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| Football 2nd XI Team 'Blog' |
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MATCH REPORTS
Wednesday 6 December v Aldro School
The 2nd XI played their final match of the season away at Aldro. The pitch was small and muddy. It didn’t suit our style of play and in the end we failed to cope with it. Both teams were well matched and the match was played in a very good spirit. After the cut and thrust of the first ten minutes, we took the lead with 2 goals, one from Cameron Henderson and one from Dougie Moffat. We had played quite well, and coped with Aldro’s attacking vigour most of the time. However, we gave away 2 soft goals close to half time, through lapses in concentration. We still felt quite confident. Then things changed in the second half…. We played into the sun, which was low in the sky, and Aldro started kicking high balls into out area. One freak bounce, with our goalkeeper, blinded a little by the sun and off his line, brought Aldro another goal. We were now behind in the game! Suddenly, Aldro were holding on and we were playing well, carving their defence apart. We got the equaliser after some severe pressure in their goal area, caused a defender to lash the ball against his won player and into the net. GAME ON! With the pressure palpable in the air, both teams fought for the supremacy that would bring the winning goal. Unfortunately, Aldro scored it after we had just shaved the post with a shot. The Aldro winger pulled the ball back to a midfielder, allowing him to shoot for the edge of the area unopposed. The shot flew over the head of Aaron Fuller just under the cross bar into the goal. 3 – 4. Angry and disappointed, we battled back, but were unable to find the equaliser. The boys of the 2nd XI had played well and did not deserve to lose the match. However, such is the nature of the game. The boys should hold their heads very high. They have played scintillating football this season, and they have played as a team. It has been a very good season and for a lot of the 2nds, there is always next year to look forward to! Final score: Eagle House 3 Aldro 4
Saturday 2 December v Highfield School The 2nd XI played very well indeed in this game. Highfield were very hard to break down at first and for 15 minutes the score was 0 - 0. Highfield were strong and passed the ball well and although a few chances fell to us, there was nothing between the 2 teams. I was very concerned that this was going to be a tough game! Then, we started to click with some excellent passing moves. The breathtaking speed and intricacy of these moves took Highfield apart at times and chance upon chance was created. After the first goal went in, we grew enormously in confidence and after a 5 minute period when we scored 3 goals, we were comfortably on top. Emanuel Vila scored four and was electrifying with his pace and instinctive shooting on sight. Richard Bishop got 2 well deserved goals towards the end of the match after excellent link up play from Emanuel, Felix Fowler and Dougie Moffat. After a faultess display at left back, Sam Auger went in goal for Aaron Fuller. Aaron then went to striker and scored. The goal of the match however was a team goal finished with an angelic strike. The goal was expertly crafted after numerous passes by the team saw a ball slid to Cameron Henderson in off his left wing. Cameron didn't hesitate and from a tight angle to the left of goal, he drilled the ball into the far corner. Although we scored a lot of goals, Highfield played very well and we had to be superb to win by such a great margin. Full marks should go to Highfield who battled to the end and should have scored close to the final whistle when their striker, Hugo Brown, roared through our defence but shot narrowly wide. Once again, this was an excellent performance by the 2nd XI and a match played in a good spirit with both teams making a game of it. Final score: Eagle House 8 Highfield 0
Wednesday 29 November v Bradfield College The 2nd XI played very well again in this match against an older team, but one with slightly less match practise. We therefore dominated the first 15 minutes, creating a number of chances and scoring twice. Felix Fowler, in off his wing challenged for the ball with a defender in the 6 yard box and a richochet took the ball off Felix into the net. It was no more than we deserved as we pressed and got a goal after a scramble in their area and a good pass by Aaron Fuller gave Emanuel Vila his easiest chance of the afternoon. Bradfield came back very strongly after this, giving us little room and creating a few half chances for themselves. Sam Dovey played well in goal when the ball came his way, saving a few one-on-ones after our defence pushed up too far and got caught at the back. I was beginning to get a feeling of deja vu, but the defence with Dougie Moffat sweeping behind stood strong. In the second half, things were a little scrappy, we played the ball in the air more than normal and found it difficult to carve out any real chances. Felix Fowler and Cameron Henderson worked their magic on the wings, Felix in particular working up and down the pitch like a man possessed and showing some excellent skill on the ball. The Bradfield defence, however, looked untroubled and their central defenders in particular looked very comfortable with their midfield bringing the ball out of defence with pace and skill. Time for a change. Dougie Moffat went up front with Emanuel and their pace and close control started bringing rewards. Dougie got our third goal after Sam Auger purposefully intercepted a Bradfield attack and unleashed Emanuel who in turn sent Dougie through on the goal keeper. Dougie kept his nerve as he was challenged by a defender to fire the ball across the keeper into the net with aplomb. This was a pleasing win and one which sets us up well for our match with Highfield on Saturday. Well played boys. A very good team performance with some very god moments of passing and moving. On this form, our draw with our 1st team in training on Friday was no fluke! Final score : Eagle House 3 Bradfield 0
Saturday 25 November v Sunningdale Unfortunately this game, like all the others today, was cancelled due to all the rain and some very waterlogged pitches. We were very much looking forward to this match after some very good performances. Next is Bradfield College and their U14 E team. A match today would have helped to settle the team that little bit more before the competitive nature of playing an older and physically stronger team. Maybe a good performance against our 1sts in training will help!
Wednesday 22 November v Cranleigh Prep
This was a very close and exciting game. Both teams looked to play a passing game and demonstrated skill and control in possession. We started brightly with Kevin Akunwa heading narrowly wide and Luis Argueso sidefooting the ball over from 8 yards, both from excellent corners by Jack Cowneadow. Cranleigh slowly got into the game and started to cause us problems as they closed us down quickly and looked to pass the ball wide and to whip in some excellent crosses. From one of these crosses we scored an own goal as one of our defenders was running back and tried to hook the ball wide when only a few feet from our goal. The score 0 - 1 at half time. The second half saw a much more open game with chances going to both teams. Ryan Chan, in goal for Aaron Fuller made some great 1 on 1 saves as our defence was caught a little short of pace and slightly out of position. We must have drawn strength from these saves as late in the game we scored the crucial equaliser. Using his terrific pace, Emanuel Vila latched onto an excellent through ball to take the ball around the keeper and then very unselfishly he passed square for Aaron Fuller, now playing striker, to side foot into the unguarded net. This was a very good game to watch and to referee, played in the right spirit and with two good footballing teams battling it out using both skill and strength. Of course we felt we should have won, having scored both the goals - but as someone once said "its a funny old game!" Final score : Eagle House 1 Cranleigh 1
Wednesday 15 November v Pangbourne College
The 2nd XI played their first match of a short season with only a few training sessions behind them and put on one of the best displays of football by a 2nd XI team I have seen. The 2nds played an excellent passing game, playing the ball to feet and using the wings as often as possible. The 2nd XI are very fortunate to be blessed with players who have a great deal of control of the ball and possess the ability to play with their heads up, looking for passes. Their positioning and reading of the game was good as was their commitment and this was a fantastic way to start the season. From the first whistle we looked to pass the ball around. The partnership of Johnny Burgin, playing at right back and Jack Cowmeadow on the right wing caused Pangbourne real problems and our first goal came courtesy of a cross from the right to the flying boot of Kevin Akunwa, who looked fresh and fleet of foot throughout the game. Our midfield, backed up ably by the defence, kept the ball very well and after the half time break, got two goals through William Price and Ryan Chan after some very good passing movements. Kevin Akunwa got his second goal of the match after an excellent through ball put him one on one with the keeper. Kevin, full of confidence after a terrific match, hit it very early from outside the box into the corner of the goal, giving the keeper no chance! Pangbourne have been playing all season and have won most of their games. They gave us a good battle, working hard all through the game and it is to our credit that our goalie, Aaron Fuller, had little to do. What is even better news is that I took sixteen boys and every single one of them played very well. We certainly have a great deal of talent and depth this year. What is bad news for me is that I cannot continue to play them all since the 3rds will need some of them soon. I wish I could keep them all. Now I have some very tough decisions to make! Final score : Eagle House 4 Pangbourne College 0
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