|
|
|
|
|
“THE
DEN” – Match Report |
|
|
|
|
||||
|
Game 7 Mosman Lionel Watts 4 |
|
First Grade – Tigers Ride Their Luck Score: 1-0 Goal Scorer(s):
Tim Sheather Match Report: A
sign of a good side is one that doesn’t play well but still gets the
result. That was the case against an unlucky Mosman side that dominated the
Tigers at The Den and should have led after outplaying us in the first half.
Luckily we managed to keep Mosman scoreless and recorded a tight 1-0 victory
to keep the pressure on the leading teams who all dropped points seeing us
only 3 points from first place. J There was concern amongst the coaching staff before the
game that last week’s great result against Brooky
would be for naught if they didn’t perform and get the desired result
against Mosman who were sitting near the bottom of the table. All the talk
before the game didn’t have the desired result as the Tiger’s
started the game poorly. The boys couldn’t get out of first gear and
our play was riddled with mistakes and stray passes. We couldn’t
maintain possession for any length of time allowing Mosman to control play
and gifting them with plenty of free ball in our own half. Anyone knows that
without the ball a team’s going to struggle and that’s what we did.
Mosman showed us how the game should be played by using their forwards to
hold the ball up while supporting well through their midfield. We were fortunate not to be behind when Mosman’s left
half broke free and headed a well directed cross against the upright. Shortly
after, a through ball caught our defence off guard and put a Mosman forward
through on goal. Benny hesitated slightly then came off his line but mistimed
his challenge and tripped the advancing forward to give away a penalty. Ben
already saved a crucial penalty against Avalon this year and was on hand
again to save the day. Picking the right way, he stretched to his right,
pulling off a timely save. Nick Rainey had two identical “Half Chances” but
placed both shots straight at the keeper and we went into the half time break
all locked up at nil all. I won’t repeat what was said at half time but the
boys copped the verbal spray they deserved. At least the coach had the
foresight of closing the dressing room door as to not offend any passers by
although some reports suggest some colourful language was heard emanating
from a crack in the wall. The second half performance was much improved with patches
of good play but we still couldn’t get on top of a dogged Mosman team
who were playing well through their midfield. It was also a case of players
trying to do a bit too much with the ball and not using the easy first
option. We have also got into a nasty habit of giving away cheap free kicks
which relieves pressure on the opposition in crucial positions and is
something we need to address. The winner came from a free kick on the right hand side
that was expertly placed back across goal by Tim Sheather giving the keeper
no chance. It was another fantastic goal by Tim who seems to have a habit of
popping up at the most critical times and scoring vital goals. He was also
outstanding in defence once again along with Birdy
and Robbie who are starting to form a very strong defensive partnership. With
Benny hitting top form, opposition teams are finding it hard to break us down
which is indicated by three clean sheets in the past three games. A massive
turn around in goals conceded compared to games prior to this. Man of the Match: Tim Sheather Reserve Grade – Reggies On a Roll Score: 2-0 Goal Scorer(s): Dwayne
Beazley, Kane Matthews Match Report: Reserve
grade keep defying the odds and are rewarded with a well deserved victory
against Mosman. They are now equal first on the ladder after Pittwater drops
points for the second week in a row. Even though this is a virtually brand
new line-up, reggies remain undefeated this season after 7 rounds and keep
producing the results. Reggies welcomed the return of Tiger’s stalwarts,
Lenny and Oggy to the heart of the defence for
their seventh round match against Mosman. Having two strong central defenders
was crucial in thwarting the threatening aerial power of “Box
Head” who’s always dangerous in the air. The game started off scrappily with several ill directed
passes going over the sideline which was noted by the fines committee. Mosman
had a good chance early on after Kane slipped and completely missed the ball
to invite the opposition’s forward a chance on goal, but fortunately Stahly was on hand to clean up the attempted shot. Once
we settled down we started to dominate the midfield and not provide Mosman
with many chances on goal. Nathan was also back in the line-up after finding out that
a suspected broken leg was only a paper cut. Instead of being out for 3
months he only missed the first 5 rounds and threw away the cast. Even though
he hadn’t played for a while Nathan played exceptionally well and
combined with Joe in the middle to terrorise the opposition’s
midfielders. Dwayne once again was in the right place at the right time
and gave us a 1-0 half time lead with a classy finish. With the ball bouncing
awkwardly in front of him he managed to get his knee over the ball and stab a
right footed shot against the underside of the cross bar and into the back of
the net. We got of to a great start in the second half and lead 2-0
after a trade mark Tim Smithies long throw saw Kane tap in at the far post
after Guy expertly flicked it on. Kane was joyed at thinking he’d
scored the winner thinking that the score was 1-1 but was suitably fined for
not being able to count. Overall all another great performance and a deserved result
with Stahly, in goals, making some crucial saves
once again and our defence holding strong. Reggies defence is starting to be
compared with the likes of Man of the Match: Nathan Hope |
|
|||||||||
