Organised chaos!
Thanks to Town End Thunder who stayed behind and managed to play their game thirty minutes late, despite lacking a regular player. Also, thanks to Ken Street for stepping in and officiating in Anth Mouat’s absence, plus Thomas Bell for offering to referee as well. Finally, much appreciation to all the teams for okaying a later kick off time (despite it eventually not being needed).
Firstly, Redhouse Stars didn’t show at 7:00pm which led me to believe that after the recent defeats, they were losing interest. Town End Thunder were chomping at the bit and disappointed that they weren’t going to extend their winning streak and recent good performances. Yet, at around 7:15pm, the Stars turned up. After a flurry of texts and cancelled texts, the game kicked off at 7:37pm on the other pitch while WWC and Fusion battled it out on the main pitch, with Ken Street refereeing.
Town End Thunder 9 Redhouse Stars 1
Town End were actually lacking a player despite not being at fault for the kick off time. Firstly, Steve Conlin refused to don the jersey as it was too tight. Then the opponents refused to hand over their shirts. Finally, the game kicked off with Town End roping in another player. In the actual event, they cruised through, scoring two quick goals. Redhouse Stars hit back, but Town End Thunder took the lead to 3-1 and eventually hammered their hapless opponents 9-1. Goals coming from Liam Richardson (4), Michael Jones (3) and a poor two from Tyson. For their opponents, it’s unlikely that Stars can continue in this fashion. They desperately need a point or a win to get them on track.
WWC 1 Redhouse Fusion 1
The big game was a rematch between WWC and Fusion. Last time out, Fusion delivered their previous masters a footballing lesson. This time, the so called “B” team levelled things out. Steve Anderson scored very quickly and the game was on. In one of the best games seen this season, both teams had chances. Carlos was excellent for WWC, but late on, Kurt Baxendale rammed home the equaliser. All square for these two teams who are battling for the title at this early stage.
IPS 1 Wear Consulting 0
A rough and tumble encounter between IPS and Wear. Both last met in the Challenge Cup and IPS were solitary goal winners. It was the same again here as a late strike from Mick Vincent settled the game. Both teams were at each other from the off and the game nearly flared up. Ken Street calmed things down in his own inimitable way.
Hendon Rovers 4 Downhill Impact 2
Both teams had large squads, so for the first time ever, the extra player rule was invoked meaning that both started with seven-a-side. It worked more in Hendon’s favour, as their excellent form continued. Adam Foster opened the scoring with a delicate chip over the ever advancing Logan. Soon it was three up. Downhill Impact even had the audacity to claw Stephen Lawson out of his coffin to chug around the field like an ancient plough (not tractor as they weren’t invented when he was playing), but he made no major impact. The bloated team managed to grab a goal back at 3-1 with Paul McClusky scoring, but Hendon eventually added another before Downhill could (another one from predator McClusky). A complete no show from Downhill. They even had the unfortunate choice of wearing unwashed shirts. Campbell’s was the worst. He spent the whole game reeking of piss. The final score at 4-2 saw Foster with two goals and McConville and Potts with the others.
Can everyone contact me as soon as possible about their availability next week. Some 11-a-side games are kicking off and some players are also away on holiday. This fixtures will be planned once everyone has confirmed their availability.