Worrying times ahead.

I’m being a bit pessimistic; after all we were missing a fair few players from the previous game. Andy Turner, Chris Dixon, Mark Muers, Nick Smith, Dan Young, Nick Danks, Marc McDermont, Anth Langan and Dave Smith. In came debuts for Rhys Thoburn and Gary Heads. Tim also came back for his first game in months and Wayne Ramsay made a return.

Also worrying was Muers picking at the formation and doing the team-talk. After he fumbled his way through it, the game kicked off slightly late, as the referee was delayed. By the way, Emu had broken his wrist, after the youngsters had booted the ball at him on Tuesday.

We probably played the better football, but conceded from an excellent Andy Reay free-kick. Reay, who played for us in the past, caused no end of problems for Sassco and scored almost all of their goals. Despite this, we should have actually stopped him running everyone ragged. The worst thing was that we conceded again after everytime we scored.

Callum equalised in the second half and we looked well on top. They scored, then Lee Ramsay fired one in. They scored again, only to see Callum score again. Almost straightaway they scored and scored again before Lee Ramsay headed one in.

That was it. Even though the squad was not the normal one, I think we’d be struggling in the Premiership – which was expected anyhow. The plus points were excellent performances from Gary Heads, on the wing, and Rhys Thoburn, a player recommended by Nicky Smith. At least we seem to have plenty of decent, reliable players. It was also good to see Lee Ramsay and Callum Howe get on the scoresheet. We should have had more goals. Ramsay missed some opportunities and Anth Pearson had a cracking chance in the first half, despite playing at centre-half, which he excelled in.

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Ramsay’s second half goal gives Sassco their first win.

Quite a few chances from last week’s game against Northern Alliance Chemfica. In came Nicky Smith, Nick Danks, Dan Young, Andy Turner and Simon Mulvaney. Sassco expected a win, and got it courtesy of Lee Ramsay’s heading goal, early in the second half.

The game was at Gateshead 3G, played at the same time as an athletics meeting, so every sound resembling a shot was the starting pistol, or some grunt in Gateshead firing at us. We all arrived in time, with only Andy Turner arriving late and just prior to kick off. The start of the game wasn’t too impressive as Houghton Bethany, featuring Tim Gillespie, took control at the start. Eventually we settled and it wasn’t too long before we had some good chances.

One of them came from Chris Dixon, who’s bicycle shot cannoned off the crossbar. I told him I’d write a paragraph on it.

In the second half, Greenwell and Mulvaney came on and eventually Sassco scored, when Langan’s cross was nodded in and over the goalkeeper to make it 1-0.

The red mist then took over. Firstly, Nick Danks was told to be “replaced” before he was sent off, then Simon threw a wobbler and had to be “replaced”. Warning: excessive arguments and threatening to “chin” someone means that players won’t be invited to come back into the squad. I’ve no time or interest in be called up before committees and regulatory bodies to explain actions.

Houghton had a glorious chance to equalise, but Marc Siddall tried to lob Dave Smith and then chance went.

The rest of the game was played out without any incidents.

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Another defeat for the “A” team.

Firstly, thanks to Dave Smith and Scott Smith for arranging the extra players: Simon Graney, Liam Murray, Nick Danks and Dan Young. Also, thanks to Greenwell for saying he’s going to turn up and actually turn up.

The so-called “B” team was as follows: Dave Simpson, Simon Graney, Liam Murray, Scott Smith, Chris Taylor, Nick Danks, Dan Young, Davinder Sangha (replaced by Wayne Greenwell), Michael Garrett, Wayne Ramsey, Stephen Conlin

Couldn’t really call them a “B” team as such, and more of a Sassco XI. The A team was as follows: Dave Smith, David Oxley, Mark Muers, Paul McConville, Chris Dixon, Dave Gourlay, Lee Ramsay, Callum Howe, Scott Hembrough, Dan Campbell, Anthony Pearson

We had various drop outs and a couple of no-shows. However, I was sort of prepared for this and made sure everyone attempted to bring one or two players.

Callum Howe opened the scoring as the “A” team were resplendent in the new shirts (sponsored by The Bunker), however it didn’t all go well. A resilient performance from the Sassco XI backline, with Scott Smith and Chris Taylor being outstanding, so them recover from the wind against them and the mini-onslaught. The first half remained at 1-0.

Second half saw a more sure performance from the XI, as they had several chances. Titch, having missed a first half sitter, clipped the crossbar and Greenwell hammered in the equaliser. More chances came and went, with Garrett and Wayne Ramsay having much improved second halves. Eventually the XI team went ahead when Simon Graney deftly chipped the ball over an advancing Dave Smith.

Somehow, the scoring ended there. XI were catching Sassco on the break, but at the other end, the team were camped in the XI penalty box. Shots were cleared off the line and Simpson made several spectacular saves to keep the second half scoresheet clean.

So, once again, the XI team defeated the first eleven. McDermont and Pearson were missing, but the “A” team had the advantage of having the prolific Scott Hembrough at the helm. Take him out of the equation and the XI team could have had a much more comfortable game.

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Muers is substituted for Sangha.

Another depleted squad, but this time, a superb win. Sassco eventually ground Arms Citys down and scored two second half goals to make the 1-1 half-time scoreline and Arms City’s equaliser irrelevant.

The game was actually quite open. Both teams had plenty of chances and struck the crossbar and post on several occasions. Sassco opened the scoring, but Arms equalised when Macca decided to dally on the ball. The second goal came in the second half when Nicky Smith struck to give Sassco a 2-1 lead. Finally, Ramsay scrambled in the third goal from a corner kick and Sassco were clear.

Muers suffered some humiliation near the end when he was subbed for Sangha.

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McDermont, cap in hand, returns to Sassco and begs forgiveness.

A massively depleted squad was given an extra edge when McDermont decided to miss the 4-2 defeat against the Colliery Tavern on Saturday to watch the match in a pub. Having been accused of being a liar, publicly on Facebook, the slanging match continued with McDermont handing in his transfer request, and Sangha being indifferent to him leaving. A begging apologetic text was received on Saturday, but Sangha still held firm and didn’t respond.

By Wednesday, the squad of 10 had eventually bloated to 13. McDermont was there and sheepishly returned to the fold and graciously accepted a place on the bench. So 14 players kicked off against the Cambridge and Macca was immediately called into action to replaced an injured Dixon within the first few minutes. Sassco conceded midway in the half and performed poorly throughout.

Second half saw Wayne Ramsay replace Campbell, but Sassco went 2-0 down. By now, Stoker was in tourettes over drive, giving abusive commentary throughout. Late on, Sangha replaced an injured Simpson, who had come close with a first half header. The team had reduced the deficit by then, with Mickey Pearson acrobatically firing in a Mark Muers assist. After this, Sassco were on top and grew in confidence.

Three minutes remained when convicted sex-offender, Gareth Stoker, twisted Zidane style and secured the equaliser.

From a really poor performance; probably one of Sassco’s worst this season, the team gained an unlikely point.

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Four goal win over WWC sees Fusion head the pack.

Sassco.co.uk 3 Downhill Impact 0.
An almost unrecognisable Impact team suffered a trouncing at the hands of Sassco.co.uk, who had Keith Mouat in as a replacement for Stephen Conlin. Bri Marley also made an appearance, but it was Lee Ramsay who opened the scoring, before Muers added two goals.

Redhouse Fusion 4 WWC 1.
A thrilling end-to-end game in the treacherous conditions saw Josh Lay fire in two goals, along with Andrew Turner and Liam Wooton adding the others.

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Sangha defies Bell, Walker, Anderson and co. (Kyle wasn’t that good).

Sassco.co.uk 2 WWC 0.
The last game of the night sprung a surprise. Sangha drafted in two ex-Hendon players, McConville and Lee Ramsay, while WWC had the full complement on show, with Grant Foster, Bell, Robinson, Anderson, Walker and even Teeb!. Thirty minutes later, the aging Sangha, with several body parts hit, smugly walked off with a 2-0 win under his belt. An ultra-defensive performance with Ramsay and Conlin scoring for Sassco in the last five minutes.

Redhouse Fusion 5 Downhill Impact 2.
No Logan or Mickey Pearson saw a depleted side taken apart by Redhouse Fusion. An impressive set of goals in a good performance from Fusion. Especially considering that WWC lost later.

Wear Consulting 1 Town End Thunder 1.
A solid performance from both teams. Wear Consulting struck in the first half with an excellent goal, but Tyson responded with an equaliser in the second. An evenly balanced game. A draw was a fair result. 

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Tyson reaches the summit and wants to stay there.

Town End Thunder 7 Sassco.co.uk 2
It was shocking that goalkeeper Simpson, despite carrying an injury got Sassco’s goals, but more shocking that five man Thunder (with another dismissal) took the aging and creaking Sassco team apart. Both McDermont and Muers had howlers as the team went 2-1 ahead against the five men, before collapsing with poor play. Town End Thunder sped into a lead and never looked remotely like losing it. This is the second time they’d played with five men and won both games!

Wear Consulting 3 Redhouse Fusion 0
More problems for Redhouse Fusion as they failed to return the shorts and socks from two weeks worth of games. The team could be removed from the League and are now on a probationary period. However, Gaz Stokell’s men were stubborn against Wear Consulting. Despite the decent performance, they suffered a three goal loss and remain rooted at the foot of the table. Siddall, Jamie English and Tyzack were the scorers. Tyzack spent the opening half in goal and successfully defended a 1-0 lead before appearing outfield and adding to it.

Town End Thunder 5 Hendon Rovers 3
Hendon roared into a one goal lead, but were pegged back by two quick strikes from Town End to make it 2-1. An entertaining game swung from end to end. Hendon equalised, but Thunder were always one step ahead and secured an eventual 5-3 win. Hendon’s first defeat, but the goals from Lee Ramsay were excellent. Paul McConville was a frustrated bystander and blamed Wayne Ramsay for the defeat.

No games next Tuesday as Sunderland AFC are at home.

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A good run out and a good performance.

A humid day and a good victory with a full Sassco team despite missing quite a few of the regular players.

Macca, Marky, Dixon and Kyle were all out. Murton’s two month contract had expired early, but we had 14 including myself. Liam “Woody” Wooton also turned up and finally signed on the dotted line after months of wrangling over wages, etc.

Other news was that Stoker was presented with his player of the season award, which I then broke in half. Macca’s leading goalscorer award was also available, but since he wasn’t there, we gave it to Jimmy instead.

Thomas Wilson were an unknown quantity to us. They finished in the lower half of their division, so I expected a decent result from ourselves. The game kicked off a few minutes late and despite Sassco controlling the midfield, the better chances went to Thomas Wilson. Eventually, we broke the early deadlock with Jimmy scoring two goals. Thomas Wilson hit back almost immediately and the game looked as if it could be tight. However, despite the setback, Sassco immediately struck back with birthday boy, Dave Graham, seeing his chance saved. From the resulting corner he was fouled and Gourlay put away the penalty, much to the disappointment of the aforementioned Action Man Graham. Dave G proceeded to celebrate by himself.

3-1 in the first half. Jimmy wanted to come off and was replaced by Woody. In the second half, changes were made. As mentioned, Woody came on just before the half, but Wayne Ramsay and Dan Campbell replaced McConville and Pearson. The second half was more open, but Sassco seemed to come out on top. A goal was scored by Wooton and Titch got two. Jimmy also got his hat-trick when he came back on late in the game. A typical second half when we were racing ahead. Overconfidence left gaps at the back, and with the changes it was a bit disjointed. This helped Thomas Wilson score their second half goal, but we have Simma to thank for some excellent saves which definitely stopped Thomas Wilson getting more.

A good win. The Thomas Wilson team were well organised, but this was their first game in, while for ourselves, we’re used to the artificial pitch as well as having the majority of the players in action during the six-a-side.

I screwed up with the price for the pitch. The dude told me £28 a couple of weeks ago and my arse dropped when it was revealed to be £57. Some scrimping and scraping meant that Sandhill’s won’t be smashing my windows this weekend as the full price was paid.

Cheers to Ken Street for officiating and to the Thomas Wilson lads for a good, clean game.

Sandhill Centre
Pre-season friendly
Sassco.co.uk 7 Dave “Jimmy” Raeper 3, Steve Conlin 2, Liam Wooton, Dave Gourlay (pen)
Thomas Wilson FC 2
Sassco.co.uk: David Simpson, Simon Mulvaney, Steve Farquhar, Gareth Stoker, Anth Pearson (Dan Campbell), Dave Gourlay, Paul McConville (Wayne Ramsay), Neil Richardson, Dave Graham, Dave Raeper (Liam Wooton), Steve Conlin.

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Four players from Sassco out of a squad of six took part on the behalf of Azure-design.com in the PowerLeague Five-a-side Cup in Gateshead. The players involved were Davinder Sangha (in goal replacing the much poorer Ed Cook) Chris Dixon, Dave Gourlay and Jimmy Raeper. The other two player were ex-Sunderland AFC’s Martin Smith and Sammy Bindoff. Martin Smith everyone knows about, but Sam could be described as a ultra skillful Tim Gillespie. Posh sort, etc.

It was two groups of four and I think we were in the strongest group. In the event, we won the first game 7-3, while we lost the second to a team featuring ex-Boro player, Dean Gordon. Also, Gourlay got sin-binned for four minutes and the loss was a 3-2 one. Finally, we hammered a team featuring a Times Inn player, 9-0, to make sure we were through to the Semi Finals.

The Semi Finals pitted us against a team which we truly hammered 6-1. Ironically, Dean Gordon’s lot got easily dismissed in the other Semi Final, so our Final opponents were put to the sword and we won 4-2 – being 3-0 up at one stage.

The comprehensive domination embarrassed the Azure Technical Director, Peter Daykin (who once donned a Sassco shirt back in 2006), as he fully expected a team containing me to be easily defeated. Got to be honest – I was like a cat between the sticks, despite slowly being cooked alive in the weather proof goalkeeper top, which is more suited to the sub-artic temperatures at Downhill.

The tournament was well organised, but the way some of the teams were kitted would have given me a heart attack if it happened on a Tuesday. Mind you, Dixon looked like a tramp and only the special powers of Photoshop make him look half decent in the photo above (a better quality pic will be added soon).

Paul McConville and Wayne Ramsay had their version of the Tuesday team in, but they failed to reach the Semi Finals.

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