With another great turnout Milesy had plenty of options again, and with Harry available was able to revert back to his preferred 4-4-2 without having to play anyone out of position:
ppppppppppppppppTy
Deano (c)ppppppRobppppMillyppppEye-Ball
BunnyppppMikey BpppppTapsellppppppJoe
ppppppppppNickppppHarry
subs: Parker, Steve, Whiley, Luke, Al, Gollum, Nathan
Watchers: Sharpy, Ryan
New player introduction: Steve Browne
Known as:Brownie
Best attributes: A marauding full-back whose low centre of gravity, combined with a good turn of pace, make him ideal for exploiting the space that inevitably appears between full backs and wingers in Sunday League football.
When not playing football you'll find him: enjoying a glass/bottle/beaker (or whatever else he can lay his hands on) of beer and perfecting his slip-stich technique (he does knit a lovely hat).
Before we get into the details of the game, it is worth giving a brief weather report. It was a clear, mild day, but most importantly there was a strong breeze blowing from one end of the pitch towards the flats at the other end. This was to give the team playing into the wind an immediate advantage, as clearances from one end would fly all the way into the last third whereas from the other end the defending side would struggle to get the ball past the half way line.
In the first half the Oaks were kicking into the wind, but seemed to be coping OK with the conditions to start with. The first chance of the game even fell to one of our players, and when Rob placed his shot into the bottom corner Tyrone did well to get down and tip the ball around the post (no typos there honestly).
Title for most relieved man on the pitch goes to: Mr Robin Lawrence
It was from corners that Thameside looked most dangerous, as with the help of the wind they were able to swing the ball right into the heart of the six yard box. The Oaks didn't help themselves by giving away far to many avoidable corners, mainly through miskicks and indecision for which the wind can only be partly to blame for. As it happened we defended these corners well (with a bit of luck as well as Thameside hit the post on at least one occasion), and should take some credit for not conceding via this avenue.
It was totally against the run of play that the Oaks went behind when Bunny committed a foul just inside the opposition half (let's call it 50 yards from goal for arguments sake). Bunny's tackle hadn't made him any friends from the opposition side, but all was soon forgiven as their skipper over hit a long ball into the box that sailed over Ty's head and into the roof of the net. Deceived by the flight of the ball (which initially seemed to be sailing well over), Ty didn't even move and it took a while for us all to realise that the ball had indeed gone in and we were 1-0 down.
In the past heads might have dropped at this point, but we knew that we had the beating of Thameside and were playing some really nice football. One particular move that stood out was a passing exchange that saw Mikey play the ball on to Nick, who immediately layed it off to Mikey who had continued his run towards the area. Mikey then passed it to Tapsell who spread the play to Joe on the left. It was unfortunate that this move came to nothing as we could have been looking at an early contender for goal of the season (an award that doesn't even exist by the way).
It wasn't long before our class finally shone through as Tapsell once again linked up with Harry to create a fine opening that was finished in style. On this occasion Tapsell actually used the head wind to his advantage as a firmly struck through ball (is it triangle in Fifa Harry?) held up perfectly for Harry to run in behind the defender, across and around the stranded keeper and to slot the ball expertly into the empty net: 1-1.
Title for most relieved man on the pitch now passes to: Mr Tyrone Owen
**INTERLUDE**
On the 16 August 1977 Elvis Presley was found dead on the toilet (conspiracy theorists still claim the fact Parker was seen leaving the bathroom shortly before Elvis entered can't be a coincidence). On 23 February 20 million viewers watched "Dirty" Den Watts get shot and fall into the canal (supposedly to his death). In 1991 Harold Bishop mysteriously disappears, with nothing but his glasses being found on the edge of a cliff. And on the 16 April 2011 Eye-Ball Paul wrote a touch obituary to the Oaks late inspirational captain Nathan Kerin.
http://oaksathletic.blogspot.com/2011/04/oaks-athletic-5-0-laird-athletic.html"
One thing all these men have in common is that they all have attempted to make a comeback in recent years (I believe you can see Elvis at the Indian Restaurant in Billericay in a few weeks time), but for three of the four these have proven to be relatively unsuccessful. After being given the all clear to return to playing football (although with the obvious warning to not over do it), Nathan returned to the Oaks fold this week, and on coming on for the injured Bunny (one of our new stars) he made an instant impact, and there is no doubt that his presence and determination galvanised the team.
**END OF INTERLUDE**
For Nathan to grab the headlines on his return, someone needed to give him, and the rest of the team, a reason to display their grit, determination and team spirit. Step forward Eye-Ball. The miskicks and slices that plagued the first half have already been mentioned, and Eye-Ball was by far and away the worst afflicted. The way he was playing in the first half he would have struggled to kick Sharpy if you'd tied him to a lamppost by his ear hair. Having already had Harry to thank for tackling back when possession had been given away perilously close to our own area, there was no-one to save him when a descending, spinning ball completely bamboozled him (think Mike Gatting and Shane Warne), leaving the Thameside winger to run clear through on goal and finish neatly over Ty's head to give Thameside another undeserved lead: 1-2.
Although I wanted the ground to swallow me up, the words of support and encouragement from around the team were much appreciated, and showed to me what a great bunch of lads we have assembled at the club. Now they just had to dig deep to get Eye-Ball out of jail and win the three points they deserved.
Although no goal came before half-time, the signs were good and there seemed to be plenty of confidence that, with the wind on our side in the second half the deficit could be overturned.
The chances were to come thick and fast in the second half, and there is no way I can remember all of them. If there is anything I miss that you would like mentioned (this week and every other week) just leave a comment and I'll add any additions/corrections. With Harry's pace upfront to exploit the wind, Nathan charging down the right hand side and Tapsell and Mikey now controlling the midfield the Thameside goal was now under siege. Add to this the added bonus of Nathan's trademark long throw (yes lads, get on the BACK post) - which must now only be used one most needed - it is amazing that the score was still 1-2 after 20 minutes of the second half.
Particularly good efforts that came to nothing included a rasping shot from Harry on the left hand side of the box, a towering header from Tapsell following a cross from Nathan that he couldn't quite direct on target, and a header from Mikey following a corner that hit the woodwork. There was even a moment of controversy as Robin's initial header from Nathan's throw was palmed up by the keeper only for the assistant referee's flag to be raised as Robin and Harry combined to put the ball in the net. Although Harry would have been offside from Robin's initial header (neither would have been offside from the throw-in) should the goal have stood if Robin got the final touch on the rebound? You could debate interference and "being active" until the cows come home, but at the end of the day we just had to go again.
We even had the odd scare, and both Eye-Ball and Ty went some way to making up for their early errors with interventions that kept the score at 2-1. Eye-Ball chased back to make a well timed sliding challenge in the area (although Deano rightly pointed out that it was his man who had been allowed to temporarily escape), and Ty closed the angle well to make a good save after the Thameside substitute had slipped in behind our back four.
By this point we were throwing absolutely everything at Thameside, and with Brownie now on and charging down the left wing (he'd originally been put on at left back but Milesy soon realised his switch was cranked to full attack mode, so pushed Eye-Ball back to full back) and Mikey and Tapsell getting further forward surely our luck had to turn sooner or later.
Nathan has always been a big fan of the goal scoring chart, and now that assists are also being recorded he would have been very happy to make his first notch. His through ball was initially meant for Deano (who had selflessly offered his cherished captain's armband to Nathan earlier in the half), but was latch on to by Tapsell who charged into the area and sent a screaming volley past the keeper and into the roof of the net: 2-2.
New holder of the most relieved man on the pitch award: Mr Eye-Ball
Thameside were now playing like they had already lost, and despite their best efforts to hold up proceeding with an array of confusing substitutions and re-organisations that at one point saw them with only ten players on the pitch for a good five minutes, there was still plenty of time to grab a winner. In fact we went one better and got another two inside the last 15 minutes.
The Oaks were now committing more and more players forward, and when Nathan broke down the right to the bye-line he had plenty of men to pick out in the middle. He opted for the biggest one, and Nick gratefully accepted the inch perfect low cross that left him with the simplest of tap-ins and earn him his third goal of the season: 3-2.
The scoring/assist chart only made its first appearance last week, and it has definitely made a big impression on Tapsell who seemed desperate to add to the one goal and 3 assists that he already had to his name. I won't ask if he collects notches, but he soon got another one as reward for the frequent lung bursting runs he was making into the box in the last 10 minutes. On this occasion it was another assit for Nathan who's long throw once again struck, with Tapsell beating the keeper to head home from 6 yards: 4-2.
I'm not sure any of us wanted this game to end, but all good things must. We're going to come up against tougher opposition but hopefully we can continue to play with the same determination and team spirit regardless of the opposition and the state of the game.
Interestingly our opponents next week - Pegasus - had lost 3 out of 3 before this week, when they beat the only other unbeaten side other than the oaks (Beauchamps - 4 wins out of 4 before this week) by two goals to one. This just shows what an open league we are in, and why we should be pushing ourselves to be up near the top of the table come the end of the season.
Eye-Ball
Next game: Sunday 30th October: Away @ Pegasus Club v Pegasus Coryton: 9:45 meet.
P.S. Don't forget that the clocks go BACK saturday night.
Goals an assists:
3 comments:
so missed these wright ups paul lol, just one thing how can taps have played 5 times and everyone else 4? did he play a match on his own?
oh and loveing the assists part about time
Does setting up the other team count? Notch one for yourself eyeball! :o)
I'm glad you're enjoying the reports (and that some people are actually reading them).
To answer your questions:
1. (Nathan I assume?) It would seem unusual to have one player who has played more than anyone else. However, we've played 5 games (3 league and 2 cup) and I believe Taps is the only player to have played in every one (4 starts and one appearance as a second half sub). Such is the strength of the Oaks squad.
Obviously turning up is just as important as actually getting on the pitch and there are plenty who have been at all five matches.
2. (Tapsell?) Own goals are recorded on the scoring chart (against "Own Goals" rather than an individual) and tend to out perform most of us come the end of the season.
Although the idea of negative assists is an interesting one, I think we'll stick to the positive actions rather than risk upsetting anyone (would probably give strikers and those who don't track back an even bigger unfair advantage than they already have when it comes to notching goals).
Post a Comment