Ise Lodge Harriers 1 v Thrapston Town Yellow 0
I’ve always thought and believed that effort, skill and application deserves reward. This is the same in football….except you also need another crucial element sometimes…a little slice of luck.
The one thing that Mark and I asked was for the boys to pick up where they left off last week. This was more than achieved. In summary, they were great in both halves.
Straight from the kick off the boys were on the attack. The first half saw us create wave after wave of attacks. At some point during the first half every outfield player in midfield or attack had an opportunity to score. The Yellows dominated procession. Only good defending from the Harriers prevented us from scoring. Half time saw the score at 0-0.
Second half we were kicking up the slope and against the wind. It was the Harriers who started this half marginally the better. However, it was not long before the Yellows were back on the attack. Once again the team were playing as a single unit and creating chances for each other. To their credit, the Harriers never gave in – showing the same resilience that our boys had demonstrated in the past. The Ise goal scored 10 seconds from time giving us no opportunity to hit back.
The chat with the boys at the end was particularly difficult. Everybody knew how well the boys played and how much they deserved to win this game. On another day, playing as we did, we would have scored a hatful…and might have had a couple of penalties given. That little slice of luck I mentioned at the start!
My preference though is to look at the positive elements. Overall, it was the style of football the boys were playing that really caught the eye. What a fantastic effort. The movement on and off the ball was great. The ball was being passed around. We had players finding space, the team keeping its shape and some great shooting opportunities. When we needed to defend it was done with determination and discipline. We talked yesterday in training about ‘team’. That was a real team effort. I’m sure that everybody will agree that it was an absolute joy to watch.
Boys – Mark and I want you to be proud of yourselves. Keep playing like this and our season ticket holders will keep coming back for more!
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