A match of two halves for the U7 Gold team this weekend. Isaiah opened the scoring, winning and dispatching a free kick to give us a 1-0 lead. We followed this by coming close on a few occasions, including a dribble from Chiaki which saw him escape two challenges, pass a third player, run half the length of the pitch before narrowly sending his shot wide in what could have been the goal of the season. EFA came back with an equaliser just before half time, to give them a deserved equaliser.
After half time, there were big changes. Nico came out of goal to reinstate a 1 goal lead for BFA, and then two rockets from Djibril and Theo extended our lead. Djibril smashed a shot from distance which crashed against the bar and in. And whilst on a counter attack, Theo struck from distance to find the top corner! Theo and Isaiah got second goals to round a comprehensive 6-1 victory, with plenty of attacking prowess on show.
The celebrations after the goals are always fun – lots of inventive dances, Suuuii’s and more! Theo was man of the match for his intense work rate both attacking and defending, two fantastic goals and attitude throughout the game. We are starting to understand positional roles a little more which is a big help and something we will continue to work on.
Tough game against a strong AFC side. We started the first half strong having some opportunities but the opposition were defending well and pressing every time we had the ball to get it back. Although we managed to score and pushed throughout the first half to even out the result, not having a goalkeeper was an issue as we had to rotate all players in the team to fill the GK position. In the second half Kenan did a great job helping in goal as well as Ozan. I’m proud how the team pushed till the end and kept trying to press and win the ball back to generate chances to score.
The highlight of the game was Nabil’s goal, the team showed relentless and kept trying to score despite the result, as well as everyone cheering themselves up to get back and even out the result. Player of the Match was Kenan, he really showed resilience and despite trying his best in goal he also did a great defensive job as well as in attack. We have been working on passing and 1v1s, hopefully the team will get used to working under pressure and knowing how to release early to pass the ball with more fluidity. We will work on organisation and getting more into space, as well as scanning so players identify where the free space is. Knowing where to find their teammates in order to pass and work as a team a bit more will be key.
Goals from Ahmed, Labren and Beau saw off a difficult opposition in this match. A very hard fought game, with all players giving it their all for the entire length of the match, ensuring victory for the team. The boys looked in control for most of the game, and were the better side on the day by a mile. Our second goal came from fantastic build up play, involving almost all players on the pitch. Quick passing, working the ball out wide and then a lovely cross into the box for Labren to control and tap home, giving us the lead again. Brilliant play!
Today’s player of the match was goalkeeper Ian. A fantastic performance from him again, denying the opposition on many occasions, and distributing the ball well to keep our attacks flowing. We have been working on playing through the thirds, and looking at our passing priorities. The team always looked to play forwards when possible, but where not afraid to play it sideways or backwards when needed, ensuring they kept possession before working the ball forward again. Going forward we need to take our chances a little better when they present themselves, and work on supporting the player with the ball a little better.
A great start to the game where we could’ve scored 5 or 6 times. Our energy was fantastic. A brilliant early hat trick from Louis Vara set the tempo of the game. However, when we came out for the second half we looked nervous and began to rush decisions allowing them to score 3 easy goals. An all round good performance but still things to work on! My favourite moment was when Charlie was able to skill past 3 players, megging one of them and passing to the wing. My player of the match has to be Louis Vara. His energy, effort and pure scoring ability was good to see and shows that Louis development in finishing is improving.
This week’s training focused on our counter attacks and how we can utilise our overloads in attack. One of our goals came from a counter attack which made me proud to see that the team are learning. We need to be more prepared and switched on at training which will then result in a smoother matchday experience. At the moment we struggle to focus for a whole game, so I would like us to start small with better focus at training then move on to matchdays!
The Bloomsbury girls started the match full of energy, pressing the Fusion team high up the pitch. Winning a few corners early in the first half. One, whipped in well by Aniera to Alex, resulted in a shot which flashed just wide of the post. The pressing continued throughout, with Alex tackling and winning the ball off on one of the Fusion girls. She didn’t stop there, taking some amazing touches past opposition players, which put her one on one with the goalkeeper. She slotted the ball away to put Bloomsbury 1-0 up. Alex and Aniera continued to link up throughout the half, including some amazing through balls from the former to the latter, one of was only kept out by an incredible save by the Fusion keeper.
In the 30th minute Maisie got herself in a wonderful position to pull off a shot that was saved by the keeper. Alex was ready for the rebound, which she put away perfectly into the bottom right corner from the edge of the box. Impossible for the Fusion keeper to stop. It was clear to see that the Bloomsbury girls were tired towards the end of the second half and the Fusion girls had an added bit of fight. However, the girls got stuck in and put their bodies on the line to deny some brilliant shots from Fusion. The girls running up to and celebrating with Alex after both of her amazing goals was the highlight of the match. It was clear to see how great the girls are as a team! Alex was also the player of the match. Not only for her two wonderfully struck goals, but also her through balls and defensive work in midfield. She really was everywhere and set the pace of our game.
This week’s training ensured that the team got back to help out in times of need. Especially in the final 5 minutes, in which most of the team was back in defence doing everything to see out the win and clean sheet. Next week we can work better as a team when on the ball, to get into the right positions to receive a pass and move into space.
Camden Elite were a mix of U9/10 players who worked very hard throughout the whole game and never stopped. The gold team, however, were just unstoppable. Free flowing football throughout the whole game saw us cruising. Still some great plays saw us score some great goals. Teo (4), Kingsley (3), Marco (2), Jake and Matty were our goal scorers. My highlight of the game was a free flowing move from back to front, with everyone touching the ball, was laid on a plate for Marco who scored a brilliant team goal.
Marco, our player of the match, was immense. Non stop running and pressing saw him win the ball multiple times in the opposition half which created goal scoring opportunities for him and his teammates. Also some brilliant 1v1 displays from himself. This week we worked on game based scenarios. Giving freedom to the boys to create solutions to common problems. This allowed for the boys to be switched on gain experience in solving any problem which arose. Despite the score line we could still be more clinical in front of goal.
An extremely tight game. First half saw LFS dominate with sheer brilliance from their number 10. The score line going into the break was 2 – 1 to us. After a much needed team talk, the boys fought super hard and managed to secure a positive score line even if it wasn’t the prettiest game of football.
My highlight was when Pax, after being hacked down unfairly, quickly won the ball back and slotted it into the bottom corner. Great reaction from the young man to keep going and persevere.
Ayan was incredible. He won the ball back so many times and used his quick feet to get out of tricky situations. Really impressed on how he’s taken on the CM role. This week we worked on game based scenarios. Allowing the players to decide for themselves on how to solve problems which arise. Even when playing a good team like LFS we need to still play our style of football and have better composure playing from the back.
A very tough match for us where we faced some good opposition and it was a good test for the boys. The game started evenly contested but the opposition opened the scoring and we had a few struggles defending as a team as the game went on. We created a lot of chances but it was unfortunately not our day in front of goal. Credit to the boys as they never let their heads drop, even with the large score gap. They kept putting in maximum effort.
My favourite moment was our first goal which came from a free kick as Franco played Jake through and Jake cut it back to Elias for us to open the scoring. My player of the match was Jun as he was very good winning the ball back and disrupting the opposition play being in the right place defensively. This week’s training focused on being more efficient with our touches and I felt we showed glimpses of that during the game but we will need to polish that a bit more. Where we could be better next week is our shape and positioning when we are defending transitions from the opposition.
Another rollercoaster performance and game from the U11 Gold Team. To start the game the team were passing the ball around confidently with some excellent triangles. Especially Basti, Christian and Kurt. Frustratingly, a couple of times we played the ball forward and were flagged offside. Debatable to say the least… Even though we had the majority of possession we still weren’t creating too many clear cut chances. This all changed when Bastian was played through one v one and forcing the keeper to make a smart save. However the game then turned with Maccabi scoring three goals in quick succession – all through the counter attacking and long ball over the top.
At half time, I spoke to the players about how they could either believe they can get back into the game or believe they had lost the game. Thankfully, they started the half like a train, scoring early with Yasser finding the back of the net from the edge of the box. The boys were fuelled by this, pressing high up not letting Maccabi have any time of the ball. Edgar was then played through and home. The deficit reduced to 1. We were smelling an equaliser but then conceded again on the counter attack.
I was worried that this would bring the spirits down of the team but it was the complete opposite. We went again with Bastian bagging the rebound. Even though they were trying and getting shots blocked we couldn’t find the goal. Then it happened. Kurt cut inside and took a brilliant shot which hit the post and bar. Fortunately Deniro was in the right place to tap home an equaliser. A very well deserved draw. Scoring the last minute equaliser and seeing the joy and togetherness in the team was my highlight. Joao Richard De Souza Suchocki was our player of the match. Joao played as a right sided defender for the majority of the game and had a brilliant game. He was able to progress the team from defensive positions with passes or dribbling from the back. But also had the freedom to overlap and get crosses into the box.
Our work on the training pitch was evident especially in the second half as we made sure to close down the opposition and not give them any time on the ball. This meant that we were able to stop the long passes and win the ball back high up the pitch. We need to make sure that we are both clinical when we are on top of the game and ensure not to hold too high a line leaving dangerous space behind us.
Horror show. One of those games where everything that could go wrong, went wrong. Murphy’s law at its finest. A corner goal (mark your men please lads!!! For the love of God), we passed them the ball & they then scored after assaulting Yacine (their ref was one of their parents, hmmm), having missed a spate of our own chances. Despite warning the boys that this was a strong team who could cause damage if we were complacent, we weren’t at all at the races. The takeaway message is that if your fight and desire is not at 110%, the Big Beasts of the WFL will come and eat you up. The lack of courage at times was also disappointing and not what I expect from my teams. Making mistakes is acceptable and it happens; not showing for the ball and being reactive in possession is not. We started off it, got a bit better and created a string of good chances. Then conceded poorly from a corner.
In the second half I asked for a reaction. Despite somewhat getting it, we conceded another frustrating goal and belief started to drop. Again, we created some more chances but were unable to convert any. This proved pivotal, as belief began to wane and they scored their third. Police will be receiving a report for a suspected assault on Yacine. On the flip side, tactically we implemented the recent topic of conflict well, with numerous examples on the wing. Particularly impressive in this regard was Yacine, who battled hard, looked to provide conflict with some well timed underlaps and threaded some well weighted passes through the lines.
Mr Ababsa, you are therefore my man of the match despite some potential red card offences in there. With your mix of talent and tenacity, I will never stop trying to get you to realise your full potential so you can apply yourself to the max on the field. Whilst being tactically good, our attitude needs to improve. Both off-the-ball in terms of our fight and on the ball in terms of our courage.
Hey Yilli and Shkodran, if you’re reading this we beat your boys hehe, 8-0 to the Blooms, typo above, you can stop reading now. Right, now onto the serious business. It’s a rare feeling to be proud of your players after an 8-0 loss, but I was. With no subs and no recognised CMs, it was always going to be a tall order to compete. The pre-match talk was that given the context above, this was a bit of a free-hit, but that adhering to our principles, never giving up, was non-negotiable. In a bid to be entirely objective, by and large we were able to do that. Effort-wise – nothing to fault my players. I could see a group barely able to walk by the end – a group of our 7 most committed and consistent players across both squads. In terms of our principles, we were committed, we pressed high.
My only criticism would be our bravery in possession. We went long to target man, Oli DB – which I have no qualms with as long as it’s the RIGHT decision (he’s isolated and can receive in good conditions) but the support play was lacking. In my opinion, we gave Camden too much respect and were too preoccupied with their subsequent attacks. Play our game, lads; back yourself. Shout out goes to Oli, what a target man. His tenacity to force high turnovers was sublime and his courage on-the-ball was admirable. But you’ve got to support him, lads!! That’s on our CMs and full-backs to get up, around him and beyond.
But truly, I leave the pitch not particularly scared of Camden. We conceded through a mixture of giving them too much respect, being utterly exhausted and a few goals of real quality. We were very unlucky not to get a goal or two ourselves and I believe with our CM cohort of Zinedine, Yilli (who WILL play for us if he’s still reading) and Yacine, alongside gunman Ezekiel – great time to get injured, fellas – we can be competitive. Losses provide reference points for the season and we’ll use that one going forwards. I eagerly await the return fixture (with Yillinho starting CM for the Blooms).
Maxi’s performance was my highlight- our man of the match. He was tenacious, worked like a dog, showed excellent use of his body in duels and had great quality on the ball. So coachable – he’ll go far in this sport. Having worked on off-the-ball movement to provide conflict for the forwards, it was unfortunate we were unable to implement this due to a bit of fear, but I understand given the context. Bravery in possession and willingness to get forward will see us improve from performances like these.
A tough loss to take at Market Road last week. The team worked incredibly hard in defence as Camden Youth proved why they are top the table so far this season. Bloomsbury never gave up though, even with no subs we dug deep and put in some incredible tackles to keep the score line down. One player on the opposition was incredibly tall but we still managed to out smart her many times and defend well. Kitty put an unstoppable performance in in defence and received coaches player of the match not only for this but for brilliant words of encouragement throughout the game. She was always on hand to help the goalie change over too. Big shout out to Abi, Ela, Jet and Ghada for their time in goal. It takes a massive effort to step up to this in the cold nights and we always appreciate it.
Ela received players player of the match for some good play in midfield. She linked up with Jet really well and both were unlucky not to score. Ella on the wing really grew into the game and made some great runs and turns in attack. Abi made some vital passes into Jet and Ela too. Eleanor’s consistent performances continue and she dealt with strong players well by showing them away from goal. We will build and work hard at training next week. When Ghada sprinted all the way back from our attacking box to our defensive box to help cover our defence. In the end Kitty won the ball but the next time Ghada ran back to defend she was called into action and won the ball. Just shows how important it is to get back! as above We have been working on defending corners and we did really well not to concede from set pieces. We will work again on taking more shots in good places on the pitch and also our strength of passes so they get to our teammates feet.
A very cold and icy morning in Enfield for this Sunday fixture. An early 9:30am kick off but the boys arrived in good spirits all awake and ready to get the victory to maintain our position at the top of the table. A quick start meant Freddie Littner, the pressing demon himself, won the ball back high up the pitch and took his chance early to get the ball rolling. 1-0 Bloomsbury . Philip was a constant threat to the opposition who were playing a high line and Zeid bypassed their press with a long through ball straight in Philips path. Philip fought off the two centre backs and dispatched to get his first goal in Bloomsbury colours. We then conceded a counter attack from our corner which led to a goal for Enfield to get back into the game. 2-1 was the score at half time. The boys needed a resurgence in the second half and to be more clinical as this was not a 2-1 game due to our dominance.
That showed as we came out flying after the break. Philip grabbed his second early in the half and the goal scoring didn’t stop. Another 6 goals went in with Rupert breaking his run of games without a goal, scoring a second half hat trick which was well deserved. His second half performance was great. Rabah also got on the scoresheet and Tristan Turner scored the final goal of the game, after an extremely energetic and powerful second half performance. His energy and quality in possession changed the game, constantly winning the ball back and making the correct decisions to get us steamrolling the opposition. We conceded 3 goals in the second half, all were easily avoidable. But that is something we will work on. A shout-out to Paul Mertesacker who stepped in to go in goal as our number 1 was away for the game. He did a stellar job, had safe hands and his play out from the back was composed. A great standard throughout the game.
The whole second half performance was my highlight. To come out and score 7 goals and be as ruthless and clinical as we were was great to see. The boys combined and played beautiful football with smiles on their faces. It was lovely to watch. Philip Thalahagama was our player of the match. A wonderful debut for Philip, scoring a hat trick and getting an assist. Couldn’t have asked for a better start to his Bloomsbury career. We worked on attacking movement with the midfielders and attackers to create opportunities and defensive shape with the defenders. We created numerous opportunities and players were communicating and speaking on double movement with each other which was great. The goals we conceded were from mistakes or mishaps so general defensive shape was very good. To improve we need to keep our concentration at the highest level consistently to cut out unnecessary mistakes.
We knew that the opposition were a great team and a tough one at that. But that did not affect us in any way. In the first half they created high quality opportunities, while keeping the pressure up which resulted in a goal. However, our defence was great and we stopped them many times from scoring again. In the second half they scored again to make it 2-0. Our team was focused enough to comeback and so they did. Eben took advantage of their goalkeeper’s mistake and scored a great goal making it 2-1. After that our team fired up and we pressed more having more shots and chances, but their goalkeeper was good and even saved a penalty. After many missed opportunities our afternoon became that much more complicated as one of our players was sent off, forcing us to play with 10 players for the last 10-12 minutes.
But the player disadvantage did not hold us back as we scored the equalizer, with Everett being our second goal scorer, finishing magnificently. Top quality performance from all the players, especially from our defenders. We definitely could have won the game, but still I am proud of our team as they gave their 110%. My favourite moment would be Everett’s goal. He scored to make it 2-2, with this beautiful goal and all the players, on and off the pitch, got excited and they pushed even more. They did this despite the cold environment, their fatigue levels and the fact that we were behind in score.
Our player of the match was Jacob. Jacob last year was our attacker but this season, given the circumstances, he is playing as a defender. He has improved greatly and keeps on improving everyday. On Sunday he showed his quality not only as a defender but as a player as well. Great attitude, decision-making, passes and touches were on point, hardly making any mistakes. Top performance from him and Mickey as well. What a pair of centre-backs.
This week’s training was very positive. Our players did exactly what they were asked to do, especially in defence, and our performance was even better than last week. We could fix our first touches and most importantly our communication. That seems to be our main problem for now, but I am positive that from now on we will only get better!
A closely fought affair today with plenty of fine margins. On another day we may come away with more goals, and concede a few less. We were vulnerable on the counter and from long balls, which were ultimately our undoing. We fell to a couple of early goals, but were able to grab one back through Jack’s deflected goal from distance. However, Panitas scored again to go 3-1 up. Again, we were able to quickly fight back through Danny’s volley from the edge of the box following a corner. But this was quickly matched with another goal from Panitas as a result of their direct play. Jack kept us in the game with a superb strike, firing from well outside the box, his shot colliding with the joint of crossbar and post, and arrowing just inside the far post. 4-3!
We kept up the pressure, creating some very good scoring chances which we couldn’t put away. Unfortunately, we were punished by direct Panitas play again, falling 6-3 behind. Benny provided another moment of brilliance with a looping, swerving volley from distance, one Papisse Cissé would have been proud of! A final score line 6-4 was not indicative of the game as a whole. Whilst Panitas seemed to score every time they went forward, we seemed unable to tuck away simpler chances but were able to score some wonder goals. On another day and with some key players back, that is a game which we win.
Benny or Jack’s wonder goals were my highlights of the game. I couldn’t pick between the two! Jack was our player of the match. His contributions in front of goal were outstanding. This wee we worked on possession and progressing through the centre of the pitch. This resulted in a couple of goals and a plethora of chances. To improve we need to understand player distances whilst defending, being closer to the rest of the players in our unit to prevent split passes and cover one another.
Despite the defeat, Myself and James left that game with renowned belief and optimism as the boys competed against a strong team and were willing to compete and fight for each other. The work we are doing is showing more and more on the pitch. We always ask the boys to perform to their best, compete as hard as they can, and leave the pitch knowing they gave everything, James and I know that they did. The results will come, but the consistency and intensity in our performances are the key, and this performance is a great platform to build on. Goal scorers were Rubens Baron (3) and Jack Orbell.
The highlight of the game was Ruben’s hattrick goal. It was a fantastic solo goal, starting on the halfway line, showcasing excellent speed, change of direction, deception, and a fantastic finish on his weak foot. He was a handful throughout and deserved the brilliant hat trick. Ruben was also a constant threat, on and off the ball. Never gave the opposition defence a second of rest, pressed every poor touch and bouncing ball. On the ball, he was aggressive and intense, always willing to push his team forward! Deservedly our man of the match.
This week we worked on counter attacking and the ability to use wide areas and attack at speed. We need to work on our ability to win the ball and counter with decisiveness. Players commit to decisions early and back their decisions. We also need to look to see out the game and keep possession better in the final stages. To maintain control of the game, and dictate the tempo with our ability to keep possession.
A BFA U15 Boys game will always produce goals, no matter the outcome. However a prolonged cup run would’ve been swapped for an 11-goal feast. Playing against opposition from the league above, who albeit had 10 men, BFA started outstandingly, retaining possession via the use of the forever free man in midfield and breaking the lines accordingly. If required, play was tidily recycled in what was a dominant 15 minute period that was rewarded by a trademark individual Aaron Connor solo effort from the right flank. Followed by a net-breaking effort from Mark James. From here though, the fast turning BFA wheels would soon fall off. Route 1 was the name of the game for the opposition and it paid off with 5 unanswered goals either side of half-time via looping balls over the high and linear makeshift BFA backline.
Aaron added his second via a glimpse of brilliance from Rayane Tajiri to thread him through on goal, however this was immediately countered with a long range spectacle from the Enfield number 9. Aaron completed his hat trick with a calm 1v1 finish, however there was still time for Enfield to grab their 7th and pile further misery on BFA. The first 15 minutes were the best football played all year by this team. Players stuck to their roles and played as a team in and pout of possession. Lamek Mussi was our player of the match. Lamek filled in at right back today after 2 last minute pull outs and did a superb job in an unfamiliar position. For the last 2 weeks we’ve been working on a mid-block to contain the opposition in the middle third in the hope of countering with our lethal front three when possession is regained. The boys showed they could achieve this, but 15 minutes is not enough. We need to be more disciplined and show more desire.
A tough game against Regents Park this week which saw us come up against a lot of mental challenges. The game started poorly, conceding early in the 5th minute to a free kick from distance. After the disappointment of conceding early, the lads mostly settled into the game, having lots of the ball but failing to create many clear-cut chances. Regents countered quickly, using some fast-paced attacks and often going long over our in-possession structure to cause a few problems for us in those transitions.
After going in 1-0 down at HT, the lads continued to control the ball and began to create more and more chances as the game went on. What was pleasing was the fact that we began to make a conscious effort in regard to our tempo and the way we attacked the ball.
Often in the second half, we began to change the tempo of our play and speed up our passing to create space and attack their weak side. We also began to attack the ball deeper and attack the spaces in front of their defence rather than getting congested in their backline.
A much better second half and a deserved win in some freezing conditions!
As you sometimes get at Market Road, there was a particularly vocal group of players from Regents stood behind the fence chanting. They knew a few of our lads and were being vocal and annoying. Chanting at them and attempting to wind them up. They targeted one of our lads, Benny, more than most. My favourite moment came as Benny gets the equaliser, in front of their “crowd” and shushes them as he wheels away in celebration. It was really pleasing to get the winner in front of their “crowd” as well, as, to be honest, it was doing my head in. Glad to have shut them up.
I’m giving the player of the match for this game to Zak for how he changed the game in the second half. He slotted into the CM position and was so calm and composed in possession. He looked to receive from our deeper players, turn, and attack the weak side/find those wide runners so effectively. He calmed down a game that could have mentally got away from us.
He also began to time his runs much better, looking to arrive in space at the moment the ball did, rather than waiting in that space for a pass. He struck a few good first time efforts and was unlucky not to grab a goal.
Another awkward game for us as we had to play 10 v 11 once again. Credit to the lads who consistently attend each week and play in these sort of conditions. Unfortunately we have been hampered by injuries and suspensions this week but the situation must improve.
The game was very stop-start in the first half and became increasingly scrappy as time went on. The lads did well to get an early goal and limited the number of chances Northwood created with an excellent defensive line/offside trap. After conceding a penalty that was never a penalty in the memory of man, the boys took control of the game in the second half and began to carve Northwood open consistently. We let ourselves down with our defensive positioning at times (body shape to defend the long ball) but generally controlled the ball and moved it really well. A mixture of some excellent pressing and incisive passing to carve chances out in this game. A pleasing performance on and of the ball.
I’m going to go with two favourite moments this week; they are the 2 goals that we created through our pressing. Right off the bat, Elijah and Benny pressed well together to force the ball into a difficult area before cutting it back to an open player in front of goal. Similarly, in the second half, Elijah pressed well as an individual to put a CB and then the GK under pressure to win the ball and create a chance close to the opponent’s goal. These two moments were excellent examples of how our out-of-possession work can be just as effective at creating chances as our in-possession work. Hopefully a lesson to the players and another tool we can add to our arsenal.
Sonny Mandla was our player of the match. Sonny has been one of our most consistent players this season and this game was no different. Sonny’s work-rate on and off the ball is excellent, and he covers the entire left hand side with little issue. He’s constantly looking to join the attack from LB and his forward runs in this game were superb. He supported the attack so effectively, latching onto through balls several times in the second half and producing 2 assists. As well as this, his reactions when we lost the ball were superb. He provided excellent support and cover to his CBs and won his individual battles against Northwood’s RW more times than not. A great performance combining energy, attitude, and quality.
We have been focussing on our in-possession principles over the last couple of weeks and, in particular, spontaneously rotating to move the ball and the opposition. We had lots of the ball in Friday’s game and, in the second half in this game, we began to control the game much better. We are beginning to translate the short pass and move rotating style that we see often at Market Road on a Friday into our Sunday games. We are getting our midfielders closer together and drawing teams towards us before playing dangerous passes to our wide players. To better improve this, we need to develop a greater concept of how to attack a team’s weaker side. We need to look to tilt an opponent, develop these close relationships in possession, then exploit the space vacated by the defending team. More work to do but we are getting better!
We travelled to Enfield for our quarter final cup fixture against Hinton and Finchley. The game began quite cagey with both teams trying to work each other out. Midway through the first half Oscar finds Bilal who then shoots and scores. 1-0 BFA!! Even though we were in control of the game, Hinton are still very much in it. We gave away the ball midway inside our half, their #11 wins it and drives towards our area and scores 1-1. Into the second half, their #11 plays a one two with the centre forward. He receives and delicately chips Tom. Its 2-1 Hinton!! Immediately from the kick off we win a corner, the ball is whipped in and header in by Lamin!! 2-2!! We begin to take control of the second half and score 3 goals in 10 mins. Goals from Bilal, Ben and Naison make it 5-2 BFA!!!
Last 10 minutes, the ball comes to Naison, who spins the defender and shoots bottom corner to make it 6-2 BFA!!!! Last 5 minutes, a great switch of play by Naison, finds Bilall who drives down the wing and crosses, the ball deflects of the defender and loops into the net. 7-2 BFA!! Into the semi’s we go!!!! My highlight was Bilal’s hattrick, deservedly our player of the match. His all round play was excellent. We worked on combinations which came out in the game. We need to be more clinical in front of goal.
BFA went into this League Cup quarterfinal in high spirits, looking to continue their good run of form. In freezing conditions and on a tough pitch to play on, BFA showed their superior quality from minute one. Despite the challenging surface, we still managed to control possession beautifully, knocking the ball around for large spells, cautious not to give anything away. Our pressure finally told midway through the first half when Luke latched onto a loose ball and rifled home into the top right corner. We went into half time looking to build on our first half dominance and following an injury to the opposition goalkeeper, BFA quickly made it 2. Luke rounding the substitute keeper with some good footwork to slot home into an empty net. The game was wrapped up in the final 10 minutes as Reese found Lukas unmarked at the edge of the box, who scuffed his shot but still managed to find the back of the net to round off a good performance!
My highlight was when when Luke and all the supporters were practically celebrating before he had even scored into an empty net to make it 2-0. Luke was our player of the match. Dominant all round display in midfield, some good touches and link up play with his fellow midfielders. Deserved his goals. This week we worked a lot on quick reactions in transitions from attack to defence which allowed us to regain shape and possession quickly. To improve we need to maintain intensity during a period where we have fewer matches. This will be key in the long run!
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