The Lions followed up their great performance in the Cup last week with a step backwards in the League. The Lions were fortunate to be only one goal down at the interval, but despite a late rally, couldn't get the equalising goal in the closing stages of the game.
Line-up:
Paige (GK)
Dale (RB), Simon (CB),Phil (CB), Julian (LB)
Richard (RM), JP (CM), Lee M (CM), Kyle (LM)
Scott (CF), Gary (CF)
The Lions were on the backfoot from the off in this game, much like last week, with the opposition being the ones taking the game to us. Unlike last week, however, we just couldn't get hold of the ball long enough to stay out of our half, never mind build a meaningful attack. Our defence was really stretched, our midfield seemed to vanish and our forwards barely saw the ball.
We had Paige, some last ditch defending and some errant finishing from the oppo to thank for keeping the game all square for the first half hour. Paige tipped a header over the bar, turned a shot past the post, and parried away an on target free kick. However, the amount of pressure we were under made the opening goal inevitable, but it was still a poor goal to concede.
They broke through on our left and their midfielder put either a really poor shot or a really good pass across the six yard area where his mate standing unmarked poked out a leg and steered the ball into the goal.
Our best moment of the half came when Gary floated a ball into the area that was left by everyone including the keeper who was then grateful to see it come off the post. Nobody could turn the rebound into the goal despite our being best efforts during the ensuing scramble.
The second half saw the introduction of Kris and Brett who was making his first Lions appearance since the end of last season. We had a strong wind against us and the sun in our eyes this time and although it hadn't seemed to affect the opposition much in the first half, it played havoc with us. Their goal kicks were bouncing just outside our area forcing us to defend deep into our half. Their second goal was pure route one with the ball launched long over the top and their attacker chasing it with Simon. Paige came out a little too late and was unable to get to the ball before their attacker headed it past him.
We didn't buckle although we had been comprehensively outplayed to that point. Paige continued to make save after crucial save to keep us in it and we gradually managed to play our way into the game. We got a penalty for a push/pull on Brett in the area and he duly stepped up to dispatch it low past the keeper who went the wrong way. We created more chances than the in the first half and it was the opposition who were starting to hang on (although we did need to make a goal line clearance after one of their shots came off the inside of the post).
However, it was another of those days when we just didn't have enough to get something from a league game. Despite the undoubted talent in the team, we seem to be carrying on from where we left off at the end of last season. Our next match is a Cup game against fellow strugglers Sporting Renegades. We need to rediscover the fight and quality from our last Cup game and make it stick otherwise this season is going to be a very long one indeed.
