Mike
Sam Ian Toby Laurie
Darren Richie Batts
John R
Adam
Sub: John T
With no recognised keeper yet again, Barely were forced to call once more for the man who "doesn't bend" and Mike took up position between the sticks. With no Jacko to dictate play, the burden of pendulum-swinging fell onto the shoulders of Richie in the centre of midfield, abetted by Paul and, making his Sunday debut after several weeks of Wednesday appearances, Darren. Toby also returned and slotted in at centre-back.
However all the careful team-building and pre-match talk of how good the kit was upturned like a cart full of fruit in the European car chase of a Hollywood movie, as St Brendans tore into the Barely defence from the outset, and it looked like it was going to be a long ninety minutes.
Credit Barely then, that having held out for 20 minutes before finally succumbing to a goal, they finally got their mojo working having fallen behind. Just as some racers like to bide their time rather than lead from the front, Barely started concocting a few moves in the St Brendans half, and were shading things when the whistle went for half-time. Despite much early pressure, Mike had only been called upon three times in any urgency; twice bending - bending!!! - to get a hand to low shots and divert them around the post. Fortunately Batts had found a good referee as well, as St Brendans are clearly a team who like to have a running, collective monologue as to the apparent shenanigans of the Barely team. It was a good match, but played throughout with a fairly feisty spirit.
Barely began the second half in so much contrast to the first it was almost like they had stepped into an alternate reality - one where they are the fittest team around. Though a team with the quality of St Brendans could never be described as out of it, their best moments were plucked out of the air with relative ease by new goalkeeper Paul Loftus, who was sharing second-half duties with Batts and Sam.
At the other end it was so nearly a different story, but despite edging things in terms of pressure on the back lines, Barely couldn't quite negotiate a way through to test the keeper - their best moments being shots from Adam and Richie drifting wide. However with the clock ticking, Barely suddenly found a saviour in Mike. Good pressure from Adam and John T had won Barely a corner, and when Richie swung it in Mike "the quality is in the" Graney applied the deftest of near-post touches to send the ball through a crowd of players to nestle in the net.
Barely surged. With 15 minutes to go Sam went in goal for his shift and - one save with his feet apart - spent the whole of it watching his compadres banging on the door at the other end. To return to the race car analogy, they were now down to the fumes in the tank and gunning the engine to go past the slowcoaches in front. Mike almost covered himself in glory once more with a header that sailed over. But just as the wheel of destiny can turn in your favour, it can also turn against you - or blow out completely, sending you careering over a cliff to the sound of that bongo noise that Scooby Doo and Shaggy used to make when running on the spot. One rogue St Brendans attack was all it took, slicing through a tired back line and sending an attacker clear to hammer past Sam - clutching at air - at the near post.
There was no time for another gallant rescue, and despite Barely pushing for another goal, the game ended with St Brendans as gracious in victory as a team who have just kicked you all over the field for 90 minutes can be.*
It was another wide casting of votes for Man of the Match, with Richie, Mike and Batts sharing the prize with just two votes ahead of the peloton represented by Ian, Darren, John T (who had come on and run around like a madman) and Sam.
Close, but no cigar.
*Okay, it was one guy specifically, but we're allowed some sour grapes after that.
