23.02.06      7-A-SIDE RESULT FEB 22 – Mighty FC 0 – 2 O’Carrolls

 

So our Thursday night adventure is nearly at an end and, with one game left, victory is still in our hands. Each player was aware of the importance of last night's clash with Mighty, and despite the gaffer's reservations, there was an eight-man squad (with one surprise addition) ready to take the pitch. Richie, Max, Tom, Tancey, Gussage, Gibbo, Dan and Jonesy were the usual suspects.

 
From kick-off, the disparity between the two sides was immediately obvious. OC's coolly knocked the ball around, with Gibbo and Gus getting lots of time and space to feed the ball forward to Dan. Time and time again the ball was fed into the box, only for the final finish to be found wanting. Gibbo was having a field day on the left-hand side, having the Mighty fullback for breakfast, lunch, dinner and a midnight snack. Gussage was able to charge forward at will, while Max and Tom were ever confident at the back. Tancey enjoyed an exceptional first half, with some outstanding tackling and distribution. The best 20 mins I've seen from the big man in the 7-A-Side comp. So it was no surprise when we finally took the lead. A minute before, a wonderful one-touch move involving five players almost broke the deadlock, but it was our trusty midfield general who did the damage. The ball was cleared to the midfield and Tom (touch me again and I'll break your hand) deftly headed the ball into the path of Gussage, who fired low and hard into the corner of the net, a la Thierry Henry. 1-0 at halftime and it should have been four.

 

The second half saw a slight loss of shape. Jonesy came on to add extra pace up front, but we weren't able to control as much of the ball as we'd have liked. The Mighty raised their game and even managed a shot, although it wouldn't have gone in had there been five goals built on top of the one already stationed! Richie however was untroubled and a second goal was no surprise. Gibbo charging through unchallenged and sidefooting the ball into the ole onion bag. 2-0 and game over.
The comfort of the scoreline precipitated the return of Alfie (self-proclaimed journalist). Nearly nine months after injury he came on for the final seven minutes and did what he could. Two chances were cleared off the line (well, sort of), and it was great for Bell to link up again with Welton in midfield. OK, he was a bit gutsy, but I'm sure the boys will forgive him this once.

So one game left and one victory needed. With only two defeats in the entire campaign, we will be worthy winners of the comp. I believe we will win because next week everyone will be up for it and ready to give 101%. Come on boys, one more big push and the bar tab is ours.

Cheers

Alexander Bell

 

     17.02.06      NEWS JUST IN…

 

The versatile O'Carrolls midfielder, Alexander 'Alfie self-proclaimed journalist' Bell has been declared fit to play competitive football in the final 7-A-Side match of the season, against ACC Meolo on March 1st. Bell, who has been absent for eight months, was delighted with the news. "I can't believe there's light at the end of the tunnel," Bell said. "It's been a nightmare time for me, watching from the sidelines. Fortunately the boys have done fine without me, so I'm just hoping the gaffer can fit me in somewhere."

World renowned physio Anthony Oliff has worked wonders with Bell's groin and has advised only half a game is wise, providing Bell maintains his current workout programme! The match will be a pre-cursor to a return to full OC’s training in mid-March, in preparation for the ASFA Division Four campaign.

REUTERS

 

     17.02.06      6-A-SIDE RESULT FEB 16 – O’Carrolls 4 – 3 Volcanics

 

Game 2 of the first of the years 6-A-Side competition, and we were up against the Volcanics. The two previous times we met this side both games were won by four goal margins (4-0 & 5-1). Paul Gibbons has stepped down from the indoor tournament this year; his ability will certainly be missed, as well as his goals – 23 to his name in indoor. Leading scorer Neville was also missing last night due to injury but we welcomed Gus back.

 

A slow start, as per usual, but we edged into the game and took a two goal lead. Matt was having a blinder, making some terrific saves to keep Volcanics out. A few of their kick-offs found their way past our wall but Matt was up to it and it was largely due to him that we went into half time 2-0 up. Second half and Volcanics got themselves back into it, three on two at the back allowed their player time to pick his spot. Soon after they leveled the game, but we hit back with two further goals to bring the score to 4-2. The usual organization of our substitutions was lost last night, and at times we were all over the place. This had got to be watched from now on, leaving the pitch at the wrong time could cost us dearly – Woody almost learned that! Volcanics got another goal back to make it 4-3, but fortunately for us, that was the end of the scoring. Not a good performance from us, but a win all the same, and maximum points so far. We will have to greatly improve for the meeting with Internationale next week – play like we did last night and we’ll be punished. Scorers last night were the Gus (two goals), Dave Walsh & Paul Tancell.

 

Last round, in all ten games, we conceded only 4 goals. In the first two of this round we’ve already conceded 5. This has to be addressed!

The Editor

 

     16.02.06      7-A-SIDE RESULT FEB 15 – O’Carrolls 5 – 0 Hustlers

 

This week saw us pitted against the Hustlers, who, up until last week, were third and chasing our lead. Results from last week saw them drop to sixth with three defeats, so we had to fancy our chances coming into this game. A win was very important today. Last weeks defeat to the Black Dogs saw our lead cut to a mere point, so the pressure is on to win our last three. After this game, the remaining two fixtures are against the bottom two sides, who between them have only amassed 4 points in the Premier 2 group stage; it’s very much ours to lose.

 

While the previous couple of weeks have seen a number of punch-ups and red cards amongst the other teams, prompting threats of point deductions from the organizers, this game started with the referee reminding us that we were on thin ice – and that she wasn’t at all biased! The pitch was in an appalling condition and it looked like it might dash our hopes of playing a neat passing game.

 

For the first ten minutes we weren’t really in it, sloppy passing and impatient football saw us not at our best. Fortunately the only real pressure that the Hustlers put on our goal was when we allowed them in with a stray pass or weak clearance. It didn’t take us long to find our feet though, with Gus and Gibbo producing some of their best form, and it was Gus who opened the scoring after a couple of neat one-twos between himself and Dan Green. Our second came from that man Gibbo via a trademark run down the left flank. Their keeper was having a great game; it was solely down to him that the Hustlers were only 2-0 down going in at half time.

 

Second half and it was all about O’Carrolls. Olly was finding himself with chance upon chance, and the top-scorer added two more to his tally with a couple of peaches – his second in particular was a stunning strike. 4-0. Gibbo was denied a cracking goal when his effort was adjudged to have gone in throw the side netting. Shortly after though there was no question when he rifled one home having picked the ball up on the left and beating 2/3 players with his pace. ‘Deny me a goal would ya???’ Smashing finish! 5-0. The Hustlers were well and truly beaten.

 

So 1 point clear with two games to go, and as I said before, against the bottom two sides. We won’t be taking those games lightly though, we’ve played ACC Meolo before and they gave us a good game, they certainly seemed a better side than what their current position suggests. So it’s in our hands now, let’s keep going and win this thing!

The Editor

 

     13.02.06      SUMMER LEAGUE RESULT FEB 12 – Argentina 3 – 1 England

 

And so to our ACTUAL last game of the Ethnic League campaign. Turns out we didn’t have seven more games; what we now found ourselves involved in was a knockout plate tournament. Our opponents – Argentina. Because I pumped all my emotion and sentiment into last weeks FINAL match report, this weeks report, unfortunately, will pale in comparison.

 

An 11am KO saw us with the bones of a team, with even the majority of those who turned up suffering from hangovers or ailments of some sort. The once again sweltering heat wasn’t going to help either. The back four remained the same – Tom, Dave Walsh, Paul Tancell & Max. Midfield saw the pairing of partners in crime Stu & Nevcroucho, with Gibbo taking his usual position on the left. Woody started on the right in the absence of both EJ and Olly. Up front new player Mike joined GolDan, Matt kept goal while Bundy was the sole substitute.

 

Argentina took and early lead, a ball over the top catching us out at the back, coolly slotted past the keeper. We were defending quite high up the pitch, and while Argentina didn’t have any particular pace up front, they had just enough to get in behind the defence and get themselves in front. From there it was a very even match. Gibbo was having a fantastic game and causing all sorts of problems on the left wing. He put some glorious balls into the box, unfortunately, and to his frustration, we just couldn’t get on the end of any of them. There were acres of space on the right hand side also and this allowed Tom and Woody room to get forward and try to create openings. We were definitely in this game, Neville and Stu were giving 100% in the midfield and we always felt if we kept them to one goal till halftime we had a chance. So it was a pity we conceded again before then, Argentina breaking once more beating the offside and doubling their lead. In at the break trailing 2-0, we should have at least had one on the board, Nevcroucho missing a glorious opportunity in front of goal, putting his header over the crossbar when he certainly should have found the target.

 

Second half saw a bit of a reshuffle with Stu having to be withdrawn because of work commitments. Frickin’ work! Woody moved into midfield, Tom pushed up to the right and Bundy came on in the right back position. The game continued in the same vein, and both sides looked dangerous on the attack. Sadly it was Argentina who further extended their lead - their third goal coming from a high ball into the box, Matt came to claim it, but the Argy forward got the first touch to lob it over the keeper and into the back of the net. We were still creating opportunities though, and with Dave pushing into the middle, leaving three at the back, we gave it our all. Well, 3-0 down in a knockout tournament, you have to just go for it don’t you! Mike, who had been working hard all game, had a great opportunity when the ball, once again fed from the left, sat up nicely for him to head an effort on target. Unfortunately the keeper got a block off and the ball was scrambled away by the defense.

 

We did however get one goal back, the ball broke loose about 20 yards out, Tom took it down on his chest and beat one player before nudging the ball out to Dan Green who made no mistake from just outside the 6 yard box, calmly slotting it home to make it 3-1. Some pride was certainly restored, and while the scoreline didn’t really reflect our performance, it was a damn sight better than the previous weeks (conceding 19 goals in four straight defeats). Man Of The Match went to Gibbo, and it was well deserved, he’s had a cracking game on the left wing. The game was played in a very good spirit, none of the BS that has marred previous games in the tournament. There’s a lot to be said when you have a fair and sensible referee, it made all the difference to this game.

 

So that’s it, honestly this time. Sundays are now free to do as you please gentlemen, golf, cricket, the beach, the pub or just recovering from Saturday nights. Training begins for the Winter Season in just over a month, I hope we’re all looking forward to doing our thing in Division 4, let’s hope for just as successful season as last year.

The Editor

 

     09.02.06      7-A-SIDE RESULT FEB 08 – Black Dogs 3 – 2 O’Carrolls

 

Mr. Alexander Bell…

 

After Sunday's 11-A-Side disappointment against Chile, it was back to the 7-A-Side - where we sat four points clear going into tonight's game with second-placed Black Dogs. Due to some desperate refereeing and dodgy tackling, we were under observation from the league, and therefore had to be on our best behaviour. There was never any danger of it going off though. This game was played in a terrific spirit.

Very nip and tuck in the first 10 minutes, with neither side quite gaining ascendancy. Gibbo was finding acres of space on the left, while Gus and Tancell saw a fair bit of the ball in midfield. It was however the Black Dogs that opened the scoring, an error from Richie kicking the ball from his hands, which led to an indirect free kick. The strike appeared to be a mishit, but it still dribbled into the net – 1-0. Despite not being on their game the boys managed to equalise through Olly after good work again by Gibbo and Gus. 1-1 and halftime.

 

The Black Dogs, in their Barcelona-style strip, were OK but weren't all that. They had a quick lad up front and played the game the right way, but for this journalist, there was only one team who should have won in the second half. Despite starting brightly though, O'Carrolls conceded again. Unfortunately, after a clearance from Richie, he didn't quite get back into position and was lobbed from around 30 yards. Nothing else to say really. However, the response from OC’s was outstanding. We got the ball down, started to pass it and put together some concerted pressure for the next 5-7 minutes. Olly registered his second with a crisp finish and 2-2 appeared to be a fair result. Unfortunately for us, a long ball over the top - which was a tactic employed all game by the Dogs - caught out our back two, their nippy striker persevered and scrambled the ball home. And that's yer lot... a 3-2 defeat, but still sitting at the top of the table with three games left. Three wins guys, that's all...

Alexander Bell

 

     08.02.06      NEWS JUST IN…

 

It’s not over!!!

Seven more games to play in the Plate Playoffs.

Next week pits us against Argentina in what promises to be a monumental clash! Oh my oh my!!!

 

     07.02.06      SUMMER LEAGUE RESULT FEB 05 – England 4 – 5 Chile

 

Sunday saw our ultimate game of the Ethnic League against a Chilean side who had only tasted defeat once in the tournament. Early signs suggested we night not have a full team for the match, well, not a full sober team anyway. The excitement surrounding the celebrations of the gaffers 31 years of life had gotten the best of a few of the team, and Radler for breakfast had left us with just enough players for kick off. Luck looked to be going our way though; captain extraordinaire for the day Bidcom won the coin toss, and we got to play with the wind to our backs and due to a clash of kits, Chile were forced to don the grey (& sweaty) kits of New Zealand.

 

With the absence of Dave Walsh, Tom stepped into his centre back position with Bundy filling in on the right. The rest of the team was more or less the norm, Max & Tancell completing the back four, Ricardo kept goal, although he looked a little restless, it seemed he had his shooting boots on today – or so we thought. Neville, Stu, EJ and Gibbo across the midfield (Gus reckoned he was gonna sit the game out – how long before he’s succumb to temptation?), and top scorer Biddy was joined up front by the recovered Olly Meadows. Olly has been missing for a while after sustaining concussion a few weeks earlier, so it was great to have him back in the team, and it was he that opened the scoring to give England an early lead.

 

It was quick thinking from Olly after we won a free kick, taken early while the Chileans were discussing the price of copper; Chile’s biggest export. Olly gave the scrambling keeper no chance. 1-0. Soon after we earned ourselves a penalty and a great opportunity to make it two nil. Cue Richie trotting up the pitch to try and get his name on the scoresheet. Paul Tancell and me stood on the halfway line, and a conversation that went something like this:

Paul – “I think he’ll miss”

Tom – “I think he’ll score”

Paul – “He’ll miss”

Tom – “Nah, I really think he’ll score”

Paul – “You ever see him take a penalty before?”

Tom – “ No”

(Richie takes the penalty…)

Paul – “Told you he’d miss!”

Wild celebrations from the Chilean support, particularly from whom I can only assume is their manager – he looked like the Macho Man Randy Savage on steroids. Not long after and Chile earned a penalty of their own, and their player made no mistake. 1-1.

 

We’ve not responded well to conceding goals of late, but today there was something different about the team – and I’m not talking about the blood/alcohol levels. An error from the Chilean keeper gifted the ball to substitute Gus (he was on for the injured Paul Tancell) and with some quick feet got his shot off to make it 2-1. Not long after and Bidcom moved up a factor, finding himself one on one with the keeper, he slotted it home – 3-1, and it we weren’t done yet. We earned yet another penalty, and for the love of me I can’t remember whether it was before or after goal number four. Regardless, it was EJ that stepped up this time, and he hit the target – the target being the roof of a house down the street. Bear in mind he had to clear 50ft of wire mesh to hit that roof. Great penalties they were not! But EJ atoned for that miss with a terrific cross that found Gibbo free at the back post, the Brummie blasting it home and it was 4-1 going in at halftime.

 

Second half and it all just went painfully wrong! Not long in and they got one back to make it 4-2. With the wind against us, Richie was having difficulty getting any distance in his kicks and it really condensed the game into our half. For a spell we rarely had a player beyond the half way line. Chile were throwing everything at us and the game was getting a bit niggly, but the ref seemed happy to let the challenges go. We might possible have held them off, had we not been reduced to ten men. Following last weeks OG, I found myself in the headlines again for a red card. In my opinion, not a lot in it, the Chile player had hold and wouldn’t let go so I flung him to the ground. Surely not a straight red, the ref claimed I hit out. WRONG! Considering some of the previous challenges that had gone unpunished, I felt a little hard done by. Anyway, I hadn’t even left the field when from the resulting free kick Chile netted again. 4-3, and the luck was certainly swinging their way. Five minutes later, 4-4, don’t remember a whole lot about that goal. But their winner was certainly controversial. The ball went out over the goal line for what should have been a goal kick to us – had one of Chile’s substitutes not kicked it back onto the pitch! He had been standing behind the goal in full kit (up to no good it turned out); the ref let play go on and Chile scrambled home their fifth. 4-5, and we had lost a three-goal lead. This decision sparked scenes reminiscent of the Battle Of Old Trafford. Cheating Chile were gloating, we were furious with the referee, but he wasn’t having a bar of it. Another poor decision from him on the day, and it cost us at the very least a draw. In between those two final goals, Chile had a man sent off for kicking out at Richie. I’m not saying it’s wrong, but anybody who believes it was unprovoked would be… well, wrong. Well done Richie! Man Of The Match on the day was Neville, and thoroughly deserved. The Scouser seems to pull out his best performances on the last game of tournaments (MOTM against WSV in last seasons Winter League final game).

 

So that brought the end to our Ethnic League campaign: 8 played, 3 wins, 5 defeats. We’ve had a good time, got sunburnt, and conceded more goals than we could have imagined (averaged 3.125 goals a game, scoring an average of only 2.75 goals a game). Thanks to Tim & Richie, to the team, and thanks to anybody who came to watch us, your support has been appreciated.

 

We finally got around to having our Winter League awards night after this game back at O’Carrolls, jointly celebrated with Tim’s 31st birthday. The winners on the night were Gus for Player Of The Season (was there ever any doubt?) and GolDan Green for Top Scorer (with 20 league goals last season). Everybody received an individual trophy, and for that, a big thanks to Tim & Richie. Also thanks for the champagne. The ASFA Shield and Club Trophy are now on display in O’Carrolls for anybody who’d like to pop in and pay homage. Thanks to O’Carrolls and staff for the food and copious amounts of alcohol they provided for the evening. Now all that was left to do was get Tim drunk… could we do it… I think we could! It was an absolutely great evening, a blur of singing, dancing, drinking, and the most Train Wreck shots ever lined up on the O’Cs bar! We managed to make Tim sick, I think it’s all anybody wanted from the evening. Hangovers galore on Monday morning, but it was worth every minute. Cheers!

The Editor

 

     02.02.06      7-A-SIDE RESULT FEB 01 – O’Carrolls 2 – 0 The Usual Suspects

 

A treat this week… not one, but two match reports…

First up, me…

 

We went into this game on the back of a frustrating game against The Doctors last week, where, with the help of some poor refereeing, we came away with only a single point. Still, it was enough to see us go top of the table on 10 points, one clear of our nearest challengers - Black Dogs and Hustlers; both of whom suffered defeats last week. This weeks opponents, The Usual Suspects, had defeated Bohz Boyz 3-2 last week so we weren’t taking this game lightly. Then again, we don’t really take any game lightly.

 

It was evident from within moments of kick off that the referee had read the midweek guttersnipe press; we weren’t going to get any decisions from this guy, so we were going to have to win by simply playing football. And that’s exactly what we did. A tentative start, we allowed the Suspects to come at us, just to see what these guys were made of. An early effort from distance sailed over Richie’s crossbar before we decided to step it up a gear. Passing was good and we started to create some good openings. Gus & Gibbo were putting in their usual work rate, and Dan Green was giving 110% up front. It was from some great play between Gibbo & Gus that the opening goal came. After a terrific pass from the Brummie, Gus was allowed the space to shoot from distance, and he made no mistake blasting it home to make it 1-0. A quality strike from the midfield dynamo. We controlled the pace of the game from here on in, and while 1-0 was the slenderest of leads, we were playing well enough to feel it would probably have been enough.

 

Not much else to tell from the first half; all the other talking points were the referees actions; a player from each side sin-binned for challenging for a ball (shame on them…!), and the guy just refused to explain any of his decisions. Any attempt to request an explanation (which I think you’re allowed to do) was dismissed with the threat of a red/yellow card. Good reffing mate!

 

Second half and the game continued in the same vein, we were playing some good stuff, and the ref was still making some questionable decisions. We kept plugging away, The Suspects had a few half-opportunities, but Richie’s goal was rarely threatened. With little over five minutes to go, Dan Green sealed the win with a cracking goal. A clearance from defence was picked up by Dan on the right side, he worked his way inside and with Gibbo unmarked on the left screaming for the ball, the Gingernut selfishly opted to take the shot on himself – and absolutely buried it. A fierce strike to make it 2-0 and put the three points beyond doubt.

 

With four games remaining, we’re in a strong position to win the group. We’ve got to ignore the inconsistent refereeing and just keep playing football. When we’ve played football, we’ve given teams up there little chance. Next week sees a top of the table clash against Black Dogs. A win here would be a big, big victory!

The Editor

 

And now Mr. Alexander Bell…

 

After last week's controversial draw with the Doctors and their ref, this week saw another tough clash, with the high-flying Usual Suspects. A settled 7-A-Side team has led to an unbeaten run in the competition and Richie, Max, Tom, Tansolo, Gus, Nevchenko, Dan and Gibbo made up another solid-looking line-up.

Early exchanges were scrappy but gradually OC’s got a hold on the game. Our fitness appeared to be stronger than the Usual Suspects, with Max and Tom always having options down the flanks, while Tansolo roamed picking up the scraps and linking play. This allowed Gussage to maraud forward and feed the front men, with Gibbo in particular having lots of space in the first half. In fact, Gibbo worked his tail off, constantly closing down their fullback and forcing turnovers of possession. After a spell of sustained first-half pressure, it was no surprise when we took the lead. Good work on the left by Gibbo saw him cut inside the full back and lay the ball across goal for Gussage from 20 yards out. One of the Suspects' defenders naively said "just let him shoot"...so Gussage did, straight into the corner of the net. A slight deflection off a defender but the ball would probably have gone in anyway.

So 1-0, and OC’s then began to knock it about. Intricate passing and movement saw us completely negate any attacking ambition from the opposition. The defence was in control, Gussage was controlling play and the arrival of Nev also unsettled their defence. On three or four occasions we could have scored again from sweeping moves. Just before halftime, a melodramatic, namby pamby ref decided to get involved for no good reason. A bit of physicality in the midfield between Tansolo and an opponent saw both players booked and sin-binned for no good reason. It was then that the ref decided to give Usual Suspects every decision, and threaten us with yellow cards at every turn. This isn't sour grapes, because we were winning at the time. No offence Mr Green (our token Kiwi), but these guys don't understand the game of football and the emotions involved - especially when their boys are losing. HT 1-0

The second half continued in much the same fashion as the first, with the referee becoming more and more ridiculous. Every throw-in and free-kick went against us. When Gibbo was blatantly obstructed when running for a through ball, the ref completely ignored the foul even though it was right in front of him. Tansolo was kicked a couple of times as they tried to mix it. When they did try and get a bit physical with us, we of course outmuscled them. Exemplified by a wonderful 50-50 challenge from Gus, where he wasn't afraid to dive in, took the ball, got a knock but just got on with things. It's great watching opposition trying to get physical with us. Our big, hard men weren't even on the pitch - Keet, Walshy, Alfie - yet we still won the physical battle and the footballing battle.

As a footnote, a cracking right-foot piledriver from Dan Green sealed the victory (2-0) and pushed us further clear at the top of the league. Discussions were launched post-match with officials, but they're irrelevant really. Let's hope we don't receive expulsion from the league. This is a tournament we have to win now - hopefully with an unbeaten run with just four games left. Another great win..

Alexander Bell