Yellow: JP, Ahmet, Martin, Richard, Julius, Gerald, Phil
Red: Tufan, Daniel, Oz, Matt, Larry, Alan, Danny
SUN!!!! From the the brink of Dante’s cancellation inferno to the soaring heights of angelic confirmation, this game was very nearly cancelled but on Saturday some maybes showed their mettle and then several nos changed their minds to turn up on the day. And with a very meagre showing from the Hairdressers, in spite of the hot, bright, golden sphere in the sky, we absorbed their foresome to make 7-a-side!!
We dithered about the pitch but settled on the triangle again – reasonably firm compared to the permanent quagmire that is Peckham Rye.
Martin popped in a brace within five minutes of the start and despite some solid play from Red, Yellow took their chances, Ahmet, JP and Julius making up a formidable attacking threesome pulling away to a 5-1 lead. Oz didn’t seem to be his efficient self, a couple of passes went astray and he kicked air as a chance to half-volley a cross came his way – very unusual. At half time, Yellow lost JP and Larry departed for Red, down to 6-a-side.
Red popped in one to make it 5-2 but a lack of chances meant the game steadied a bit. But suddenly with 12 minutes to go, Red popped in three in two minutes!! Matt, who’s frustration with not much paying off despite his best efforts, got one of them, raising his his fists in the air and sinking to his knees in joyous relief. Richard almost got one back with a shot hitting the post and Oz’s attempt a minute later also went out off the woodwork. But Yellow were shellshocked, they’d led since the start only for this kick in the guts. Their heads lowered and Red were suddenly first to every ball. And Gerald vocally complained about the lack of defence, something we’ve seen several times recently – the team on the backfoot attacking in numbers to get goals but abandoning the rear and being punished. Daniel had been in goal for the turn of fortune but came out to help make a sixth scored by Danny, dinked in the seventh himself and watched with the rest of Red as Tufan went on a solo dribble to put in an eighth. An amazing turnaround. And Martin, an unofficial record perhaps? The longest time for a player left hanging on a hatrick…75 mins.
Final score: Red 8 – 5 Yellow