Barely Athletic 2 - 4 Recliners
As George Harrison once sang, all things must pass, and so Barely's year-long unbeaten run was unceremoniously ended by a robust Recliners performance at Combe Dingle this morning. As Batts declared after the game, it was a monkey off their back.
However things could have been different had Barely matched the positional discipline of the first half with the flowing football of the second. But much of the flowing football was coming from Recliners - how did things come to such a pretty pass?
Well, it's been a good while since the last Sunday outing, and there was certainly some rustiness. But early on Batts' experimental 3-1-4-2 seemed to be holding up, with Danny in front of the back four as Chris and Scott belted around in front of him. Graham was providing the creator role from the left, and having succumbed to a goal Allan will want to forget - the ball skewing in off his gloves - Barely nearly equalised immediately when Adam - on for Sam - just failed to connect with the latest Graham cross into the box.
No matter though - Adam made amends only a few minutes later with a goal of Gascoigne-esque flavour, as he chipped the ball (again, sent in from the left) over the onrushing keeper and ran around him to head into the net - the score now 1-1 and Barely with their tails up. With Mike taking a turn up front the Recliners rearguard suddenly had a different tactic to deal with, as the big man won the long balls and flicked them on for the dashing Adam and Darren.
The second half began with John T joining the fray on the left as Graham dropped into defence. This time Adam turned provider though, as his cross from the right was deftly converted by Darren, who steered it under the keeper.
But outside of a penalty save from Allan (after Batts made a full-length save with his hand!) that was as good as it got for Barely. Was it the sun, or the hill, or the raft of substitutions? We'll never truly know but the last half hour of the game saw Barely at their most ragged, as they conceded a third - an unlucky own goal from Man of the Match Scott - and then a fourth, as seconds after Allan's penalty save the resulting corner was buried with a header.
If Barely had been caught napping when the first goal went in, their response was to lurch up out of bed (ie score two goals) but then somehow fall down the metaphorical stairs (ie let three more in) as the long unbeaten run was not so much over, as over-turned. But, as Paul McCartney once sang, we can at least now concentrate on the cup. Adam and Graham were the noteworthy runners-up to Scott, who was so cross with himself that he said his colleagues had "no idea" if they saw him as a worthy winner. It was that kind of day.
Allan
Dave H Batts Colin
Danny
Sam Chris Scott Graham
Kevin Dazza
Subs:
Adam
Mike
Laurie
Alastair
John T
As George Harrison once sang, all things must pass, and so Barely's year-long unbeaten run was unceremoniously ended by a robust Recliners performance at Combe Dingle this morning. As Batts declared after the game, it was a monkey off their back.
However things could have been different had Barely matched the positional discipline of the first half with the flowing football of the second. But much of the flowing football was coming from Recliners - how did things come to such a pretty pass?
Well, it's been a good while since the last Sunday outing, and there was certainly some rustiness. But early on Batts' experimental 3-1-4-2 seemed to be holding up, with Danny in front of the back four as Chris and Scott belted around in front of him. Graham was providing the creator role from the left, and having succumbed to a goal Allan will want to forget - the ball skewing in off his gloves - Barely nearly equalised immediately when Adam - on for Sam - just failed to connect with the latest Graham cross into the box.
No matter though - Adam made amends only a few minutes later with a goal of Gascoigne-esque flavour, as he chipped the ball (again, sent in from the left) over the onrushing keeper and ran around him to head into the net - the score now 1-1 and Barely with their tails up. With Mike taking a turn up front the Recliners rearguard suddenly had a different tactic to deal with, as the big man won the long balls and flicked them on for the dashing Adam and Darren.
The second half began with John T joining the fray on the left as Graham dropped into defence. This time Adam turned provider though, as his cross from the right was deftly converted by Darren, who steered it under the keeper.
But outside of a penalty save from Allan (after Batts made a full-length save with his hand!) that was as good as it got for Barely. Was it the sun, or the hill, or the raft of substitutions? We'll never truly know but the last half hour of the game saw Barely at their most ragged, as they conceded a third - an unlucky own goal from Man of the Match Scott - and then a fourth, as seconds after Allan's penalty save the resulting corner was buried with a header.
If Barely had been caught napping when the first goal went in, their response was to lurch up out of bed (ie score two goals) but then somehow fall down the metaphorical stairs (ie let three more in) as the long unbeaten run was not so much over, as over-turned. But, as Paul McCartney once sang, we can at least now concentrate on the cup. Adam and Graham were the noteworthy runners-up to Scott, who was so cross with himself that he said his colleagues had "no idea" if they saw him as a worthy winner. It was that kind of day.
1 comment:
And it came to pass.....
Never mind lads we had enough chances to win this game but at least this matter of fielding young players have been finally put to bed in front of a team that boasted both the chairman and treasurer of the league. Anyway....que sera sera
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