Lady luck deserts the boys

Saturday 23^rd February
vs Maghull 2-4

Team: Ciarán; Adam, Connor, Tom, Matty; Ben, Joe, Caleb, Josh; Ollie; Jacob. Subs: Cormac, Danny, Elliot.

A clash of colours left the boys donning the yellow shirts of rivals Marina Sands, which turned out to be ominous as they had little luck to reward an improved display.

They started brightly and took the lead after 3 minutes. Jacob had failed to get enough onto Josh’s cross a minute earlier, but Ben’s clever ball along the edge of the box gave him the chance to poke it over the advancing keeper.

Jacob came close to doubling the lead a minute later, hitting the outside of the post after Ollie and Josh had found space behind the left back.

Connor and Tom were alert to any breaks by Maghull through the middle and their opponents goal continued to have a charmed life as, from a corner, Jacob, Tom and Caleb couldn’t find the space to get a meaningful touch and Josh shot wide after 9 minutes.

The move in the 12^th minute, Caleb’s inch perfect ball for Ben to run onto and shoot narrowly wide, deserved a goal and Joe and Ben combined to return the compliment 3 minutes later, only for Caleb to pull his shot wide.

The defence had coped comfortably with anything Maghull had offered, and Ciarán had had little to do between the posts. As Caleb and the Joe saw shots go wide, and Josh’s touch from Jacob’s square pass just ran away from him, the boys looked to take a narrow lead into the break. In the last minute, however, Maghull won a corner which was floated under the bar. Although Matty got to the first touch, he was powerless to stop the forward shooting home from close range to level the score.

The three subs came on, replacing Adam, Josh and Matty, for the second half as Maghull took heart from their equaliser. Connor made a couple of solid tackles, but when Joe was dispossessed in midfield, Maghull broke down the left, with the pass to the forward perfectly weighted to lift the ball over the advancing Ciarán for the lead.

Caleb was continuing to open up the Maghull defence, his ball to Jacob in the 34^th minute eventually coming to Ollie who sliced wide. On 36, Jacob saw his shot saved at the near post saved after wrestling past the defender as he led the line looking for the equaliser.

Josh returned to the action in the 40^th minute, relieving Joe, but disaster struck again 5 minutes later. Once again, a Maghull break left the defence stretched and Elliot’s clearance fell kindly to allow them to rifle home their third.

Ben saw his 48^th minute free kick hit the post from an acute angle but the boys pulled one back with a great free kick move. With more space, Ben’s kick this time found Jacob spinning round his marker at the back post to head home.

Cormac and Tom gave way to Matty and Adam as the boys went in search of a winner. The game was getting stretched now and Ciarán did enough to put off one attack and was out quick to another whilst, up the other end, Josh stepped in off the right wing to shoot wide.

Caleb Willis - Man of the Match

Elliot needs to avoid black cats and avoid ladders – his clearance just inside his half in the last minute hit him in the face and left two forwards with a clear run on goal. Ciarán made a tackle on the edge of his box but the ball again ran the way of the forward to slide it into an empty net.

The boys showed far more spirit and determination in this game than against Liverpool North, creating a host of chances in the first half and battling hard. Some of the ideas from training are now being taken onto the pitch but they must continue to work on holding their shape across the park. Jacob and Ollie were bright at the top of the team but Caleb’s incisive passing saw him take the Man of the Match accolade.

Double Disaster

Saturday 9^th February

vs Liverpool North 0-3, 0-2

With the match with Liverpool North from the first round of games still outstanding, it was agreed to play a double header of thirty minute games…

Team: Ciarán; Ben, Matty, Joe, Elliot; Adam, Josh, Caleb, Danny; Connor, Jacob. Subs: Cormac, Tom.

Heavy overnight rain had left the pitch like a quagmire, with the ball stopping in the midfield mud and standing water on both wings. On a leveller of a pitch, Liverpool North showed much greater will to win the ball and were deserved winners.

Elliot’s clearing header from a 2^nd minute corner was volleyed back by North from the edge of the box, the sweet shot too hot for Ciarán’s fingertips as the boys made the worst start possible.

North were taking control of midfield as yet again the boys stood off their more determined opponents and got sucked into a battle, instead of trying to find the better ground out on the wings. When they did, they finally put the North defence under some pressure as Connor linked with Adam but the winger’s cross was straight down the keeper’s throat.

Jacob and Danny combined after 10 minutes to force a corner. Josh’s inswinger was too good for everyone and, after Ben sent it back in, Jacob could only scuff his shot into the keeper’s hands. Danny got in a good cross in the 13^th minute, which the keeper could only palm away and Ben’s long range shot went wide.

Joe had put in a good challenge earlier to put off the North forward, who shot wide, but Ciarán’s poor goal kick left him in all sorts of trouble in the 18^th minute. Caught on the ball, he was robbed and the forward slid the ball past Ciarán to double the lead.

Adam burst infield after 21 minutes and although Jacob’s touch let him down it was enough to set up Connor who shot wide. Three minutes later, another searching corner from Josh saw both teams hacking wildly at the ball but it was North who got the telling touch to clear.

Breaking out a minute later, the left side was exposed and the North winger stepped inside Ben to set up a chance that the centre of defence only made easier for the North forward to seal the victory.

Team: Ciarán; Ben, Matty, Joe, Tom; Adam, Josh, Caleb, Elliot; Connor, Jacob. Subs: Cormac, Danny.

Given a stiff reminder of what was needed at the turn around, the boys had a chance to redeem themselves in the second “match”. North were only going to take inspiration from the first 30 minutes, though, and Ciarán was in the action in the first minute with a low save.

Josh’s bustling style was always liable to reap dividends in these conditions and he made a greater contribution in this second game. He burst through, only to shoot wide under pressure and then worked a good short corner to create chances for Jacob and Connor.

As the ball stopped in the mud yet again, Josh was on hand to get it going again and he combined well with Jacob, coming in with pace from the right, to shoot over the bar in the 5^th minute.

The pair linked again moments later, the keeper saving with his feet from Josh as he looked set to open the scoring. Instead the boys went behind to another good goal on 9 minutes: the ball over the top was expertly controlled on the chest and lobbed over Ciarán.

Cormac came on for Matty at the restart, moving onto the right wing. Connor had struggled up front in his first match and dropped back to fill the gap at centre back, going on to put in a series of tackles and challenges which went on to win him the Man of the Match award over the two games.

In the 15^th minute, he stopped another break, Ciarán then saving from the corner. The defence was caught out again in the 17^th minute, however, as a cross was met with a header that wrong-footed Ciarán to extend the lead.

Yet again, a two goal deficit was needed to spark the boys into life. Josh burst yet again into the box after 19 minutes, only for the defender to kick it off his foot for a corner. He swung it in from the right, hit the front post direct and then won the challenge in the box and was brought down. Up stepped Caleb, only to see the keeper go the right way and save the penalty. 

They went on to force a series of corners but North held firm until Joe was barged in the back wide on the right in the 23^rd minute.. From the free kick, Tom probably had too much space and time to set himself for the header and put it just over the bar.

Connor Wolfenden - Man of the Match

Connor’s greater involvement was summed up in the last five minutes as he threw himself into four successive tackles as his team mates stood and watched – not for the first time this season a change in the last quarter of a game had produced a standout performance missing from the rest of the team.

The failings are not dissimilar from before – they must learn to win the ball and keep hold of it, then use it wisely. Liverpool North were stronger through the middle and the boys need to learn from their mistakes. They showed greater passion in the last 15 minutes of the day’s play, lead by Connor and Josh but they played against a team that wanted the win more than they did and they got what they deserved. Agreeing to play a double header turned out to be a disaster.