Wow! I felt really confident that we would get something out of both games, but certainly wasn't expecting a performance and result quite like that in game 1! We thought we had avoided the rain initially and got off to an okay start, but again our usual hesitation kicked in and we succumbed to a goal taken by Upton on the break. Jack Broadhurst (Br) scored his first for the team in what was a new position for him in a proper match - that of Striker. Upton again hit us on the break and scored past what was overall a solid return to Goalkeeping duties by Oscar. Jack Br scored another and from that point onwards we really started to dominate. This confidence in play was rewarded by another debut goal, this time from Sion and the quarter was finished on a massive high with Jack Br scoring his hat-trick with a fantastic half-line shot. End of Q1: Upton 2 - Arrows 4.
Q2 got underway exactly as Q1 ended - we absolutely controlled every aspect of the match; this is except apart from the weather - it teemed it down and everyone was soaked through within minutes. It didn't significantly affect us though and Sion had a fantastic shot saved, but the ball fell to Jack Br who put away the rebound to claim his fourth. Another one close to the end of the quarter for Jack Br saw him take his first half tally to five. The end of this quarter saw all teams running for the tree-line for a prolonged break whilst we waited for the rain to die down (albeit ever so slightly). End of Q2: Upton 2 - Arrows 6.
Q3 had a change in positions for some, with Oscar coming outfield and Jack Br retaking his old Jets position of Goalkeeper. Yet again the Arrows ran the match, we were passing really well, and gave Upton no time on the ball whatsoever. The intensity was high and Sion took two great goals with some truly superb finishing. End Q3: Upton 2 - Arrows 8. A slight tweak in positioning again and Q4 was underway. The boys were getting cold now, but the tempo stayed high; everyone continued to fight and play as a team - I was really, really impressed with how the boys clicked together. Sion took two more excellent efforts taking us to the 10 goals mark - he played probably the best all round performance I've seen in weeks - well done Sion! We started (towards the very end) to sit back a bit and this invited pressure onto us, and an Upton team that hadn't given up throughout took a great strike which took the overall score to Upton 3 - Arrows 10.
Before moving on to the next game I have to call out every member of that first early morning team - Oscar was great in goal, really confident, and when he came out in the second half was a real constant threat to Upton - how he didn't score I really don't know! He took some studs to his lower back during one attempt on goal but that didn't stop him - he was desperate to get back on and continue - that is real dedication! Sam Cheetham owned the defence in the game - very little went past him and he controlled the distribution out to his team-mates. When we needed a LWB (Q3) and Midfielder (Q4) he was equally composed; great work Sam. I've talked already about Sion and Jack Br so won't go into more detail, except to say that the two of them clicked so well together in their respective positions that we could have the basis of a great partnership in some games - we shall see! Finally Oliver Barnes and Henry for me showed the most improvement though - both fought for the ball constantly, won it more often than not and passed positively all of the time. Both ran with the ball at their feet which I have seen in training but not in a match - until Saturday - I was so impressed with them and all the boys - well done - great result!
One final thing - the team spirit was amazing, both within the first team that played and also when the squad for the second match arrived - the latter started to arrive to warm up, but saw what was happening on the pitch and towards the end were lined up next to me watching avidly. At the final whistle the collective Waverton cheers were amazing!!
Game 2: Upton 7 - Waverton Arrows 2
This second game is a hard one to write about, probably the hardest I've had to do so far. The boys turned up when it was still tipping down and it was a miserable environment weather-wise. As mentioned though they got behind the boys that were playing in the first game really well and I hoped that the excitement and action would carry through to the next game and for the first quarter we started very positive - we moved the ball around well and had good control - it was a battle at times but we kept our composure resulting in Oliver Wrigley making a great run down the right and slotting it past the Upton keeper to claim his debut goal. End of Q1: Upton 0 - Arrows 1.
A minor change in Q2 and we were off - again both sides battled hard and it was a great game to watch. Upton had a break and put the ball into our goal and it was 1-1, but as a team we kept our heads up and went again. We continued to play well but after a few warning signs from Upton we unfortunately succumbed to an own goal to give them the lead at the close of play. End of Q2: Upton 2 - Arrows 1.
Q3 was tight, yet again both teams really went for it, but it was during this period (and then the final quarter) that we started to implode both as a team and individually. We started to tackle each other and then once we took the ball off one of our own players, continually went on to lose it immediately. Balls were given away time after time across all areas and our positioning just fell apart. Jack Br (who was playing both games due to us being one short across both matches) did manage to break at one point and scored an equaliser and it looked like there was an outside chance we would regain our composure, however not long after we scored another own goal from a corner and this took us into the last quarter behind again. End of Q3: Upton 3 - Arrows 2.
The team talk at the end of Q3 was interesting; the boys started off being up for it as usual, but when I reconfirmed their playing positions half of them started to be vocal and voiced their displeasure of having to play again. Whether it was because of the weather (most probably) or because of the actual position being assigned - or a bit of both isn't an excuse - they need to accept the positions given and play them to their best ability. Just for clarity - no position assigned was new to them - they had all played them previously! This overall mood transferred to the pitch in the final quarter; the boys lost their momentum and desire to battle and across this period we succumbed to goals 4,5 6 & 7 by Upton. End of Q4: Upton 7 - Arrows 2. The game and eventual score-line should not have been like this; I write this fairly frustrated because the team that was selected had the capability to win, or at the very least battle and be extremely competitive - it just wasn't there though.
The boys do need to understand that the weather from here on in for at least the next 3-4 months could well be like it was on Saturday (rainy/miserable), and most of the time the temperature drop will be an unwelcome replacement for the heavy rain. I do hope it was the shock of the first bout of bad weather that caused this on Saturday, but I can only monitor to see how things progress.
Finally, thanks to everyone for bringing their boys, and also for sticking around and watching/supporting the teams - it really is great to see so many parents out their cheering us on! Special shout out to Darren and Jack Binns who were there for the duration, with Jack Binns being available as a super sub if needed in the first game.
There is training this Friday 30th at the normal place/time, but there is no match on Saturday 31st as Newton couldn't fulfil it. Therefore with it being half term I've decided to let the boys (and parents!) have a day off so our next match should be on Saturday 7th November. I'll send a note early next week to confirm.
Thanks again all - and sorry for the size of the post...
Carl
AFC Waverton U8 Arrows
07896 515717
No comments:
Post a Comment