Tattenhoe Youth FC Jaguars v Willen Dragons 15th Oct 2011

Saturdays game was another excellent team performance from the Jaguars, the team is really pulling together and starting to work as a unit with players starting to know their positions and stick to them rather than just chasing the ball around the pitch.

The coaches were a little nervous in advance of the game as we knew that one of the opposite teams striker was Dominic Antoine, for those that don’t remember Dominic used to play for TYFC in our team and had a good track record for scoring!!

As it turned out we needn’t have worried as the teams were certainly very well matched.  If I were unbiased I think 2-2 was probably a fair score for both teams. 

The first quarter the team played well with a lovely corner taken by Charlie being beautifully finished off by Ryan to leave us 1-0 up. There followed a spell of very nervous defending but nevertheless we kept a clean sheet and finished the quarter up.

In the second quarter we were mostly playing in the opposition end of the pitch and were unlucky to score 4 or 5 goals!  Josh hit the post, Ryan had a lovely run crossing to Brandan who just missed the target and Ryan had a further two shots on goal himself. 

Totally against the run of play we were caught on the break and conceded a relatively soft goal.  As a team we must ensure that when we lose the ball we track back and tackle hard.  In the dying seconds of the quarter Willen had another shot on goal which skimmed the crossbar but thankfully on the right side of it from our point of view!  We finished the second quarter with a match score of 1-1.

The third quarter saw some lovely defending by Matthew along with a long shot on goal which only just missed.   We were awarded a free kick which was kicked at the referee - no names Ryan!. Charlie also had a shot on goal saved as the ball came out to him from a defended attack.  As a team we will work on set plays more - corners, free kicks, throw ins so we have more of a plan in future.   Certain players can throw and kick the ball strongly and we need to make better use of this in competitive situations.  The game could have gone either way but remained 1-1 at the end of the third quarter.

We went into a 2-1 lead in the last quarter with a great run and shot on target from Ryan and only had to last a few minutes to take a win but sadly we conceded another goal right at the very last to finish off at 2-2.

In summary is was another really good team performance with everyone putting in maximum effort and there were some lovely individual performances.   From the coaches perspective the team performance is improving week on week and it is fantastic to watch.

If I have one request I would ask the parents to speak to the boys and re-enforce the need for them to listen to the coaches’ instructions - not so much when on the pitch but particularly when we sit down and talk to them before, during and after.  It isn’t nice to shout at the boys asking them to be quiet and listen to us but we have little time between quarters and don’t want to waste it.

Lastly for this week, on behalf of the team I also would like to thank Brandan for bringing the cakes,  Brandan realised that football is very much a team game and without his team mates he couldn’t have ‘won/earnt’ the cash he did, he therefore spent the cash on cakes for the team - very mature thinking and well done!   A football team is made of a defence, mid-field and attack - without all of them working together we will lose!

Saturday was an excellent game for the Jaguars, the whole team played well and with a lot of effort.  The final result was 3-1 to TYFC but the game was very close all the way through and we weren’t sure of the win until the final whistle went.   The coaches and manager were a little concerned at the outset as we were aware that three of the Deanshanger players train with the MK Dons so we were expecting a very tough match!

The whole team played very well and with commitment - several of the boys were clearly needing a rest after the game which is brilliant to see as it means they gave everything they had (also remember early to bed before match nights to make sure you have all the energy!).   Part of playing as a team is everybody knowing what they have to do and doing it!,  Brandon had an excellent game with many spectacular saves  - not to mention his two goals!  The defence also played really well with Matthew, Finbarr and Charlie all standing up to the pressure and making excellent tackles when needed.   In the last quarter Finnbar had little to do in defence (thankfully!) but in the last minutes of the match he stayed with his player and knocked the ball out of play stopping a Deanshanger last minute attempt on goal!

Jules and Josh and Matthew (when not defending) also had a very strong game in midfield with lots of passing and some strong tackling and good runs - they battled from the first whistle until the last.   Even when they lost the ball they would track back and help defend.

Up front Ryan, as well as scoring one goal had many attempts stopped - particularly in the last quarter where he could easily have had 4 or 5 more had their goal keeper not have made some exceptional saves!   He made some excellent runs and must count himself a little unlucky to come away with just the 1 goal.

The game was exciting from start to finish and the coaches and parents were really pleased to come away with the win - quite simply you all played with commitment and effort - very well done to everybody!  Remember football is a team sport and we won’t win unless everybody does their bit!