A very close match by score line, but a game which we dominated. Straying away from our usual business, we struggled to make the most of our chances, but Isaiah’s 2 second half goals got the win. The team was absolutely excellent in the press, keeping East End Lions in their half over and over again. We attacked very well too, making the most of 2v1 situations, and saw lots of excellent offensive 1v1 work. Just finishing the chances we had was our only downside! One of our goals was created by Theo, who dropped deep to get the ball from Nico before bursting past 3 opposition players who came to press. The ball was worked up the pitch to Isaiah, who slotted it home beautifully.
Isaiah and Nico shared man of the match for this game – Isaiah for his relentless work and 2 fantastic goals. Nico for making some quality saves and perfect distribution all game! We were developing defensive technique in training, so it was very good to see our work replicated on Saturday. Taking the ball closer when we want to shoot – not just smashing it whenever we get a sight of goal will see us improve.
A well fought match in the Bloomsbury Derby! Lots of quality on show from both teams. Hat tricks for both Andrii and David, whilst Karter grabbed a couple on his debut. Adam also scored all the way from his own goal! An enjoyable watch with lots of goals.
Ethan had been off ill but came back for the game. Unfortunately, was a little bit too ill to play outfield but did go in goal and pulled off a great save with his feet in the second half! The moment of the match. David was our player of the match. His top work rate and a hat-trick to boot. Last week we worked on defensive technique which helped as we looked to dominate our 1v1 duels.
This was our second match of the season against FC Marylebone, coming from a 3-2 win last time, the players were overconfident at some points of the game. The first half ended 0-0 with lots of chances for us, and in the second half we kept dominating but were not able to open the scoring. The other team’s defenders had great performances that helped them to keep a clean sheet.
Despite all of our efforts, goals didn’t come and with just a pinch of luck the opposition scored 2 goals to finish the game. The dedication to keep going forward and try to score a goal was my highlight. Sufian was our player of the match. Sufian showed full commitment in both offensive and defensive phases. More passing combinations were seen to solve the pressure of the opposition. To improve we need to get confident and consistent in our defensive duties.
A tough fixture once again against a team that looked to be rough and use that to their advantage. In the first 5 minutes the boys looked shaky, just aiming to get an early goal. But after realising that this wasn’t possible we gave the ball away quite often. We changed our approach and came out the better side in the first half. After a talk with the boys on how we could make this game a dominant performance they were able to execute, creating two clear cut chances. One of which resulted in a red card for the opposition as their defender cut us down during a clear goal scoring opportunity. An unfortunate penalty miss looked to keep it at 0-0, but super Ryan with a class finish in the bottom corner put us in the lead. From there on it was just impossible to stop us. Rocco scoring 2 and Roka getting the final goal of the match.
My favourite moment was when Ryan McGovern was able to dribble past two players which looked to close off an angle to shoot. But he somehow managed to squeeze it into the bottom corner! Not even Bukayo Saka could do that! My player of the match has to be James. His understanding on how to impact the game, dictate the pace and tempo whilst focusing on the defenders in front of him is so impressive. James’ efforts in goal and in defence are a clear sign that he puts the team first before the individual which I love to see!
Training this week was a little bit stop start with a couple of trial assistant coaches coming in. However, the boys stayed focused and showed respect to these coaches taking in learning on the 3 D’s (Delay, Deny, Deflect). Next week we will look to improve our already good counter attacking skills and how the challenges of transitions can result in us conceding or scoring.
The game was quite intensive with both teams having a few scoring chances. For our side, we didn’t provide enough pressure when the ball was in the oppositions half, which let them easily pass the ball into our half. When defending 1v1 situations, the boys were a little bit soft in making tackles. Brian scored a close-range goal to help the team equalize the game in the first half. But we were still struggling to build a defensive line in front of the centre backs when the opponent started counter-attacks.
After making a few subs, our defensive strength improved. As a result, the boys forced the other team to make several mistakes. Max took a powerful shot and found back of the net through the left wing. We were very close to levelling the game and probably could have turned the situation around in the first 7 mins of the second half. However, it was disturbed by 2 own goals, which made the boys lose confidence. Overall, I fully appreciated the efforts the boys put in especially when we were 2 goals behind. It could have been a different game if we were able to keep high pressure from the off.
My favourite moment was when the players from the bench (including Maxime, Sigurd and Max) executed my instructions very well to show the other team our determination and aggression to win the ball back. Player of the match goes to Ramez. He kept a high performance during the whole match with solid defensive work at centre back. He was quite confident in stopping attacks and remained composed when looking for passes forward after winning tackles. The boys were actively looking for passes instead of dribbling when the ball was in our half, which was a good reflection of decision making that we worked on in training. We need to work on applying that principle when we have the ball in the final third. We will put more emphasis on passing and moving in the following couple of weeks to continuously build in-game playing style.
Piper scored our goal. We had lots of dribbling up from the back line from Alex and Piper with coverage on defence. We were a bit weak on the wings, but possession was mostly in the attacking third. There were various strong opportunities on goal. Alex took some great corner kicks. Our communication is getting much stronger as well. Valentina almost scored a goal. The first shot hit the crossbar and the second went out, but it was nice to see the girls support her as it was her first game.
Piper was our player of the match. She not only held the defence but she dribbled up into space and scored our goal. She is reliable and confident on the pitch. We only had one training session last week, but I think practicing moving from the defensive third to the attacking third helped, as well as our work on communication. We can spread to the wings more, go over positioning on the field, and practice getting goal side.
A tough encounter as we had an abrupt start which had us a bit unsettled, but as the game drew on I felt our performance was at a really good level especially in the second despite the result I feel we showed a lot of character and effort to try get back in the game. Leo scored twice. 2 goals characterised by the way we wanted to play with a lot effort in our press.
My favourite moment of the game would our whole second half as even though we had been down most of the game our heads never dropped and we were able to show that with the 2 goals we managed to score. Player of the match would have to go to Laurie as he was tireless in his running to win the back, showing good effort and a great attitude even when it was tough.
This week in training we had our topic of starts and stops specifically throw ins and I felt we saw glimpses when we had those opportunities to show options, retain the ball and create chances from it. Where we need to improve is our press and being able to maintain it consistently through the game. This will take us to get to the next level.
A really competitive match which saw us put in a lot effort into getting the win. We started with a new style of play which is still unfamiliar, but kudos to the boys to sticking with it even when we went 1-0 down, not letting their heads drop. As we went into the the second half we persevered and kept going. We finally got our goal with Teo scoring which allowed us to go and get two more. Ayan and Teo scoring to round off our 3 goals. A really good performance overall.
My favourite moment would be the first goal as we won the ball back which we had the initial shot saved but then followed up immediately which I felt exemplified our hard work in the game. Player of the match would have to be Mathias as he put in a lot tackles and would not stop running whenever we lost the ball.
This week we were continuing our start and stop topic with our throw ins being the centre piece. I feel we had a greater understanding of how to utilise throw ins to help us retain and use the space generated from the receiver. I think it’d be even better if we can keep getting used to the new style with our goal kicks and our formation as I feel it can benefit us as the season goes on.
Frustrating day at the office in which a really poor start and some unfortunate moments cost us. In fairness, a completely unnecessary 10-min pre-game talking to from the ref somewhat hampered our preparations but we can’t use that as an excuse for our start: our warmup wasn’t to the standards and if you do that in the WFL, you will be punished. We were slow, second to the ball and deservedly went 1-0 down after a silly rebound from a free-kick was converted.
Yacine showed tremendous fight and there were moments of composed build up through the middle but we were unable to utilise our ‘spin’ principle of hugging the touchline as our ‘out’ ball and to pin the full-back out wide—therefore opening up the diagonal run in behind. Note to any wingers or wingers aspiring to play under me: you must work hard to both support your centre-back defensively by tucking in and as an option out wide by hugging the touchline. Moreover, we needed to trust ourselves more and show more patience in terms of trusting our technique to play under pressure.
Second half, we again showed moments of great build up to play through their press, culminating in a golden chance for Zac who couldn’t quite convert (keep on getting chances though fella and the goals will start rolling in eventually—a good striker is defined by their ability to generate chances as well as finish them!). Agonisingly, however, Whetstone then went down the other end to make it 2-0. Unfortunately, despite talking about having a compact defensive-4, our back-line was completely dismantled, allowing one ball over the top to lead to a goal. This too provides a good lesson in taking accountability as a unit to organise our structure. 4-3-1 lads!
Our response was pleasing, with some top adrenaline-fuelled performances from the likes of Yilli, Archie and Eduardo—the player of the match after some terrific, last-ditch defending to keep us in the match (and fouls inspired by coach Milo’s half time team talk: ‘if you need to kick someone to get yourself going, do it. I don’t care’. Parents, I hope you still approve of my influence, it’s for the right reasons). A goal from Yillinho after good work from Maxi gave us hope but it wasn’t to be. Although working the ball into promising forward situations, our principles of ‘support’ and ‘conflict’ were not quite up to scratch—getting close to and beyond our forwards to mount more dangerous attacks.
A disappointing Sunday morning with both positives and lessons learnt. I am sure all the players will have all read coach Milo’s detailed principles document he spent a long time making (details in the WhatsApp group) so they will have understood all the tactical nuggets in this piece. Adios.
And there we have it! The big statement win. The big scalp. The cupset. LFS parents and players tears galore. After a string of generally really good performances not quite yielding a win, it was incredibly satisfying to get this one over the line (even more satisfying seeing all those tears). With prior knowledge of our exceptional passing play, it was a tepid start from both, as LFS chose to sit off our build up. We didn’t quite seem to know how to manage it, lacking a bit of conviction and purpose. This was soon punished as we failed to defend our box, first allowing the cross into the box, then not reacting fast enough for the shot. With alarm bells ringing, the message was clear—we hadn’t even started yet and had so much more to give.
And give it them, we did (ya want sum?—Wealdstone Raiders reference). Zak had a terrific chance to equalise where their defence quite frankly seemed incapable of dealing with his brute strength, before the Dos-Brito machine was unleashed. Recollection of Oli’s performance is much like I’d imagine the mindset of a deer in headlights; a 45-year-old man who’d just been told he’s one of three triplets. A blur. Rumours are their #9 centre-back (game’s well and truly gone) was so rattled at the end of the match, he was threatening to ‘scrap’. Little did he know he’d have to go through 5’10 11-year-old, Zinedine Laifa (insanity) and his 6’8 dad, Ali (his height is the only reason he starts, dusty baller).
On Zinedine, another top top performance spanning centre-mid, right-wing and centre-back. He was supported by fellow midfielders Maxi and Yilli as well as defenders Archie, Chris and Kieran. It’s hard not to give a player who scored 4-goals man of the match… but Chris gave him a run for his money. Having spoken to him the previous game about his decision-making of when to engage with the attacker, his defensive display was flawless. He mopped up everything; knew when to delay; when to engage; and even had a few galivanting runs through LFS’s soft underbelly. Archie was typically solid—holding down the defence superbly as others began chasing glory—whilst Kieran had a couple really bright spots on the right.
Back to Oli though, our player of the match. I’m so proud of him for his performance—not just for the goals, which were exceptional, but his all round play. Many forwards of Oli’s quality could be forgiven for not working hard, having an ego, not listening, but not Oli. He works hard, battles, is courageous on the ball and is starting to make strides to improve the psychological part of the game: knowing when to pass, when to bait the tackle, and when to go and hit it. Congratulations lad. Never forget what you did to those poor LFS boys.
To have lost to these lot 6-0 in the opening day of the season, to now knocking them out in the cup is testament to the progress the boys have made and the quality we’ve been able to recruit. The scary thing is I truly believe we haven’t yet scratched the surface. Our pressing game was nowhere near it’s usual level, our movement can improve, as could our consistency of build up. We still waste way too much time in training, so although I’m over the moon to have beaten our noisy neighbours (and make them cry), there’s work to be done, new heights to reach, a cup to be won. So let’s enjoy the moment. Let’s be unbearable in school as the bragging rights are ours. But let’s keep on grinding and working to achieve more special memories like this one.
The first half started shaky, whilst the other team had a bit more confidence. But we took control of the game right after that. We played great football with the players applying the instructions given. We took the lead by playing from the back where Seb received the ball and played it into Yaroslav. He then played a one-two with Zain, to then place a great through ball into the path of Armand who slotted it bottom corner with fantastic composure.
The second half we carried on playing our football, by Zak playing a one two with Yaroslav, then noticing the keeper off his line, he chipped him from a the right wing. Amazing play from the team yet again. Whilst the other team had minimal shots on target the whole game, they took a shot and it became a pinball like scene resulting in a very unlucky goal. We then carried on playing our football with a few opportunities that didn’t come through. The opposition were well drilled to defend us. They then got a last minute free kick which was very well taken to make it level. It was as a cruel way to finish what should’ve been a well deserved win.
My highlight of the game was when we were able to play out from the back, splitting their midfield apart with one-two passing. We managed to use the wings very effectively by doing what we practiced. Zain was our player of the match because he delivered an exceptional performance where he linked up very well with the team. Whilst also being able to make his own chances through his footwork. We worked on being able to find the weak areas of the team and spread the ball into the open space to get in behind. To improve we need to learn to defend as a team and hold our positions so that we can prevent any shots from ricocheting in.
On her Birthday, Janet pulled out a players player performance with all teammates singing her praises at the end. Janet played in different positions and took lots of shots; she scored our one and only goal to equalise just before the end of the first half. Onida, who received coaches player of the match assisted Janet’s goal and played in goal, defence and midfield on only her second game for Bloomsbury. Despite a valiant effort from the whole team the score remained 1-1 at full-time.
Massive shout out to Emma who arrived from a school match with an injured shin but stayed and really helped the team out by going in goal for half of the game! What a trooper, she also made an important save at the end. Also big shout out to Ghada who went in defence towards the end and smashed it! Our favourite moment was when Janet scored and everyone ran over to celebrate!
We have had a slightly disrupted week of training but instead we had a team social and this really helped gel the team as we saw some excellent play during the game! We need to make sure we are sticking to our positions when we are on and if we are rotating during the game that is fine.
A warm beautiful Sunday morning really sets the mood and boosts your confidence especially when you play against a strong opponent. We played Omonia twice this season, first match we faced a 5-2 loss and the second one was a draw, 1-1. The players knew that if we wanted to take something from this game we would have to fight for it. We came in strong. We created a lot of chances with high pressure, especially in the midfield creating spaces to play the ball and keeping possession. The only thing that held us back from scoring was our finishing. The opposition took advantage of us not scoring and created problems with their tall striker on the right side of our defence. Our goalkeeper was able to make a few decent saves but, after a while an error was made and their striker found an open space and managed to score with a good finish. The rest of the first half was the same. Us playing decent football but missing our chances in the final third. Half time score 0-1.
During half-time, the players were instructed to create more spaces to take shots from inside the area, rather than shooting from outside the box and mind their first touches as they slowed us down when we were trying to build a fast counter-attack. Their confidence and morale were up and we knew we could turn this game around.
In the start of the second half we pressured more, moved the ball around and tried to attack from the sides, with crosses and clever passes between the defenders of the opposition. We struggled to find the target when we were shooting but our play style was fantastic and our pressure was insufferable. Towards the last five minutes of the match our team kept on pushing more, threatening more often. Kente was able to get a penalty for our team as the referee believed the tackle was inside the area and not just outside of the box as was suggested.
Kente stepped up to take the penalty. Everyone was anxious and the pressure was on Kente to score. The penalty was arrowed into the bottom right corner, just below the goalkeeper’s hands and all of our players celebrated the goal, as it felt like a huge weight was lifted from their shoulders. Everyone was happy and relieved that we were able to score. My moment of the match. But we did not stop there. 1 minute left and we kept on creating chances and sending the ball just off target next to the posts, a few centimetres away from the net. Unfortunately, we did not score in the last chance of the match and the match ended in a draw. FT 1-1
After the match all the players were happy as well as the parents. We believed that we did amazing job and we even could have won the match if one or two shots of ours were on target. But it does not matter. We are delighted because we kept our heads high, played great football, and shown a lot of improvement in the last month. We are keen on improving and reaching the high targets that we’ve set at the start of the season!
I can not choose one player to be player of the match, since this was a team effort and every player from our team gave their all to get that result. Our team did not stop trying and they broke through any physical, psychological and mental barriers. For that we are proud and we will never stop improving ourselves! Up the Blooms!
This week’s training helped us improve and understand our positioning, keeping possession and minimize our mistakes during a match. It strengthened our mentality and boosted our players’ confidence when having the ball. We could be more clinical in the final third as we wasted a lot of chances to score and turn the game into our favour. Also, we could fix our first touches since they caused us a lot of problems when we were receiving the ball and tried to counter-attack from the wings.
A game of two halves. We were confident on the ball, willing to play risky passes in tough areas, and executed them well. Our ability to move the ball forward was excellent as we were able to string together a few good opportunities. Our first goal came from a corner, the ball whipped in, bouncing in the middle of the 6-yard box. Ayal pounced on it to give us the lead. The second goal came from a great counterattack, as Rubens receives the ball in the wide left area from a delightful sidewinding pass by our GK, Alex Dhoot. Rubens then takes on his man as he keeps shifting the ball from inside to outside. As he reaches the box, he cuts inside on to his right foot and slots the ball in the bottom right corner. Alex gained his first assist of the season!
The opposition answered back with a ball played down our right side. Our inability to adjust quickly allowed their winger to go 1v1 with Alex and score. We reacted strongly to score the third goal of the game from another set piece. Jack Orbell whipped the ball in from the right side to John Ribeiro, with a great first-time finish on a fast-moving ball to put us up 3-1 and restore our 2-goal advantage. The opposition then scored after a loose ball in our area.
The second half was extremely scrappy and difficult for us to maintain any possession as the opposition put us under great pressure in our half. The team looked to play on the counter as the opposition was more committed to pushing up higher up the pitch. Some great saves, blocks and last-ditch defending helped us to keep the opponents at bay, as they had numerous chances to score.
With 3 minutes left, we found ourselves on a counterattack as Rubens drives down the right side, the ball pinballing between Rubens and opposition defenders. He takes a shot, which the keeper parries back, for Rubens to finish the rebound. A second half where we could’ve easily conceded, but the team showed their ability to work hard with and without the ball and deserved their second-half clean sheet. It was fantastic to see the team compete against strong players, and when we were struggling, they dug deep and ground out the win! The team is now more resolute, confident, and aggressive as we’ve managed to win our fourth game on the bounce!
As you can tell we didn’t find much joy in the second half as the opposition were dominating the ball and pressed us very high. However, the resilience on show was excellent to see. We’ve had moments where we’ve lost the game with minutes to go, or allowed the momentum to shift, but out defence was able to handle the constant barrage and remained solid, allowing our attack to find the final goal to settle the game. We have come so far. Not only are we playing well with the ball, but we are so solid without it. A joy to witness.
Jack Orbell was our player of the match. Jack has had a fantastic 2024 as he continues to showcase what hard work and the willingness to improve can do to a player. A big reason as to why we were effective in possession, is that he managed to string together passes, win his duels, and dominate the midfield battle. Jack has worked hard to affect the game without the ball as he worked tirelessly throughout the game and managed to get an assist for all his hard work.
We were working on how to play the forward pass and break defensive lines. This was the best we have played by trying to progress the ball through the middle of the pitch. The team was comfortable in possession and continued to bait the opposition midfield into losing their shape to press. We are now looking to maintain our quality for a full match. We tend to go strong for the first half and struggle in the second which is another learning curve for this team that is going from strength to strength. We just want to keep playing to our very best.
The game started really well with a penalty that was saved to begin with and then converted with the rebound. Our defensive shaped look better. We had good moments in possession. and it seemed like we have been learning from the defensive work we’ve been doing the last week or so. Unfortunately, we slowly got pushed back and couldn’t get the ball out under pressure. We struggled to find the out ball and started going long aimlessly. The majority of the forwards and midfield were taking too many touches and getting themselves in trouble in the wrong areas of the pitch.
However, when we do lose the ball our defence were able to get into shape quickly in transition. We struggle to recycle the ball and our possession had no direction. When we got to the final third we tried to dribble through everybody, not look for the easy pass, make a delivery in to the box or even test a questionable keeper in goal. We struggled when the opposition found out that we were weak defensively in wide areas as we were not marking properly. We were particularly vulnerable in dealing with crosses. The opposition played quite direct and had a clear plan on attacking us. We still struggle in identifying key opposition plays and keeping them quiet, allowing them to dictate and give the ball to their strongest players without any pressure. We are underperforming and not showing our true potential.
That was the end of our regular season now we need to up the levels and improve in the spring and summer cups coming up. On a positive note there were new debutants in the team. They showed some quality and passion. The team is really not showing the true potential and there’s so much in the tank. Roka, Anis and Nathan were our players of the match.
We worked on defending as a unit as well as 1v1 situations. I saw really good improvements in this area and can’t fault the defence. However, our midfielders and attackers let us down. To improve we need to show up to training on Tuesday and Friday, not argue with each other in matches, get in the habit of watching for matches outside of training, to improve game understanding and positional awareness and regroup after setbacks during games.
After a two week break from our last game we were able to knuckle down on our first principles in training which were lacking. And boy did it make a difference. The girls were able to understand the fundamental concept of dangerous space as we made the pitch large when we had the ball and small when we did not, suffocating the opposition. Captain, Carla, was surprised that I chose to deploy her in midfield. Partly because she is an out and out leader, but mostly because she is the best finisher on the team. She scoffed when I mentioned this in front of the team before the game but then shot me a wry smile after scoring with her left foot in the first 5 minutes. 1-0 in the Ayon vs Carla saga and 1-0 to the Blooms!
We applied consistent pressure which forced Highgate to launch balls over the top of our centre backs as their only form of attack. The decision to not play offsides for under 16s still baffles me, but we have to roll with what the higher powers deem to be suitable. Still, we were able to deal with the pressure as Alexia played as our goalkeeper (read last defender), often choosing to dribble at players rather than pick the ball up. My kind of keeper. There was a small faff between Tori and Alexia when Highgate played yet another ball over the top which they both left resulting in Rangers levelling proceedings. 1-1 at the half.
The second half saw Toni jump into goal and Alexia step into midfield. She clearly had some pent up energy, perhaps to atone for the error which led to the goal in the first half, as she went supernova when she wore the gold kit instead of the purple of the goal keeper. They simply could not handle her. She found pockets of space to receive, turn and run at the opposition. At times, coming in with a little too much intensity as her touch around players was a bit too heavy. 10 minutes into the second half she picked up the ball on the right wing, skipped past a defender and lashed a shot into the bottom right of the goal. 2-1 Blooms.
The match continued in a similar pattern after this. We would attack down the wings and cross too close to defenders to get a clean strike or the keeper would collect and send it long. Toni was excellent in her positioning to snatch any balls over the top. Two great displays from the goal keepers. What followed was something beyond my ability to coach.
After a spell of possession which frustratingly did not result in goals as we shot straight at the keeper on multiple occasions, we won a corner with 5 minutes to go. It was whipped in followed by a goal mouth scramble. It fell to Alexia with her back to goal who set herself up with a touch off her laces and fired a bicycle kick into the top corner. The girls went mad. Scenes as they all ran around to celebrate with her. Hard to pick a moment better than that and a well deserved player of the match. The game ended 3-1. Our first win under my coaching.
Whilst this was a good win, we have a lot of areas to improve on. We need to be able to understand when to dribble and when to pass, find the player in the most amount of space and communicate more effectively about who will cover the ball (something Tori and Alexia will not underestimate again).
It was, quite frankly, a glorious day for football when we arrived for our GSL match in Colindale last Sunday. After our first win of the season on Friday, I was quietly confident that this was the day that we would start to look like a team which could do some serious damage, and boy was I right. We were dominant from start to finish. I spoke to the head of our academy about how I was disappointed with my squad after the game. Not because of their lack of ability, Quite the opposite. I was disappointed because my job is looking like it is going to be too easy. I’ve said this before and I’ll say it again: we are a physically dominant team. We simply do not lose any duels. Whilst that is good for us in the short term, it covers up our tactical and technical deficiencies in the long term.
Back to the game. We started very slowly to the point where I could be heard shouting on the footage “Have we started?”. To which the girls replied yes. I then shouted “It doesn’t look like our team has!”. From then on we were switched on. We were camped in Youngs’ half for the majority of the game; winning corners and creating chances. As we have a rotating system of goal keepers, Rebecca, who was chucked in against her will, asked me as the game was going on where the box was. Whilst this discussion was on going we managed to score a goal. On review I was told it was Alexia, but I had a chuckle with Rebecca about how this had resulted in us missing it in real time.
Our second goal was a thing of beauty. Alexia picked up the ball on the right wing with her back to goal, she drew in a number of defenders before picking out Toni who supported underneath. Toni played a square pass to Malaika who, with her weak foot, slotted a ball through the heart of the defence for Karina to latch on to and slip past the keeper. To say I went wild would be an understatement (you can hear my reaction on the Bloomsbury TikTok page if you want a quick laugh). The half ended 2-0.
I let the girls lead the half time team talk as they picked up where we needed to improve. Carla mentioned passing to the player in the most space (more often than not Georgia) and Kitty praised the group for our positioning when off the ball to pin the opposition in their own half.
Karina, after trying to injure herself further through some heavy challenges, went in goal for the second half. Her first thought was to dribble at the opposition winger and then slide tackle her after a heavy touch. You can take the girl out of Ukraine, but you cant take Ukraine out of the girl. The half followed a similar story to the first; us camped in the opposition half without getting too many clear shots away. After a long goal kick from Youngs, Carla picked up the ball from centre back with some nice control, drove through the centre of the pitch beating two players and laid the ball off for Rebecca to slot the ball home into the bottom left hand corner. The celebration after this was a beautiful sight and my highlight of the match. All of the girls are aware of how hard Rebecca works and were so happy for her to score such a satisfying goal. What was great from my perspective was how she had listened to my advice about simply passing the ball into the net firmly rather than trying to smash it. A well deserved win which we were able to watch back and learn from.
I’m so proud how far we have come in the last month, but there are key areas where we need to improve. Understanding where the space is and getting the ball there, combining with our team mates to move the ball quickly and understanding positioning if opponents want to go long to avoid having to run back towards our own goal. I might be proud, but I’m not satisfied.
I think this game would be described as “”not one for the neutral””. A really scrappy, bitty game, with a fair number of chances for both teams. Neither team really got a grip on the game, with possession changing hands often and both teams getting in behind and running at defenders and GKs a few times. The second half especially was bogged down with lots of fouls and a few injuries, which meant the game never really developed a rhythm and was fairly stop-start. The game should have been much more comfortable of a score line than it was – Bloomsbury had a penalty saved and several clear-cut chances saved by a goalkeeper who had a strong game. Overall, a lesson in chance-taking and composure in this game.
It’s hard to come up with a favourite moment for this game as we didn’t really reach our potential, and that was incredibly frustrating. I will say, however, that the celebrations for the second goal were superb, with every player and sub running over to the corner flag to celebrate together – a real show of community and relief in a tense game! I’m going to give our player of the match to Josh Sylvanus for this game. I thought he had a really intense and positive impact throughout the game. His running in behind and directness with the ball at his feet were crucial in getting us up the pitch and creating chances. I know he was disappointed not to score and should have won a pen, but his work this game was incredibly positive and vibrant and he should be pleased with his overall performance.
We’ve been working on build-up play over the last few weeks and unfortunately we didn’t reach the level that we’ve been seeing in training or over the last couple games. We often took the easy longer option out from the back, mainly because our movements ahead of the ball were lacking, which meant that we neglected all of the good work we’ve done recently. There will always be games like this over the course of a season, but it was a frustrating watch at times. The lads can and have performed much better than they showed this weekend.
In games like this, it is often the team that composes themselves the quickest that takes charge of the game and begins to control the ball. Whilst the lads managed their individual battles well, I feel we lacked the composure and concentration necessary to take control of the ball and begin to control the game. It is important that we stick to the principles that we have worked on, even when the going gets a bit tough and the battles get a bit harder.
We need to make sure that we move to support deeper players, are brave enough to play in tight spaces and invite pressure, and are proactive in where we position to receive the ball. If we compose ourselves a little quicker and continue to do all the things we do well under pressure, we will really begin to take control of these types of games.
We travelled to North West London for our cup game against Hendon United. We started the game well and passed the ball around nicely. Tom sent a long ball into their half, finding Markus who’s through on goal. He shoots but its saved by the keeper. Oscar plays a loose pass across our goal, Hendon’s number 9 intercepts, he shoots but its saved by Tom. Its turning into a real cup tie, with strong tackles going in. Hendon win a corner. its crossed in by their winger, Saul misses it at the front post and the number 10 slots it bottom corner. 1-0 Hendon!
We look to respond quickly. We win a corner, its whipped in but headed over by Oscar. Tom sends a long ball into their half, once again he finds Markus. He rounds the keeper but it hits the post. So close! The half is drawing to a close. Hendon win the ball and their no 9 is through on goal, he slots home bottom corner. 2-0 Hendon! We go in 2-0 down!! Can we turn it around in the second half?
We change formation and go to a 3-6-1 to really stretch their midfield. We start the half brightly, Jacques finds Marcus who chest’s it to Saul, but he drags his shot just wide. Its becoming like an attack vs defence session, we are completely on top! We win a corner, its crossed in by Bilal, Flint heads towards goal but their defender uses he’s hand to clear it off the line. It’s a penalty and a straight red!! Bilal steps up and slots home bottom left. 2-1, we are back in the game!! Felix finds Marcus out wide, he runs down the line, sends a great cross into the box and Nassef heads in. 2-2!! We are level.
All of a sudden the linesman waves he’s flag frantically at the ref. The ref speaks to Flint and then sends him off, both teams down to 10 men. Its been a brilliant cup match. Last kick of the game we win a corner, its crossed by Bilal, and headed in by Saul. 3-2 Blooms – what a comeback!
Jacques was our player of the match for showing the spirit needed to comeback into a cup game. We worked on crossing and finishing and it was a great cross which won us the game. We can work on counter pressing once we have lost the ball.
BFA began their Spring Challenge Cup with a trip to AC Finchley. We started very sloppily in the first half, giving away possession needlessly, a number of times, as careless passes went astray. An uncharacteristic error from our goalkeeper Ridon gifted AC Finchley the lead completely against the run of play. This was the kick up the proverbial backside that we needed. Our link up play thereafter was superb, working the ball back to front, continually switching play and making AC Finchley chase the game.
Cosmas and Luke linked up beautifully down the left with the ball eventually finding its way back to Cosmas who was brought down in the box. Penalty BFA! Yotam stepped up and converted with a cool penalty into the bottom corner. Our second goal came just before half time. Some good pressing in the final third led to turnover of possession. Alexey was able to square the ball to Yotam who drove home his second of the match.
We picked up in the second half where we left off in the first and 2 soon became 3 as Luke found the bottom corner after a couple of minutes of Levi creating good opportunities on our right side. Cosmas then all but sealed the victory with an absolute screamer. Receiving the ball in our own half, he drove forward unopposed before unleashing a rocket across the goalkeeper into the far corner! The moment of the match. AC Finchley managed to find a goal in the dying minutes after some good build up play on their part which we could have done better to prevent.
Cosmas was our player of the match. All round energetic display, winning the penalty for the first goal. Scored the fourth himself and was a constant source of creativity going forward while absolutely solid at the back! Crossing and finishing drills seemed to pay dividends across both fixtures this weekend! To improve we need to focus on shape when pressing as well as working on speed in transition both into and out of possession.
BFA came into this cup match full of confidence and made our intentions known right from the very first whistle, utilising the space well while the tempo of our play was impossible for the opposition to keep up with. We found the breakthrough after Lukas deftly laid the ball onto Luke with one touch who was then able to turn and finish beautifully. 1 soon became 2 as Luca was on hand to follow up on a loose ball and rifle home the rebound.
BFA picked up in the second half, keeping Chapel chasing the ball and the game! Luca, who dropped into defence had time and space to pick out a late run from Luke into the opposition box for him to head home! Move of the match!
Some good build up down the right hand side saw Lukas claim a couple more assists, first squaring the ball to Alexey for a cool finish and then setting up Sam for his first goal of the season, but not before Yotam had silenced the opposition crowd with his goal, coming after some real positive play from him throughout! Tough call this week considering the performances of both Luke and Luca, but player of the match goes to Lukas. 3 assists in a selfless performance helped set the platform for others to shine and the team to secure the victory. Crossing and finishing drills paid off! We need to focus on improving transition in defence and attack.
PRACTICE MAKES PROGRESS!
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