Egerton Pumas 8-0 Sandbach Utd
FORGET TONY TIGER, IT’S THE PUMAS THAT ARE GRRRR-EIGHT
Having secured qualification a week earlier, the Pumas were aware that only a big win would be sufficient to put them top of the table on goal difference in the final standings.
The drama of the Panthers game boosted morale and the boys flew out of the traps. The new “all-out attack” formation put Sandbach under an immediate and heavy bombardment. A heat seeking missile corner from Braderz caused chaos and the ball ended up in the back of the net.
The boys could now smell blood and like great white sharks heading towards the beach on a tidal wave of pressure, they would not be denied. Two more goals followed in quick succession.
Perhaps sensing that the job was done, the Pumas backed off in the last 10 minutes of the half and drifted to the break 3-0 up. A packet of Jaffas, a reminder of the task in hand and a prophetic prediction of 5 more goals from the Colonel and we were back underway. In this half there would be no mercy.
Matt, enjoying a quiet morning, did his job with the assurance of a player at the top of his form. He’s had a fine tournament so far.
Tom is growing into a giant defender and he used his size and presence to control the defence single handedly, turning defence into attack whenever possible.
Freddie and Braderz stretched the play from touchline to touchline. Both wingers provided trickery as well as quality delivery into the box. Freddie unluckily hit the frame of the goal and Braderz hit the back of the net from wide positions. Braderz kept up his phenomenal record of scoring in every Albert Steele match so far.
Ben again showed his versatility by playing midfield, attack and then defence. He excelled when asked to switch to attack and grabbed a hat-trick with some well-timed movement in the box.
Isaac, sporting a new look, once again showed that he is a fox in the box and justified his place in the starting line up by weighing in with 2 goals to add to his big assist from last week.
Stan worked as hard as ever despite a nasty knock to the ankle which restricted his movement. The ball just wouldn’t drop for him this time but he will add to his tally before this competition is over.
Jack put in another astonishing shift both in attack and midfield. His work rate drove the team forward. He rounded off another big performance with a goal.
By the end, the Pumas had chalked up their biggest win of the season. It proved to be enough to take them to the top of the table and guarantee a home tie in the quarter finals. On this showing none of the other 7 teams will relish a trip to Mereheath Lane.
Final score Egerton Pumas 8 Sandbach United 0.
Team Matt-Tom-Stan-Bradley-Ben Hen-Isaac-Jack-Freddie
Monday, March 28, 2011
Albert Steele Game 5
Egerton Panthers 1-1 Sandbach Utd
Buckley Fires Panthers into Quarter Finals
The Panthers new before kick off that avoiding defeat would see them through to the knock out stages, the pre match talk all about enjoying yourself aimed at easing the pressure, but when the whistle went for the start of the game, both teams seemed nervous, if anything Sandbach were on top. Simple balls were being miss controlled and possession was given away too easily.
As the half continued the panthers began to find their feet, a cross field ball by Leo picked out Luke in space who sprinted towards the goal, the parents and managers willing the ball to hit the back of the net, however quick tracking back and a cut inside too many resulted in the attack coming to nothing. Sandbach had thier share of possession, testing Ben and Andy at the back, who considering the pressure were dealing really well. Mitch was playing a blinder in net, keeping hold of any shots, talking to his defenders and distributing the ball quickly when necessary. The midfield definitely had their work cut out with both teams refusing to give an inch. Ollie was chasing everything down up front even charging back into his own half to make a tackling before giving out a roar of "come on" to get the team going. The latter stages of the first half saw the Panthers come into their own, however with so much at stake, very little was created in the way of chances. HT 0-0.
The second half seemed to spark the parents and players into life, the clock was ticking down and they desperately wanted to be in the next round and almost started perfectly when Luke found himself in space and smashed a shot goalwards only for it to fly narrowly wide, then the unthinkable then happened. The ball broke to a Sandbach midfielder whose combination of chest then hand controlling the ball went unpunished, he then played a thru ball between our defenders for their striker to run onto and slot under the on rushing Mitch. 0-1. The look of surprise on our parents faces said it all, but following the "Respect" campaign the referee was left to get on with his job. The panthers could have let their heads drop, but they didn't. A change of personnel saw Luke replaced by Adam down the left whose injection of pace seemed to spark the Panthers back to life. Leo was unlucky a few minutes later when his angled effort hit the corner of post and bar which saw the ball cannon off out of play. With the clock ticking down the Panthers had to go for it and Alex was brought on as an extra striker, leaving Ben at the back on his own, it was now all or nothing. With 5 minutes left on the clock a quick thinking throw by Adam saw the ball loop over the Sandbach defence into the path of Leo, who somehow managed to swing his right foot at the ball, the game seemed to turn to slow motion as the keeper dived to his right, defenders blocking the view of where the ball was heading until the corner of the net bulged!!! Cue the mad scenes of celebration, all the Panthers running and jumping on the goal scorer, most notably Mitch who ran the length of the pitch to celebrate with the rest of the team, parents and coaching staff equally pleased. 1-1. Now all we had to do was see out the last 4 minutes, captain Ed took up defensive duties as the Panthers reverted back to two defenders. The lads then threw themselves at everything, winning headers/tackles anything to ensure they went through. When the final whistle blew the subs and Pumas steamed onto the pitch and a huge roar went up as the lads celebrated. They had proved they could go behind and come back, showed a never say die attitude in the tensest of occasions and when asked at the end of the game how it felt to score the goal to send your team through to the knock out stages, Leo simply replied "best day of my life" which i think echoed the feeling throughout the squad. FT 1-1. See you all in the quarters.
Team: Mitch-Andy-Ben Has-Luke-Ed-Leo-Ollie-Alex-Adam-Oliver.
Buckley Fires Panthers into Quarter Finals
The Panthers new before kick off that avoiding defeat would see them through to the knock out stages, the pre match talk all about enjoying yourself aimed at easing the pressure, but when the whistle went for the start of the game, both teams seemed nervous, if anything Sandbach were on top. Simple balls were being miss controlled and possession was given away too easily.
As the half continued the panthers began to find their feet, a cross field ball by Leo picked out Luke in space who sprinted towards the goal, the parents and managers willing the ball to hit the back of the net, however quick tracking back and a cut inside too many resulted in the attack coming to nothing. Sandbach had thier share of possession, testing Ben and Andy at the back, who considering the pressure were dealing really well. Mitch was playing a blinder in net, keeping hold of any shots, talking to his defenders and distributing the ball quickly when necessary. The midfield definitely had their work cut out with both teams refusing to give an inch. Ollie was chasing everything down up front even charging back into his own half to make a tackling before giving out a roar of "come on" to get the team going. The latter stages of the first half saw the Panthers come into their own, however with so much at stake, very little was created in the way of chances. HT 0-0.
The second half seemed to spark the parents and players into life, the clock was ticking down and they desperately wanted to be in the next round and almost started perfectly when Luke found himself in space and smashed a shot goalwards only for it to fly narrowly wide, then the unthinkable then happened. The ball broke to a Sandbach midfielder whose combination of chest then hand controlling the ball went unpunished, he then played a thru ball between our defenders for their striker to run onto and slot under the on rushing Mitch. 0-1. The look of surprise on our parents faces said it all, but following the "Respect" campaign the referee was left to get on with his job. The panthers could have let their heads drop, but they didn't. A change of personnel saw Luke replaced by Adam down the left whose injection of pace seemed to spark the Panthers back to life. Leo was unlucky a few minutes later when his angled effort hit the corner of post and bar which saw the ball cannon off out of play. With the clock ticking down the Panthers had to go for it and Alex was brought on as an extra striker, leaving Ben at the back on his own, it was now all or nothing. With 5 minutes left on the clock a quick thinking throw by Adam saw the ball loop over the Sandbach defence into the path of Leo, who somehow managed to swing his right foot at the ball, the game seemed to turn to slow motion as the keeper dived to his right, defenders blocking the view of where the ball was heading until the corner of the net bulged!!! Cue the mad scenes of celebration, all the Panthers running and jumping on the goal scorer, most notably Mitch who ran the length of the pitch to celebrate with the rest of the team, parents and coaching staff equally pleased. 1-1. Now all we had to do was see out the last 4 minutes, captain Ed took up defensive duties as the Panthers reverted back to two defenders. The lads then threw themselves at everything, winning headers/tackles anything to ensure they went through. When the final whistle blew the subs and Pumas steamed onto the pitch and a huge roar went up as the lads celebrated. They had proved they could go behind and come back, showed a never say die attitude in the tensest of occasions and when asked at the end of the game how it felt to score the goal to send your team through to the knock out stages, Leo simply replied "best day of my life" which i think echoed the feeling throughout the squad. FT 1-1. See you all in the quarters.
Team: Mitch-Andy-Ben Has-Luke-Ed-Leo-Ollie-Alex-Adam-Oliver.
Monday, March 21, 2011
Albert Steele Game 4
Albert Steele Game 4
Barnton B 0-7 Egerton Panthers
5 Star Oldbury Smashed Barnton
With the memory of the high scoring result from the previous week still in the mind of the Panthers, they set about their work of gaining another three points like a steam train. Adam Lee looked lively early on, running and snapping at the heels of the Barnton midfield, forcing them into mistakes. Early chances fell to lethal predator Ollie Oldbury who was finding his range, testing the keeper with a few half chances that were well saved. It was all Egerton in the opening stages and the break through finally came when a long ball out of defence looped over the Barnton back line, Ollie reacted quickest to race onto the ball and neatly curl it around the on rushing keeper 1-0. The Panthers didn't stop there, the Barnton heads seem to drop and for the second week running Egerton smelt blood and went for the kill. The second came in spectacular fashion, following being awarded a corner, man of the moment Ollie Oldbury took the corner and somehow found the far corner of the net! The look of surprise on everyone's face was quickly followed by cheers and celebration. Defensive due Andy and Ben seemed to be having another quiet morning but still had to be on their guard as the Panthers pushed too far up the field trying to increase the score. A third goal was coming and it did courtesy of the bravery of Adam Lee, Ollie whipped a corner to the far post for Adam to attack and fire into the goal. 3-0. Luke and Alex then replaced Leo and Ollie 5 mins before half time to continue the pressure on the Barnton goal but to no avail as the whistle blew for half time with the score 3-0 HT
The second half started slowly, with the pitch playing its part in a bitty first 5 mins, Ed was his usual outstanding self, finding acres of space in midfield to dictate the play however he saw fit. The re-introduction of Ollie and Leo 12 minutes from time seemed to spark the Panthers back into life, but the main man causing all the problems in the second half was Oliver Howarth, twisting and turning his way down the right wing and firing a few nice crosses toward the penalty spot. The Panthers lead was extended shortly after. Leo found space in the box to get his toe to the ball and poke the ball past the keeper 4-0. Mitch was looking uninterested in goal having spent most of the game as a spectator so was more than happy when asked to play centre mid for the last 10. His snapping tackles were all Barnton needed and he could have had his name on the score sheet had his long range effort been either side of the keeper. The lead was increased shortly after when Leo hit a long range shot which the keeper spilled to ollie to the left of the goal. Finding himself with his back to goal he improvised and back heeled the ball past the keeper 5-0. The game was over as a contest but the Panther kept pushing and were rewarded late on when Ollie found space not once but twice to fire past the keeper and take his tally in the game to 5 and the overall score to 7-0. The boys were pleased with their performance at the final whistle and a few red faces showed that everyone had put a shift in. Avoid defeat in the last group game and its quarter finals here we come. FT 7-0.
Team Mitch-Ben Has-Luke-Leo-Ed-Andy-Adam-Ollie-Oliver-Alex
Barnton A 1-1 Egerton Pumas
Hargreaves Bags Late Leveller
This top of the table clash would indicate who would qualify as winners of the group and both teams looked up for a battle, and a battle it was. Both teams began strongly, Jacko chasing everything down that went near their defence, Bradley and Ben working like animals in midfield, trying to get the passing game going that has seen them win 3 of their last 3 games. The pitch was poor and the Pumas were understandably struggling to zip the ball about, the ball bobbling over divots making it impossible in some cases to know where the ball was heading. Matt had to be in fine form today, making a few telling saves in the first half. Stan was showing some nice turns and was linking with Jacko successfully up front, but everything that was thrown at Barnton was repelled by their towering defender Conner, sticking out a leg here and there when it looked like we might be in on goal. The battle was heating up and a stud on the knee of Bradley seemed to knock the stuffing out of him. You could see by looking at both teams the reason they were deadlocked at the top of green group A, every position filled with talented footballers, none of whom though could break the deadlock before half time 0-0.
With an injury to his knee, Bradley was replaced at half time by Isaac, who helped with what was becoming a tense match. Matt stepped up once again when a neat turn by the Barnton striker saw him through 1 on 1, Matt kept himself big until the last moment before deflecting the ball wide of his outstretched leg, he didn't know much about it, but the best keepers never do. With playmaker Hargreaves off the pitch, Barnton took advantage and following a clever pass in the box, the Barnton striker could do nothing more than slot the ball into the bottom corner 1-0 advantage Barnton. With the clock ticking down and no "fit" players on the bench Bradley chirped up that he wanted to come back on, after making sure he was ok, the gaffer threw him back into the mixer. This looked to re-energise the Pumas and they began to put Barnton under pressure. A long ball from the Pumas defence seemed destined for a goal kick when Isaac somehow managed to race onto it and strike it towards goal from a near impossible angle before it could go out, simply save for the keeper? No, the effort must have caught him by surprise and the ball squirmed underneath him, as the Pumas looked up, racing onto the loose ball was Bradley to tap the ball into an empty net and send the parents into raptures, all the boys celebrating what could prove to be a huge goal in the race for the Albert Steele. Both teams managed to continue the battle for the last couple of minutes but when the final whistle blew everyone who witnessed this tough match were of the same opinion, fair result FT 1-1
Team Matt-Isaac-Tom-Freddie-Bradley-Jack-Ben Hen-Stan.
Barnton B 0-7 Egerton Panthers
5 Star Oldbury Smashed Barnton
With the memory of the high scoring result from the previous week still in the mind of the Panthers, they set about their work of gaining another three points like a steam train. Adam Lee looked lively early on, running and snapping at the heels of the Barnton midfield, forcing them into mistakes. Early chances fell to lethal predator Ollie Oldbury who was finding his range, testing the keeper with a few half chances that were well saved. It was all Egerton in the opening stages and the break through finally came when a long ball out of defence looped over the Barnton back line, Ollie reacted quickest to race onto the ball and neatly curl it around the on rushing keeper 1-0. The Panthers didn't stop there, the Barnton heads seem to drop and for the second week running Egerton smelt blood and went for the kill. The second came in spectacular fashion, following being awarded a corner, man of the moment Ollie Oldbury took the corner and somehow found the far corner of the net! The look of surprise on everyone's face was quickly followed by cheers and celebration. Defensive due Andy and Ben seemed to be having another quiet morning but still had to be on their guard as the Panthers pushed too far up the field trying to increase the score. A third goal was coming and it did courtesy of the bravery of Adam Lee, Ollie whipped a corner to the far post for Adam to attack and fire into the goal. 3-0. Luke and Alex then replaced Leo and Ollie 5 mins before half time to continue the pressure on the Barnton goal but to no avail as the whistle blew for half time with the score 3-0 HT
The second half started slowly, with the pitch playing its part in a bitty first 5 mins, Ed was his usual outstanding self, finding acres of space in midfield to dictate the play however he saw fit. The re-introduction of Ollie and Leo 12 minutes from time seemed to spark the Panthers back into life, but the main man causing all the problems in the second half was Oliver Howarth, twisting and turning his way down the right wing and firing a few nice crosses toward the penalty spot. The Panthers lead was extended shortly after. Leo found space in the box to get his toe to the ball and poke the ball past the keeper 4-0. Mitch was looking uninterested in goal having spent most of the game as a spectator so was more than happy when asked to play centre mid for the last 10. His snapping tackles were all Barnton needed and he could have had his name on the score sheet had his long range effort been either side of the keeper. The lead was increased shortly after when Leo hit a long range shot which the keeper spilled to ollie to the left of the goal. Finding himself with his back to goal he improvised and back heeled the ball past the keeper 5-0. The game was over as a contest but the Panther kept pushing and were rewarded late on when Ollie found space not once but twice to fire past the keeper and take his tally in the game to 5 and the overall score to 7-0. The boys were pleased with their performance at the final whistle and a few red faces showed that everyone had put a shift in. Avoid defeat in the last group game and its quarter finals here we come. FT 7-0.
Team Mitch-Ben Has-Luke-Leo-Ed-Andy-Adam-Ollie-Oliver-Alex
Barnton A 1-1 Egerton Pumas
Hargreaves Bags Late Leveller
This top of the table clash would indicate who would qualify as winners of the group and both teams looked up for a battle, and a battle it was. Both teams began strongly, Jacko chasing everything down that went near their defence, Bradley and Ben working like animals in midfield, trying to get the passing game going that has seen them win 3 of their last 3 games. The pitch was poor and the Pumas were understandably struggling to zip the ball about, the ball bobbling over divots making it impossible in some cases to know where the ball was heading. Matt had to be in fine form today, making a few telling saves in the first half. Stan was showing some nice turns and was linking with Jacko successfully up front, but everything that was thrown at Barnton was repelled by their towering defender Conner, sticking out a leg here and there when it looked like we might be in on goal. The battle was heating up and a stud on the knee of Bradley seemed to knock the stuffing out of him. You could see by looking at both teams the reason they were deadlocked at the top of green group A, every position filled with talented footballers, none of whom though could break the deadlock before half time 0-0.
With an injury to his knee, Bradley was replaced at half time by Isaac, who helped with what was becoming a tense match. Matt stepped up once again when a neat turn by the Barnton striker saw him through 1 on 1, Matt kept himself big until the last moment before deflecting the ball wide of his outstretched leg, he didn't know much about it, but the best keepers never do. With playmaker Hargreaves off the pitch, Barnton took advantage and following a clever pass in the box, the Barnton striker could do nothing more than slot the ball into the bottom corner 1-0 advantage Barnton. With the clock ticking down and no "fit" players on the bench Bradley chirped up that he wanted to come back on, after making sure he was ok, the gaffer threw him back into the mixer. This looked to re-energise the Pumas and they began to put Barnton under pressure. A long ball from the Pumas defence seemed destined for a goal kick when Isaac somehow managed to race onto it and strike it towards goal from a near impossible angle before it could go out, simply save for the keeper? No, the effort must have caught him by surprise and the ball squirmed underneath him, as the Pumas looked up, racing onto the loose ball was Bradley to tap the ball into an empty net and send the parents into raptures, all the boys celebrating what could prove to be a huge goal in the race for the Albert Steele. Both teams managed to continue the battle for the last couple of minutes but when the final whistle blew everyone who witnessed this tough match were of the same opinion, fair result FT 1-1
Team Matt-Isaac-Tom-Freddie-Bradley-Jack-Ben Hen-Stan.
Monday, March 14, 2011
Grappenhall v Egerton 12/3/2011
Grappenhall B 2-8 Egerton Panthers
Franklin and Co Hammer Grappenhall
Near perfect conditions greeted Egerton on their arrival at Grappenhall and a change in formation saw the Panthers opt for an all out attack philosophy, with them looking to bounce back from the previous weekends uncommon result. Alex was drafted in as a second striker whilst the manager opted for Ben to hold the fort on his own in defence. From the first whilst, the Panthers threw everything at Grappenhall and almost opened the scoring in the first minute when Ollie's shot was well saved by their keeper. The barrage of shots kept coming with the keeper saving well from both Leo and Alex. How long could Grappenhall hold out?
The deadlock was finally broken on 5 minutes when Ollie saw an opportunity and took it, poking the ball past the keeper to make it 1-0. They smelt blood and continued to attack in waves, putting together some neat passing moves combined with fine individual skill. The second came courtesy of the same player, running onto a fine through ball by Ed, Ollie slotted the ball past the keeper to make it 2-0. The 3rd came moments later and was a goal straight from the training ground; following being awarded a corner, Luke signalled to play it short, Leo received it and laid a return ball into his path for Luke to run onto and smash past the keeper from the edge of the area, great move, great goal. 3-0. It should have been 4-0 minutes later but somehow the Grappenhall keeper managed to save four point blank shots. Grappenhall were putting the Panthers under very little pressure, so it came as a surprise when they pegged a goal back, a fumbled catch by Mitch fell to the feet of their striker who rolled the ball into the back of the net. 3-1. This seemed to have no effect on the Panthers confidence and they soon extended their lead when Ed smashed home a volley from a corner to make it 4-1. With the half time whistle about to go, Ollie found himself in space in the box to crash home the 5th and earn himself a hatrick. HT 5-1.
The second half saw the introduction of Andy, taking up the sweeper role that Ben had successfully commanded in the first half. Within a few minutes, he was on the score sheet, Luke laid the ball back to him 20 yards out for him to hammer home a screamer that almost burst the net, take a bow son....take a bow!! The panthers then began to play as individuals, forgetting the passing game the team was built on, resulting in a few frustrated shouts of "you need to release it & pass the ball quicker" from the sidelines. With everyone pushing up, trying to get their name on the score sheet, Grappenhall broke and slotted a well placed shot past an on rushing Mitch. 6-2. Order was restored moments later when Leo managed to stumble his way into the box after a good run, before smashing a shot across the keeper into the bottom corner 7-2. He could have had a second moments later but his shot came back off the post. The Panthers weren't finished there as Andy pushed up front to find space to turn and strike the ball past the keeper 8-2. Mitch fancied a goal and came rushing out of his net to sprint the full length of the pitch for a corner only for him to narrowly miss the ball as it was swung in. When the final whistle blew, the Panthers had increased their goal difference and regained second spot in the league, however had it not been for a great display by their keeper and the post saving them 4 times, the Panthers could have had a hatful more. FT 8-2.
Team: Mitch-Ben Has-Andy-Luke-Leo-Ed-Ollie-Adam-Oliver-Alex
Grappenhall A 0-5 Egerton Pumas
Pumas March On
Having witnessed the previous game, the Pumas were eager to get going and build on the performance displayed by the Panthers. With the wind in their faces, the Pumas struggled to settle, taking time to get their passing game going. Some energetic closing down by Jack stopped Grappenhall from settling as the Pumas began to find their feet. Both keepers seemed relatively quiet in the opening stages as the midfield battled it out. The Pumas were rewarded for their hard work when a shot from Jack went through the legs of the keeper "a la" Suarez, rolled across the line to be tapped home by Bradley 1-0, the deadlock was broken!
The pumas began to build on their lead and started to dominate possession without really threatening the goal, the wind playing a major part in the lack of chances. Ben was battling away in midfield and a few nice touches from Stan had the Grappenhall defence on their heels. Having been away on a school trip the previous week, questions were asked before the game about Tom's fitness, but on today's performance you would never have known as he held the back line and distributed the ball accurately to the midfield, the always running Freddie helping him with his defensive duties.
The second half couldn't come quick enough and a murmur from assistant Jim of "we'll batter these second half" was about to come true HT 1-0.
With the wind now behind them the Pumas came flying out of the traps, playing some great football on their way to increasing their lead. Jacko found space in the box to turn and shoot, his shot cannoned of a defender, sending the keeper the wrong way and into the back of the net 2-0. The introduction of battering ram Isaac began to put more pressure on the Grappenhall defence and his hard work paid off when he slotted home, 3-0. That lead was to be extended further when Ben, from an impossible angle, somehow managed to hit a shot at goal. This seemed to catch the keeper off guard as he seemed to slap the ball into his own net. Ben seemed more surprised than anyone he'd scored but they all count 4-0. Bradley was his usual tricky self, a quick turn and flick saw the ball roll through a defenders legs, the shout of "megs" from the sideline brought a smile to his face. That smile was almost made bigger when he struck a free kick towards the top corner, only for it to be well saved by the keeper. Matt was in equally good form at the other end, keeping out anything the grappenhall strike force could throw at him. The Pumas would extend there lead late on when ben found room to shoot and beat the keeper to make it 5-0. At the final whistle, the pumas almost broke into smiles as they maintained their 100% record in the Albert Steele and remain in the qualifying places. FT 5-0.
Team Matt-Brad-Tom-Freddie-Stan-Isaac-Ben Hen-Jack
Franklin and Co Hammer Grappenhall
Near perfect conditions greeted Egerton on their arrival at Grappenhall and a change in formation saw the Panthers opt for an all out attack philosophy, with them looking to bounce back from the previous weekends uncommon result. Alex was drafted in as a second striker whilst the manager opted for Ben to hold the fort on his own in defence. From the first whilst, the Panthers threw everything at Grappenhall and almost opened the scoring in the first minute when Ollie's shot was well saved by their keeper. The barrage of shots kept coming with the keeper saving well from both Leo and Alex. How long could Grappenhall hold out?
The deadlock was finally broken on 5 minutes when Ollie saw an opportunity and took it, poking the ball past the keeper to make it 1-0. They smelt blood and continued to attack in waves, putting together some neat passing moves combined with fine individual skill. The second came courtesy of the same player, running onto a fine through ball by Ed, Ollie slotted the ball past the keeper to make it 2-0. The 3rd came moments later and was a goal straight from the training ground; following being awarded a corner, Luke signalled to play it short, Leo received it and laid a return ball into his path for Luke to run onto and smash past the keeper from the edge of the area, great move, great goal. 3-0. It should have been 4-0 minutes later but somehow the Grappenhall keeper managed to save four point blank shots. Grappenhall were putting the Panthers under very little pressure, so it came as a surprise when they pegged a goal back, a fumbled catch by Mitch fell to the feet of their striker who rolled the ball into the back of the net. 3-1. This seemed to have no effect on the Panthers confidence and they soon extended their lead when Ed smashed home a volley from a corner to make it 4-1. With the half time whistle about to go, Ollie found himself in space in the box to crash home the 5th and earn himself a hatrick. HT 5-1.
The second half saw the introduction of Andy, taking up the sweeper role that Ben had successfully commanded in the first half. Within a few minutes, he was on the score sheet, Luke laid the ball back to him 20 yards out for him to hammer home a screamer that almost burst the net, take a bow son....take a bow!! The panthers then began to play as individuals, forgetting the passing game the team was built on, resulting in a few frustrated shouts of "you need to release it & pass the ball quicker" from the sidelines. With everyone pushing up, trying to get their name on the score sheet, Grappenhall broke and slotted a well placed shot past an on rushing Mitch. 6-2. Order was restored moments later when Leo managed to stumble his way into the box after a good run, before smashing a shot across the keeper into the bottom corner 7-2. He could have had a second moments later but his shot came back off the post. The Panthers weren't finished there as Andy pushed up front to find space to turn and strike the ball past the keeper 8-2. Mitch fancied a goal and came rushing out of his net to sprint the full length of the pitch for a corner only for him to narrowly miss the ball as it was swung in. When the final whistle blew, the Panthers had increased their goal difference and regained second spot in the league, however had it not been for a great display by their keeper and the post saving them 4 times, the Panthers could have had a hatful more. FT 8-2.
Team: Mitch-Ben Has-Andy-Luke-Leo-Ed-Ollie-Adam-Oliver-Alex
Grappenhall A 0-5 Egerton Pumas
Pumas March On
Having witnessed the previous game, the Pumas were eager to get going and build on the performance displayed by the Panthers. With the wind in their faces, the Pumas struggled to settle, taking time to get their passing game going. Some energetic closing down by Jack stopped Grappenhall from settling as the Pumas began to find their feet. Both keepers seemed relatively quiet in the opening stages as the midfield battled it out. The Pumas were rewarded for their hard work when a shot from Jack went through the legs of the keeper "a la" Suarez, rolled across the line to be tapped home by Bradley 1-0, the deadlock was broken!
The pumas began to build on their lead and started to dominate possession without really threatening the goal, the wind playing a major part in the lack of chances. Ben was battling away in midfield and a few nice touches from Stan had the Grappenhall defence on their heels. Having been away on a school trip the previous week, questions were asked before the game about Tom's fitness, but on today's performance you would never have known as he held the back line and distributed the ball accurately to the midfield, the always running Freddie helping him with his defensive duties.
The second half couldn't come quick enough and a murmur from assistant Jim of "we'll batter these second half" was about to come true HT 1-0.
With the wind now behind them the Pumas came flying out of the traps, playing some great football on their way to increasing their lead. Jacko found space in the box to turn and shoot, his shot cannoned of a defender, sending the keeper the wrong way and into the back of the net 2-0. The introduction of battering ram Isaac began to put more pressure on the Grappenhall defence and his hard work paid off when he slotted home, 3-0. That lead was to be extended further when Ben, from an impossible angle, somehow managed to hit a shot at goal. This seemed to catch the keeper off guard as he seemed to slap the ball into his own net. Ben seemed more surprised than anyone he'd scored but they all count 4-0. Bradley was his usual tricky self, a quick turn and flick saw the ball roll through a defenders legs, the shout of "megs" from the sideline brought a smile to his face. That smile was almost made bigger when he struck a free kick towards the top corner, only for it to be well saved by the keeper. Matt was in equally good form at the other end, keeping out anything the grappenhall strike force could throw at him. The Pumas would extend there lead late on when ben found room to shoot and beat the keeper to make it 5-0. At the final whistle, the pumas almost broke into smiles as they maintained their 100% record in the Albert Steele and remain in the qualifying places. FT 5-0.
Team Matt-Brad-Tom-Freddie-Stan-Isaac-Ben Hen-Jack
Monday, March 7, 2011
Egerton Vs Hartford
Albert Steele Game 2
Egerton Panthers 0-3 Hartford Boys A
Panthers fail to convert possession into goals
This was billed as a top of the table clash following wins for both teams in the first round of games in the Albert Steele. The Panthers seemed to settle quicker and an early opportunity could have been pounced on after a strong run by Luke down the right, only for his through ball to be intercepted. The panthers began to keep the ball well, but the tactics of Hartford of sit deep and hit the panthers on the break was putting defensive duo Andy and Ben under pressure, however both seemed in dominant mood and powerful clearing headers were dispelling everything Hartford through at them. Both teams were battling hard in midfield, with the majority of possession being with the panthers. They could have been 1-0 up mid way through the first half but Leo failed to connect with an in-swinging corner. Hartford then scored against the run of play, they floated a corner over, which was punched clear by Mitch, only for him to see the ball hit the Hartford striker and bounce into the net. 0-1. The Panthers didn't let their heads drop and continued to press for an equaliser until an uncharacteristic miss placed pass by Leo saw the Hartford striker run onto the ball, having caught the defence flat footed, he raced through to slot the ball past Mitch 0-2. The Panthers continued to battle but couldn't pull one back before half time. HT 0-2.
The second half saw the panthers start strongly, keeping hold of the ball well, with captain Ed Franklin all over the pitch, but once again failed to capitalise on all the possession they had. The game began to get bitty with neither side creating chances so changes were made, with the introduction of Ollie, Alex and Adam to see if they could spark the Panthers into clawing a goal back. Ollie made some great runs down the right, having replaced Luke, but once again they failed to turn the opportunities into goal. A half chance fell to Leo just inside the area, but his powerful shot hit the side netting.
Hartford then put the game to bed, with a flowing move that ended with a great finish that Mitch could do nothing about.
The game then became scrappy with both sides losing possession as the clock ticked down. As the ref blew the final whistle, the look on the Panthers faces showed how disappointed they were, but there is always next week boys and as history proves, we always bounce back. FT 0-3.
Egerton Pumas 4-1 Hartford Boys B
Pumas march on after comfortable win
The Pumas started this game in confident mood, looking to build on the hard fought victory over Tytherington in the first game of the cup. They flew out of the traps, breaking up any Hartford attacks and playing some great passes of their own. Jack was his usual all action self, chasing down defenders and making them feel uneasy. It seemed it was only a matter of time before an opening goal came and with 10 minutes gone it arrived courtesy of a back heel flick from Bradley. Stan whipped in the cross for the Bradster to stick out a shiny orange boot and flick past the keeper, the hands cupped to his ears celebration said it all. 1-0. The Pumas continued to dominate, Ben seemed to be controlling the centre of the park comfortably, spreading and switching the play when necessary. The second goal came just before half time and was thanks to the hard work and battling of Isaac, his persistence in his own box disposed their striker, looking up he had acres of room in front of him down the right hand side, he ran 40 yards before playing a through ball to Jack who raced onto, put the keeper under pressure who somehow fumbled to the feet of Jack for him to roll the ball into the empty net 2-0 HT.
The second half got off to a flyer, with only a couple of minutes on the clock, Stan picked the ball up on the edge of the box, looked up and saw Ben steaming in, he rolled the ball into his path for Ben to smash the ball into the back of the net 3-0 great goal. As in the first game, this game then became bitty, few chances were created as the Pumas seemed to take their foot of the gas instead of trying to increase the goal difference. This resulted in a shock goal, Hartford managed to put a good move together before slotting the ball past Matt 3-1. This seemed to breath life into the Hartford team as they pressed for a second, however Ben had other ideas as he met a corner with the full force of his head to slam the ball past the Hartford keeper 4-1.
The remaining minutes saw few chances and when the final whistle blew there were oddly no celebrations from the Pumas on a well deserved victory, maybe they thought they could have scored more but they will be happy knowing they remain in the top two in the league. FT 4-1.
Egerton Panthers 0-3 Hartford Boys A
Panthers fail to convert possession into goals
This was billed as a top of the table clash following wins for both teams in the first round of games in the Albert Steele. The Panthers seemed to settle quicker and an early opportunity could have been pounced on after a strong run by Luke down the right, only for his through ball to be intercepted. The panthers began to keep the ball well, but the tactics of Hartford of sit deep and hit the panthers on the break was putting defensive duo Andy and Ben under pressure, however both seemed in dominant mood and powerful clearing headers were dispelling everything Hartford through at them. Both teams were battling hard in midfield, with the majority of possession being with the panthers. They could have been 1-0 up mid way through the first half but Leo failed to connect with an in-swinging corner. Hartford then scored against the run of play, they floated a corner over, which was punched clear by Mitch, only for him to see the ball hit the Hartford striker and bounce into the net. 0-1. The Panthers didn't let their heads drop and continued to press for an equaliser until an uncharacteristic miss placed pass by Leo saw the Hartford striker run onto the ball, having caught the defence flat footed, he raced through to slot the ball past Mitch 0-2. The Panthers continued to battle but couldn't pull one back before half time. HT 0-2.
The second half saw the panthers start strongly, keeping hold of the ball well, with captain Ed Franklin all over the pitch, but once again failed to capitalise on all the possession they had. The game began to get bitty with neither side creating chances so changes were made, with the introduction of Ollie, Alex and Adam to see if they could spark the Panthers into clawing a goal back. Ollie made some great runs down the right, having replaced Luke, but once again they failed to turn the opportunities into goal. A half chance fell to Leo just inside the area, but his powerful shot hit the side netting.
Hartford then put the game to bed, with a flowing move that ended with a great finish that Mitch could do nothing about.
The game then became scrappy with both sides losing possession as the clock ticked down. As the ref blew the final whistle, the look on the Panthers faces showed how disappointed they were, but there is always next week boys and as history proves, we always bounce back. FT 0-3.
Egerton Pumas 4-1 Hartford Boys B
Pumas march on after comfortable win
The Pumas started this game in confident mood, looking to build on the hard fought victory over Tytherington in the first game of the cup. They flew out of the traps, breaking up any Hartford attacks and playing some great passes of their own. Jack was his usual all action self, chasing down defenders and making them feel uneasy. It seemed it was only a matter of time before an opening goal came and with 10 minutes gone it arrived courtesy of a back heel flick from Bradley. Stan whipped in the cross for the Bradster to stick out a shiny orange boot and flick past the keeper, the hands cupped to his ears celebration said it all. 1-0. The Pumas continued to dominate, Ben seemed to be controlling the centre of the park comfortably, spreading and switching the play when necessary. The second goal came just before half time and was thanks to the hard work and battling of Isaac, his persistence in his own box disposed their striker, looking up he had acres of room in front of him down the right hand side, he ran 40 yards before playing a through ball to Jack who raced onto, put the keeper under pressure who somehow fumbled to the feet of Jack for him to roll the ball into the empty net 2-0 HT.
The second half got off to a flyer, with only a couple of minutes on the clock, Stan picked the ball up on the edge of the box, looked up and saw Ben steaming in, he rolled the ball into his path for Ben to smash the ball into the back of the net 3-0 great goal. As in the first game, this game then became bitty, few chances were created as the Pumas seemed to take their foot of the gas instead of trying to increase the goal difference. This resulted in a shock goal, Hartford managed to put a good move together before slotting the ball past Matt 3-1. This seemed to breath life into the Hartford team as they pressed for a second, however Ben had other ideas as he met a corner with the full force of his head to slam the ball past the Hartford keeper 4-1.
The remaining minutes saw few chances and when the final whistle blew there were oddly no celebrations from the Pumas on a well deserved victory, maybe they thought they could have scored more but they will be happy knowing they remain in the top two in the league. FT 4-1.
Friday, February 18, 2011
Egerton Panthers Tytherington 12/2/2011
Egerton Panthers 2-0 Tytherington B
Panthers get off to a flyer
The Panthers were up first as they began the battle for the Albert Steele trophy, against a team they beat in the last minute only two weeks ago in a hotly contested and controversial game. It was time to put all ideas of a “friendly” game to the back of their minds and concentrate on the job at hand, as a winning start is a must in these competitions.
From the moment the whistle blew, the Panthers flew out of the traps, throwing caution to the wind and going for the kill from the off. With wingers Luke and Leo stretching the play, the space created in midfield was used to good effect by Ed, linking with his midfield and attack without coming under too much pressure. The solid partnership of defenders Andy and Ben seemed to be coping with what little pressure Tytherington were throwing at them and with no nonsense commanding of his area by Mitch, the Panthers were in little danger of conceding, in fact most of the early play was in the Tytherington half.
The Panthers were growing in confidence and hadn’t it been for a nick off a defenders head from Ollie’s corner, Leo would have surely nodded home the opening goal. The away keeper was now under fire, saving rasping shots from Luke, Ollie and Leo in quick succession.
It seemed that the opening goal was on its way and it came courtesy of a well struck half volley from Ollie. A floated cross to the back post from Leo was driven home under the keeper by the number 21, cue the celebrations, of which all the players joined in. 1-0 HT.
Half time saw the introduction of Adam from the bench and the domination continued from the start. With Tytherington struggling to penetrate the Panthers defence, a quick change in tactics saw Andy replaced by striker Alex as they pushed for another goal. The goal came moments later when a positional change saw Leo switch to the right wing; he took on his marker and fired a low right footed shot across the area and into the bottom corner. 2-0
Moments later it could have been 3 when the Panthers were awarded a free kick on the edge of the area. Ollie stepped up and smashed it just inches from the top corner. Leo had a further chance to increase the score having skipped past a couple of defenders in the box; however his effort was struck into the keepers’ chest.
The Panthers were now in control; however a sudden lapse in concentration saw Tytherington awarded a penalty 3 minutes from time. Mitch made himself big in the goal and with a few jumps from side to side, managed to put the striker off, who’s attempt resembled John Terry’s in Moscow, slipping as he struck the ball which cannoned off the outside of the post for a goal kick.
This ended the game as a contest and when the referee blew the whistle, the Panthers left the pitch with the best possible start and the 3 points in the bag. FT 2-0
Egerton Pumas 3-2 Tytherington A
Pumas made to work for 3 points
Having witnessed the first game, the Pumas could see that Tytherington had pooled their strongest players into their “A” team and knew they were in for a battle, but with 3 points at stake they were up for the challenge.
Both teams sparred with each other during the first 5 minutes, neither willing to go for the knockout, but the game sparked into life when Tytherington opened the scoring. The striker found himself in too much space as the pumas defence backed off and fired home to make it 1-0.
The Pumas were now on the back foot and would need to up their game to stay in the match. They did this with ease as a swift move by Ben and Bradley saw the latter cross to the back post for it to be met on the slide by Stan to poke the ball into the roof of the net 1-1. Could the Pumas build on this?
It didn’t look like it as 5 minutes later, the Tytherington striker was once again given too much time in the box to fire low past Matt into the bottom corner 2-1 HT.
If the cliché “football is a game of two halves” was too be used today, this was the game it was to be associated with. The Pumas came out in the second half with an urgency that showed they wanted to win this game. Matt was pulling off great saves to keep the score at 2-1 and the defence was beginning to find its feet as the pressure began to sway towards Tytherington. The pressure paid off when Bradleys cross/shot flew into the top corner from the edge of the box to level the scores 2-2.
A swift attack by Tytherington saw them hit the post at the other end, their manager falling to his knees, praying for a bit more luck.....prayers like these don’t get answered on Mereheath lane!
With the clock ticking down, Egerton broke quickly and created a 2 on 1 situation; Bradley’s first touch was a little heavy so he needed to stretch, injuring himself in the process, to poke the ball past the defender and into the path of the lightening quick Jack, who calmly slotted the ball under the on rushing keeper to raise the roof and make it 3-2!!! With only a few moments left the Pumas composed themselves until the whistle to follow the Panthers in taking all 3 points. The Pumas now have a couple of weeks to build on this result and work on getting back to their best as on another day they would have made light work of Tytherington. FT 3-2
Panthers get off to a flyer
The Panthers were up first as they began the battle for the Albert Steele trophy, against a team they beat in the last minute only two weeks ago in a hotly contested and controversial game. It was time to put all ideas of a “friendly” game to the back of their minds and concentrate on the job at hand, as a winning start is a must in these competitions.
From the moment the whistle blew, the Panthers flew out of the traps, throwing caution to the wind and going for the kill from the off. With wingers Luke and Leo stretching the play, the space created in midfield was used to good effect by Ed, linking with his midfield and attack without coming under too much pressure. The solid partnership of defenders Andy and Ben seemed to be coping with what little pressure Tytherington were throwing at them and with no nonsense commanding of his area by Mitch, the Panthers were in little danger of conceding, in fact most of the early play was in the Tytherington half.
The Panthers were growing in confidence and hadn’t it been for a nick off a defenders head from Ollie’s corner, Leo would have surely nodded home the opening goal. The away keeper was now under fire, saving rasping shots from Luke, Ollie and Leo in quick succession.
It seemed that the opening goal was on its way and it came courtesy of a well struck half volley from Ollie. A floated cross to the back post from Leo was driven home under the keeper by the number 21, cue the celebrations, of which all the players joined in. 1-0 HT.
Half time saw the introduction of Adam from the bench and the domination continued from the start. With Tytherington struggling to penetrate the Panthers defence, a quick change in tactics saw Andy replaced by striker Alex as they pushed for another goal. The goal came moments later when a positional change saw Leo switch to the right wing; he took on his marker and fired a low right footed shot across the area and into the bottom corner. 2-0
Moments later it could have been 3 when the Panthers were awarded a free kick on the edge of the area. Ollie stepped up and smashed it just inches from the top corner. Leo had a further chance to increase the score having skipped past a couple of defenders in the box; however his effort was struck into the keepers’ chest.
The Panthers were now in control; however a sudden lapse in concentration saw Tytherington awarded a penalty 3 minutes from time. Mitch made himself big in the goal and with a few jumps from side to side, managed to put the striker off, who’s attempt resembled John Terry’s in Moscow, slipping as he struck the ball which cannoned off the outside of the post for a goal kick.
This ended the game as a contest and when the referee blew the whistle, the Panthers left the pitch with the best possible start and the 3 points in the bag. FT 2-0
Egerton Pumas 3-2 Tytherington A
Pumas made to work for 3 points
Having witnessed the first game, the Pumas could see that Tytherington had pooled their strongest players into their “A” team and knew they were in for a battle, but with 3 points at stake they were up for the challenge.
Both teams sparred with each other during the first 5 minutes, neither willing to go for the knockout, but the game sparked into life when Tytherington opened the scoring. The striker found himself in too much space as the pumas defence backed off and fired home to make it 1-0.
The Pumas were now on the back foot and would need to up their game to stay in the match. They did this with ease as a swift move by Ben and Bradley saw the latter cross to the back post for it to be met on the slide by Stan to poke the ball into the roof of the net 1-1. Could the Pumas build on this?
It didn’t look like it as 5 minutes later, the Tytherington striker was once again given too much time in the box to fire low past Matt into the bottom corner 2-1 HT.
If the cliché “football is a game of two halves” was too be used today, this was the game it was to be associated with. The Pumas came out in the second half with an urgency that showed they wanted to win this game. Matt was pulling off great saves to keep the score at 2-1 and the defence was beginning to find its feet as the pressure began to sway towards Tytherington. The pressure paid off when Bradleys cross/shot flew into the top corner from the edge of the box to level the scores 2-2.
A swift attack by Tytherington saw them hit the post at the other end, their manager falling to his knees, praying for a bit more luck.....prayers like these don’t get answered on Mereheath lane!
With the clock ticking down, Egerton broke quickly and created a 2 on 1 situation; Bradley’s first touch was a little heavy so he needed to stretch, injuring himself in the process, to poke the ball past the defender and into the path of the lightening quick Jack, who calmly slotted the ball under the on rushing keeper to raise the roof and make it 3-2!!! With only a few moments left the Pumas composed themselves until the whistle to follow the Panthers in taking all 3 points. The Pumas now have a couple of weeks to build on this result and work on getting back to their best as on another day they would have made light work of Tytherington. FT 3-2
Thursday, February 10, 2011
Egerton Vs Davenham 5/2/2011
Davenham 2-0 Egerton Panthers
Missed Chances Prove Costly
With most all other games in Mid Cheshire called off due to the torrential rain, it came as a surprise that the game dubbed by the gaffer as “our local derby” went ahead. With the ground as heavy as it was, with puddles large enough to lose Archie in, the Panthers knew from the first whistle it was going to be hard going. With pride at stake both teams flew at each other in the opening stages with crunching tackles flying in from Ed Franklin. With the pitch beginning to cut up from the start, Panthers wingers Luke and Leo were finding it hard to use their pace and trickery down the wings so most of the play was conducted in the centre of the pitch.
For long periods of the first half, the pace of the game was slow, the mud now having a large part to play. The Panthers were forced into shooting from distance and their best effort of the first half was struck by Leo, although it missed the target by a good few yards which summed up a tough first half during which neither team really threatened the goal. HT 0-0
A shake up at half time seemed to lift the Panthers and a swift move down the right by Alex released Ollie, who looked up and spotted Adam steaming into the box, Ollie smashed the ball across the 6 yard line into the path of Adam to set up what looked like a certain goal, but the ball skipped off the muddy surface, connected with his shin pad and with the keeper already beaten, the ball flew the wrong side of the upright. In top of the table clashes like these, chances don’t come too often. However this was not the case when only minutes later Adam flashed the ball across the box towards the on rushing Alex only for him to misjudge the bounce and fire his shot wide. Would the missed chances prove costly? Yes!
Five minutes from time, Davenham swung a corner in for it to be met on the half volley and fired past Mitch, who could do nothing about it, to put Davenham ahead. 1-0. A roll of the dice was then made, Andy was replaced by Ollie and the ever dependable Ben was left on his own in defence as the Panthers pushed for an equaliser. A chance fell to Leo on the edge of the area moments later, only for his effort to be smashed straight at the keeper. The resulting goal kick lead to a 2 on 1 situation and a clever ball fed the Davenham striker to score their second 2-0. FT
As the team talk stated at the end of the game, on another day our earlier chances would have hit the back of the net and the game would have been completely different. With the conditions as bad as they were, the Panthers should not look back in anger, but look forward to the Albert Steele.
Davenham 1-3 Egerton Pumas
Heated game ends in Pumas victory
Looking at the pitch before the start of this game, you’d have thought this game would be scrappy, hard work and controversial?? The Pumas started brightly, slogging their way through the mud. Jacko was all energy and Ben was his usual strong self in midfield. The Pumas seemed to have Davenham on the back foot and capitalised on this when a chance fell to Stan, who as calm as you like, slotted the ball home to give the away team a much deserved 1-0 lead. Bradley was trying his hardest to glide down the wing, using every trick in his book, and a pin point cross for Stan almost made it two nil, but the fox in the box couldn’t get a big enough touch.
The game was beginning to get scrappy with the ground becoming more and more like a mud bath, however the Pumas maintained their high level of play and deservedly went into the half time break 1-0.
The second half started with a bang. With only 30 seconds on the clock, a flowing move feature Jack and Bradley saw the latter feed Ben a pass that would see him 1 on 1 with the keeper, Ben picked his spot and smashed the ball into the bottom corner 2-0. Both teams began to cancel each other out and it seemed that Davenham were going to be unable to beat outstanding stand in Goalie Archie until a half chance fell to the Davenham striker to chip over our on rushing keeper to make it 2-1. Davenham now had their tails up and pushed for an equaliser, especially as Jack had to leave the field injured leaving Egerton with only 6 players. However then came the flash point. A through ball saw Stan sprint into the box, only for his to be tripped in the box.....PENALTY!! Not according to the Davenham parents who disagreed and began hurling abuse at the referee, although the culprits managed to stay camouflaged!! Bradley stepped up to take the spot kick but slid his effort wide, massive cheers came from the home team, devastation fell on Bradley. Would the captain let this affect him, at first we thought yes, but when the ball was cleared by Tom from the Egerton defence moments later, Bradley somehow managed to half volley a back heel through to Stan in the box who, without hesitation, slotted the ball past the keeper. 3-1, great celebrations and the smile was back on the captains face. Fantastic, gritty performance by the Pumas today who were up for the battle and came out on top FT 3-1.
Missed Chances Prove Costly
With most all other games in Mid Cheshire called off due to the torrential rain, it came as a surprise that the game dubbed by the gaffer as “our local derby” went ahead. With the ground as heavy as it was, with puddles large enough to lose Archie in, the Panthers knew from the first whistle it was going to be hard going. With pride at stake both teams flew at each other in the opening stages with crunching tackles flying in from Ed Franklin. With the pitch beginning to cut up from the start, Panthers wingers Luke and Leo were finding it hard to use their pace and trickery down the wings so most of the play was conducted in the centre of the pitch.
For long periods of the first half, the pace of the game was slow, the mud now having a large part to play. The Panthers were forced into shooting from distance and their best effort of the first half was struck by Leo, although it missed the target by a good few yards which summed up a tough first half during which neither team really threatened the goal. HT 0-0
A shake up at half time seemed to lift the Panthers and a swift move down the right by Alex released Ollie, who looked up and spotted Adam steaming into the box, Ollie smashed the ball across the 6 yard line into the path of Adam to set up what looked like a certain goal, but the ball skipped off the muddy surface, connected with his shin pad and with the keeper already beaten, the ball flew the wrong side of the upright. In top of the table clashes like these, chances don’t come too often. However this was not the case when only minutes later Adam flashed the ball across the box towards the on rushing Alex only for him to misjudge the bounce and fire his shot wide. Would the missed chances prove costly? Yes!
Five minutes from time, Davenham swung a corner in for it to be met on the half volley and fired past Mitch, who could do nothing about it, to put Davenham ahead. 1-0. A roll of the dice was then made, Andy was replaced by Ollie and the ever dependable Ben was left on his own in defence as the Panthers pushed for an equaliser. A chance fell to Leo on the edge of the area moments later, only for his effort to be smashed straight at the keeper. The resulting goal kick lead to a 2 on 1 situation and a clever ball fed the Davenham striker to score their second 2-0. FT
As the team talk stated at the end of the game, on another day our earlier chances would have hit the back of the net and the game would have been completely different. With the conditions as bad as they were, the Panthers should not look back in anger, but look forward to the Albert Steele.
Davenham 1-3 Egerton Pumas
Heated game ends in Pumas victory
Looking at the pitch before the start of this game, you’d have thought this game would be scrappy, hard work and controversial?? The Pumas started brightly, slogging their way through the mud. Jacko was all energy and Ben was his usual strong self in midfield. The Pumas seemed to have Davenham on the back foot and capitalised on this when a chance fell to Stan, who as calm as you like, slotted the ball home to give the away team a much deserved 1-0 lead. Bradley was trying his hardest to glide down the wing, using every trick in his book, and a pin point cross for Stan almost made it two nil, but the fox in the box couldn’t get a big enough touch.
The game was beginning to get scrappy with the ground becoming more and more like a mud bath, however the Pumas maintained their high level of play and deservedly went into the half time break 1-0.
The second half started with a bang. With only 30 seconds on the clock, a flowing move feature Jack and Bradley saw the latter feed Ben a pass that would see him 1 on 1 with the keeper, Ben picked his spot and smashed the ball into the bottom corner 2-0. Both teams began to cancel each other out and it seemed that Davenham were going to be unable to beat outstanding stand in Goalie Archie until a half chance fell to the Davenham striker to chip over our on rushing keeper to make it 2-1. Davenham now had their tails up and pushed for an equaliser, especially as Jack had to leave the field injured leaving Egerton with only 6 players. However then came the flash point. A through ball saw Stan sprint into the box, only for his to be tripped in the box.....PENALTY!! Not according to the Davenham parents who disagreed and began hurling abuse at the referee, although the culprits managed to stay camouflaged!! Bradley stepped up to take the spot kick but slid his effort wide, massive cheers came from the home team, devastation fell on Bradley. Would the captain let this affect him, at first we thought yes, but when the ball was cleared by Tom from the Egerton defence moments later, Bradley somehow managed to half volley a back heel through to Stan in the box who, without hesitation, slotted the ball past the keeper. 3-1, great celebrations and the smile was back on the captains face. Fantastic, gritty performance by the Pumas today who were up for the battle and came out on top FT 3-1.
Wednesday, January 26, 2011
Tytherington U10's vs Egerton U10's
Tytherington 2-5 Egerton Pumas
Pumas stroll to easy away win
On a cold Saturday morning, with a pitch as hard and unforgiving as a Jim Brown email, the Pumas set about their business, producing some of their best football of the season.
Ben began the game in his new favored central midfield position and by using his strength began to dominate the game early on. Bradley was at his free flowing best and tested the Tytherington defence with a few of his trade mark runs.
The first chance of the game fell to Ben, a well taken corner was met with his head which just beat the upright, cue the sigh of relief from the goalkeeper. Tytherington then attempted to stamp their mark on the game with a testing long range shot, however Matt was equal to it and saved comfortably. The Pumas took the lead shortly after when a mistake by the Tytherington defence let in Stan "the fox in the box" Smith to fire his 11th goal of the season in off the post 1-0.
Shortly after, the Pumas were awarded a free kick on the edge of the Tytherington area, Bradley smashed it over the wall and off the crossbar, quicker reactions by the players in the box and the Pumas could have had their 2nd. The 2nd was long in coming however when Brad pick out Stan with a fine through ball, he slotted it under the on rushing keeper towards the open goal, Isaac was on hand to tap it home just to make sure 2-0.
The introduction from the bench of Jack seemed to push the Pumas on more, great play from Archie almost set the super sub in on goal. Tytherington were on the ropes, putting up less of a fight than Audley Harrison, when the Pumas made it 3. A great ball from the centre of the pitch from Ben released Bradley who calmly slotted home 3-0, screams of celebrate from the gaffer fell on deaf ears as the silky winger merely jogged back to halfway. The flood gates were now open and when a corner was whipped to the back post, Stan slotted home 4-0. HT
The second half started like the first had ended, Isaac was almost on the score sheet again when he glanced a header just wide of the far post. Heading seemed to be the theme of the day as Ben went just as close from the next corner.
Stan recorded his hat trick when he managed to deflect the ball past the keeper to make it 5-0. The Pumas then took their foot off the pedal and a Tytherington shot somehow managed to deflect off Tom and into the bottom corner 5-1.
They added a second late on but the Pumas had done enough to keep their 2011 100% win record intact. FT 5-2.
Tytherington 0-1 Egerton Panthers
Panthers leave it late to seal win
Like a trip down the East Lancs road for the red half of Manchester, or a trip to Salford for the blue half, this game had all the attributes of a derby; Passion, dodgy decisions, last minute winner and "fans" on the pitch!
A shake up in the team saw Oliver, Adam and Alex start with new Panthers goalkeeper Mitch starting in net.
Alex began well, holding the ball up and feeding the ball into the wingers, the midfield were having to battle hard to keep a strong Tytherington team at bay. Adam's pace was beginning to tell down the wing and he set up a chance for Alex to score only for his shot to be well saved.
The teams were beginning to cancel each other out so the introduction of 31 goal trio Ollie, Luke and Leo gave the team a much needed lift. This didn't stop Tytherington producing some good football and a strong shot was well dealt with by Mitch.
The first flash point of the game happened just before half time, when an innocuous challenge by Leo seemed to enrage the Tytherington defender who squared up to him, on another day Leo's shoved reaction would have seen him get his marching orders, he can think himself very lucky it didn't. HT 0-0
The 2nd half started brightly for the Panthers although they should think themselves lucky that the strike by Tytherington that hit the bar wasn't a couple of inches lower. In need of a goal, the gaffer left the ever dependable Ben in defence on his own and opted for two strikers, with Alex linking up with Ollie. Alex almost opened the scoring moments later but once again his effort was well saved. The second flashpoint happened from the resulting corner, when Oliver poked the ball a good two yards over the line only for the keeper to jump on it and throw it out. No Goal!! Even Roy Carroll would admit that one was over the line!
The volume from both sets of parents began to rise with the seconds ticking down. With literally half a minute left, Tytherington handled the ball in the box, the ref pointed to the spot and the result was all down to the last kick of the game. Ollie stepped up, showing more self confidence than Balotteli, to smash the ball past the keeper, 1-0. Cue the celebrations. A dogged display by the panthers whose grit and determination won through....eventually!
Pumas stroll to easy away win
On a cold Saturday morning, with a pitch as hard and unforgiving as a Jim Brown email, the Pumas set about their business, producing some of their best football of the season.
Ben began the game in his new favored central midfield position and by using his strength began to dominate the game early on. Bradley was at his free flowing best and tested the Tytherington defence with a few of his trade mark runs.
The first chance of the game fell to Ben, a well taken corner was met with his head which just beat the upright, cue the sigh of relief from the goalkeeper. Tytherington then attempted to stamp their mark on the game with a testing long range shot, however Matt was equal to it and saved comfortably. The Pumas took the lead shortly after when a mistake by the Tytherington defence let in Stan "the fox in the box" Smith to fire his 11th goal of the season in off the post 1-0.
Shortly after, the Pumas were awarded a free kick on the edge of the Tytherington area, Bradley smashed it over the wall and off the crossbar, quicker reactions by the players in the box and the Pumas could have had their 2nd. The 2nd was long in coming however when Brad pick out Stan with a fine through ball, he slotted it under the on rushing keeper towards the open goal, Isaac was on hand to tap it home just to make sure 2-0.
The introduction from the bench of Jack seemed to push the Pumas on more, great play from Archie almost set the super sub in on goal. Tytherington were on the ropes, putting up less of a fight than Audley Harrison, when the Pumas made it 3. A great ball from the centre of the pitch from Ben released Bradley who calmly slotted home 3-0, screams of celebrate from the gaffer fell on deaf ears as the silky winger merely jogged back to halfway. The flood gates were now open and when a corner was whipped to the back post, Stan slotted home 4-0. HT
The second half started like the first had ended, Isaac was almost on the score sheet again when he glanced a header just wide of the far post. Heading seemed to be the theme of the day as Ben went just as close from the next corner.
Stan recorded his hat trick when he managed to deflect the ball past the keeper to make it 5-0. The Pumas then took their foot off the pedal and a Tytherington shot somehow managed to deflect off Tom and into the bottom corner 5-1.
They added a second late on but the Pumas had done enough to keep their 2011 100% win record intact. FT 5-2.
Tytherington 0-1 Egerton Panthers
Panthers leave it late to seal win
Like a trip down the East Lancs road for the red half of Manchester, or a trip to Salford for the blue half, this game had all the attributes of a derby; Passion, dodgy decisions, last minute winner and "fans" on the pitch!
A shake up in the team saw Oliver, Adam and Alex start with new Panthers goalkeeper Mitch starting in net.
Alex began well, holding the ball up and feeding the ball into the wingers, the midfield were having to battle hard to keep a strong Tytherington team at bay. Adam's pace was beginning to tell down the wing and he set up a chance for Alex to score only for his shot to be well saved.
The teams were beginning to cancel each other out so the introduction of 31 goal trio Ollie, Luke and Leo gave the team a much needed lift. This didn't stop Tytherington producing some good football and a strong shot was well dealt with by Mitch.
The first flash point of the game happened just before half time, when an innocuous challenge by Leo seemed to enrage the Tytherington defender who squared up to him, on another day Leo's shoved reaction would have seen him get his marching orders, he can think himself very lucky it didn't. HT 0-0
The 2nd half started brightly for the Panthers although they should think themselves lucky that the strike by Tytherington that hit the bar wasn't a couple of inches lower. In need of a goal, the gaffer left the ever dependable Ben in defence on his own and opted for two strikers, with Alex linking up with Ollie. Alex almost opened the scoring moments later but once again his effort was well saved. The second flashpoint happened from the resulting corner, when Oliver poked the ball a good two yards over the line only for the keeper to jump on it and throw it out. No Goal!! Even Roy Carroll would admit that one was over the line!
The volume from both sets of parents began to rise with the seconds ticking down. With literally half a minute left, Tytherington handled the ball in the box, the ref pointed to the spot and the result was all down to the last kick of the game. Ollie stepped up, showing more self confidence than Balotteli, to smash the ball past the keeper, 1-0. Cue the celebrations. A dogged display by the panthers whose grit and determination won through....eventually!
Monday, January 17, 2011
Egerton Vs Vale Juniors
Saturday 15th January 2011
Egerton Pumas 2-0 Vale Juniors
Wet, windy and playing on a pitch that had already been cut up from a earlier match, the Pumas set about recording their second win of the year. the pitch wasn't ideal and the game started slowly with our quick passing game being interrupted by the slow surface. Jack was the first to get a sight at goal, his shot sailing wide of the target. Would the boy with the illuminous laces make his mark today? It didn't seem so as his next chance was well saved from close range, a quick look at the manager and the shake of his head suggested he believed he should have done better.
Vale took promise from the Pumas early missed chances and began to put a few flowing moves together themselves, most noticeable a one on one situation, which somehow Matt manage to deflect round the post, fantastic save to keep the scores level.
The deadlock was almost broken minutes later when a strong run and shot by Bradley narrowly missed the far post, the Vale defenders blaming each other for being tied in knots by the silky winger. Another quick break by Vale saw Matt pull off another fantastic save, would they be able to beat him today? Mitch was growing in confidence and began to break up the Vale attacks with a few tackles that made the watching parents wince!
A slick move down the left by Freddie and Adam saw the latter smash his effort off the underside of the bar, only for it to bounce the wrong side of the line, the Vale defence breathing a sigh of relief. That relief didn't last long, a pin point pass by Bradley saw Jack race through and smash the ball into the roof of the net, fantastic move, even better finish 1-0.
The goal seemed to knock the stuffing out of Vale and the Pumas began to dominate, keeping the score at 1-0 until the half time whistle blew.
Vale started the second half with a bang, and only an unbelievable close range save by Matt, when a goal seemed inevitable, kept the score at 1-0. The response from the parents showed how brilliant the save was. This lifted the Pumas and after good work by Brad, he squared for Jack, only for him to cannon his shot off the post. Another goal for the pumas was on the cards and it came shortly after when Bradley won the ball after a poor goal kick, he fed Jack who slotted calmly into the far corner 2-0. 5 goals in two games, Rooney take note.
The Pumas seemed to be happy to play the game out and hard work by Ben in midfield cancelled any Vale attacks out. He even got far enough forward to smash a long range effort over the bar.
It could have been 3-0 late on, however after rounding the keeper, Isaac was dispossessed by his own team mate and the Vale defence cleared, the gaffers face said it all! Adam then went close from close range but a great save saw the game finish 2-0. A gutsy home performance by the Pumas with the keeper and striker making the difference when it mattered.
Egerton Panthers 0-2 Vale Juniors
With midfield general Ed back today the outlook was good for the Panthers, a strong start saw the same player through on goal, only for him to hit his shot straight at the keeper. The Panthers would need to work hard today to get a result and good battling by Ollie on the edge of the area almost lead to a goal. With pacy winger Luke spending the first half in goal, the Panthers play became very narrow, with the midfield becoming crowded. Matters got worst when Ed hurt his ankle after a crunching tackle and needed to replaced. Leo was moved into the centre to cover but couldn't stop the game from becoming scrappy. This half looked certain to finish 0-0 until a freak goal put Vale 1-0 up. A routine clearance by Tom was sliced, got caught in the wind and somehow managed to end up in the far corner of the Egerton net 0-1. Tom did not let this get to him and kept his composure to put in a typical battling performance.
This goal got Vale going and could have made it 2 only for Luke to save brilliantly to keep the Panthers within touching distance HT 0-1.
Ed was showing signs he was ok to come back on, but before he had chance, Leo needed to be at full stretch to tackle the Vale forward who looked clear through on goal, this was a tackle Ben, who was now in goal, would have loved to have made. With the re-introduction of Ed, the Panthers began to build in confidence and almost scored when Ollie slid a through ball to Leo, who slid in only to see his shot saved. Oliver Howarth also went close with a shot, catching the keeper out with a shot when most thought he would cross.
Luke was beginning to get in behind the Vale defence but on two occasions, the through balls played to him were too strong and the chances lead to nothing.
The Panthers deserved an equaliser and it almost came when good strength by Leo saw him steal the ball in the area followed by him smashing the ball off the keeper and out for a corner, it was going to be one of those days. This was confirmed when a long clearance from the Vale defence bounced in the Egerton area. the quickest player to react being the Vale striker who bundled the ball over the line with what looked like his knee. FT 0-2
A disappointing day for the Panthers who will no doubt be back firing on all cylinders next week at Tytherington, the difference between the two Egerton sides being one had a permanent keeper and the other an outfield player between the sticks. Let the scouting commence.
Egerton Pumas 2-0 Vale Juniors
Wet, windy and playing on a pitch that had already been cut up from a earlier match, the Pumas set about recording their second win of the year. the pitch wasn't ideal and the game started slowly with our quick passing game being interrupted by the slow surface. Jack was the first to get a sight at goal, his shot sailing wide of the target. Would the boy with the illuminous laces make his mark today? It didn't seem so as his next chance was well saved from close range, a quick look at the manager and the shake of his head suggested he believed he should have done better.
Vale took promise from the Pumas early missed chances and began to put a few flowing moves together themselves, most noticeable a one on one situation, which somehow Matt manage to deflect round the post, fantastic save to keep the scores level.
The deadlock was almost broken minutes later when a strong run and shot by Bradley narrowly missed the far post, the Vale defenders blaming each other for being tied in knots by the silky winger. Another quick break by Vale saw Matt pull off another fantastic save, would they be able to beat him today? Mitch was growing in confidence and began to break up the Vale attacks with a few tackles that made the watching parents wince!
A slick move down the left by Freddie and Adam saw the latter smash his effort off the underside of the bar, only for it to bounce the wrong side of the line, the Vale defence breathing a sigh of relief. That relief didn't last long, a pin point pass by Bradley saw Jack race through and smash the ball into the roof of the net, fantastic move, even better finish 1-0.
The goal seemed to knock the stuffing out of Vale and the Pumas began to dominate, keeping the score at 1-0 until the half time whistle blew.
Vale started the second half with a bang, and only an unbelievable close range save by Matt, when a goal seemed inevitable, kept the score at 1-0. The response from the parents showed how brilliant the save was. This lifted the Pumas and after good work by Brad, he squared for Jack, only for him to cannon his shot off the post. Another goal for the pumas was on the cards and it came shortly after when Bradley won the ball after a poor goal kick, he fed Jack who slotted calmly into the far corner 2-0. 5 goals in two games, Rooney take note.
The Pumas seemed to be happy to play the game out and hard work by Ben in midfield cancelled any Vale attacks out. He even got far enough forward to smash a long range effort over the bar.
It could have been 3-0 late on, however after rounding the keeper, Isaac was dispossessed by his own team mate and the Vale defence cleared, the gaffers face said it all! Adam then went close from close range but a great save saw the game finish 2-0. A gutsy home performance by the Pumas with the keeper and striker making the difference when it mattered.
Egerton Panthers 0-2 Vale Juniors
With midfield general Ed back today the outlook was good for the Panthers, a strong start saw the same player through on goal, only for him to hit his shot straight at the keeper. The Panthers would need to work hard today to get a result and good battling by Ollie on the edge of the area almost lead to a goal. With pacy winger Luke spending the first half in goal, the Panthers play became very narrow, with the midfield becoming crowded. Matters got worst when Ed hurt his ankle after a crunching tackle and needed to replaced. Leo was moved into the centre to cover but couldn't stop the game from becoming scrappy. This half looked certain to finish 0-0 until a freak goal put Vale 1-0 up. A routine clearance by Tom was sliced, got caught in the wind and somehow managed to end up in the far corner of the Egerton net 0-1. Tom did not let this get to him and kept his composure to put in a typical battling performance.
This goal got Vale going and could have made it 2 only for Luke to save brilliantly to keep the Panthers within touching distance HT 0-1.
Ed was showing signs he was ok to come back on, but before he had chance, Leo needed to be at full stretch to tackle the Vale forward who looked clear through on goal, this was a tackle Ben, who was now in goal, would have loved to have made. With the re-introduction of Ed, the Panthers began to build in confidence and almost scored when Ollie slid a through ball to Leo, who slid in only to see his shot saved. Oliver Howarth also went close with a shot, catching the keeper out with a shot when most thought he would cross.
Luke was beginning to get in behind the Vale defence but on two occasions, the through balls played to him were too strong and the chances lead to nothing.
The Panthers deserved an equaliser and it almost came when good strength by Leo saw him steal the ball in the area followed by him smashing the ball off the keeper and out for a corner, it was going to be one of those days. This was confirmed when a long clearance from the Vale defence bounced in the Egerton area. the quickest player to react being the Vale striker who bundled the ball over the line with what looked like his knee. FT 0-2
A disappointing day for the Panthers who will no doubt be back firing on all cylinders next week at Tytherington, the difference between the two Egerton sides being one had a permanent keeper and the other an outfield player between the sticks. Let the scouting commence.
Monday, January 10, 2011
Egerton v Winsford Diamonds
Egerton Pumas 5 - 3 Winsford Diamonds
On a cold and windy morning in Winsford, on a pitch that resembled more of a ski slope than football pitch, the Pumas experienced their first competitive game for over 5 weeks. Would the lack of games have any effect on there overall performance? Not if Bradley and Jack had anything to do with it! Captain Hargreaves won the toss and after getting mixed messages from his dad/manager he opted to kick downhill first. This was the half for the dribblers to shine.
And shine they did with Brad going on one of his mazy runs down the right hand side only for him to see his cross come to nothing. Ben Henthorne was now beginning to relish his new position of central midfielder and produced a pin point thru ball for Jack only for it to run away from our striker. Archie seemed to have laid off the pies over Christmas as his energy was taking him past the Winsford midfield with ease and the link up play between him and Jack at times had the home team all over the place.
Jack was beginning to find his range, firing a shot just wide of the winsford post. Then, totally against the run of play Winsford scored, a weak back pass allowed there striker to nip in and score, cue the silly celebration of running to the Egerton parents kissing his badge, with only 5 minutes on the clock, good idea......i think not.
This sparked the pumas into life and the move of the game which saw 4 passes played, taking the ball from defence to attack in a matter of seconds saw Jack hit the post, he was getting closer. Ben then produced another fine ball for Bradley to run onto, giving him a one on one opportunity with the keeper, his shot was destined to burst the net, only for it to carry on rising past the beaten keeper and onto and over the bar. How much longer could Winsford hang on? Approx 30 seconds sounds about right as Ben received the ball in the area with his back to goal, a quick turn and shot by him saw his shot fly into the bottom corner 1-1, no silly celebrations, just straight back to the center circle. The Pumas wanted more.
The Pumas were now the dominant team, with winsford being reduced to shooting from range, their nearest effort flying high over the bar. Then came Jack's moment to shine, a great piece of passing play saw Jack one on one with the keeper, he cooly rounded him to slot the ball into the empty net, great composure, great goal. 2-1. Freddie wanted in on the action and a strong and determined run by him almost saw him add his name to the scoresheet but his shot was well saved.
Once again, against the run of play Winsford equalised, a bit of luck and a cool finish and the score was back level HT 2-2
The second half got off to the worst possible start, with the winsford winger strolling through our team to slot home, silly celebration time again. 3-2. It was time to kick the pumas into gear and a few rousing instruction from defensive hardman Mitch was enough to get the pumas going, he seemed to win every 50/50 ball from then until the end of the game. Then came an equaliser of pure class, with the ball being cleared from the winsford penalty area, bradley ran onto the loose ball from all of 20 yards to smash the ball into the roof of the net, in the words of Andy Gray, take a bow son, take a bow! 3-3.
Egerton now smelt blood and went straight for the jugular, firstly with jack shooting just wide, the look on his face suggested it was closer than we thought. Then the same player hit the post with a rasping drive, the ball rebounding to Stan only for him to see his shot also richocet of the post out to safety. Ben fancied his chances of adding to his tally and showed good strength before shooting just wide. A goal was surely coming and it did when man of the match Bradley beat two men on the right wing to whip a ball into the box for Jack to smash in off the post 4-3. Winsford heads we down, the badge kissing celebrations seeming a million miles away from where they were now. It got worst for them as a mistake by their goalkeeper saw him miss kick a set piece straight to Jack who unwrapped this unexpected gift by slotting home for his hatrick 5-3. There was one last chance for Winsford but Matt saved brilliantly. This was the pumas day and if all they were to walk away from this game knowing was that you shouldn't celebrate early goals like last minute winners i'm sure the manager will be happy. FT 5-3
Egerton Panthers 2-0 Winsford Diamonds
With midfield maestro Ed Franklin missing from the starting line up, due to a virus caught from facebook, the panthers started slowly and could not find their rythm early on. Winsford tried to take advantage of this and an early effort struck the bar. A rash tackle from Isaac a few moments later saw the referee rightly award a penalty, however the taker struck the spot kick against the bar, maybe third time lucky? This was something the panthers were keen to avoid and a re-shuffle of positions saw Ben Has move back into defense and Leo into centre midfield to try and break up the winsford play and get the ball moving. Ben was immediatly called into action and a well timed header saw him clear a cross over the bar.
The midfield was now beginning to tick with Leo making a nuisance of himself, almost playing Ollie in with a fine through ball. The egerton pressure finally paid off when a sidewards pass by Leo set up Alex to run onto and curl a precision effort into the bottom corner. 1-0 HT
The second half started brightly for the Panthers with the midfield beginning to dominate, a good corner by Leo was almost pocked home by Isaac, but the ball skipped off the surface and out into touch. The game then became a battle of the midfield with both teams cancelling each other out for the majority of the game. Although his dad described second half stand in goalkeeper Ollie as not being a goalie, the two saves he pulled off in quick sucession may have changed his mind.
The uphill slope was stopping pacy winger Luke from making his telling runs and the minor amount of attacking by winsford in the second half gave Tom very little to do, however some neat interceptions and clearances kept the pressure off Ollie.
Winsford were now tiring and when a strong shoulder charge on Leo seemed to make the challenger fall over rather than our number 14, Leo fed the ball up to Andy who's turn and shot in the box was stopped by what looked like a tackle worthy of a penalty, the referee waved play on when the ball fall to the feet of Isaac, who composed himself and slotted home to make it 2-0.
With a full strength midfield the score could have been more, but after this gruelling match, the pumas will be happy to walk away with the win FT 2-0.
On a cold and windy morning in Winsford, on a pitch that resembled more of a ski slope than football pitch, the Pumas experienced their first competitive game for over 5 weeks. Would the lack of games have any effect on there overall performance? Not if Bradley and Jack had anything to do with it! Captain Hargreaves won the toss and after getting mixed messages from his dad/manager he opted to kick downhill first. This was the half for the dribblers to shine.
And shine they did with Brad going on one of his mazy runs down the right hand side only for him to see his cross come to nothing. Ben Henthorne was now beginning to relish his new position of central midfielder and produced a pin point thru ball for Jack only for it to run away from our striker. Archie seemed to have laid off the pies over Christmas as his energy was taking him past the Winsford midfield with ease and the link up play between him and Jack at times had the home team all over the place.
Jack was beginning to find his range, firing a shot just wide of the winsford post. Then, totally against the run of play Winsford scored, a weak back pass allowed there striker to nip in and score, cue the silly celebration of running to the Egerton parents kissing his badge, with only 5 minutes on the clock, good idea......i think not.
This sparked the pumas into life and the move of the game which saw 4 passes played, taking the ball from defence to attack in a matter of seconds saw Jack hit the post, he was getting closer. Ben then produced another fine ball for Bradley to run onto, giving him a one on one opportunity with the keeper, his shot was destined to burst the net, only for it to carry on rising past the beaten keeper and onto and over the bar. How much longer could Winsford hang on? Approx 30 seconds sounds about right as Ben received the ball in the area with his back to goal, a quick turn and shot by him saw his shot fly into the bottom corner 1-1, no silly celebrations, just straight back to the center circle. The Pumas wanted more.
The Pumas were now the dominant team, with winsford being reduced to shooting from range, their nearest effort flying high over the bar. Then came Jack's moment to shine, a great piece of passing play saw Jack one on one with the keeper, he cooly rounded him to slot the ball into the empty net, great composure, great goal. 2-1. Freddie wanted in on the action and a strong and determined run by him almost saw him add his name to the scoresheet but his shot was well saved.
Once again, against the run of play Winsford equalised, a bit of luck and a cool finish and the score was back level HT 2-2
The second half got off to the worst possible start, with the winsford winger strolling through our team to slot home, silly celebration time again. 3-2. It was time to kick the pumas into gear and a few rousing instruction from defensive hardman Mitch was enough to get the pumas going, he seemed to win every 50/50 ball from then until the end of the game. Then came an equaliser of pure class, with the ball being cleared from the winsford penalty area, bradley ran onto the loose ball from all of 20 yards to smash the ball into the roof of the net, in the words of Andy Gray, take a bow son, take a bow! 3-3.
Egerton now smelt blood and went straight for the jugular, firstly with jack shooting just wide, the look on his face suggested it was closer than we thought. Then the same player hit the post with a rasping drive, the ball rebounding to Stan only for him to see his shot also richocet of the post out to safety. Ben fancied his chances of adding to his tally and showed good strength before shooting just wide. A goal was surely coming and it did when man of the match Bradley beat two men on the right wing to whip a ball into the box for Jack to smash in off the post 4-3. Winsford heads we down, the badge kissing celebrations seeming a million miles away from where they were now. It got worst for them as a mistake by their goalkeeper saw him miss kick a set piece straight to Jack who unwrapped this unexpected gift by slotting home for his hatrick 5-3. There was one last chance for Winsford but Matt saved brilliantly. This was the pumas day and if all they were to walk away from this game knowing was that you shouldn't celebrate early goals like last minute winners i'm sure the manager will be happy. FT 5-3
Egerton Panthers 2-0 Winsford Diamonds
With midfield maestro Ed Franklin missing from the starting line up, due to a virus caught from facebook, the panthers started slowly and could not find their rythm early on. Winsford tried to take advantage of this and an early effort struck the bar. A rash tackle from Isaac a few moments later saw the referee rightly award a penalty, however the taker struck the spot kick against the bar, maybe third time lucky? This was something the panthers were keen to avoid and a re-shuffle of positions saw Ben Has move back into defense and Leo into centre midfield to try and break up the winsford play and get the ball moving. Ben was immediatly called into action and a well timed header saw him clear a cross over the bar.
The midfield was now beginning to tick with Leo making a nuisance of himself, almost playing Ollie in with a fine through ball. The egerton pressure finally paid off when a sidewards pass by Leo set up Alex to run onto and curl a precision effort into the bottom corner. 1-0 HT
The second half started brightly for the Panthers with the midfield beginning to dominate, a good corner by Leo was almost pocked home by Isaac, but the ball skipped off the surface and out into touch. The game then became a battle of the midfield with both teams cancelling each other out for the majority of the game. Although his dad described second half stand in goalkeeper Ollie as not being a goalie, the two saves he pulled off in quick sucession may have changed his mind.
The uphill slope was stopping pacy winger Luke from making his telling runs and the minor amount of attacking by winsford in the second half gave Tom very little to do, however some neat interceptions and clearances kept the pressure off Ollie.
Winsford were now tiring and when a strong shoulder charge on Leo seemed to make the challenger fall over rather than our number 14, Leo fed the ball up to Andy who's turn and shot in the box was stopped by what looked like a tackle worthy of a penalty, the referee waved play on when the ball fall to the feet of Isaac, who composed himself and slotted home to make it 2-0.
With a full strength midfield the score could have been more, but after this gruelling match, the pumas will be happy to walk away with the win FT 2-0.
Friday, December 10, 2010
Tuesday, December 7, 2010
NEXT FIXTURE
MIDDLEWICH TOWN AWAY
SATURDAYS FIXTURE IS IN DOUBT DUE TO THE RECENT COLD SPELL WERE HAVING
KEEP CHECKING THE BLOG FOR UPDATES ON THE FIXTURE
SATURDAYS FIXTURE IS IN DOUBT DUE TO THE RECENT COLD SPELL WERE HAVING
KEEP CHECKING THE BLOG FOR UPDATES ON THE FIXTURE
Tuesday, November 30, 2010
NEXT FIXTURE
SANDBACH AWAY
KEEP CHECKING THE BLOG
THIS FIXTURE IS IN DOUBT DUE TO THE WEATHER
WE WILL NO MORE FRIDAY AFTERNOON TO SEE IF THIS FIXTURE WIIL GO AHEAD
KEEP CHECKING THE BLOG
THIS FIXTURE IS IN DOUBT DUE TO THE WEATHER
WE WILL NO MORE FRIDAY AFTERNOON TO SEE IF THIS FIXTURE WIIL GO AHEAD
Monday, November 22, 2010
Egerton v Weaverham
Weaverham 0-5 Egerton Pumas
A rousing team talk and a change in warm up seemed to do the trick for the Pumas as within minutes of the kick off, they were 1-0 up. Bradley found space down the right to whip a cross to the back post, which was met on the half volley by Stan, his effort cannoning in off the post. 1-0 Egerton. Ben, playing for the second week in midfield, had a chance to make it 2-0 from close range but his effort was well saved. Matt then saved from a tame shot by Weaverham. Jack was back to his all action self this week and his strength and link up play with Ben was too much for Weaverham to handle. A long ball from defence fell to Jack with his back to goal, he showed great ability to turn, create space for himself to fire a long range shot, which stung the hands of the keeper, the re-bound fell to Brad who couldn’t keep his shot down. Somehow the score was still 1-0! The Pumas were awarded a freekick 20 yards out, the kick was set to Ben to strike, only for it to fly narrowly wide. The 2nd goal came shortly after, once again a long ball fell to the feet of Jack, turning with his head up he spotted Bradley in space, played the perfect ball for Bradley to run onto and smash home from the edge of the area, great play and finish. 2-0. Weaverham heads dropped and within minutes a quick break saw Ben pick the ball up in midfield, with space in front of him he pushed forward, beat two players before composing himself to fire beyond the keeper .3-0. Weaverham were creating nothing in the first half and many would say it was the uphill disadvantage, others would say it was the battling of Mitch, snapping at any player that came near him until they no longer wanted the ball. Freddie’s no nonsense defending got him a talking to from the referee. Archie wanted in on the action and he fed Adam a ball to run onto and strike, the keeper only managing to parry the ball to Stan, who easily tapped home his 2nd. 4-0 Egerton. Weaverham then had a rare chance to score, only to see them shoot wide. It wasn’t long before Egerton were back on the attack and a neat one two with Adam saw Archie race into the box to slot home the Pumas 5th. 5-0 HT.
The second half saw the pumas play uphill, which saw their quick counter attacking play harder to achieve and limited the number of chances to only a few. Weaverham were using the downhill slope to their advantage and a swift bit of play saw them hit the post. Then came the controversial moment in the match, Jack burst into the box, knock the ball past the on rushing keeper who’s dive sent Jack tumbling to the ground, Penalty?? Not according to the man in black who awarded a goal kick. Let’s just say he wasn’t a popular man with our number 11! The game only created one more chance which fell to Weaverham, however Matt was equal to it and palmed it around the post. Great performance by the Pumas today, poor pitch and a strong Weaverham side made the victory all the more sweeter. FT 5-0
Team: Matt-Ben Hen-Bradley-Stan-Jack-Freddie-Archie-Mitch
Weaverham 8-8 Egerton Panthers
The Panthers started this game as the Pumas had finished, playing to their strengths and passing the ball around brilliantly. As in the first game, the Panthers scored quickly, great strength by Ollie saw him smash home from the edge of the area .1-0. Weaverham then had a great chance to equalise, but 1st half keeper Alex made a great save. Up at the other end, Leo used his strength and skill to create a chance for himself only to see his shot fly wide, was he finding his range? Weaverham equalised from a corner, the Panthers failed to clear and the ball was poked home. 1-1. Egerton were soon back in front, Tom picked the ball up in defence, transformed himself into Iniesta and played a through ball, worthy of a champions league final, into the path of Ollie to slot home to regain the lead. 2-1. With their tails now up, Egerton were on the attack again, Leo picked the ball up, took on a player before unleashing a strike from outside of the area into the top corner. 3-1. Then came the passing move of the game, with Tom, Luke, Ed and Ollie all linking before playing a through ball to Leo, who beat the keeper to the ball to chip over the him for his second of the game .4-1. Weaverham were on the ropes and a mistake of Gomes proportions by their keeper saw him pick the ball up, throw it out of his hands directly to Ollie, who looked at the ref to see if he could play on, he could, so he slotted the ball into the bottom corner for his hat trick! 5-1. Weaverhams star player had been quiet for most of the first half, however he sparked into life by whipping a free kick into the box to see it cannon off Ben to make it 5-2. With Ed struggling with an injury to his knee picked up earlier in the game, Weaverhams number 9 was given more space and began causing all kinds of problems. He managed to score 2 more goals in quick succession to bring the score to 5-4. Once again the Panthers kicked into gear and good midfield play lead to a chance falling to Isaac who smashed home from close range 6-4. The half was to end with a strong run and shot by Ollie just going wide of the target. HT.
Would the uphill cause the Panthers problems? Ed replaced Alex in goal and a long kick by him was controlled perfectly by Isaac on the halfway line, he turned and fed Leo who once again beat his man before smashing the ball past the keeper from just inside the area to claim his hat trick. 7-4. The panthers were not finished there and a poor clearance by their keeper fell to Luke 30 yards out, who spotted the keeper off his line, before firing a shot over him, great accuracy, great goal. 8-4. Their number 9 then went on one of his mazy runs before firing home 8-5. Good work and cross by Leo saw Isaac head against the bar, surely the Panthers had done enough? Not according to their number 9, a good strike by him from the edge of the area made it 8-5. Isaac then had another chance only for his shot to go wide. Up popped their number 9 again, jinking through our defence like it wasn’t there, to make it 8-6, then 8-7!!!! With one minute to go, Weaverham won a corner, which was handballed in the box (looked more like ball to hand!) and the unthinkable happened...PENALTY! Their number 9 stepped up to equalise and record his 6th goal of the game. The Panthers had a chance to win it late on but a through ball to Luke was too strong for the tricky winger to latch onto. Two hatricks, 8 goals away from home and the Panthers come away without a win, great performance by all involved. Without a certain number 9, it would have been a stroll in the park! Players and parents alike left Weaverham with the same thoughts.........Hargreaves, Hargreaves sign him up! FT 8-8
Team: Alex-Andy-Ben Has-Leo-Luke-Ed-Ollie-Tom
Simon Buckley
A rousing team talk and a change in warm up seemed to do the trick for the Pumas as within minutes of the kick off, they were 1-0 up. Bradley found space down the right to whip a cross to the back post, which was met on the half volley by Stan, his effort cannoning in off the post. 1-0 Egerton. Ben, playing for the second week in midfield, had a chance to make it 2-0 from close range but his effort was well saved. Matt then saved from a tame shot by Weaverham. Jack was back to his all action self this week and his strength and link up play with Ben was too much for Weaverham to handle. A long ball from defence fell to Jack with his back to goal, he showed great ability to turn, create space for himself to fire a long range shot, which stung the hands of the keeper, the re-bound fell to Brad who couldn’t keep his shot down. Somehow the score was still 1-0! The Pumas were awarded a freekick 20 yards out, the kick was set to Ben to strike, only for it to fly narrowly wide. The 2nd goal came shortly after, once again a long ball fell to the feet of Jack, turning with his head up he spotted Bradley in space, played the perfect ball for Bradley to run onto and smash home from the edge of the area, great play and finish. 2-0. Weaverham heads dropped and within minutes a quick break saw Ben pick the ball up in midfield, with space in front of him he pushed forward, beat two players before composing himself to fire beyond the keeper .3-0. Weaverham were creating nothing in the first half and many would say it was the uphill disadvantage, others would say it was the battling of Mitch, snapping at any player that came near him until they no longer wanted the ball. Freddie’s no nonsense defending got him a talking to from the referee. Archie wanted in on the action and he fed Adam a ball to run onto and strike, the keeper only managing to parry the ball to Stan, who easily tapped home his 2nd. 4-0 Egerton. Weaverham then had a rare chance to score, only to see them shoot wide. It wasn’t long before Egerton were back on the attack and a neat one two with Adam saw Archie race into the box to slot home the Pumas 5th. 5-0 HT.
The second half saw the pumas play uphill, which saw their quick counter attacking play harder to achieve and limited the number of chances to only a few. Weaverham were using the downhill slope to their advantage and a swift bit of play saw them hit the post. Then came the controversial moment in the match, Jack burst into the box, knock the ball past the on rushing keeper who’s dive sent Jack tumbling to the ground, Penalty?? Not according to the man in black who awarded a goal kick. Let’s just say he wasn’t a popular man with our number 11! The game only created one more chance which fell to Weaverham, however Matt was equal to it and palmed it around the post. Great performance by the Pumas today, poor pitch and a strong Weaverham side made the victory all the more sweeter. FT 5-0
Team: Matt-Ben Hen-Bradley-Stan-Jack-Freddie-Archie-Mitch
Weaverham 8-8 Egerton Panthers
The Panthers started this game as the Pumas had finished, playing to their strengths and passing the ball around brilliantly. As in the first game, the Panthers scored quickly, great strength by Ollie saw him smash home from the edge of the area .1-0. Weaverham then had a great chance to equalise, but 1st half keeper Alex made a great save. Up at the other end, Leo used his strength and skill to create a chance for himself only to see his shot fly wide, was he finding his range? Weaverham equalised from a corner, the Panthers failed to clear and the ball was poked home. 1-1. Egerton were soon back in front, Tom picked the ball up in defence, transformed himself into Iniesta and played a through ball, worthy of a champions league final, into the path of Ollie to slot home to regain the lead. 2-1. With their tails now up, Egerton were on the attack again, Leo picked the ball up, took on a player before unleashing a strike from outside of the area into the top corner. 3-1. Then came the passing move of the game, with Tom, Luke, Ed and Ollie all linking before playing a through ball to Leo, who beat the keeper to the ball to chip over the him for his second of the game .4-1. Weaverham were on the ropes and a mistake of Gomes proportions by their keeper saw him pick the ball up, throw it out of his hands directly to Ollie, who looked at the ref to see if he could play on, he could, so he slotted the ball into the bottom corner for his hat trick! 5-1. Weaverhams star player had been quiet for most of the first half, however he sparked into life by whipping a free kick into the box to see it cannon off Ben to make it 5-2. With Ed struggling with an injury to his knee picked up earlier in the game, Weaverhams number 9 was given more space and began causing all kinds of problems. He managed to score 2 more goals in quick succession to bring the score to 5-4. Once again the Panthers kicked into gear and good midfield play lead to a chance falling to Isaac who smashed home from close range 6-4. The half was to end with a strong run and shot by Ollie just going wide of the target. HT.
Would the uphill cause the Panthers problems? Ed replaced Alex in goal and a long kick by him was controlled perfectly by Isaac on the halfway line, he turned and fed Leo who once again beat his man before smashing the ball past the keeper from just inside the area to claim his hat trick. 7-4. The panthers were not finished there and a poor clearance by their keeper fell to Luke 30 yards out, who spotted the keeper off his line, before firing a shot over him, great accuracy, great goal. 8-4. Their number 9 then went on one of his mazy runs before firing home 8-5. Good work and cross by Leo saw Isaac head against the bar, surely the Panthers had done enough? Not according to their number 9, a good strike by him from the edge of the area made it 8-5. Isaac then had another chance only for his shot to go wide. Up popped their number 9 again, jinking through our defence like it wasn’t there, to make it 8-6, then 8-7!!!! With one minute to go, Weaverham won a corner, which was handballed in the box (looked more like ball to hand!) and the unthinkable happened...PENALTY! Their number 9 stepped up to equalise and record his 6th goal of the game. The Panthers had a chance to win it late on but a through ball to Luke was too strong for the tricky winger to latch onto. Two hatricks, 8 goals away from home and the Panthers come away without a win, great performance by all involved. Without a certain number 9, it would have been a stroll in the park! Players and parents alike left Weaverham with the same thoughts.........Hargreaves, Hargreaves sign him up! FT 8-8
Team: Alex-Andy-Ben Has-Leo-Luke-Ed-Ollie-Tom
Simon Buckley
Monday, November 15, 2010
Egerton v Hartford
Egerton Vs Hartford Boys
Egerton Pumas 3-4 Hartford Boys
The Pumas began this game eager to put the defeat by Davenham behind them and early Egerton pressure lead to the first chance, a mistake by the Hartford defence gave Jack an opportunity only for his shot to be saved. Bradley had begun with a purpose and tried to find his range by hitting a couple of long range efforts which were well saved by the Hartford keeper. The Pumas then stepped up a gear and the midfield linked well with Jack to almost set up Adam, however the keeper was quick off his line to save. Jack seemed to have had his Weetabix before the game as his strong runs were causing the Hartford defence all sorts of problems. With Ben moving up into midfield for this game, Archie and Mitch were holding strong in defence. It would take something special for Hartford to score, and it did, the Hartford number 10 hitting a long range effort into the top corner, 1-0 Hartford. This sparked the Pumas into life and within minutes Ben equalised with a low strike from a tight angle. 1-1. The Pumas then increased the pressure and forced a corner, Bradley swung the corner over to the back post, which was met by the head of Archie to make it 2-1 to Egerton. The Pumas were now flying and a pinpoint thru ball by Jack to Adam was well saved by the keeper. Bradley was causing all sorts of problems down the right and an inch perfect cross was met by Jack, only for him to slot the ball wide, how he missed that one only Jack will know. Archie was now all over the pitch and a great run back to help out in defence saw him use his head once again to clear a dangerous cross. Hartford drew the game level just before half time when a corner was clipped in once again by their number 10. HT 2-2.
The Pumas started the second half brightly with Jack hitting a shot from the left, which was easily saved by the keeper. The midfield was beginning to dominate and Egerton should have been 3-2 up when a 1 on 1 situation fell to Jack only to see his shot once again saved. Adam had now taken over from Isaac in goal and his quick thinking lead to him running out from goal to clear an almost certain chance of a goal. Hartford then hit Egerton on the break and a long run by their number 10 finished with him smashing the ball into the bottom corner. 3-2 Hartford. Egerton then put Hartford under sustained pressure and they had to throw everything in the way of two shots from Archie to keep their lead intact. The equaliser did come minutes later with Stan popping up in the box to score with a great finish. 3-3. Archie then almost put the home team in front only for him to see his shot hit the side netting. A break then saw Hartford score the winner, a long ball played to their number 10 saw him somehow clip the ball over an on rushing Adam to make it 4-3. A late strike from jack hit the post but the Pumas couldn’t find that final, elusive equaliser. Overall a great performance by the Pumas, who without the number 10 of Hartford having the game of his life, would have recorded a better result. FT 3-4.
Team: Isaac-Ben-Bradley-Archie-Stan-Jack-Mitch-Adam
Egerton Panthers 3-1 Hartford Boys
The Panthers were looking for their fourth win in a row today, but without leading goal scorer Ollie Oldbury the rest of the players need to fill in. The first chance fell to Luke, Tom swung in a great corner to the far post only for Luke to miss time his header and send it over the bar. Luke then produced the goal of the game to open the scoring, a strong run down the right saw him look up and loop the ball over the keeper from the edge of the area. 1-0 Egerton. A quick break at the other end then saw Hartford equalise from a very tight angle. 1-1. This seemed to knock the stuffing out of the Panthers which saw a lull in the game with the majority of the play being battled for in midfield. With 5 minutes of the half remaining the game sparked into life, a long range shot by Hartford was brilliantly saved my Matt, before Luke tried his luck from distance only for him to see his effort also well saved. With virtually the last kick of the first half, Tom swung in a corner, the ball bouncing in between both sets players before Ed saw an opportunity and tapped in from close range 2-1 Egerton HT.
The second half began as the first had finished, Hartford hit a great effort only to see Matt somehow save with his feet. Leo seemed to spark into life in the second half and a couple of strong runs down the right began to cause Hartford problems. Matt was called into action once again when a well worked free kick needed to be saved, and Matt made sure that was the case. At the other end Ben wanted in on the action and following a clearance from an Egerton corner he smashed an effort back at the keeper from 20 yards only for it to be once again saved. Was this keeper going to be beaten again today? Ed certainly fancied his luck and tried a long range effort which was once again SAVED!!. With the aggregate scores tied at 5-5 and a last look at the watch from the gaffer, the game looked to be over. Egerton had one last corner, Tom floated it in, Hartford cleared to the edge of the box only to see Ed steaming in to side foot the ball into the top corner, the arms came out in typical Ed celebration fashion and the lads joined in before the referee blew the final whistle. A below par performance by the boys today, however they learned a valuable lesson in how to play below their potential and win. FT 3-1.
Team: Matt-Ben-Andy-Leo-Luke-Ed-Alex-Oliver-Tom
Simon Buckley
Egerton Pumas 3-4 Hartford Boys
The Pumas began this game eager to put the defeat by Davenham behind them and early Egerton pressure lead to the first chance, a mistake by the Hartford defence gave Jack an opportunity only for his shot to be saved. Bradley had begun with a purpose and tried to find his range by hitting a couple of long range efforts which were well saved by the Hartford keeper. The Pumas then stepped up a gear and the midfield linked well with Jack to almost set up Adam, however the keeper was quick off his line to save. Jack seemed to have had his Weetabix before the game as his strong runs were causing the Hartford defence all sorts of problems. With Ben moving up into midfield for this game, Archie and Mitch were holding strong in defence. It would take something special for Hartford to score, and it did, the Hartford number 10 hitting a long range effort into the top corner, 1-0 Hartford. This sparked the Pumas into life and within minutes Ben equalised with a low strike from a tight angle. 1-1. The Pumas then increased the pressure and forced a corner, Bradley swung the corner over to the back post, which was met by the head of Archie to make it 2-1 to Egerton. The Pumas were now flying and a pinpoint thru ball by Jack to Adam was well saved by the keeper. Bradley was causing all sorts of problems down the right and an inch perfect cross was met by Jack, only for him to slot the ball wide, how he missed that one only Jack will know. Archie was now all over the pitch and a great run back to help out in defence saw him use his head once again to clear a dangerous cross. Hartford drew the game level just before half time when a corner was clipped in once again by their number 10. HT 2-2.
The Pumas started the second half brightly with Jack hitting a shot from the left, which was easily saved by the keeper. The midfield was beginning to dominate and Egerton should have been 3-2 up when a 1 on 1 situation fell to Jack only to see his shot once again saved. Adam had now taken over from Isaac in goal and his quick thinking lead to him running out from goal to clear an almost certain chance of a goal. Hartford then hit Egerton on the break and a long run by their number 10 finished with him smashing the ball into the bottom corner. 3-2 Hartford. Egerton then put Hartford under sustained pressure and they had to throw everything in the way of two shots from Archie to keep their lead intact. The equaliser did come minutes later with Stan popping up in the box to score with a great finish. 3-3. Archie then almost put the home team in front only for him to see his shot hit the side netting. A break then saw Hartford score the winner, a long ball played to their number 10 saw him somehow clip the ball over an on rushing Adam to make it 4-3. A late strike from jack hit the post but the Pumas couldn’t find that final, elusive equaliser. Overall a great performance by the Pumas, who without the number 10 of Hartford having the game of his life, would have recorded a better result. FT 3-4.
Team: Isaac-Ben-Bradley-Archie-Stan-Jack-Mitch-Adam
Egerton Panthers 3-1 Hartford Boys
The Panthers were looking for their fourth win in a row today, but without leading goal scorer Ollie Oldbury the rest of the players need to fill in. The first chance fell to Luke, Tom swung in a great corner to the far post only for Luke to miss time his header and send it over the bar. Luke then produced the goal of the game to open the scoring, a strong run down the right saw him look up and loop the ball over the keeper from the edge of the area. 1-0 Egerton. A quick break at the other end then saw Hartford equalise from a very tight angle. 1-1. This seemed to knock the stuffing out of the Panthers which saw a lull in the game with the majority of the play being battled for in midfield. With 5 minutes of the half remaining the game sparked into life, a long range shot by Hartford was brilliantly saved my Matt, before Luke tried his luck from distance only for him to see his effort also well saved. With virtually the last kick of the first half, Tom swung in a corner, the ball bouncing in between both sets players before Ed saw an opportunity and tapped in from close range 2-1 Egerton HT.
The second half began as the first had finished, Hartford hit a great effort only to see Matt somehow save with his feet. Leo seemed to spark into life in the second half and a couple of strong runs down the right began to cause Hartford problems. Matt was called into action once again when a well worked free kick needed to be saved, and Matt made sure that was the case. At the other end Ben wanted in on the action and following a clearance from an Egerton corner he smashed an effort back at the keeper from 20 yards only for it to be once again saved. Was this keeper going to be beaten again today? Ed certainly fancied his luck and tried a long range effort which was once again SAVED!!. With the aggregate scores tied at 5-5 and a last look at the watch from the gaffer, the game looked to be over. Egerton had one last corner, Tom floated it in, Hartford cleared to the edge of the box only to see Ed steaming in to side foot the ball into the top corner, the arms came out in typical Ed celebration fashion and the lads joined in before the referee blew the final whistle. A below par performance by the boys today, however they learned a valuable lesson in how to play below their potential and win. FT 3-1.
Team: Matt-Ben-Andy-Leo-Luke-Ed-Alex-Oliver-Tom
Simon Buckley
Sunday, November 14, 2010
Wednesday, November 10, 2010
Egerton v Davenham
Egerton Vs Davenham 6/11/10
Egerton Pumas 0-2 Davenham
This eagerly awaited fixture began with both teams being fired up and eager to get one over on each other. The first chance of the game came early on and fell to Stan, only for him to see his shot well saved. Davenham then had their first chance which went narrowly wide of the post. This was to be a game of few chances with both teams battling hard to cancel each other out. Good play in midfield by Bradley and Stan saw Isaac released for a 1 on 1 chance, which he failed to convert after the keeper came off his line quickly. A strong Davenham attack produced a fine bit of defending by Archie who managed to get back to clear off the line to keep the scores level. The resulting corner was cleared to the edge of the box, the ball was struck through a crowded penalty box to nick of an Egerton player into the bottom corner. 0-1 Davenham. Davenham now had their tales up and put the Egerton defence under more pressure, only for Ben and Archie to hold strong. Ben was called into action moments later to make the second line clearance of the game. The game then became a battle of the midfield with both teams once again cancelling each other. Mitch then made a great save, holding onto a strong shot before distributing brilliantly to Bradley on the right. Mitch was then called into action once again and a triple save of the highest quality kept the scores at 1-0 before half time. HT.
The second half saw the energetic Jack put Davenham under pressure and a strong run and shot by the same man almost lead to an equaliser. This sparked Egerton into life and they produced two great counter attacking chances which unfortunately didn’t lead to a deserved equaliser. At the other end a scramble in the Egerton area led to nothing only for it to be struck from outside the area to be saved brilliantly once again by Mitch. It was going to take something special to beat him again. With virtually the last move of the game, Davenham broke 3 on 1 and used the extra 2 men to beat Mitch at the far post. 0-2 Davenham FT
Team Mitch-Stan-Ben Hen-Freddie-Bradley-Jack-Adam-Archie-Isaac
Egerton Panthers 2-1 Davenham
A rousing team talk by number 2 Jim got the Panthers pumped before the whistle for kick off had been blown. The Panthers flew out of the traps and within the first 5 mins made it 1-0. Great build up play saw Ollie fed in down the left side of the box for him to smash the ball across the keeper. 1-0 Egerton. The Panthers were now flying and Alex came close, before Ed also went close following good work from Ollie. The man with the Tevez hairstyle wasn’t finished there, Ollie showed great close control to smash the ball past the keeper from a tight angle. 2-0 Egerton. Davenham were now on the ropes and Ollie hit the bar from close range following a scramble in the area, before he hit a 20 yard screamer that ricocheted of the corner of bar and post. Luke almost got in on the action after Alex played a fantastic through ball to him only for it to be a little too long. Davenham then appeared from nowhere and one of their first chances hit the post towards the end of the first half. HT 2-0.
Second half began brightly when immediately from kick off, Luke played the ball to Leo, whose strong run and shot was well saved. A long goal kick by Matt created a chance for Ollie who shot just wide. The forward line of Davenham were struggling against the strength of both Tom and Ben, who were taking no prisoners when it came to 50/50 tackles. A Davenham break saw Ben make one of his trade mark last ditch tackles, before Matt saved brilliantly from a counter attack a couple of minutes later. A mistake by Egerton saw Davenham claw a gaol back following a poor clearance from the back. 2-1. This didn’t seem to effect the Pumas and following a corner from the left, they hit the woodwork (or metal) once again, this time Alex hit the shot. The next opportunity fell to Leo who hit a long range effort which was heading for the bottom corner only to see it saved well by the keepers feet. The teams then cancelled each other out for the last couple of minutes before the final whistle. The Pumas should be more than happy with their performance today and with a bit more luck they could have won by a bigger margin. FT 2-1
Team Matt-Tom-Ben Has-Leo-Ed-Luke-Alex-Ollie-Andy
Simon Buckley
Egerton Pumas 0-2 Davenham
This eagerly awaited fixture began with both teams being fired up and eager to get one over on each other. The first chance of the game came early on and fell to Stan, only for him to see his shot well saved. Davenham then had their first chance which went narrowly wide of the post. This was to be a game of few chances with both teams battling hard to cancel each other out. Good play in midfield by Bradley and Stan saw Isaac released for a 1 on 1 chance, which he failed to convert after the keeper came off his line quickly. A strong Davenham attack produced a fine bit of defending by Archie who managed to get back to clear off the line to keep the scores level. The resulting corner was cleared to the edge of the box, the ball was struck through a crowded penalty box to nick of an Egerton player into the bottom corner. 0-1 Davenham. Davenham now had their tales up and put the Egerton defence under more pressure, only for Ben and Archie to hold strong. Ben was called into action moments later to make the second line clearance of the game. The game then became a battle of the midfield with both teams once again cancelling each other. Mitch then made a great save, holding onto a strong shot before distributing brilliantly to Bradley on the right. Mitch was then called into action once again and a triple save of the highest quality kept the scores at 1-0 before half time. HT.
The second half saw the energetic Jack put Davenham under pressure and a strong run and shot by the same man almost lead to an equaliser. This sparked Egerton into life and they produced two great counter attacking chances which unfortunately didn’t lead to a deserved equaliser. At the other end a scramble in the Egerton area led to nothing only for it to be struck from outside the area to be saved brilliantly once again by Mitch. It was going to take something special to beat him again. With virtually the last move of the game, Davenham broke 3 on 1 and used the extra 2 men to beat Mitch at the far post. 0-2 Davenham FT
Team Mitch-Stan-Ben Hen-Freddie-Bradley-Jack-Adam-Archie-Isaac
Egerton Panthers 2-1 Davenham
A rousing team talk by number 2 Jim got the Panthers pumped before the whistle for kick off had been blown. The Panthers flew out of the traps and within the first 5 mins made it 1-0. Great build up play saw Ollie fed in down the left side of the box for him to smash the ball across the keeper. 1-0 Egerton. The Panthers were now flying and Alex came close, before Ed also went close following good work from Ollie. The man with the Tevez hairstyle wasn’t finished there, Ollie showed great close control to smash the ball past the keeper from a tight angle. 2-0 Egerton. Davenham were now on the ropes and Ollie hit the bar from close range following a scramble in the area, before he hit a 20 yard screamer that ricocheted of the corner of bar and post. Luke almost got in on the action after Alex played a fantastic through ball to him only for it to be a little too long. Davenham then appeared from nowhere and one of their first chances hit the post towards the end of the first half. HT 2-0.
Second half began brightly when immediately from kick off, Luke played the ball to Leo, whose strong run and shot was well saved. A long goal kick by Matt created a chance for Ollie who shot just wide. The forward line of Davenham were struggling against the strength of both Tom and Ben, who were taking no prisoners when it came to 50/50 tackles. A Davenham break saw Ben make one of his trade mark last ditch tackles, before Matt saved brilliantly from a counter attack a couple of minutes later. A mistake by Egerton saw Davenham claw a gaol back following a poor clearance from the back. 2-1. This didn’t seem to effect the Pumas and following a corner from the left, they hit the woodwork (or metal) once again, this time Alex hit the shot. The next opportunity fell to Leo who hit a long range effort which was heading for the bottom corner only to see it saved well by the keepers feet. The teams then cancelled each other out for the last couple of minutes before the final whistle. The Pumas should be more than happy with their performance today and with a bit more luck they could have won by a bigger margin. FT 2-1
Team Matt-Tom-Ben Has-Leo-Ed-Luke-Alex-Ollie-Andy
Simon Buckley
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