Reserves
Glen Waverley (1) 2 v 2 (1) Ringwood City
The first game of the afternoon really gave us no indication of the mayhem that was to follow, although the warning signs were there. Three match balls presented to the ref on time were duly rejected on the basis they didn’t conform to the FFV licensing agreement. OK fair enough, we’ll find some that do. Team books need to be given to the ref 30 minutes before the game, fair enough as well, but what did he want first. I had to put out the stretcher which had also been forgotten. Apparently though I did have the right coloured boxers on, I had parked my car legally in the car park, passport was in order and Mum was still English. Anyway on with what we all came for – the matches. The Reserves turned on the style this week and had Ringwood under pressure from the word go. Using the flanks to good effect, Alex and Robbie were able to get telling balls into the box; however they couldn’t convert them into goals. Finally one juicy corner fell invitingly to Eduardo. Not confident with either foot or his head, he chose to knock the ball in off his back. Never mind they all count. For all the pressure though Ringwood were let back into the game with a soft penalty. Scores level at halftime but really the Green Machine should have been well in front.
Time for some changes and enter Guillermo. He was thrown on and took the game by the scruff of the neck. Picking up the ball in midfield he took it on 20 metres then rifled an Excocet missile into the top corner. A goal worthy of winning any match but no, a casual break and some sloppy defending gave the visitors an equaliser they didn’t deserve. Our chance to win the match came with a late penalty which, on any other day, would have been drilled. But Eduardo now has something in common with Vieri, Baggio, Viduka, Southgate and all the other crap penalty takers down the years, he missed. Our match reporter caught up with Sir Alex after the game “A point is better than none and the lads are off the bottom. We’ll take the positives and take each day as it comes, thanks and see you later.” Comment of the day has to be this though. Arriving at halftime one of our younger players asked “What’s the score?” “The score is 1-1” came the reply, only to be met with “Who to?” He is blonde if you need a clue!!
Seniors
Glen Waverley (0) 1 v 2 (2) Ringwood City
Now after the hors d’oeuvres, the referee decided that the players weren’t good enough to take centre stage and that it should be left to him. With cards at the ready and whistle poised the game started … then stopped. The winner of the quickest card of the season competition goes to Nick, with a yellow in the first minute. Nobody had even touched the ball!! Dan takes the second prize, managing to get himself a yellow on 6 minutes. I can’t even remember what he did. He set the standard for the afternoon and the card tally mounted at regular intervals. In fact we saw more cards yesterday than a poker player’s convention. The total count was 5 yellows and 5 reds and this was only for the players. Their coach also got a red for who knows what. Anyone reading this and who wasn’t at the game will think it was a violent match, massive punch ups, all in brawl etc. It was anything but, and, in general, the match was played in good spirits.
Just for the record the visitors won the match with good organisation and a fair degree of determination. The local lads did turn over possession too cheaply but had enough chances, including the penalty to have sneaked it. A goal either side of halftime saw the visitors take a 2-0 advantage and a missed penalty by the Waverley Warriors didn’t help the cause. The referee then decided to give us a chance by sending players off at random. Even this wasn’t enough to help save the day. A consolation goal was all they could muster. Coach Steve was fairly certain that on another day, we should be able to beat them. Looking slightly down-cast at the post-match interview Steve was quick to praise the young players but was scathing about the performance of the referee. On the bright side, we scored again meaning we’ve now scored in every game. With Upfield being held 0-0 at home by East Bentleigh, there’s only us and Reservoir that hold that record so far.
We’re back on the road again next week, to that lovely spot over at Darebin. I don’t think it’s ever been featured on “Getaway” and thankfully this is the last time this season we need to go there.