Red: Jeremy, Jim, Tufan, Ned, (new) Paul
Yellow: Dan, James, Joseph, Adam, John
Jim in goal with broken foot.
Ned got first four goals for Red and Wins award for most nutmegs in a game.
John chipped jim only to see it come back off bar.
Dan bamboozled himself and two defenders with some dribbling trickery to cross for Adam to head in.
Dog on the pitch. Claggy.
1-0
1-1
2-1
2-2
3-2 Half Time
4-2
5-2
5-3
5-4
6-4
7-4
7-5
7-5
Final score: Red 8-6 Yellow
Red: Richard, Damon, James, Jeremy, Colin
Yellow: John, Joseph, Matt, Tufan, Colin
Two contributions for the report:
“Colin played for whichever team was losing, so couldn’t really win. But given he scored a cracking header to open proceedings, we should probably put him down as a win for the purposes of record keeping.”
“I think there were three headed goals, a whole year worth in one game!”
Final score: Red 9 – 10 Yellow
Red: John, JP, Wilkie, Dan, Richard, Jim, Adam
Yellow: Matt, Tufan, James, Jeremy, Joseph, Damon, Jack
A great turnout of an end-of-the-year 7-a-side that proved to be very evenly picked. A pre-marked out pitch which didn’t need changing. And what a game! If you weren’t there, you’ll never know.
It took 24 minutes for the first goal with James cutting in from the right and firing in on his left foot from the edge of the box 1-0 at half time, a very respectable scoreline. Red started the second half with a goal shortly after the break with JP deflecting in off the far post from Adam’s cross. Tufan latched onto a route one clearance from Jeremy and stroked home. JP replied with some nifty footwork, turned and fired in. Tufan got another after after Red never fully cleared a corner. And that was that. Only one innocuous foul, fast, a bit sticky, the sun didn’t have the impact we were concerned about and a pint or two afterwards. Nice one. A really nice one.
Final score: Yellow 3 – 2 Red
Red: Daniel, Jeremy, Gerald, John
Yellow: James, Tufan, Adam
On an actual equinox! Upon which team would the sun shine longest? Upon which team would darkness fall first?
4 v 3. One pass rule instigated for both teams. Then disputed within five minutes. Decided only applicable for the team of four, otherwise there’s no advantage for the smaller team.
The rule:
Once the opposing team has intercepted, deflected or touched the ball in any way, your team on regaining possession, then have to make at least one pass to a teammate before you can score.
On shooting:
If the goalkeeper parries the ball but it still goes in, the goal will stand.
If the goalkeeper saves the shot and anyone from the attacking team immediately regains possession from the rebound without it reaching a defender, they can shoot again.
Got it? Good.
What do we conclude from this perpetually confusion rule? We need more numbers! I’m not coming all the way from Hampshire again for such a paltry turnout.
Anyway, 7-5 to the smaller team at half time.
Adam was knackered from playing the day before and swapped with Daniel. The four turned around the deficeit to get up to 8 – 7. The yellow threesome upped their game to turnaround the score in their favour to 10-8. But with 10 minutes still to play everyone tired, Yellow more than red, and the foursome came out victors.
Final score: Red 15 – 12 Yellow
Red: Gerald, Damon, Dan, Richard, Tufan
Yellow: Adam, Jim, John, JP, Jeremy
5-a-side.
My match report notes consist of the half time score (4-2 to Yellow) and figuring out the personal goal differences as Damon and Gerald both had to leave at half time (injury and better things to do) and Jeremy swapped sides to even up the game. This quotient business is complicated stuff but needs to be done right! And that was it.
Final score: Yellow 9 – 6 Red
It’s taken 25 years into the 21st century for us to move into the 21st century, Welcome Flo…our first female player!
Much hokey-cokey with the squad list but eventually 11 showed up.
JP and Dan braved the M25 closure.
Colin came from Devon for his first game since 2021.
Jeremy picked dubious teams.
The rain stopped just as we started.
Red (5): Jim, Adam, Joseph, Dan, JP
Yellow (6): Jeremy, Colin, Flo, Matt, Tufan, Jared
In no particular order things went thus…
Yellow got two quick goals so Matt asked what the record score was.
Joseph headed a wonderful goal…into his own net.
JP played keepy-uppy and swivelled to volley in, nice.
Adam rabona’d a cross in to….no one, side netting? It deserves a mention.
Jim launched a goal kick, it went over Jeremy, it bounced over Colin and Daniel swiped at the ball and in it went off the post.
To return the favour, Daniel shot at goal, it was off target but Jim side-footed in at the far post.
JP fired in a rocket from the right channel.
Joseph handballed a shot off the line, Jared scored the penalty.
Jeremy “handballed” a shot at the other end. It was a soft decision but Joseph also scored that penalty.
Daniel evaded some defensive tackles with tricksy fluky footwork to lay off for Adam to side-foot in.
At half time Matt offered one, maybe two, of their players.
Adam tidied up some very gloopy dog poo. He also realised the calibre of integrity on the pitch as everyone stepped away and left him to it.
“It’s only a goal if you defend it for however many minutes” was prophetic advice several times.
A Red clearance ricocheted off a Yellow attacker back into the Red goal.
Someone cynically tripped Tufan
Matt saved a point blank shot with his head.
JP fired a low shot with Daniel putting Jeremy off so he misjudged the trajectory, fell over, and the ball rolled gently in behind him.
Yellow seemed to side foot into an empty goal a few times…attacking en masse, they usually had a man leftover and made the most of him.
It was a great game, very open, fast, counter-attacking and despite the score fairly even possession.
With the above description you’d be forgiven for thinking that Red won because I can barely recall a single Yellow goal, but they did score 14 of them. I asked for input…they mentioned a JP goal and dog poo.
Matt, the highest scoring Pagan game was 18-17. This one was 13 goals short.
Final score: Yellow 14 – 8 Red
Red (9): Gerald, Jared, Dan, Jack, Ned, Wilkie, JP, Jim, Adam
Yellow (8): Paul, Jeremy, James, Kevin, Henrik, John, Tufan, Felix
A hot morning that only got hotter. A great turnout…17! And an introduction of teenage youth (that certainly questioned the experience of the old-timers) including debuts for Henrik and Ned, and a first start for Felix, having previously come on as a sub back in June 2019…when he scored!
It took one minute to decide the pitch was too small. Both teams went at it. Long balls a-aplenty to cause havoc up front but no havoc was caused. Felix and Ned, the youngest additions, were put on opposing left wings and created problems….they were too dangerous not to have been marked. Wilkie and JP controlled the Red attack, JP missing a quartet of reasonable chances. Eventually he dribbled down the right, drove in along the goalline and having done all the hard work, cut the ball back for Jared to tap in. A cagey scoreline for quite an open game.
1-0 to Red at half time.
Paul decided to venture forward more in the second half and after a trademark drive forward was cruelly denied with his rocket pinging off the keepers leg. Jim hit a squared ball first time that needed an equally impressive reaction save from…I think it was Kevin, to keep it out. JP snatched on a mistake between Kevin and Jeremy to poke in his first and then with everyone tiring he ended up first to a loose ball and with space to compose himself he sent the keeper the wrong way and stroked in for a second. And the for the first time in years a clean shee…oh hang on. A speculative Yellow ball came into the box, ricocheted off James’s chest and flew in just as the clock beeped. A goal that justified their numerically disadvantaged endeavours.
Final score: Red 3-1 Yellow