Bugbrook St Michael Youth 0 v Thrapston Town
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(aet) Hyperboles and high praise for the Thrapstonites today as they battled their way through to the next round of the County Cup, claiming another scalp from the Northampton League.
Concerns were raised when we were shown the pitch, surely not, do my eyes not deceive me, but it appeared that the wife had washed it, what else could explain the 18 yard area measuring 16 and the penalty spot at 11 – it was apparent from the outset that this game would be tight!
So fight plan for an unknown foe:
- Keep your defence tight – Carter and Whight were compact at the heart of the defence, Morrison and Rutter constricted the midfield and the towering O’Dell (in these goals he was) firm and unflappable between the sticks.
- Probe your opponent’s defence for weakness - Glynn and Morton sniped down the wings stretching and creating holes.
- Have an element of surprise - unleash Palmer the haymaker to batter through any resistance.
And so the game plan was put in motion and was very success when against the wind we had to dig in at times. We rode our luck at times but not as much as Bugbrooke. Lessons from the first half, which remained goalless was, be more confident, keep the ball and chances will come.
Round 2 should have ended with the referee stopping the match as Thrapston battered their opponents creating a host of excellent chances but it did go to show it is really hard to score in 5-a-side goals. Palmer terrorised whoever was put in front of him and substitute Gadsby showed great guile acting as his foil – it was really coming together.
But alas we could not find the knock out blow in normal time and so we moved to overtime. Early doors we delivered the blow to end the contest – Palmer burst through and jabbed the ball past the despairing keeper and we still had 10 minutes left. En mass 11 players rolled up their sleeves, redoubled their efforts and went to work. We played out time primarily in the opponents half and the joy at hearing the final whistle was heartfelt.
A team of 14 players took to the field today, worked tirelessly for one another and got a fantastic result, a win they thoroughly deserved – hoarse but happy.
Thanks to everyone (parents and players) for support and enthusiasm yes it was an exciting game.
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