SONNING 7 - 1 GERRARDS CROSS
2nd February 2008

Well, if we had a DOTD award it would go to El Capitano for choosing to get to the Uni meeting point via the town centre on a busy Saturday- so his patiently waiting team decided they'd waited long enough and went on ahead. What a dick!

Beaconsfield High School on a cold, damp & blustery afternoon is not a fab' proposition, but we soon learnt that Gerrards Cross only had 9 players, so the match would be rather more interesting than had been anticipated. James Picken kindly volunteered (well, had his arm twisted) to play for the opposition and got stuck into his new and unexpected role - and an honorary MotM award for his sportsmanship.

So, 11 v 10 meant we were on the attack for most of the half and, although it took a while to settle into our stride, it wasn't long before Will King had tucked his and our first goal away. Chances came and went - Jordan Manning and Mark Hansford unluckily just failing to get the right touch on several occasions - with the GX players defending stoically.

Naturally we had huge amounts of possession, but we used it well and there were passages of lovely play from Antony Matheson, Dave Ransome, Carl Ayres & Mark in midfield. The defence did what they had to do, and John Flint in particular was having another impressive game, linking up with the midfield and directing things for me on the pitch. 2 more goals gave Will his hat trick and we all looked forward to emptying his wallet at the bar later (what else are student loans for?). Then Jordan got in on the action with his first goal for several weeks - a great way to celebrate his 14th birthday! Andrew Bowyer had to clear his lines a few times and GX spoilt it a bit by scoring a cracking goal from a short corner, but 4-1 was a nice score line at half time.

The opposition must have taken something with their half time drinks as they came out of the blocks in the 2nd half as if their lives depended on it. If we wanted to improve our goal difference, we were certainly going to have to battle for it and it took a 2nd goal from Jordan and a 4th from Will to settle us down again. Jeremy Matheson clearly decided that central defenders could also attack in games like this and went on a mesmerising run, beating 5 of their players and winnning a free hit on the edge of their D. He was so high up, that Joyce was ready with the cold compress for his nose bleed, but it wasn't needed.

Play went from one end to the other and the midfield tussles were numerous, but Jordan finally got his hat trick and Will had a superb 5th disallowed.

The final score of 7 - 1 gave us our best result so far and ensured we keep the pressure up on Swans at the top of the table.

Well done and thanks chaps!
 

Man of the Match: Will (I'm sure my 5th goal should have counted) King for an outstanding display infront of goal + his assists with Jordan's hat trick.
Thanks go to Richard (I can't run) Boyden for turning out in defence despite his knee injuries and James Picken (what a hero).