This week’s game was a standout performance from the U12 squad. The first game back at the CIYFL this year was nothing short of amazing with an unbelievable game of counterattacks. The theme and topic, counterattacking, support play and movement off the ball, was evident throughout the game and resulted in some incredible play. At training this week, the girls focused on their quick counterattacking and finishing on goal. In the whole game, the girls took 18 shots on goal, 11 of which were on target, resulting in 5 goals! The game began as it ended, intense and at high speed! From the get-go, the girls pressed high.
The defence did an excellent job in closing the gap, which allowed them to begin counterattacks in the middle and attacking thirds. Their support off the ball and exploitation of space was outstanding. O’Miya and Eleonor, our player of the match, closed all gaps and played crucial roles in beginning counterattacks. Special mentions to Laura and Kitty who also were very effective in the back, winning the ball in transition and starting counterattacks on many occasions. The girls understood the use and exploitation of space and performed double movements to a high level, particularly Marwa who was always in the right place at the right time. She was able to get away from the pressure, created passing lines and used the active angles. Janet, Marwa, and Jet’s first goals were executed by exploiting the space, acting with speed in the counterattack, and releasing with confidence. Jet’s final goal was a true team goal. O’Miya regained possession and began a counterattack in the middle third, then passed the ball forward, met the midfielders, a combination of Cecilie, Janet, Emily, who then found Jet outside the box, who confidently shot into the top right corner… an absolute SCREAMER! An outstanding match for a team that has trained so hard! Well done girls!
It was so impressive to see the way the girls carried themselves. Although the match was attended in quite high numbers, which meant we had 4 subs, the girls’ spirits were high, and they supported each other from the side-lines the whole game! They were all focused on the game and had the common objective to play good football and win – which they did! It has been an absolute pleasure working with this group this year, they keep getting better and better, and they should be proud of themselves! We have many more matches in the weeks to come, so they will need to step up and keep working hard!
There is no better feeling than scoring a hattrick on a Saturday morning. Three players in the U8’s gold team got to experience this feeling in what was a very well-rounded, and ruthless response to last week’s disappointment at Market Road. Every single member of the 7-man squad worked tirelessly out of possession, regardless of whether they were regaining a ball they had lost, or simply tracking back to help one another. The score line may suggest that this was an easy fixture, however the boys were made to support and move efficiently and effectively off of the ball in order to open up the opposition, especially during the first 10 minutes of what was a closer than suggested 1st half. Goalkeeper Ivan had to make 2 very early saves to ensure Bloomsbury didn’t fall behind, and this kickstarted the onslaught via some quick counter attacking play. All sorts of finishes were on show in this fixture, from well worked combination play that set up Mathias for a simple finish, top bins rockets from Misha, and clinical counter attacking at speed from both Pax and Franco. Marcelo also demonstrated some great technique in finding the bottom corners that were very much out of reach of the goalkeeper. All these opportunities could not be taken without the tireless running, ball carrying, and fantastic array of passing on show by Tommy. A great morning for the U8’s Gold team.
Kurt was this games man of the match as he dominated all areas of the pitch, whether he was up top or back in the defence, creating a host of issues for the opposition and scoring an excellent hat-trick. He proved himself to be virtually impossible to dispossess and carried the ball forward with drive and determination, playing off this week’s theme of counterattacking and springing into action when the opposition was disorganised. Riku had another fantastic game, utilising his brilliant footwork to out-skill his opponents and create opportunities for both himself and his team, topping his performance off with an excellent strike for a well-deserved goal. George was absolutely unstoppable down the wing, driving the ball forward and crossing it in for two excellent assists. His pressuring and intensity throughout the game was very impressive, allowing the opposition very little time on the ball and forcing errors. Joao had a fairly quiet game in goal during the first half and the defenders made his job so much easier, but when needed he sprang into action with ruthless decisiveness and prevented many opposition attacks.
When out-field in the second half, Joao closed down his opponents with rapid pace, frequently stealing the ball off of them and initiating a counterattack, even scoring one of these with a powerful low-driven strike. Deniro demonstrated excellent use of skills and technical dribbling to beat several opposition players before sending his teammates through on goal. He also fearlessly pressed at all times, making himself a nuisance for the other team. Vinny’s defensive positioning was brilliant, preventing multiple opposition attacks and cutting out any passes that may have been. Both he and Alex understood very well that if one of them stepped up to close down the ball, the other would have to cover the space that was left. This month’s captain, Alex, was also a brick-wall in defence, giving the other team very little options for creativity and snuffing out any counterattacks that started developing. Bastian kept the heat on the other team at all times, whilst also positioning himself well enough to freely receive the ball at any given time, very unlucky to not score! Christian was extremely well composed when defending and constantly looked a threat when on the attack, denying the opposition many goal scoring opportunities, whilst also creating many of his own for both him and his teammates.
The players noticed that the opposition were a more physical side and made comments on how they were using that to try obtaining an advantage. They then took this information and found their own ways to handle this “disadvantage”, such as some returning the physicality towards the opposition in fair and legal manners. Not letting the rough opposition get to their heads demonstrated excellent maturity and all players should be proud.
Very impressed with the overall performance today as every player put in a great shift and gave it their all on the pitch, each playing to their own unique strengths and supporting their teammates on and off the pitch. A performance that the players should all be very proud of and look to replicate in coming weeks.
In what was a mouth-watering cup tie, the U10’s Black team unfortunately could not find the rhythm and intensity that was becoming customary within their performances over the last 8 weeks. Physicality and a rigid game-plan deployed by the Bloomsbury U11’s meant that the U10’s could not achieve the success usually experienced on Saturdays at Coram’s Field, which is credit to an opponent that is so used to playing the 9-a-side format. With this being said however, the U10’s Black didn’t give up hope of a turnaround, with a very early goal in the 2nd half that was bundled home by Sammy after some swift build up play by Bert, Adam and Yili. Mo as always looked composed on the ball despite the physical presence of many of the older players, with his defensive counterpart, Otto, biting into challenges well too. Yacine showed some great footwork throughout to carry the ball numerous times down the right, constantly being fed by some very good build-up plays by Kieran. Morley had stepped into the goalkeeper position for the black team and impresses each week in many different ways. This week it was his incredible accuracy and long arm that was used to great effect on numerous occasions to play the U11’s at the very direct game. The boys should hold their heads up high as there’s no doubt, they will be back to their winning ways next week!
In this all-Bloomsbury affair, the U11’s needed to assert dominance early in order to neutralize the U10’s dictating the tempo as we know they can. The boys did just that, after pre match instructions revolving around the message of pressing high and dictating the long ball. The U11’s took the words and put it into action. After the U10’s played out from the back, the boys pressed cohesively and won the ball back with it eventually falling to James Tracey to put the boys 1-0 ahead. The game then played into the U11’s hands as the 10’s needed a goal and were forced to take risks allowing space to form across the pitch. This worked in the U11’s favour with a well worked goal starting from the defensive third. Debutant Everett played fantastic progressive passes into midfield which began a wonderful move as the ball was swept out to Rupert who delivered a dangerous ball into Linus, who had pulled away to create space for himself at the back post to slot the ball beyond the Goalkeeper.
With a 2-0 lead the boys grew in confidence and finished the half strongly going into the break ahead. The second half began with the U10’s in the ascendancy immediately piling on the pressure and getting their reward after a goalmouth scramble in which the ball ended up at the feet of Sammy Kohansky who slotted the ball past Harvey Mala to make the score 2-1. This brought the game to within touching distance for the U10’s. With the half time instructions to keep dictating the long ball and limit the space, the U11’s continued to suffocate the opponent’s space eventually leading to Rupert intercepting a goal kick with the ball then falling to James Tracey who rifled the ball in on the volley to renew the 11’s 2 goal lead. However, the scoring wasn’t done there, as there was still time for Troy Ismailji to cap off a fantastic display with a well taken goal after progressing down the left-hand side before firing past the goalkeeper. Overall a fantastic game that both sides contributed to enormously.
Rupert Robinson showed a fantastic captains performance, demonstrating the values throughout the morning as well as a fantastic display in terms of leadership both in and out of possession. He said that “in order to improve we must be more clinical with our end product and challenge the Goalkeeper more often.” Special mention to Sami and Harvey who volunteered to go in goal at such short notice, representing the values in full flow.
This was the most consistent performance the team have had this year from the 1st Minute. They implemented a high press which provided the perfect start as Noah Conway pressed the goal keepers clearance which ended up with the ball in the back of the net. The first quarter continued in this dominant fashion; however, the boys were unable to create another chance of high quality despite the unrelenting pressure. The second quarter was far more even as the opposition put the boys under consistent pressure throughout the second quarter. A great save in a 1v1 from Alex Crocombe kept the clean sheet safe for the time being. The 3rd quarter started with the same energy that the players had started the first with as Tristan Turner finished off a string of good possession football to make the score 2-0, an unassailable lead.
However starting the 4th quarter, and some shaky passes in front of goal, the opposition pulled one back after a goalmouth scramble, setting up the finale to be a game filled with nerves. Tristan Turner put the nerves to bed, with an incredible long-distance strike that left the keeper with no chance, putting the U11 Gold up 3-1 with only minutes left. A strong consistent performance with the first win of 2022 for the U11 Gold’s who will now go on to push for more!
The team showcased a strong performance as well as some strong individual performances, especially from the likes of Tristan Turner, with his brace and his second being an absolute rocket from distance, giving the keeper no chance. However the man of the match was Alex Bendon-Comes, with a solid display at right centre back. A great showing of patience, discipline and progressive passing is credit to the effort and attitude he has displayed this year in training and matches. Well done!
It was really impressive how the boys defended high up the pitch and took risks with their press to regain and start a counterattack. Eli Greenbaum and Aari Kozhipatt did this very well. A very unfortunate result for the U12’s this week, with 2 weeks back in the JPL, showing 2 great performances however, not being able to come away winners. Regardless of results, the age group looked hungry and are showing their worth in tougher environments and asking majority of questions in tight well fought games. They applied the theme and topic brilliantly, creating a variety of counter attacks, with some very good, structured pressing and very creative counter attacks. The boys finishing on the day, was a key factor to how their success was determined, taking way too many chances, and not punishing opposition. However, with failure, comes learning, and it’s clear this age group are striving for the success they deserve, with high levels of application and hard work from player to player.
Stevenage Borough dominated possession in the opening 10 minutes of this game, though often lacking quality in the final third, with many of their passes over-hit or misplaced in the windy conditions. Neither team had created much, though Bloomsbury broke away on the counterattack on several occasions. It was Stevenage who broke the deadlock after 16 minutes when their striker, number 18, ran through on goal and tucked the ball in to the bottom left corner to make it 1-0. Bloomsbury were positive when coming in at the end of the first quarter, having competed well, but they would be happier after the next 20 minutes. Just 5 minutes in to the second quarter Bloomsbury broke away, finding space on the right wing. The cross came in, with Simon taking a touch before being wiped out by the goalkeeper. Penalty! Joel stepped up to take it but was denied by the goalkeeper, but the rebound fell to Che, who is rarely beaten to the ball, and he tucked it away to make it 1-1.
Bloomsbury continued to dominate, created some excellent chances whilst the defence stood strong and halted any Stevenage attacks, and were rewarded right on half-time when they took the lead through a Joèl’s close-range finish! Soon after half-time, Stevenage won a corner and, despite winning the first header, it fell kindly to the Stevenage player who finished past Sami, who had no hope of keeping it out. Entering the final 20 minutes with the scores level at 2-2, the team were motivated to go on and win the game. The first ten minutes of the final quarter were closely matched, with both teams going toe to toe. However, it was Stevenage who took the lead again when Bloomsbury were unable to play out from the back successfully. This was no individual error – it would happen occasionally when playing this style of football and with the tired legs of the midfield unable to close the gaps between the units to offer an option. Stevenage made it 4-2 with a few minutes remaining, but the performance was positive overall, and the Bloomsbury boys should enter the new week feeling positive and confident in their ability!
The highlight of this game was facing a strong Stevenage team, coming off the back of a heavy defeat last week, and more than matching them for 70 minutes. Bloomsbury were the stronger team for the majority and arguably should have won the game, had they taken all their chances. The performance overall, on a huge pitch, was excellent. Every player gave 110% and many showed excellence from start to finish, from the warmup to the post-match discussions. It shows that this team is moving in the right direction. The consensus from the squad was that they should have won the game, and that they let it slip. The boys left Stevenage determined to ensure that doesn’t happen again, and that they keep fighting until the end.
It was really impressive to see the two elements of the performance: firstly, their performance in the 2nd quarter was outstanding, turning the game around from 1-0 down to 2-1 up. Much of the build-up play was two or three touches maximum, an element of their play that they have been working on, and they created many chances that put Stevenage under pressure. Secondly, it was very impressive to see Khalid’s reaction to conceding the third goal. He immediately consoled the defenders and encouraged all others to keep going, and to raise their game. Khalid led by example, and hopefully this will encourage others to do the same in future matches!
Tanya was impeccable at being able to read the flight of the ball and intercept it. She was able to cover and help out her team mates extremely well. Yas showed the passion to win and drive the team forward and really made the best decision possible when playing. Emma was trusted to play 1v1 a lot of the time at the back and showed why the team can trust her when defending. In the second half, any long ball from the opposition keeper, Emma was able to win 1v1 against the opposition strikers. Aliki stepped up an age group and displayed why she deserved the call up. Working hard in the middle of the pitch and being able to pick the ball on the half turn to be an efficient press breaker. This wonderful performance was topped off with a goal.
It was impressive to see how the team applied counter attacking and tackled the challenge of them trying to get an opportunity within 6 seconds of winning the ball. The team could have had better decision making as a team when going forward to create fluid attacks but ultimately, the girls played very well.
The first half was cagey, with Bloomsbury attacking well but getting caught up in the middle of the pitch by taking too many touches. 360 Talent were doing a good job of keeping the boys out and minimising chances in the final third. Bloomsbury did finally get their opening goal with a close-range finish after 15 minutes and thought they had doubled their lead after 18 minutes when Che scored but had his goal ruled out for offside! The game opened up and Bloomsbury continued to play attacking football, despite the occasional threat of a 360 Talent chance that was quickly nullified by either Francesco, Zac, or Sami, who all stepped up and put in an excellent defensive performance. In the second half the chances continued to flow, many of them created by Jake and Joe who were playing with minimal touches, but unfortunately the boys lacked the finishing touch. Ebenezer and Aaron both came close, but it was Che who got the second goal. He struck from outside the box, a classy finish into the bottom left corner to make it 2-0.
Sami’s performance in goal was outstanding and may well have won the match for his team. He commanded his area, as he did on Saturday in the JPL, and made four excellent diving saves either from distance or close-range. His cool demeanour also saw him dribble around the 360 Talent forward when coming under pressure, a clear sign of rising confidence levels!
Our captain, Joel, communicated superbly throughout the game, encouraging others whilst enforcing high standards. It is a part of our game that we are working on with all players, to communicate their positioning and instructions to their teammates, so it was good to see Joel leading by example.
Once again, positions were rotated to give the defensive players more attacking exposure. It’s always impressive how the team adapt to this and are willing to change their own role to allow others to try something new and learn. It’s an impressive attitude and a factor that will take this team far!
Though the score-line suggests Saturday was not a good day for Bloomsbury, the on-pitch performance of the team actually suggests otherwise. MK Warriors were a very good opposition, one the boys pushed to the very end even though there was some turmoil regarding players fitness mid-way through, with several players needing to come off with knocks and fatigue. That being said, they fought hard, finishing with the makeshift backline, no player made an excuse and they executed to the best of their ability. Prince was very impressive in the midfield, and actually ended up Playing RWB and CB over the course of the match due to injuries. His dribbling was superb in particular, and the opposition were having massive headaches trying to deal with him, a very good performance indeed!
The message coming from this game is the importance of taking chances when they appear, which the boys failed to do, but the opposition ultimately did much better. The signs of improvement are blatantly obvious, the U14’s looked extremely obvious and they are a true footballing team now. The team will be moving on to the next week full of beans and ready to bounce back.
Shola was outstanding today not just with saving but with her distribution of the ball. A few shots from the opponents were saved brilliantly even with her feet! Amaya was outstanding having her best game ever for Bloomsbury. She worked hard and won almost every 1v1 dual she had. Receiving, and playing forward was also another strength that she showed off. Malaika also showed how much she has improved by working hard to run in beyond and make the pitch big. Her pressing showed a desire to win the ball and create goal scoring opportunities. It was impressive to see the defensive work the team worked on to limit the opposition to less dangerous chances. However, the girls counter attacks were not as effective as they could be which is an area they will tackle to improve on.
A really big win against a national league south side. The boys managed to show that they are really dangerous on counter attacks. The players worked well together, and it was really pleasing to see their positive efforts. Bloomsbury wish our goalkeeper Tom Haering a speedy recovery after an injury he had during the game.
Raphy Chester scored twice in the last 8 minutes of the match. Brilliant solo goals from our attacker who took the ball and chipped the keeper. Additionally, his two great counter attacks helped the boys secure all 3 points. Raphy explained that he was “really happy for my 2 goals and really pleased with my team’s performance. We played as a unit, and we managed to win the match from 2 counter attacks. Everyone’s performance was brilliant.”
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