Mar 11
S & B Rangers Yellows 1-3 Under 11s
2009 at 10.39 AM posted by Mick Barber
BENGEO TIGERS U11’s THROUGH TO CUP FINAL
7th March 2009
Sherrardswood School, Lockleys, Welwyn, Hertfordshire
LEAGUE SHIELD SEMI FINAL
Bengeo Tigers under 11’s are through to the final of the League Shield after beating S&B Welwyn in a heart stopping semi-final.
Manager John Pizzey and coaches Simon Thomas and Paul Wilkerson went with a 4-4-2 starting line up as follows;
Goalkeeper: Matt Pizzey
Defenders: Toby Munoz, Ewan Thomas Colquohon, Michael Ives, Eliza Weeks and Alex Wilkerson
Midfield: Harry Johnson, Kieran Parkhouse, Alex Carter, Harry Hutchings, and Bob Davies
Forwards; Henry Grant Sam Rix and Peter Abrams
A fairly decent pitch, although the slope appeared worse from distance, a strong breeze and a game that would be a close encounter as S&B lie in 2nd place in the league with the Tigers close behind in 3rd.
The early exchanges saw S&B hitting their wingers in the hope of getting in behind us,but the fullbacks of Ewan and Toby held firm and made sure the route to our goal remained closed.
After 10 minutes the Tigers began to take control of the midfield with Alex Carter and Kieran Parkhouse winning nearly every 50-50 ball and then using the pace of Bob Davies, Harry Johnson and Peter Abrams to get in behind the S&B defenders.
A miskick by the S&B keeper fell to Peter Abrams whose first time shot sailed narrowly wide.
The Tigers attacks were getting more frequent and Harry Johnson was running the fullback ragged, Henry Grant was winning every ball played forward and it seemed a goal was inevitable.A quick interchange of passes by Alex Carter and Bob Davies found Bob in possession right at the edge of the penalty area.A beautifully struck shot sailed over the keeper and into the top corner 1-0 to the Tigers.
Sam Rix was chasing dead causes and putting the defenders under constant pressure and Harry Hutchins was making great runs down the flank as well as giving great cover to the full backs.
At the back the defence were looking strong, organised and kept a fantastic straight line,regulary catching S&B offside.
Alex Wilkerson led by example winning every tackle, clearing with his head and finding great passes into the midfield.
Toby Munoz was hard into the tackle and looked like no one was going to get past him.
Michael Ives ensured the wingers were not going to get through and Bob Davies was getting back to assist when needed.
Then against the run of play S&B scored, when the ball ran luckily to the S&B forward, who was cool enough to take the chance.
A fantastic piece of play by Peter Abrams saw him go past 4 players inside the box and the pass to Henry Grant looked to be the winner only for the goalkeeper to pull off a stunning save from point blank range.
Matt Pizzey in goal for the Tigers had a great game and gave his defenders confidence with his great handling and super kicking.
Kieran Parkhouse was bossing midfield and when the S&B players started giving free kicks away on the edge of the area you could see the winner coming.
Several shots on goal from Bob Davies,Henry Grant and Alex Carter had the S&B keeper making 3 stunning saves.
At the other end a breakaway and S&B were in on goal a cracker of a shot and Matt Pizzey pulled off a world class save and even managed to hold onto the ball as well.Fantastic stuff
As the end of normal time loomed the managers looked nervously at their watches and the parents looked nervously at each other,then the final whistle and extra time was upon us.
We should have been celebrating making a final on the balance of play but if we could keep going surely it would come?
Extra time saw Ewan Thomas Colquohon and Michael Ives driving the defence forward while Elisa Weeks and Alex Wilkerson continued to win every ball.
Harry Johnson and Peter Abrams kept linking up well and a quick interchange saw Peter breaking into the box to be hacked down,penalty surely? No the referee awards a corner and there is no justice.
Kieran with the corner, into the box a scramble and Henry Grant gets the vital touch 2-1 to the tigers.
Hold on in there boys its half time of extra time and 7 1/2 minutes from the final.
The start of the second half saw S&B throw everything at the Tigers but Michael Ives and Eliza Weeks continue to win every tackle and then a ball out wide to Harry Johnson see’s the ball onto Peter Abrams across to Bob Davies onto Kieran and BANG bottom corner Kieran Parkhouse had ensured we were going to the final.
Just one minute left and I swear a smile broke out on everyones face as a combination of joy and relief was felt by all watching.
The final whistle and wild celebrations, the players looked quite happy aswell.
A fantastic performance by the whole team who were all man of the match today.
A generous comment from the S&B manager at the end who was gracious in defeat, and paid our whole defence a compliment by saying it was the best he had faced this season.
He wished us well in the final and despite his dissapointment was a great examle of how to behave as a manager.
Talking of managers John Pizzey got every decision spot on, using his substiutions to keep the team fresh, with good tactics and a final to look forward to.
What a fantastic day.........`WELL DONE EVERYBODY
