 |
| Football Under 8 Team 'Blog' |
|
U/8A football match versus Bishopsgate. Wednesday 12 March This was to be our final football match of the term, and the boys and I were determined to end the season on a high. However we did not start well, with some of the boys looking like the would far rather be somewhere else than on a football pitch. Tackles were being missed and passes were going astray and we were just generally showing the Bishopsgate boys far too much respect. It was no surprise that Bishopsgate took the lead early in the game. A combination of poor marking and good skill by the Bishopsgate striker led to him being through on Sam Cooksons’ goal and Sam had no chance with the sweetly struck shot. Still Eagle House did not start playing and we went a second goal behind just minutes later. At this stage I was just waiting for the half –time whistle so we could get off the park and re-group. Thankfully there was no further scoring in this half. HT 0-2 The stern chat at half-time seemed to do the trick and the boys started stringing passes together and getting stuck into tackles. Harry Waters and Ben Howard were working very hard in defence and the midfield trio of Jack Surral, Alex McClelland and Ru Whelan started to take control. A beautiful pass through the defence saw Henry South and he hit a terrific shot which left the opposition grasping at thin air. Definitely goal of the season material. Eagle House was now starting to take control, but Bishopsgate were next to strike with a goal very much against the run of play. From the restart Eagle House attacked relentlessly and Henry South was rewarded for his effort with another goal. The final minutes were very excited and when we managed to squeeze the ball over the line to level the scores I knew we were in for a tense last few minutes. Both teams had chances to steal the game but the final whistle sounded with the teams locked at 3-3. At the end of the day a fair result for 2 teams who played very attractive football. F-T 3-3 A special mention must go to Jack Surral who won the man of the match award. Jack played his heart out and never stopped running from the first whistle to the last. Well done Jack! U/8B football match versus Bishopsgate. Wednesday 12 March Unfortunately I was unable to watch this game as I was refereeing the A side game at the same time. However I heard from the referee and numerous parents that the boys had played some very good passing football, which was pleasing to hear as this is what we have been working on this term. The final result was a 1-1 draw with Max Baldock grabbing the Eagle House goal. Team that played in this fixture: James Gibson (captain) Blaire Becker Daniel Salter Giles Elmhirst Max Baldock Finlay O’Kane Tatsuhito Matsumoto St. Piran's U8 Football Tournament Saturday 1st March Group Matches: 1st Game vs Northwood: Our first game in the tournament and we were feeling very confident as we warmed up and got ready for this match. We started against a very skilful Northwood side that were full of running and eager to stamp their authority on the tournament in this first game. Eagle House battled hard though and we created a few very good chances that could have swung the game our way. However it was Northwood that opened the scoring with a sweetly struck shot from their attacker. Harry Waters and Jamie Gibson were doing some excellent work at the back, and were keeping the dangerous looking Northwood attack at bay. Ru Whelan and Ben Howard were playing some excellent balls to our attackers Henry South and Jack Surrall, and we came close on numerous occasions. However it was Northwood who had the last laugh with a goal right at the final whistle. F-T 0-2 2nd Game vs Holme Grange: This proved to be an excellent game of attacking football and produced a nail-biting finish. The Eagle House boys were starting to gel, and we started playing some brilliant football. Boys were passing and moving into space, and intelligent passing was carving gaps into the Holme Grange defence. Ru Whelan started up front in this match and he opened the scoring for us with a superb solo effort after some great work from Ben Howard and Alex McClelland. We were piling on the pressure and Ru got his name on the score sheet again with a good finish. The midfielders were having a field day with Jack Surrall and Ben Howard in complete control, and Ru giving the Holme Grange defence a torrid time. Our next goal came from an unlikely source though, Harry Waters, who had come up from his position in defence. A cleared ball came out to him and Harry hit it first time, the ball sailed into the goal and Harry had scored what was easily the goal of the tournament. Eagle house took the foot off the gas after that and almost allowed Holme Grange to get back into the game. We held out however for a very good win. F-T 3-2 3rd Game vs Gayhurst: This was the last of our pool games and we had to win it to go through to the cup semi-finals. Gayhurst had beaten both our previous opponents convincingly, and from the outset I could see why. They were a very skilful side with 2 very good attackers and a well drilled midfield. In the first half our defence had their hands full trying to keep the Gayhurst attackers at bay, but unfortunately after relentless pressure, Gayhurst went 1-0 up. They say cometh the hour, cometh the man, and our man in this game was definitely our goalkeeper Sam Cookson. Sam pulled off four or five brilliant diving saves to keep us in this match, and as the second half started we were still in with a chance. The second half was a different story with Eagle House showing true fighting spirit and determination. We launched an attack and a through ball made its way to Henry South, who side-footed it past the oncoming keeper. 0ne all and all to play for. We had another opportunity right at the death but Henry put the ball millimetres wide. Unfortunately that was the last play of the match, and although we had to be content to go through to the plate semi-final, I was very pleased with the way we had played and the determination the boys had shown. 5th/6th place Play-off vs St Piran's: This was a fiercely contested game with both teams out to prove something. The football was end to end and there were plenty of chances for both sides. Ru came close on a few occasions, as did Henry, but the ball just would not go in for us. To be fair, St Piran's had their opportunities as well, with Sam Cookson again proving what a fine goalkeeper he is. Although there were plenty of chances, neither side managed to break the deadlock and we headed to penalty lottery. F-T 0-0. Penalty results: St Piran's won 4-1 7th/8th place Play-off vs Holme Grange: This match followed a very similar pattern to the last time these two sides met. Eagle House dominated the first three quarters of the game with our midfield totally dominating and our forwards making good chances. Ru again got the opener for us with a superbly taken goal. Our dominance continued and Ben Howard was rewarded for his outstanding play throughput the day, by scoring our second. We looked to be cruising to victory, and then seemed to take our pedal off the gas again, allowing Holme Grange to grab a fairly cheap goal. The boys tried hard but tiredness was creeping in and just before the final whistle a poor clearance was picked up by one of their attackers and he made no mstake with the finish. We had let them off the hook and headed for penalties again. F-T 2-2 Penalty results: Holme Grange won 3-2. The coaches final word: We ended up 8th of 8, but I was very pleased with the way the boys passed the ball, and never gave up in any of the games. Had a few results gone our way we could easily have ended up in the final, and with a little luck have won it. However the important thing is that they played as a team, showed real enthusiasm on the day. The day was enjoyed by the boys and I am sure all the spectators too.
Wednesday 5th December U8A & B v Aldro I started with a humble thank you to Nicola for pulling our bus from the quagmire at Cranleigh last week…avec une nice bottle of vin rouge! I noticed that she had not driven her bus onto our waterlogged pitches, she had left it in the car park, I will learn from her example! (this comment is intended to placate a bursar who now does read our blogs…!) To business. The skies had cleared, although there was a sense of drama with occasional squalls, glorious sunshine and then whopping rainbows! Having marvelled at the meteorological conditions, we took to the pitch focused and ready to put everything into our final game of the season. I hope that the spectators were not disappointed, as we managed to create some great football despite the stodgy conditions. There is real shape to this team. Our defence provided by Sam, Henry and Harry have managed to clear the ball quickly and effectively to our mobile midfield throughout this season. Ben, Alex M. and Jack have taken on these positions, finding space and reading the game in order to allow for quick breaks. And Ru has been a strong striker who has good finishing skills. Today we won 1 – 0, with a good goal from Ru that was built up from our back line. Sam had to keep his wits about him as he kept a number of good chances out of the net. This game awareness bodes well for the hockey season! Well done to all the boys for a great Michaelmas on the sports field! Tim Calvey Saturday 1st December The Cranleigh U8 Tournament
Photo by Justin McClelland copyright 2007 I know that this report will be read by Mr Storer in the Southern Hemisphere (the former manager of this team) and I therefore owe it to him to offer an accurate post trip analysis that he will find amusing! He always acted as navigator and in the 3 years that we took this trip; we always found new routes to the venue ranging from the direct to the detoured…once he claimed to sight a rhino, I can only think that we were in the vicinity of a zoo?!? This time I followed Mrs Waters and found yet another way of getting to Cranleigh, thank you Claire! However, on parking the bus we appeared to settle into a very wet and stodgy part of the pitch…wheels spinning, we were grounded and not getting out in a hurry. But no time for thoughts about how Ray Mears would deal with this, we disembarked for our first game. I’m fairly sure that the bursar doesn’t read this…if he does…sorry David, I’ll hose down the bus asap! Canleigh A were the opposition and they were certainly strong with a player who had put 3 goals past us several weeks ago. Despite a great effort, at half time they lead by 2 goals. However, as we got into our stride we pushed them and Alex managed to get one back. We then met Haslemere in the ‘cage’, an enclosed astro that really suited our play. Jack was everywhere and notched up a great hatrick with Ru closely behind with a brace! Both these players were in fine touch and the goals were well worked. In defence, Harry worked like a Trojan, providing great service to the forwards. Sam kept out some fine shots only conceding 1 goal. Remaining on the astro, we then met Cranleigh B. Ben pushed up as an attacking midfielder and scored 2 good goals. Not to be outdone, Ru also scored another brace and Jack 1 to leave the final score 5-1 to us. This left us well in contention with one game to play. We returned to the grass for our final game against Aldro. Playing down the hill, we knew that we had to score in the first half. Unfortunately, despite some great pressure, Aldro kept us out. With tired legs we then headed up the hill for the final 6 minutes. This is when Henry came into his own with some great powerful clearances up the hill and into the wind. We had a few chances but lacked that final touch to get the score. Nevertheless, this was a good ending with a 0-0 draw. When the points were counted we came a very respectable second in the tournament. Well done to the team for playing some great football. With 11 goals for and only 4 against, I think that this says a great deal about the way we play! A very big thank you to the parents who took on the bracing winds to support this valiant team! After match tea, darkness fell and there was only one vehicle left forlornly in a bog! I must thank the Cranleigh staff for donning football boots and crampons in order to attempt a push. However, it was Nicola from Aldro with her brand new school bus and a tow rope who managed to finally release me from my mess! And yes, I did manage to find yet another way home…there can’t be many more routes available. Goldfish have been known to learn faster than me! I can hear laughter in Australia... Tim Calvey
Wednesday 28th November U8 A & B v Daneshill The great thing about Sky + is that you can rewind that goal and watch it again … in slow motion … working out just how fantastic it really was and how it came about. Unfortunately Rupert had not paid the premiums to air the Eagle House away games this season, their loss! Today we had 3 goals that fizzed past keepers that would have easily made it onto the ‘Premiership goal of the season’. The first came from Alex McClelland, a volley from the deep that sailed over the head of the keeper, it was stunning! We then set about closing the breaks that Daneshill were making with a little too much ease. They had 2 good strikers and Sam was spending a great deal of time diving around just to keep this lead. The second half started with 2 soft goals where we failed to pick up their runners. We were slowly fighting our way back into the game when along came goal 2 in the fizzing stakes. A corner cross came flying in and the Daneshill striker got a great contact heading the ball with power into the back of the net. However, a great aspect of this team is that they are not put off with score lines, they do play to the end. This fight brought about the final scorcher … the ball was knocked up to Ru who managed to turn and shoot in one movement. It was still on the up as it went through the net. Today we had a great game of football and whilst the result was not in our favour, there was some breathtaking stuff on the field from both sides. Surely that’s what it’s all about! Tim Calvey Wednesday 21st November U8 A & B v Cranleigh
Having played so much rugby this season, it has been good for the boys to jump into new skills, new drills and a new sport! It has certainly perked us up! Having said that, the obvious challenge was to keep that drive and team spirit and channel it into the coming football season. Following a short number of training sessions, we put together an ‘A’ team that was very much focused on a fast passing game. This proved to be the greatest strength on the day as we played a wonderful first half of passing and supporting each other. Our first goal came from Alexander McClelland and was a peach! It had a great build up from defence, through the midfield and then into space. Our second goal came from an impossible angle, with Ru shooting past the keeper. However, Cranleigh had a player who was always dangerous and he put 3 good goals past us over the game. Credit must go to Sam who saved at least 2 scorching hits with full length dives across the goal. I don’t mind losing a game like this when the team showed so much of what we are trying to instil about passing and support play. Well done to all the players. Men of the match: Alexander McClelland and Sam Cookson. Tim Calvey
|
