Under 10's B

Molesey Juniors FC (U10) V Ashtead Colts (U10)

To be read to the tune of ‘Land of Hope & Glory’.

“Never in the playing fields of Molesey had so much been owed by so many (the appreciative travelling fans), to so few (7 players and 2 subs anyway!)”.

A game of two halves:

What a difference a few weeks of Christmas inactivity can make.  Our boys were a bit ring rusty at the start of the game and the Molesey team came out of the blocks with a practiced air about them.  Very soon we were 2 Nil down, which was a little unfair as the numerous shots taken by Louis, Max and Mateo all skimmed the opponent’s goal by a whisker and we could have been on at least level terms by half time instead of 3-0 down.  Bradley made some great saves and couldn’t be faulted for any of the goals.  He didn’t even have to save the penalty given before half time, with the Molesey player hitting the post with a hard shot and not getting to the rebound in time. 

Round Two – The fight back:

With Ben now in goal and a more settled team of James and Jack M at the back, we started to pass and move with greater fluency through the middle of the park.  The tempo of our passing increased and with the atmosphere starting to grow in the travelling supporters end, you could feel something was happening.  .

On the stroke of 10 minutes a passing move by the Colts ended with Jack O’D hitting the spot and making it 3-1.  Like an endless tide we pushed forward, Kian and Max kept Moseley pinned back and James making runs out of defence with such calm that he looked as if he had all the time in the world.

More pressure from the Colts set up a corner from the far side, which Mateo opted to take.  With all the boys jostling for position in the box, Mateo swung the ball in with that trusty right foot.  Before we knew it, the ball soared high over everyone, caught the inside of the far post and went in unassisted. 3-2 phew, what a scorcher!

With the crowd now whipped into a frenzy and with only a couple of minutes to go, Max made another darting run down the right, nearly lost it, got it back again and managed to squeeze in a cross beyond the defender.  Jack O’D had taken a gamble and moved towards the front post.  With a swish of his right boot the ball flashed past their keeper and it was all square at 3-3.

Molesey had a late surge, making Ben produce two saves in quick succession, one with his hands and the other with an outstretched leg.  Our stand-in left back Louis, dropped back to collect a long ball from Molesey and played his way out of defence, trying to get the game going again.  Before we knew it the referee blew the whistle and while the boys shook hands afterwards, he said what a great game it was, to which I had to agree.

If half of our shots had gone in we would have won by 8-3, but that’s football, for you.  This was not 2 points lost or a point salvaged, but a lesson in fighting spirit, of which our lads had buckets full. 

Man of the match was Jack O’D, not just for his two goals but for leading from the front and talking to his team mates to keep them motivated.