Report by Tron (edited by Patto):
Boots Wednesday came back from a mini Winter break to be sent crashing out of the EMPAL League Cup against Freeman & Mitchell (Division One). Unfortunately the match was affected by a referee who managed to confuse both teams with some obscure decisions and caused the game to be a very stop-start affair.
Boots lined up with a back four of Chris, Patto, SuBo and Ross (on the left), a midfield five of Rich on the right, Griff on the left, Ian and Si sitting in the middle and Rob “Chest of Steel” Crozier (see below) in an advanced position supporting Luke.
The game started well for Boots, who for patches played some good football and opened up the Freeman defence. Whilst not really testing the goalie Croz had a volley deflected over, Griffin and Rich were unlucky from a corner and SuBo was hauled down in the box trying to stretch for Patto’s freekick, but a penalty was not forthcoming! However, the ref started to make his impact on the game with some strange and extremely inconsistent decisions. One small push in the back would be given as a foul, then 2 minutes later a more blatant two handed push would go unpunished! The frustration started to build up within both passionate teams, and there was a fun exchange between Spence and the sidelines with a particularly annoying winger (he probably was fair in his protests though as both Ian and Chris had scythed him down!) The ref had an even bigger impact on Boots as the first goal came from Griff being fouled in the build up, however it went unpunished and their right winger’s cross/shot sailed over Phil’s head into the net. This just increased Boots’ passions and affected their play as tempers rose, culminating in Griffin collecting a yellow card when he hauled down their midfielder who was on the counter-attack (following another Boots penalty refusal!) The first half closed out with no notable chances for either side; the Boots defence keeping solid and only causing concern for Spence when trying to over-complicate it sometimes (mostly Ross!!)
The second half saw Croz switch to the left and Griff take an advanced position, and Boots continued to work hard, Ian and Simon doing an effective job of breaking up play and Patto and Subo keeping the forwards quiet. The game hinged on another refereeing decision when a weak penalty was awarded. Phil came out towards the corner flag as their striker ran onto the ball, and although Phil tried to pull out of the challenge the player went down pretty easily (despite minimal contact). If it was Premier league it would be debatable but for Sunday league, where you normally need to be assaulted to win a penalty, it was a shocker! The penalty was dispatched into the bottom left corner giving Boots a mountain to climb.
Nevertheless, Boots managed to get one back relatively quickly following a great finish from Patto. The goal came as the ball was spread to the wing and Crozier chested a pass into the path of the trotting Griffin (that brought squeals of delight from the bench) winning a throw as the defender was forced to clear. Whilst everyone expected a long throw into the box from Si, he instead played it short to the advanced Patto on the left wing, who, with shouts of “Shoooooooooooot” from the shrieking Brett, struck a missile from around 20 yards (or 35 according to [the correct] Patto!) into the far right corner. It was a great finish (followed by the classic ‘Fake Chewing Gum’ celebration) and inspired Boots to push on in search of the equaliser. Eventually subs were made; Bally on for Griff to support Luke (who was putting in a great shift up front on his own), Ash for Croz on the left, and Daz for Rich on the right, as Boots tried to freshen up the wings and attack. Whilst Boots had the better end to the game there were no real clear-cut chances except a header from Luke that went straight into the goalkeeper’s hands and a semi-chance for Patto at the back-post (from another Simon throw) when a bobble ruined his first-time shot. The referee managed to make a final lasting impression in the closing minutes when he failed to correctly award and signal a throw-in with disastrous consequences. Whilst players from both teams looked to him in confusion (waiting to see which way the raised arm pointed), several Freeman & Mitchell players took the throw anyway and eventually lobbed Phil to score (after he’d come out of his area to block with his chin) and theoretically kill of the game, but after much protesting the referee brought the play back for a Boots throw (massively irritating both sets of players by the lack of decision-making and/or explanation!)
Overall it was a game with few chances. Phil made a very good save in the second half when Boots were chasing the game, but other than that he did little as the defence mostly contained them. Unfortunately few chances were created by Boots, which was disappointing as they played well in brief passages. The other thing I (Crozier) would say is during that 20 minute spell in the first half we let the poor decisions affect us and stopped playing. But it’s only the Cup, and we can now concentrate on the league and get back to winning ways!
