Eagles u12 Blues - 06/07 Season
Contact:
Mat Poulter - 01462-480727/07884-060012 - mat.poulter@btopenworld.com
Training times - Friday night 6-30 to 8-00pm at
the Corner Cricket Club,
White Thorn Lane
Match Reports
LGC Eagles U12 Blues vs Sawbridgeworth
played on Sunday 4th Feb kick off 10.30 away
A fogcloud over the pitch stopped the ground from freezing, if not the supporters! But hot coffee and a sizzling game of football warmed us on the touchline. The home team came at us right from the start; but a new confidence flows through the team now. An enforced change in our defensive formation with Jason missing didn't faze us; we didn't concede in the first half as in several games earlier in the season. Our first chance fell to Jono; his shot deflected over the bar for a corner, that Aaron headed wide. Then Ben missed his shot from one of Daniel's trademark long throws. Sawbridgeworth came right back; only a goal-line clearance from Logan prevented them from scoring. Leon threaded a through ball to Ben, who's scorching shot was well saved by their keeper. Another Logan clearance was followed up by Lemar sprinting down the wing. A sawbridgeworth shot bulged our side netting; Dion scrambled the ball away one-handed; Will sent Lemar on his way again, but when he pulled the trigger the shot went wide. The home team's forward managed to out-pace Aaron to force a fine save from Dion; Lemar and Will combined to create a chance for Phil. Dion pulled off two more great saves, then on 27mins a Leon throw was chipped into the box by Lemar; Will controlled it with his chest before blasting it past their keeper to break the deadlock.
The second half was just as exciting; Phil dribbling from his own half past two players to shoot wide; Lemar driving forward to force a corner which he allmost scored from. Josh made a good tackle in midfield that let George get a great cross into the box. Lemar sprinted down the wing again to see his shot saved, the on 10mins some excellent forward play saw a cracking finish from George ruled offside. We seemed to be coping well with the home side's attacks; Dion timing his runs to perfection whenever they lobed the ball over our defense. Phil made another great run only to trip over a matchstick in their box. Then on 25mins a lucky deflection from a forward move down our right wing put the home team through to score an equalizer. 2mins later they allmost scored again, Rhys clearing it off the line. Daniel battled down by the touchline; then Sawbridgeworth allmost scored a flukey goal. Lemar drove forward for one last attack, the game finishing 1-1. Man of the match was captain Will, who seemed to cover every blade of grass during the game, notably to help out his under fire defence. An extreemly enjoyable game between two evenly matched teams played in good spirit with enthusiasm.
LGC Eagles U12 Blues vs BSCFC U12 Athletic Youth
played on Sunday 28th January 2007 kick off 10.30 away
A bitterly cold wind was probably the reason for the slow start to this game. Then a shot from Phil, followed by a disallowed goal for George moments later, suddenly brought it to life. On 12 minutes the Stortford keeper could only parry a shot from Will, with Phil pouncing to score his first from the resulting corner. The home team came back at us; forcing clearances from Aaron and Rhys, backed up by two fine saves from Dion, as well as good covering play from Leon. Unusual for us to to end the first half in front-a reshuffled defence performing well in the absense of Logan. We picked up the pace from the re-start; a disallowed goal closely followed by our 2nd on 2mins for Will. Ben was unlucky not to get on the scoresheet; a long kick from substitute goalie Jason putting him through on 4mins, as well as 3 other shooting chances saved by their excellent keeper. Then a mistake from Suk gave Stortford a 17th minute penalty, to make the score 2-1, only for Phil to strike again 3mins later. Stortford rallied, beating our makeshift defence twice in succession, to level the score with 6mins to go. Phil completed his hat-trick with his eighth goal in two games a minute later; Lemar rounding off the game in great style with a late goal, to make it 5-3. Aaron was made man of the match, doing a great job as stand-in centre half.
LGC Eagles U12 Blues vs Potton Colts
played on Sunday 10th December KO 10.30 away
A longer than usual warm-up was not enough to fire up the team for an impoved first half performance on recent games, even though George came close to scoring within 2 minutes. A 10-man home side with a leg numbing northerly wind behind them took the game to us, making the most of their home advantage on the smallest pitch we've seen seen this season. A mistake from man of the match Daniel gave Potton a soft goal from the free kick, a second following moments later from a throw-in. The rest of the half seemed to drag for the parents freezing on the touchline, despite free coffee and doughnuts generously supplied by the home team supporters. A change of formation and some well chosen words from the coach saw a more determined side start the second half. A foul on Will gave Lemar a shooting chance, that sailed over the bar. Some tough tackling from the home team saw Aaron limp off to be replaced by Ben, who got stuck into his new midfield role before himself also getting injured. Then on 9 mins, Daniel fired a hopeful shot from inside his own half that their goalie fumbled to make it 2-1. Leon came close with a cracking shot on 12mins, and Phil had a shot go wide. But the Potton defense stuck to their guns, repelling wave after wave of attacks, then trying to catch us on the break. We counted ourselves unlucky not to come away with a draw from this evenly matched encounter.
LGC U12 Blues vs Sandy Colts
played on Sunday 3rd December kick off 10.30 at home.
Heavy overnight rain left a sticky surface to the Eagles top pitch, but an early inspection by our lady ref Angie deemed it fit for action. The visitors started brightly; a fine save from Dion keeping out an early effort. Leon replied with a shot just wide,and Daniel and Jono combined with a good 1-2 down the right. On 12mins Sandy scored, their striker out-pacing an out of sorts Suk. This inspired us to start playing football, and on 22mins Will beat three defenders then passed to Phil who levelled the scoreline. Phil allmost scored again a minute later, then a goalbound shot from Will could only be parried by their goalie, to gift Phil his second after 25mins. The Sandy linesman flagged a 'goal' apiece from the marauding twins, before giving a fumbled shot from George as over the line, after discussions with the ref. We started the second half strongly, Will scoring a deserved goal after 3mins. But the visitors hit back, netting their second 6mins into the half. Lemar replied with a trademark goal 30 seconds later, and missed another chance soon after that. Man of the match Phil had two more good chances, before getting his third on 22mins. The end to end action continued right up to the final whistle blew, on this thoroughly entertaining match.
LGC Eagles U12 Blues vs BSCFC U12 Athletic Youth
played on Sunday 26th November kick off 2.00 home
Torrential rain and previous matches left the lowest home pitch looking worse for wear. We started brightly though, a determined Aaron forcing an early corner. The visitors countered, with Jason stopping what looked like a certain goal. Our midfield battled well in the mud, with Leon and Josh both playing well. But on 17mins the downhill slope of the pitch aided their pacey forward, who managed to get past Rhys to score the opener. And again on 24mins, he beat an impressive Logan to score their second. Leon had a shot blocked 2mins later, but Stortford made it 3-0 on the stroke of half time. We started the second half with more conviction, Lemar and Leon both missing chances. Then, against the run of play, Stortford scored their fourth on 11mins. We didn't give up though, with Daniel making an impressive run down the wing, and Jono missing a chance on goal. Our efforts were rewarded in the 24th minute, Ben and Jono combining to gift a goal to Will, to make it 4-1. A battling performance in difficult conditions earned Josh the man of the match award.
LGC Eagles U12 Blues vs BSCFC Rovers
played on Sunday 19th November kick off 10.30 away
A glorious sunny morning saw us on our travels for the second week in a row to the far eastern end of the county. But the forty minute journey and early start didn't seem to affect our players to badly this week; both Phil and Lemar coming close within 5mins of the start. It wasn't all one way though, with the rovers missing a couple of early chances. George and Will combined well down the left creating a shooting chance for Leon, and a scorching shot from Will forced a fine save from their keeper, closely followed by a shot over the bar from Phil. Then, on 29mins, Jason had his pocket picked by the Rovers forwards, who made it 1-0. The home teams goalie made another fine save from a Will shot, who also sent another one just wide of the post. The half time team talk [conducted out of parents earshot!] seemed to do the trick; Phil almost forcing an own goal from the restart. Two corners followed, and Phil and Lemar both missing chances. Then on 10mins, their excellent goalie gifted us a free kick just outside the box, that Will converted to make it 1-1. Daniel had a rare shot at goal, trying to lob the keeper, and Lemar saw another effort go wide. Then, on 17mins, the home team sprung the offside trap to make it 2-1. We responded well, Lemar netting an equalizer almost emmediately, and a freak of an own goal gave us the lead after 19mins.Shots from Phil and Leon followed. But the rovers didn't give up, scoring their third on 25mins, to make it 3-3. This seemed to inspire us, Leon scoring a deserved goal in the dying minutes of the half. To add insult to injury, Phil scored a cracking goal deep into injury time to make it 5-3. Man of the match was George, for some good assists.
LGC Eagles U12 Blues vs Sawbridgeworth [League Cup]
played on Sunday 12th November kick off 10.30 away
An early kick off on our travels seemed to effect our team on this glorious autumnal morning. Either that or 'the sun in our eyes' could explain a terrible start; conceding 2 goals in the first minute! To be fair to our players our opposition are top of the division above us and unbeaten this season. two more goals from corners after 10 and 15mins; a fifth after 21mins following a fumbled save from our keeper, and a sixth on the stroke of half time to round up a dismal half for us. Only dogged defending from our back four stopped them from making double figures; our goalie Dion making some uncharacteristic mistakes, and the rest of the team only firing on one cylinder. We came out for the second half with a different team or so it seemed [minus their ears; chewd off by the coach at half time!] Whatever Mat said did the trick; we fought for every ball; chased for lost causes, and after 5mins Aaron's deflected shot was converted by Phil. 2mins later Aaron and Lemar combined in an attack, and Phil scored his second. Sawbridgeworth rallied, and added 2 more to their tally after 16 and 19mins, to bring their total to 8. But we kept on battling and Phil completed his hat-trick on the final whistle to 'win' the half 3-2, and round up a thoroughly entertaining game. Man of the match was Logan, at the centre of our excellent defending, despite the scoreline.
LGC U12 Blues vs Shefford Saints
played on 05/11/2006 at home kick off 2.00pm
A cold wind but a bright afternoon sun put everyone in a good mood for this clash with the division leaders. We started well and dominated most of the play in the first half of the half, forcing a free kick on the edge of their box after 18 mins. Will drove a shot goalward for his brother Phil to convert to make it 1-0. We lost our concentration though, and the Saints equalized straight after the re-start to our dissapointment. Both teams battled and 1-1 was a fair reflection of the first half. Shefford started the second half brightly, allmost forcing a goal; but heroics from our goalie Dion [who was unable to continue when he injured his back] plus the woodwork and some determined defending, kept the visitors at bay. But their persistance was rewarded with a second goal after 15 mins. We battled hard for the rest of the game, coming close towards the end; with Pardeep nearly chipping their keeper. On balance we were unlucky not to come away with a point at least; but a hugely enjoyable game between two evenly matched teams. Man of the match-Rhys; a solid perfomance at the back.
LGC Eagles U12 vs Hitchin
Played on 29/10/2006 away kick off 10.30am
Memories of this fixture last season seemed to be at the forefront of our players minds during this game; a physical match abandoned after Lemar got injured and a diabolical ref reported for his imcomptance. The omens looked bad; the same 'ref' in charge even though we were assured this man would not be holding the whistle. The psychological advantage worked in their favour; keeping us on the back foot for most of the first half, and a goal for them after 23 mins. Their physical game resulted with Jason being carried off; a nasty bruise caused by a Hitchin stud. The second half started badly; a second for Hitchin after 1 min and our heads dropped. Then the most controversial moment of the game; our captain Will got flattened near the centre circle;and to our amazement the ref allowed play to continue and Hitchin scored their third. A forth was added after 22mins, and their fifth came on 28mins. Not an enjoyable game to watch or to play in, dispite the glorious weather, as the spirit of boys football seemed to have been lost. Man of the match? every player on our team
LGC Eagles U12 vs Sawbridgeworth
Played on 22/10/2006 at home kick off 2.00pm
A hard fought match where we showed our defensive mettle by keeping at bay a determined display from the visitors in the first half, with Dion pulling off a string of fine saves in the near torrential rain. We had chances to, with Aaron sending one over the bar. But just before the break, Sawbridgeworth scored. Our heads didn't drop though, with a gritty diplay in the second half in the worsening conditions. Our efforts paid off after 25mins; Phil making a determined run down the right wing to put in a cross that George converted, for a deserved equalizer. Man of the match was Logan, for an excellent all round performance.
LGC Eagles U12 Blues vs LGC Eagles u12 Whites
Played on 15/10/2006 away. Kick off at 2.00pm
This 'local derby' proved to be a lively match well supported by both teams families. The whites got off to a good start and early pressure lead to a goal after 13 mins, having just had a goal disallowed for offside. This wake-up call galvanised us into action; Lemar equalised at 18 mins, and Will our captain added a second 3 mins later. But the whites fought back and drew level at 25 mins with their second goal. Just before the break we took the lead again when Aaron scored his first goal of the game. We started the second half with real purpose but several chances were saved superbly by the whites keeper. Then, after 17mins Aaron scored his second and the floodgates opened. Phil scored twice in two minutes, then Aaron got his third. Lemar got his second after 26mins, the final score being 8-2. Man of the Match was shared jointly, between Will and Jono; but a good all round team performance.
LGC Eagles Blues vs Bengeo Tigers in the county cup
Played on 24/9/06 at home. Kick off 2.00PM.
Early pressure from the Tigers resulted in a goal after 2 mins, and allthough we defended well a second was added after 12 mins. Phil scored for us after 25 mins, but the tigers netted a third goal just before the break. Our defence was playing well but they scored two more not long after the re-start. The blues got stronger towards the end, and Aaron scored for us 5 mins before the whistle, making the final score 2-5. Man of the Match was our goalie Dion, who pulled off a string of fine saves.
Follow our teams results: The Royston Crow League Tables