U11s 1st Win v Middlewood Rovers
One thing for sure: the under 11s will not win the fair play award again this year! The teams were pretty evenly matched: Rovers had the best shot of the game, a fine drive against the crossbar from well outside the area; Crosspool scored from a goalmouth scramble after the ever lively Jacob jabbed the ball over the goalkeeper.
Rovers looked a decent team, but they lacked the commitment shown by Crosspool. Often when a Rovers player was first to the ball the player regretted having his hand (goalkeeper) or foot (several players) in the way of a committed Crosspool kick.
Even the Sven-Göran Eriksson style mass substitutions at half time (five players) didn't make a notable difference to the overall performance - though this time the solid defence remained unchanged. All of the back four played well: but all too often Josh made the last ditch tackle that ended a promising Rovers attack. Jack also deserves special mention after recovering well from his bad experience last week with some decisive charges off his line. But this spirit, first to the ball, in for the tackle, ran through the team.
Towards the end of the match the five substitutes who were introduced at half time had the disappointment of being replaced by the five that started the game. It was good to see John back on the field, but it was hard to see the benefit of the wholesale changes. In fact, while the fresh players were adjusting, Rovers nearly took advantage of the disruption.
After that Crosspool could have added another goal when a fine corner from Ryan just needed a touch as it drifted over the goalmouth. That was one of the few clear chances against a team that defended in numbers. Onwards and upwards...
Rovers looked a decent team, but they lacked the commitment shown by Crosspool. Often when a Rovers player was first to the ball the player regretted having his hand (goalkeeper) or foot (several players) in the way of a committed Crosspool kick.
Even the Sven-Göran Eriksson style mass substitutions at half time (five players) didn't make a notable difference to the overall performance - though this time the solid defence remained unchanged. All of the back four played well: but all too often Josh made the last ditch tackle that ended a promising Rovers attack. Jack also deserves special mention after recovering well from his bad experience last week with some decisive charges off his line. But this spirit, first to the ball, in for the tackle, ran through the team.
Towards the end of the match the five substitutes who were introduced at half time had the disappointment of being replaced by the five that started the game. It was good to see John back on the field, but it was hard to see the benefit of the wholesale changes. In fact, while the fresh players were adjusting, Rovers nearly took advantage of the disruption.
After that Crosspool could have added another goal when a fine corner from Ryan just needed a touch as it drifted over the goalmouth. That was one of the few clear chances against a team that defended in numbers. Onwards and upwards...
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