Match Report: Under 12 Corinthians v Byfleet Village: 1 - 3 Home Loss (League)
Match Date: | Sun 29/09/2013 |
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Played: | Byfleet Village (Home) |
Result: | 1 - 3 |
Match Type: | League |
Man of the match: | Joe Young |
Match Report
“Ashtead Don’t Give Up” – Fraser’s battle cry inspires Corinthians
Two games in and I’m pulling out the football clichés already but this was a classic “game of two halves”. Byfleet took a first half 3-0 lead but the second half was won 1-0 by The Corinthians with a performance of true character and some inspired goalkeeping by Joe Young. Given that Byfleet had scored 19 goals in their first 3 games and are looking likely champions already this was a game for Ashtead to take great confidence from.
The first half was a scrappy affair with Byfleet mainly on top but Ashtead come close with a trademark George Bartlett free kick forcing the keeper into a low save. The 3 Byfleet goals came in a 10 minute spell but Joe made several good stops after that and Ashtead responded well and their performance in the second half is the real story of this game.
Ashtead Captain Fraser Swan started to take control in the midfield from the start of the second half and set the example for his team to follow. One phase of play saw him push through 3 tackles and this spirit undoubtedly inspired The Corinthians and this belief drove them on. Adam Thornton and Dylan Williams were making important clearances from the Ashtead defence - this was Dylan’s second good performance in succession and Adam showed great determination in an unfamiliar role. The defence was completed by Monty Black who looked solid in a central position and typified Ashtead’s determination to not concede further goals. Owen Thompson-Smith was effective when helping out in defence and moved forward with some purpose to support the attack. He was unlucky not to score with one clever turn and shot.
George was having success on the left wing and one run took him past the defender where he cleverly cut the ball back to Guy Francis on the edge of the area who finished with a fine shot. This well-deserved goal capped a battling performance from Guy who was unlucky with 2 other good shots. Max Parris was also having a good game on the right side of midfield and battled hard alongside Jamie Young – they both had to curb their attacking instincts to dig in and break up any rhythm that Byfleet got into. Any chances that were created were dealt with by Joe in goal and Oscar Power who refused to give up when chasing back and made 2 important tackles after looking in trouble.
The game ended 1-3 but the Byfleet boys knew they had been in a battle. All 11 of the Ashtead team contributed to a terrific second half display (possibly their best ever half) and they should be looking forward to the next game with some relish.
Ashtead Man of the Match
Joe Young – lots of candidates this week….Guy for his great strike, George for some exciting wing play, Fraser for the way he drove the team forward and Dylan for a very determined display but the honour this week goes to Joe. His bravery in facing up to shots was matched by his confident handling and his drop kicks that set up several attacks. Well done Joe!
Lines from the Laser
"Well done everyone! After a slow start, we played really well in the second half and showed them Ashtead don't give up. It was only a 3-1 loss to a team at the top of the league. Guy's goal was great and we set up quite a few chances which only nearly missed. Let's play like we did after half time for the rest of the season!"