Match result
| Team | Mixed U15 |
|---|---|
| Opposition | Stamford Bridge |
| Kick off | 2pm 02/10/2011 |
| Score | 2-2 |
| Match report | For Man Utd it was Stoke, for Fulford U15s read Stamford Bridge. All great runs come to an end, and our 100% winning streak shuddered to a halt against the buffers of a rock-like Bridge side which battled hard for 80 long minutes. We hit both posts, missed more chances than the name "Gabbiadini" has letters, and had a goal disallowed for off-side near the end; however, in the final reckoning, a draw was a fair result. The fact that centre-half Emlyn was player of the match tells you much about the pressure we were under at times; on the other hand, their player of the match was, arguably, their 'keeper. Things started brightly with Alex causing havoc in the Stamford Bridge penalty box, but it took 36 minutes before he calmly side-footed home to put us one-up at the break. Emlyn's partner at the back, Joe, was solid, and, along with Josh Quarmby and Gianni, the defence looked comfortable enough in the first half. Mikey and Harry were industrious, but at times we didn't spread the ball wide enough. As we kept the game narrow, their centre-halves dominated, winning headers against Dan Ford and Alex with monotonous regularity. The second half saw us fall behind within 5 minutes. The defence ball-watched from a free-kick gifting them a free header past Ben, and a once-a-season top corner scorcher from midfield left us trailling. Will Paver came on pushing Joe into midfield, James Turton played solidly, but it all felt tense and rushed as the Bridge players scrapped for their lives. Carl, who was injured in the first half, returned to the action and we dominated the last 20 minutes, missing chance after chance. With five minutes left Joe Tomsett ran onto a through-ball which everyone missed; the keeper brought him down but, as the ball broke, Tom Russell drilled the ball into the onion bag for a precious equaliser. The midfield traded tackles as the pitch appeared more like a battlefield, with Gianni giving as good as he got. Josh Moran ran endlessly and, with a minute to go, Tom Russell slid him the ball which he rammed home; for a second it looked like the 100% record remained intact, but the man in black had other ideas, pulling play back for off-side. It ended sixty seconds later with honours even. The lads deserve a great deal of praise; they ran their hearts out and never gave up when it looked like the ball would never go in. As we lose the 100% record, talk of employing a Director of Football for the U15s may be premature. It's no time to panic and Gabbiadini certainly has the full backing of the board, but with two tough games coming up against Pickering and Ozbaldwick can he rotate his squad effectively and return the U15s to winning ways? |
Manager | Ricardo Gabbiadini |
| Captain | Emlyn D |
| Player of the match | Emlyn D |
Team stats
| Player | Position | Contribution | Goals | Clean sheets | Bookings |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| William P | Goalkeeper | Played part match | |||
| Joshua Q | Defence | Played full match | |||
| James T | Defence | Played part match | |||
| Harry B | Midfield | Played part match | |||
| Carl B | Midfield | Played part match | |||
| Dan F | Midfield | Played part match | |||
| Michael P | Midfield | Played full match | |||
| Tom R | Midfield | Played full match | 1 | ||
| Joe T | Midfield | Played full match | |||
| Gianni G | Played part match | ||||
| Alex F | Forward | Played full match | 1 | ||
| Josh M | Forward | Played part match | |||
| Emlyn D © | Utility | Played full match | |||
| Benjamin P | Utility | Played part match |
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