Winds of (no) Change

Sefton Park Scorpions Y4 v Westbury Park Foxes Y4

Saturday 12 October 2012


Game 1  |  REDS ( 1-1 )


Currently being penned by the great man himself ... Si "The Mountain" Lamont ...
... watch this space.


And here it is, sorry about the delay.  Not sure about that nickname.  I'd take offence but I'm not the grumpy kind.


Anyway...


The Reds, comprising Raymond, Bens H and L, Danny, Lawrence, Conrad, Kione and Neeraj, kicked things off with brio, putting in a solid first half performance.  Danny and the Bens in defence largely kept the ball away from Raymond debuting in goal.  And when he did get his hands on it he sent it into orbit with his fabulous goal kicks.


While at the other end of the pitch, a spirited strike force made up of Connie, Kione and Neeraj peppered the unusually small goalmouth with shot after shot, but struggled to get it past the Scorpions' 7-man defence.


However their persistence paid off when Connie bundled the ball in for a one-nil lead and some fabulous skidding celebrations.


The Foxes' Reds started the second half somewhat bemused by the Scorpions full-team substitution policy, but soon were back in their stride.  Again the opposition's everyone-behind-the-ball approach frustrated our midfield (now joined by Lawrence) and forward lines.


Then it happened.  The Scorpions' first real break of the match and their big no. 4 stood with his entire weight (and lethal studs - more of which later) on Ben L's right Adidas Predator Absolion Lethal Zone, thereby taking out the last line of our defence and leaving him through on the keeper. Raymond was beaten by an unlucky bounce and the Scorpions got their first goal of the season.  Ben H came back on the shore up the defence while Ben L hobbled off for some magic spray.


And that's how it ended.  1-1.  There's a pattern emerging here, maybe we need to change our bib colour.  Next game it'll be the blues and the oranges.  That'll do it. Bound to.


Game 2 | BLUES ( 3-0 )

It was time for the Blues to step up against Sefton Park's unknown soldiers.
They'd already proved themselves to be a hardy bunch of characters in the first match, let's hope the blues hadn't worn themselves out in the warm up.

Ed, Seb, Gabe, Ben S, Kay, Max, Ned, Harry and Aran jogged on to commence battle. 

The first half was a tightly fought contest, the foxes holding their positions and defending strongly. Especially against corners, no one was getting through. 

Then disaster struck, kaylen was down ! 
A Sefton Stomper had trampled Kay's foot, apparently ( according to the injured party ) with a new breed of razor sharp studded boot. 

He limped off. Max quickly had to take his place. 
Suddenly Kay's recuperative powers kicked in and he was begging to go back on, a champion in the face of adversity. "Hold on til half time, big fella" came the reply.

Then, from out of nowhere, with Harry holding the centre like a tarantula in its web, the team threaded passes through Sefton Park and ... WALLOP ...the ball was in the back of the net ! 

1-0

Half time. 

Kay was back on, and with some half time team changes it seemed "Senor Blobello" the coach had inadvertently put on 1 goalkeeper, 1 defender and 5 strikers. 
We needn't have worried, Kaylen's one man defensive army kept the forces at bay, whilst the rest of the team carried on their relentless attack ! 
Ben in goal could have sat down and had a cup of coffee. 

BOOM !! BOOM !! 2 more goals and the match was over. 

3-0. 

A fantastic team effort contributed to a delightful scoreline, even despite some ropey positioning tactics from the coach. 

Another win and a draw.  Undefeated so far, but with tough matches to come, the teams, basking in glory, drove off into the afternoon sun, as the crowd chanted our mantra ... 

We will, we will, Fox you ...

Well done everybody !

Click for photos

Away win, score draw

Ashley Down Y4s 0 - 2 Westbury Park Foxes Y4s Blues

Ashley Down Y4s 1 - 1 Westbury Park Foxes Y4s Reds

“You’re going down, Ashley !” the cries rang out on a crisp Autumn morning in September as the (over)confident Year 4 Foxes bounded across the pitch, ready for action.  Two teams of raw, unbridled talent, searching for their first win of the season.

And they got it.

The Blues stepped up to the mark first: Ben S, Kione, Kaylen, Ben H, Maxi, Ned and Danny.

The whistle blew and they were off into battle!

With a combination of fancy footwork, unfortunate woodwork and some superlative teamwork, the Blue Foxes roared off into a first half that left them 2 nil up by the time they’d strolled over for oranges.

With some great passing work between Max and Kione, two gorgeous goals, and a plethora of chances either smashing off the post, or floating and dipping tantalisingly close to the top corner, the Foxes were well in control.

Ned and Ben’s defiant textbook goalkeeping, coupled with a solid 40ft wall that was the defence of Ben, Kaylen and Danny, helped keep a well-deserved clean sheet.  

Midway through the first half, Kaylen got a pounding and momentarily had to come off injured, but was quickly replaced by the indefatigable Seb, who took up the mantle honourably and battled like a terrier in a cattery.

The second half was more of the same, as Ashley Down took more control and started their fight-back, but for this game it was too little, too late, as the Foxes held their own until the final whistle.

An awesome game and a well-deserved “Player of the Week” trophy for Danny, who battled valiantly for every ball that came his way.

Now it was time for the Reds to do their stuff.

There was a tenseness in the air now. The Downers had had a rallying team talk and looked like they meant business this time. This was going to be tougher.

Lawrence, Ben L, Ed, Aran, Harry, Gabriel, Connie and Neeraj stepped up to the plate.

Sir Alex announced his formation. The little heard of 4-1-1-1 line up. “When I want your opinion, I’ll rattle your cage” was his terse reply to Signor Mancini's casual questioning.

The game began…Captain Neeraj was omnipresent, a devilish little workhorse, darting this way and that until he was finally rewarded with a goal !

1-0.  

Game on.

Harry was his usual unstoppable, untiring self and with a bit of luck could have had a couple of spectacular goals of his own. Connie surpassed himself with his pace and skill tearing down the wing.

Some excellent brave defensive work from Ben, Gabe and Aran kept the Downers at bay for a long time, and the combined goalkeeping skills of Ed and Lawrence frustrated the opposition no end.

But in the end, it was only a fumbled, scrambled equalizer that popped in out of nowhere that gave the Downers some hope…and that hope spurred them on to some great football. But it stayed a draw til the final whistle, and a well fought one at that.

Ashley Down had surpassed themselves this time, and have grown to be a force to be reckoned with (as demonstrated in the final 8-a-side kickabout, which they won 2-1), but it was another top class performance from the Foxes and well worth the entry fee.

Bring on newly-promoted Sefton Park, we’re ready…

R Mancini, Direttore Sportivo