Wheatleys 0 - 4 Oaks Athletic (Essex Junior Cup 2nd Round)

This is a game that would have left statos scratching their heads, as there is no way you could have arrived at a 4-0 win to the Oaks based on possession and territory. The Oaks were below par with the ball, and although conditions could be used as an excuse (if it hadn't been so muddy the ball would have easily rolled unassisted from one end of the pitch to the other), the truth is that our opponents were far superior, on the day, with the ball at feet. The difference was that the Oaks were colossal in defence, and took their chances - when they arrived - to exploit the frailties of Wheatley's immobile keeper. If reaching the second round of the Essex Junior Cup is a novelty, reaching the third round (and last 32) is possibly a first, and just adds a little more gloss to what has been a truly remarkable run.

Once Eye-Ball had safely lead the troops to Eastwood Park, Milesy named his starting eleven, and demonstrated his man management skills by conforming to the cup rules of allocating numbers based on positions without upsetting any of the more sensitive members of the squad. We were all pleased (Scott and Dale were over the moon) to welcome Connor, who had already impressed in a pre-season friendly, and was now making his full debut in goal having signed for an undisclosed fee during the week. A familiar face also returned to the subs bench, as Parker made a welcome return.

ppppppppppppppppConnor

Eye-BallppppppRobppppNikippppDeano (c)

NathanppppppBunnypppppTapsellppppppScott

ppppppppppppRyanppppDale

subs: Parker, Milly, Al, Browne, Harry

The contour of the pitch was not the only thing making it an up hill struggle for the Oaks in the first half, as they failed to keep hold of the ball and were camped in their own half for most of the opening half an hour. Still, this gave Connor the opportunity to show us what a fine young keeper he is. Although picking up a back pass, in order to have to make a fine save from six yards, is going a bit far. As well as showing great handling and agility, Connor's booming kicks were the main route out of our own half in the opening exchanges. Despite their dominance, Wheatleys were finding the Oaks to be a hard nut to crack and they couldn't make the break-through.

Probably the Oaks biggest strength is that they have so many weapons in their goal-scoring arsenal, and for every loaded gun there is a skilled marksman to pull the trigger: Nathan and Rob combining from throw-ins; Tapsell burying Ryan's fantastic deliveries; H's runs in behind the defence that are so expertly picked out by any number of our midfielders. Now with Dale in the squad, we've added our very own loose cannon to the mix. He may appear pretty harmless, but without any warning he can go off to devastating effect. To translate, I'm referring to his ability to make something out of nothing, which he very nearly did in this game when he volleyed a cross from the edge of the area that I can confirm was goal bound before giving some unfortunate defender mild concussion.

It may well have been from the resulting corner that the Oaks took the lead. Maybe Tapsell is losing some of his fiery glow, as despite the insensitive cries of, "Pick up the Ginger", nobody did, and he was left to head home Ryan's corner at the back post (de ja vu or what!). The number of goals Tapsell scores in this way is simply ridiculous: that's four so far already this season, and long may it continue: 0-1.

Nick may have found it hard to cement his place in the Oaks side, but nobody could argue his position as the number one spot kick exponent, with Sharpy being his self appointed deputy. I don't think we have actually discussed who would take penalties now that these options are unavailable, but Scott bravely stepped up when a penalty was awarded to the Oaks. I have to admit I have no idea what for, but I believe Bunny may have been infringed. Scott probably wishes we'd all missed his attempt from 12 yards, which was dragged wide, but all his team mates encouraged him to keep his head up as we still had a lead to defend.

The beauty of the Essex Cup this year is that they are trialling the idea of 5 rolling subs, which is great for a big squad like the Oaks. Steve made his first change at half time when he replaced Ryan with H. You can't knock the enthusiasm of youth, but perhaps Milesy needs to give more careful instructions to these impressionable souls. With the Oaks now attacking down the slope, shooting from distance could be a good tactic, although having a pop direct from the kick-off probably wasn't what he had in mind. To give H some credit, his effort was well weighted but lack direction.

It took a while for the Oaks to extend their lead, again against the run of play. With Dale on the pitch you never know what might happened, and he caught Wheatleys' number 1 off guard as he made room for a shot inside the area and fired low under the keeper's body: 0-2.

With Wheatleys continuing to dominate possession, this second goal must have felt like saving up all your pocket money for a year, to then find the toy shop has sold the last Power Ranger toy to the spoilt brat in front of you in the queue (we do have a lot of youngsters in the squad now, so I'm trying to keep the references relevant). If that wasn't bad enough, Dale then preceded to taunt the opposition with the aforementioned Power Ranger as he collected a pass from Tapsell and fired it high over the keeper's head and into the net from 25 yards: 0-3.

Despite not being overly bothered whether or not we won this game, I think Milesy had held off making too many changes up to this point more from a fear of extra time keeping him out in the cold for longer than was necessary. This third goal therefore gave him the breathing space to make wholesale changes, with Parker, Milly, Browne, Al and Ryan all making second half appearances while Eye-Ball, Niki, Deano, Bunny, Tapsell and Scott all spent some time watching from the sidelines.


Milesy considers drastic measures to avoid extra time

I imagine this game wasn't that enjoyable for Harry, as much like the first half the defenders were seeing a lot more of the ball than he was. However, he worked his socks off to give us an outlet, and despite not getting a goal for his hard work, I've accepted the petition for him to be credited with an assist for the part he played in the fourth and final Oaks goal.

The Oaks played some good football to move the ball out of the defence down the left, and Ryan picked up the ball some 40 yards from goal out on the left. He spotted H's run into the box, and played what he described as "a screamer" - but I'll call a floated cross field pass - into the opposition box. With the keeper anticipating that H's despairing dive to make some sort of contact with the ball would be successful, he was made to look very silly as it eluding H, bounced over him and nestled in the far corner. If the keeper had been sporting a grey beard, he would have resembled a well known festive figure who will definitely not be visiting the Kenyon household this year: 0-4.

Although the game may have finished soon after this, the most incredible revelation of the day was still to come. There were two games taking place on Eastwood Park, with all four teams sharing one large changing room that only had three showers. Three showers between approximately 50 muddy footballers. If Niki, Rob or Eye-Ball had any concerns about missing the fine Ship sandwiches they needn't have worried, as they had the luxury of each having their own personal (very warm) shower. Just to prove that the soap-dodging epidemic is not just confined to the Oaks Athletic.

Eye-Ball

Next game: Sunday 4th November @ Home v Brema United - 1030 KO

Mossops 0 - 4 Oaks Athletic

The Oaks recorded their second league win, and first clean sheet of the season as they cruised to victory over bottom side Mossops. Stearner tests lie ahead, but when you come up against a side yet to register a point, it is somewhat of a relief to not be the first side to fail to take all three, and although it took us a while to get going, once the first goal went in the result was never in doubt.


The Oaks gain 3 more points and move up one place to fifth

Milesy returned to team-picking duties this week, but had one less option than usual as ever present Nick had, earlier in the week, informed Steve that he would be leaving the club. This isn't the place to talk about the reasons, as that should only come from Nick. I know he was immensley proud to be a part of the double winnings Oaks squad so this couldn't have been an easy decision. I wish him all the best for the future, and hope he finds another club where he can enjoy his football and most importantly be happy.

With still no goal keeper signed, Dale took the gloves this week as it wouldn't have been fair to stick Scott between the sticks for a second week running. This meant there was only one recognised striker (although H isn't always recognisable first thing on a Sunday), but despite this Milesy still had plenty of options and he chose to shake the team up a bit. The biggest surprise was probably Tapsell starting at centre back, with Rob moving to the right and Bunny partnering Mikey in the middle. I say it was a surprise, but the truth is that it demonstrates the strength in depth we possess in all positions (OK, so not including willing goal keepers).

ppppppppppppppppDale

RobppppppTapsellppppNikippppEye-Ball

RyanppppppBunnypppppMikeyppppppScott

ppppppppppppHarryppppNathan (c)

subs: Deano, Milly, Al, Browne

The Oaks have a habit of lowering themselves to the standard of the opposition, and in the first half the going was far too easy. As a result we hardly got out of first gear, and despite showing no real threat to our defence, Mossops probably felt they were unlucky not to take the lead in the first 40 minutes of the match. Their best chances came, firstly, when Niki under-hit a back pass but was relieved to see Dale save from the striker with his legs. In Niki's defence, I reckon he must have broken the record for furthest distance travelled to get to a game, as he flew some 500 miles from Scotland that morning to make it to the game - that's some commitement.

The Oaks had Dale to thank twice more in the first half for keeping the score at nil nil. A cross that turned into a shot needed the slightest of touches from an out stretched hand to direct the ball onto the inside of the post, and then a top class save from a well struck 25 yard volley prevented the ball looping over Dale's head and the embarasement of being caught off his line.

Despite being below par, the Oaks still created chances of their own. We've got many players with the quality to pick out a defence splitting pass, and H again showed himself to be the perfect recipient as his pace and movement saw him find himself behind the defence on a number of occasions. Unfortunately he's still yet to find his deadly shooting range, and these chances went begging. Nathan also missed from close range after the ball unexpectedly broke to him off the keeper.

Milesy re-arranged side didn't last long, as Mikey pulled up with yet another hamstring injury mid way through the first half. Mikey has be plagued with injury over the last year, and this latest blow looks set to see him sidelined for a number of weeks. Mikey was replaced by Deano, which meant Rob moving back to the centre of defence and Tapsell going back to his favoured position at the heart of the midfield.

The break through finally came in the 40th minute from a familiar source when a throw-in was won on the left hand side of the box. This was the first throw in that Nathan chose to take, and Mossops seemed completely unprepared for what they were going to have to defend. Perhaps they didn't think a bloke wearing embroidered ankle straps would have much of a throw, as when it arrived the defence seemed struck dumb, and Rob had the simple task of strolling into the six yard box to head the ball home without anyone making an attempt to challenge him or the ball: 0-1.

The same team took to the pitch for the second half, but Rob's late goal in the first half seemed to have finally woken the Oaks up, as they put the Mossops goal under constant pressure for the remainder of the match.

Scott and Ryan were offering plenty of width, which gave Tapsell and Bunny the opportunity to release them down the wings on countless occasions. This meant Mossops were getting more and more stretched, leading to big gaps appearing all over the pitch. It also meant defending was a doddle, especially as Mossops' lack of quality on the ball meant they often cocked up before a tackle was even required.

Scott and Ryan were rewarded for their tireless running when they linked up for the second Oaks goal. Scott caught the full back in possesion and raced to the byeline before picking out Ryan on the far side of the box. His shot was intercepted by the defender on the line, but off balance he could only deflect the ball into his own net. There was some debate as to whether this should be given as an own goal, but Ryan's shot was on target, and it would be harsh to deny him his first goal of the season, and Scott his first assist. It also means I don't have to create another row on the goal scoring chart: 0-2.

Scott was once again involved in the third goal, which was the best of the bunch from a team perspective, as it involved four players and just four touches. The goal keeper's clearance was won in the air by Scott, with Nathan then nodding it back into the path of Tapsell. His vision and H's anticipation saw the young striker released into the gap between the centre backs and he finished first time into the bottom corner. This was just reward for H's hard work, and made up for a cracking vollied goal that had been ruled out for offside: 0-3.

If the third goal was a great team effort, the fourth came from a touch of genious from club captain Deano. He went marauding down the right but seemingly found himself penned in by the corner flag. However, the defender should have known that you can't contain the beast, and with a drop of the shoulder and a cheeky nutmeg Deano was away and breaking into the box. Bunny is making a habit of being in the right place at the right time, and his late run into the box was perfect to sweep Deano's low pull back into the net: 0-4.

Blackshots put 9 past Mossops, and the Oaks created more than enough chances to match this. We might feel we need to be a little more clinical, especially when chances are harder to come by. Nathan would have expected to have done better when he found himself the wrong side of the defence, but his first time shot blazed over. Sometimes there is nothing you can do differently, and Nathan was denied a certain goal when the keeper needed all of his afro to deflect the ball over the bar from point blank range.

With the game safe Milesy chose to defend the clean sheet as he bought Al on for H and Milly for Rob. Not only did the changes not affect the Oaks rhythm, they also had a negligble impact on the average age of the side.

Mossops had given up by now, and the game was eventually ended with the unfamiliar sound of the referee's whistle (which made a nice change from last week). All recieved a slap on the back from the manager for a convincing display, who will surely have a headache picking next week's side.

Eye-Ball

Next match: Sunday 28th October - Away v Wheatleys - Essex Cup Round 2 - Meet at Orsett Cock - 0915. DON'T FORGET THE CLOCKS GO BACK SAT NIGHT.

Goal scoring chart:

Oaks Athletic 3 - 3 SSC Orsett

The Oaks were left a little deflated at the final whistle, having led this match 3-1 going into the second half. Although both teams come away from a draw with the same reward, it tends to feel more like a victory for one side and a loss for the other. Orsett would have felt pretty good about themselves, but it's important that we also look at the many positives to be taken from this display: this was only our second game in this league, and we've shown again that we can more than hold our own at this level - and without a recognised keeper. We scored three really good goals, and recovered from the early set back of going a goal behind. Also the post match banter and roast potatoes were still as enjoyable as ever.


No surprise to see the Oaks playing catch up already

With Steptoe only getting back from holiday the day before, Albert was once again given the job of picking the side, and was grateful to Scott for once again taking the gloves in the absence of Ty, whose injury is likely to keep him out for a number of weeks. With Luke and Deano both injured, the strength of the Oaks squad was once again evident as Albert was able to call on specialist full back Browne to start on the right side of defence.


Milesy shows Sharpy his preferred method for picking the side

ppppppppppppppppScott

BrowneppppppRobppppNikippppEye-Ball

Nathan (c)ppppppTapsellpppppMikeyppppppRyan

ppppppppppppHarryppppDale

subs: Bunny, Nick, Al

Orsett started the brightest of the two sides, and were particularly effective without the ball as they stopped the Oaks from finding any sort of rhythm by hassling and cutting out passes on numerous occasions. They deservedly took the lead, although it was a 1 in 100 strike from an individual rather than a goal earned by a dominate side. The ball sat up nicely for the Orsett midfielder some 30 yards from goal, and his sweet strike dipped over Scott, hit the underside of the bar and nestled in the back of the net: 0-1.

The Oaks tend to come to life after going a goal behind, and this game was no exception as passes started to find their range and it became clear that the key to turning this game around was to exploit a shaky defence with balls in behind for our two young whippets to exploit. Corners are an obvious consequence of forcing defences to run towards their own goal, and this was to provide the source for the Oaks equaliser. Ryan's deliveries just seem to get better and better, and from one corner in the first half he whipped a fantastic ball to the back post where Tapsell arrived unchallenged with a header that had too much power for the keeper to keep out: 1-1.

The Oaks continued to press, with Dale especially showing that he had too much pace for the Orsett defence to deal with. This was proved beyond doubt when the ball found its way to Dale on the left and he raced clear of the defence and into the box. He then lifted the ball over the advancing keeper, and we all held our breath as the ball bounced towards the goal, hit the inside of the post, spun along the line and finally came to a halt the right side of the white wash before a covering defender could become a hero. Dale later foolishly admitted that he hadn't even meant to lift the ball over the keeper, but it looked pretty good from where I was standing: 2-1.

It wasn't long before the Oaks added a third, with Orsett not learning from their earlier error as they once again allowed Tapsell to arrive unchallenged at the back post to head home a corner from Ryan, in a carbon copy of the first Oaks' goal: 3-1.

The Oaks were then denied the opportunity to add a fourth when Dale was tripped in the area. His momentum carried him outside the box, and the referee decided to award a free kick from there rather than taking note of where the offence had initially been committed.

The game could have been over by half time if it wasn't for Orsett's keeper, who pulled off a number of saves, including denying Harry who found himself in the penalty area with just the keeper to beat. As well as good saves, the Orsett keeper also performed one of the most bizarre clearances I've ever seen as when the ball was the wrong side of him and the goal, he chose to punch it over the bar rather than the far easier and less risky option of just putting both hands on it! As it was neither the keeper nor the Oaks players could extend the lead further, and we had to be happy with a well deserved two goal advantage at half time.

The second half unfortunately didn't match the excitement or goal mouth action of the first, and instead was dominated by the performance of the young referee, who was the cause of increasing amounts of frustration and anger from both sides due to general poor decision making, a tendency to be looking the wrong way when key incidents occurred, and a lack of confidence that ultimately meant he lost the respect of those he was supposedly in charge of.

The chances started to dry up for the Oaks, and even the introduction during the half of fresh legs in the form of Al (on for Taps) and Nick (replacing H) could not galvanise a side that was still showing signs of early season weariness. In contrast Orsett seemed to have recovered from the shell shock caused by the Oaks' first half onslaught. When a long throw was allowed to bounce in the 6 yard box, Scott showed good reactions to deflect the ball away after it was prodded goal wards. Then Mikey was in the right place at the right time on the near post to divert a powerful header wide for another corner.

Orsett finally pulled a goal back when the right winger found room to run into the box and put in a low cross. The initial effort was blocked, but the ball fell kindly to another player who slotted low past a helpless Scott: 3-2.

The Oaks were hanging on now, but with five minutes to go the resistance gave way when the ball was not adequately cleared, and the Orsett striker was allowed time in the box to squeeze a low shot past Browne, Eye-Ball and Scott and into the bottom corner of the net: 3-3.

Despite some late pressure the gods (and the referee) were not on our side, and we had to settle for a point. On reflection this was probably a fair result overall, but having had a two goal lead we're bound to think those two points were cruelly snatched at the death.

We've made a good start to the season, and with a run of games now we'll surely get stronger and stronger. The one issue that remains is in goal, and I'm sure Scott is hoping more than anyone that a solution can be found by next week.

Eye-Ball

Next game: Sunday 21st October - Away @ Palmers College v Mossops.

Goal scoring chart

Vichouse Sports 1 - 6 Oaks Athletic (Essex Junior Cup Rd 1)

In the pre match instructions Nathan (skipper for the day) urged the Oaks players to go out and just enjoy themselves, and play the kind of football we know we are capable of; we've no chance of winning the Essex Cup anyway. Having the weight of expectation lifted from our shoulders seemed to work a treat, as the Oaks completely dominated the game thanks to a team performance that was both a joy to watch and be a part of.

A question: Who is the odd one out between Dale Kenyon, Tyrone Owen, Michael Parker and the Honey Monster? Read on for the answer.



Crime watch reveal the main suspects

One man who wasn't quite so relaxed was Sharpy, who had to manage the side thanks to Milesy conveniently booking the pre-season tour to Mexico too late to invite the rest of the squad. His first headache was who to play in goal, as Ty was injured. Amazingly he had two volunteers, and it was agreed that Dale would wear the infamous green outfit for the first half, with Scott replacing him at half time. The new rule being trialled in this competition meant that Sharpy had the luxury of naming 5 substitutes and using rolling changes. He still had to pick a starting eleven, and went with the following:

ppppppppppppppppDale

LukeppppppRobppppNikippppEye-Ball

RyanppppppTapsellpppppMikeyppppppScott

ppppppppppppHarryppppNathan (c)

subs: Bunny, Nick, Al, Browne, Milly

The game had been moved from Basildon to a nice set up in Benfleet, complete with tea hut, roped off pitch and dug outs. However not all were happy: the bacon wasn't to Sharpy's taste, and the tea hut didn't have a stash of Stella for Tapsell and Browne. There is no pleasing some people.

With the sun shining, the Oaks soon got into their stride on a wide, well maintained pitch that offered a bit of zipped thanks to a heavy dew. We weren't too sure what to expect from Vichouse - who play in the equivalent league to the Oaks in Southend. We soon learnt that they were a physical side who were happy to mix it up, but could also pass the ball around effectively. The early chances fell to the Oaks, and Harry in particular who on more than one occasion latched on to good through balls. Unfortunately his attempts sailed just over or wide of the mark; still it was obvious that if we kept on like this we would soon be in the lead.

The Oaks were getting a lot of joy down the flanks, with young guns Ryan and Scott terrorising the Vichouse full backs. They both put in crosses that could have ended in goals, with Mikey arriving late in the box to head Ryan's cross goal wards and Scott taking advantage of a defensive mix up to put a blistering ball across the box that was met on the stretch at the back post by Bunny (who had replaced Luke who was unfortunate to pick up an injury in the first half). On both occasions the target was just missed, but on another day we could have already been talking about contenders for goal of the season.

It has already been mentioned that this was quite a physical match up, but a certain ginger number 8, playing in the centre of midfield, was taking it a bit too far. A series of dangerous challenges led to angry confrontations, but with ultimately no action being taken by the referee. So obvious was his rule breaking, that on one occasion he even proclaimed "I actually tried to get the ball that time". Fortunately no-one got hurt through his antics, which caused as much frustration for his own team as anyone else, as it meant they were constantly defending free-kicks. The good news for the Oaks that it wasn't our ginger number 8 being an arse (not that Tapsell ever is of course!), and eventually the referee must have given him a final warning as he went quiet towards the end of the half, as he eventually came to terms with the fact that he was the top red-headed dog on show.

The breakthrough for the Oaks came from one of the many free kicks conceded by Vichouse (but not actually the number 8 on this occasion). It was awarded when Scott turned his man and was brought down on the edge of the box in a very similar position to that from which the Oaks scored their winner in the opening game of the season. Ryan once again stood over the ball, but this time shot for goal. The ball rebounded to Tapsell, whose effort was also blocked. This time the ball fell to Rob on the edge of D, and he took one touch to get the ball out from his feet before looping it over the keeper into the roof of the net for a rare (and maybe even first) goal from outside the box: 0-1.

Vichouse rarely troubled the Oaks goal in the first half, with the only half chances coming when their lone striker's shot from the right was well smothered by Dale, and a dangerous ball to the back post that was landing right on the same striker's head was glanced behind for a corner by Eye-Ball. Niki and Rob were in their usual domineering mood at the heart of defence and were rewarded with a clean sheet at half time.

The rule change for substitutes was definitely welcome as Sharpy was forced to make a second substitution at half time as Eye-Ball had a Baptism to attend. Steve Browne replaced him, and the rest of the re-shuffle saw Scott replace Dale in goal, who now partnered Harry up front with Nathan moving to the right and Bunny to the left. Despite this Sharpy would still be able to bring on Nick, Al and Milly at some point.

I have to apologise for the sketchy details of the second half, as I only saw ten minutes between getting changed and leaving. Thanks to Sharpy and Mikey for giving me the important facts, but there are some gaps around assists that we'll have to clear up next week.

The Oaks extended their lead early in the second half when the new strike partnership linked to devastating effect, with Dale chipping the ball into the box for Harry to head home: 0-2.

So we've now had a long range goal from Rob, a headed goal from H, and two ginger number eights. If you think this game couldn't get any weirder just read on.

The two goal lead didn't last long as a Vichouse player was given time and space to shoot low and hard from the edge of the box. Scott managed to get finger tips to it, but couldn't prevent the ball from nestling in the bottom corner: 1-2.

Rather than signalling a comeback for Vichouse, this goal seemed to galvanise the Oaks with two further good chances being created before I had even left. Firstly Mikey played a killer through ball for Dale who raced into the box but dragged his shot wide, and then a loose ball in the box fell to Tapsell who poked wide under pressure from the goalkeeper.

The Oaks were playing with a real swagger now, and even Niki was starting to show off, as one minute he was putting in a crunching covering tackle and the next he was flicking the ball over an opposing player's head before setting the Oaks on yet another attack.

Sharpy's tactical and personnel changes had really paid off up to this point, and his next changed proved to have just as big an impact as he replaced Harry with Nick. The BFJ was soon in on the action as the Oaks broke, and his through ball was perfect for Dale to beat the keeper one-on-one: 1-3.

This goal meant that Dale joins the glamorous list of players who have played in goal for the Oaks, and have also scored. As well as Tyrone and Parker, I believe Sharpy, Scott and Deano would also claim to be members of this elite club, with Luke being the most likely to be next. In answer to the earlier question, unless you thought it was about personal hygiene, the Honey Monster is the obvious odd one out. Although he has famously scored and played in goal, this was for two different clubs - Manchester United and Newcastle United.

The flood gates now opened, with the Oaks scoring three more goals before the final whistle. First Nick was rewarded for his assist with a goal of his own as he finished from close range (assist up for grabs), and then he again turned provider as he squared the ball for Dale to slot into an empty net. Dale was on hand again to finish the job, and collect his hat-trick as he reacted first to slot home the ball after the keeper could only parry someone's (missing another assist) long range effort: 1-6.

Although we don't do Man of the Match rewards, to play in goal for 45 minutes, keep a clean sheet and then score a second half hat-trick (and get one assist) must be worth a special mention. It just goes to prove what a great addition to the squad Dale is going to be this year (he's much better than that bloke Darren who played in the last game), and with first Ryan and now Dale joining the Oaks from the Kenyon conveyor belt I wonder what's next. Perhaps Alec will dust his boots off, although with a kid’s game on the adjacent pitch he appeared to be a lot more interested in MILF hunting than football.

I don't remember the Oaks making it through the first round of the Essex Cup (in the six previous seasons I have played at least) so this was a great day, and more important is that we keep the momentum going into our league game next week.

Eye-Ball

Next game: 14 October @ Home v SSC Orsett - 1030 KO

Goal scoring chart

I've given the assist for Rob's goal to Tapsell as I believe he had the shot that fell to Rob (I'm sure I'll be corrected if wrong). I also think Al replaced Mikey, and have assumed that Milly got on. Don't forget there are two assists up for grabs for Nick's goal and Dale's hat-trick strike.