on the team to hand out our own blend of humiliation to a team who were evidently inferior to Stanford Wanderers, and seemed prepared to give us as much time on the ball as we wanted. The Oaks seemed to have found their voice, and were always quick to offer the man on the ball an outlet. As a result we were retaining possession much more successfully than in previous weeks, and suddenly the game looked easy.

Belhus really didn't look like they had much to offer, and apart from giving them a couple of half sniffs thanks to Ty being even more cocky than usual in his penalty area, the Oaks were totally dominant.

It wasn't a surprise that it was the Oaks who took the lead, but it was still a big relief to see Nathan latch on to a ball through the middle, out muscle the two centre backs, and round the keeper to score: 0-1.

The confidence surging through the Oaks ranks grew and grew as the half went on, and the fluidity of the midfield, with players overlapping and moving into the space, left Belhus chasing shadows. Some might have feared that Nathan would have found himself isolated upfront, but the Oaks played a high line; compressing the play and meaning that there was never much of a gap between Nathan and at least one of Gollum, Jordan and Rob. In fact, even the forward position seemed interchangeable, with Nathan often dropping deep to get involved in play and Gollum letting his natural strikers' instinct take over. On one such occasion he found himself through on goal, but seem to run backwards and was unable to get a shot away.

Despite our dominance, one goal was never going to be enough, and when the second goal arrived it was thanks to some real quality from Scott and Jordan down the left. The acorns of the Oaks side (Aaron's more like the pod from which the acorn grows) linked up well before Scott found space and crossed low across the box where the on-rushing Rob wrapped a left foot round the ball and divert it beyond the keeper: 0-2.

When stand-in skipper Nathan beat the offside trap and rounded the keeper, many would have thought he had wasted a great opportunity to extend the Oaks lead even further by running the ball too wide; however, he underlined his quality by finishing superbly from a tight angle for his second of the game and eleventh of the season: 0-3.

The score line could have looked even more lopsided before half time, especially given Rob's dominance in the air. Belhus really couldn't get close to him, and every corner or long throw looked like it was going to end up in the back of the net. It wasn't just Rob who was looking to take advantage from the set pieces, with Deano volleying home from one of many fine deliveries from Scott. Unfortunately the ref had already blown his whistle to sort out pushing by the Belhus keeper on our player; which was one of his many strange decisions.

So the half finished with the score at 3-0 to the Oaks, and we were able to truly enjoy Milesy's sunny disposition for 10 minutes.

It was hardly surprising that the second half didn't quite live up to the first, with the pitch - which was becoming more and more of a bog - being a contributing factor to this. Some of the intensity from the first half was lost, and Belhus were even given a sniff of hope when, following an Oaks corner, the substitue striker held off Milly and finsihed well passed Ty (who still hadn't made a save). The substitute striker continued to cause the Oaks problems, and it is a mystery why he didn't play from the outset: 1-3.

The next quarter of an hour was a nervy period, as we knew that another goal for Belhus would give them a real boost and could lead to the unimaginable happening. We continued to create chances, and Nathan had two very good opportunities to get his hat-trick. The first time he was felled on-route to goal, for what we thought was a penalty. However, the referee decided to defer the decision to the obviously impartial Belhus linesman (insert sarcastic tone), who said the foul had been outside the area. Rather than argue, the Oaks just got on with it and Scott came narrowly close to extending the lead. Nathan's other chance to get his hat-trick - a rasping shot from just inside the area - was deflected wide by the keeper's face.

The game was settled when Rob's dominance in the air finally paid off, with Scott's pin point corner being powerfully headed home: job done: 1-4.

They say everyday you learn something new, and The Oaks players never cease to provide a source of education. This Sunday I learned that "a weed" is not only a nuisance plant, an 80's indie band, and a weak man. It also refers to the flying, heading shy younger brother of the Oaks goalkeeper whose challenge left the opposition captain spitting expletives and was greeted by shout of "you've been done by a weed!"

This was a really enjoyable game, which will hopefully dispell the doubts about whether we still had something to offer in this league. It's just a shame that we don't have a game next week, but don't forget what this felt like, which should be all the encouragement we need for the rest of the season.

Eye-Ball

Oaks Athletic 2 - 7 Stanford Wanderers (League game 11)

Those professional ‘spot the difference’ exponents will notice the one glaringly obvious difference between the last week’s and this week’s match report: this week the Oaks appear first in the score line. In actual fact the amateur players amongst you will notice that the two reports are completely different; it was suggested that I just copy and paste last week’s report – but I wouldn’t sell you short like that!

The one positive at the end of another ninety minutes of woe was that it will be at least another 5000 hours before we have to even contemplate playing Stanford Wanderers again, or listening to their incessant whining. Thanks to Sharpy’s curiosity we at least got to see how they would react if someone really gave them a kick – I think hissy fit pretty much sums it up.

Once again we were completely outplayed over the 90 minutes, but it was a better performance than last week overall, with just our inability to deal with deliveries from set pieces being the major problem. With the ball over the top being our biggest concern from last week Milesy went for a tactical change; packing the centre of the park, and deploying a sweeper:

ppppppppppppppppppTy (GK)

pppppppppppppppppMilly(SW)

pppppppppppppRob (CB) Eye-Ball (CB)
ppDeano (RWB)ppppppppppppppppppppppp Scott (LWB)

ppppppppppJordan (CM) Stu (CM) (c) Jimmy (LM)

pppppppppppNathan (CF) Gollum (CF)

Subs: Sharpy, Aaron, Parker

The new formation seemed to be working OK to start with. We were definitely a lot more competitive in midfield and the route through the middle of the field was well a truly blocked. The problem is that Stanford play a very fluid formation, and simply moved their play to the flanks, where space had naturally developed. Scott and Deano worked tirelessly up and down the wings, but invariably found themselves overrun.

It was a break down the flank that led to the first goal for Stanford. Ty intercepted the initial low cross from the by-line, sending the ball high into the air. The ball wasn’t dealt with before coming back to earth and fell invitingly for a Stanford player to poke home: 0-1.

The next goal was the first of many to result from a cross or set piece; whilst Eye-Ball stayed with his man he was beaten to the ball at the edge of the six yard box and the Stanford player’s well directed header was pretty much unstoppable: 0-2.

The third and fourth goals followed in quick succession; both as a result of exploiting the space on the left hand flank. First the ball was played across the middle, and into the path of the on-rushing fullback, who was tracked all the way by Scott, but could not be prevented from crossing low to the back post to be bravely met the onrushing Stanford player. Next the same player who had supplied the cross found himself unmarked in the box and finished well across Ty: 0-4.

We obviously hadn’t adapted as well to the new formation as Milesy had hoped, and so reverted back to the more familiar 4-4-2. This seemed to help stabilise the team, and we even managed to pull a goal back before half-time when Robbie beat Scott, Deano and all the opposition to the loose ball, following a Nathan long throw, to poke home his second goal of the season: 1-4.

The half time team talk was pretty straight forward: get your heads up and keep trying to play football. Sharpy came on for the second half for what will be his last appearance for this season at least. He is finally going in for the op that he has been putting off for some time, and he showed glimpses of why he will be sorely missed. His desire for the ball, and determination to win the ball and bring others into play made us a much more dangerous threat. Best of luck from all at The Oaks Sharpy, and hopefully you’ll make a speedy recovery.

Despite improving in most areas we still managed to concede a further three goals in the second half. Again it was set pieces and deliveries into the box that caused the problem; one goal was exceptionally unlucky, and Milly’s attempt to clear a cross resulted in the ball looping off the outside of his boot and into the back of the net. The pattern continued as a Stanford player found himself unmarked at the front post and headed home with ease from a corner.

It is not unusual for memories of frightening or unpleasant events to be repressed as part of the coping mechanism. The fact that I can’t remember the 7th goal is evidence of this. My guess is that it came as a result of another corner.

Just like last week we had a perfectly good goal ruled offside. This time it was Deano who ran from deep to collect the ball and finish with aplomb. Unfortunately, the linesman didn’t think he had run from deep enough and raised his flag. Again, just like last week Nathan scored a goal that was far above the standard of the rest of our performance. When the ball fell to him in the box, he fired an unstoppable shot past the helpless goal keeper. In doing so Nathan became The Oaks top scorer for the season with nine goals, overtaking Sharpy. With Sharpy now out of action we are going to be relying on Nathan much more heavily for goals over the rest of the season. When you consider that between the two of them they have scored over half of our goals, and the next closest active scorers are Deano and Rob with two a piece, you have some idea of the problem: 2-7.

Let’s hope this is the end of a unhappy period in The Oaks season, and lets try extra hard to restore some pride over the upcoming games.

Eye-Ball

Next game: Sunday 21st February, away @ Belhus Park

Stanford Wanderers 7 - 2 Oaks Athletic (League Game 10)

The Oaks are gaining a reputation for being slow starters, and were finally punished for this by a good Stanford Wanderers side who hade the game won by half time. In the first half they were superior in every department, and caused The Oaks problems with whichever route to goal they chose.

In the time it takes to cook store bought spaghetti (approximately 10 minutes) the Oaks were already two down. Firstly, a corner wasn’t adequately dealt with, and a simple prod was all that was required to give Stanford the lead, and then a straight forward ball in behind the back four caught us napping and the striker ran on to score: 2-0.

The referee could obviously see that something wasn’t right, and decided that a pitch that didn’t resemble mud soup would be more conducive to a properly contest game of football. The move to mud soup with a dash of seasoning (more commonly known as grass) did little to address the imbalance in performance, and Stanford scored three more goals in quick succession. One from a cross to the unmarked forward, a rare misjudgement from Ty (who probably underestimated the difficulty of rushing off your line whilst standing in quicksand), and a one-two with the cross bar from a corner: 5-0.

Although the score line and the performance were far from satisfactory, it is worth mentioning that The Oaks were in this as a team, took collective responsibility and continued to support and encourage each other. Things did improve slightly towards half time and we even managed to pull a goal back with a little help from their goalkeeper. In an incredible act of kindness he chose to palm Scott’s excellent corner into the net whilst being put under pressure by Deano: 5-1.

Although it has already happened once this season (a 6-2 defeat to Blackshots in the cup), a thrashing for the Oaks is about as rare as all of the following:

- Sharpy going a whole match without whinging;

- Parker changing his underwear;

- Deano wearing a coat;

- Gollum winning a header;

- Seeing one of Bill or Al without the other;

- Eye-Ball scoring;

- Aaron walking anywhere.

Therefore we were keen to put in a better performance in the second half; we only had pride to play for, but pride is important. Things did improve in the second half, with Parker being introduce to sure up the defence (yes, things were that bad!), and Nathan and Gollum linking up well up front. Although the ball in behind still seemed to cause us no end of problems Stanford actually started to miss chances, and Ty pulled off some fine saves to redeem for his earlier mistake.

Despite the improvements the next two goals still went Stanford’s way, but this time both had to be put down to bad luck. Deano and Ty agreed in principal on undertaking a back pass procedure, but hadn’t quite factored in the slow pitch and the proximity of the Stanford forward. Ty got to the ball first, but his attempted clearance ricocheted of the forward and into the bottom corner. The seventh goal was due to another assist by Eye-Ball (see Oaks v Legend). This time what appeared at first as a good intercepting sliding tackle – of which the main objective was to regain possession – turned into the sort of defence splitting pass that Kaka or Cesc Fabregas would be proud of. The Stanford striker duly accepted the plated delights and ran through to score: 7-1.

There were a few bright moments for the Oaks to take away from this game; including Eye-ball managing a shot on target (as if things couldn’t get any crazier!), but the keeper managed to tip the ball over as it was dipping under the crossbar, and we even managed to score a proper goal. Scott broke down the left, and his cross into the box found Deano who had advance into the penalty area (defending was pretty pointless by this point). With a man between him and the goal he unselfishly pulled the ball back for Nathan to score a well deserved goal: 7-2

Having already had a goal unfairly disallowed for off-side it would have been a travesty for Nathan not to come away with at least one goal to his name. He was by far and away our best performer, and although we take collective responsibility for the defeat our vice captain couldn’t have given any more.

As individuals we might not be the best players in the league, but The Oaks strengths have always been high intensity and dogged determination. This seems to have been lost over the last few weeks, and perhaps this result was the wake-up call we need. We’ve lost a few influential players - including Sharpy who is finally having his much needed operation (good luck mate) – and that means none of us can rely on others to put in the extra yards or create the chances. If we all give 100% and play to our full potential the results still might not always be what we want, but I guarantee we’ll enjoy the experience.

Eye-Ball

The team:
ppppppppppppppTyrone (GK)

ppDeano (RB) Milly (CB) Rob (CB) Aaron (LB)

pJordan (RM) Eye-Ball (CM) Stu (CM) (c) Scott (LM)

pppppppppppGollum (CF) Nathan (CF)

Subs: Jimmy, Parker

Next Match: Sunday 14th February @ Home v Stanford Wanderers