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22/03/09
Earls Colne 5 – Brightlingsea Regents Blues 1
(Louis, Joe, Jack, Luke, Harry LA) |
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Twas a bright and beautiful morning. The ground was firm and the mood optimistic as we faced our mid league rivals BRB.
The team talk was about talking to each other, having confidence on the ball and passing. In the opening minutes we struggled to do any of these things. Whilst BRB did not look particularly threatening we looked capable of gifting them a goal at will. Our defence looked shaky, the midfield found it impossible to pass accurately and the strikers, well Louis, looked like he was playing in James’ welly boots. I lost count of how many times our midfield smacked heavy balls that went right through to the opposition keeper. I pleaded for someone to do something different.
The bright star was Joe on the left – in the first fifteen minutes he pumped in more crosses than we have seen all season. Eventually Harry C played him in and his ball to Louis saw him muscle his way passed the defender to bobble a left footed strike into the net. Other than that we had only managed two attempts on goal.
The second half was a better affair. After Louis went all Rab C Nesbitt we moved things around and Joe smacked a deserved strike in from the edge of the box to settle our nerves. Our mood lightened and suddenly BRB looked a beaten team – to be fair they had no subs and we were able to constantly rotate, which sapped their strength and resolve. Then Luke scored, with the luckiest goal of the season – just as I was about to take my frustrations out on the hedge his shot bobbled under the keeper. Next to score was Jack, a neat loop over the keeper, from someone not accustomed to finding himself that close to the opposition goal.
We then let in our customary goal from a corner, but this was not anyone’s fault, as the corner was well struck and floated neatly over Thomas. Our defence of Pat, Mark and Jake had looked pretty confident up to that point. Louis was unlucky with a free kick that struck the bar and Harry C went close on a number of occasions. Harry LA rounded off his excellent performance and the match with a thumping header directly from Luke’s corner.
It was a real pick and mix today. It was great to be able to play some of the lads in new positions and to feel comfortable in the last half of the game, but we also made numerous daft errors, particularly in the first half. Our passing was heavy, our communication poor and our ability to struggle to clear our defence almost legendary. Still, we had a grand old ref, our opposition were good sports and we won, so what am I moaning about?
Joe was MOTM, closely followed by Harry LA.
Thanks to James for the line, Val for snacks and looking after Louis, and Neil L, Harry C and James for the goals. I wish our defence would clear as quickly as watching everyone scarper at the prospect of lending a hand….
Dave |