Drawing hell
Last night we reached the half way mark of the season, and it looks to be closer than ever.
We’ve already had 7 draws this year (most in a full season is 8), 3 of which came last night, and games just keeping getting tighter and tighter as everyone gets more competitive each week.
We started off with our only win of the night, a resurgent Scouting for Goals bullying the Young Arabs into another defeat, with Geraint Dyment bagging another 3 goals in the 6-3 win. The Young Arabs looked stronger going forward with the addition of Steffan Roberts but all confidence seems to be lost and they could really do with a permanent goalkeeper to help with their already strong defence. Next week they face The Vaders, who supplied them with their only win so far, and will be looking to rekindle the early spark they showed, while Scouting will provide a tough test for high flying Jimmy Sevilla.
Game 2 was a great battle between two evenly matched teams, with Honey Badger taking a lead in the first half and FC Snorkel trying everything in their power to get an equaliser passed the Badgers ‘keeper. After several good saves and near misses, Gareth Lindenburn finally slotted home the goal they were looking for with a neat finish in the bottom corner. The game continued to be tight and fiercely contested but an unusual mistake in goal from Nathan Carter gifted the Badgers the lead once more. However, another late equaliser for Snorkel meant a share of the spoils and both teams move on to tough assignments in week 8. Snorkel will be hoping there’s no repeat of their 20-0 hammering from their previous game vs CrownEroon.
And there was to be no such exploits for the leaders in game 3, as they faced second-placed Jimmy Sevilla who could leapfrog them with a win over the champions. Jimmy started extremely well and were defensively organised as always. Tom Atyeo broke the deadlock for them and followed it up with a second as CrownEroon looked a little shell-shocked and seemed to be struggling with some important players missing. And it wasn’t long before Jimmy took their lead to 3 and looked well on their way to an impressive win. To the Crown’s credit, though, they re-grouped and battled back in the second half, showing why they have been so dominant, with ability and effort in equal measure as they clawed back a 3-3 draw, keeping them atop the league. Jimmy Sevilla can feel aggrieved at letting their lead slip, but if they can keep up their fantastic form, this really could be a title decider in the final week.
Our last game of the evening threw up another even match, with The Vaders building towards their first win in recent weeks and the Park Arabs looking a little light compared to usual, the bottom of the league team started brightly and broke the deadlock through Kane Rowlands after some neat work from Lee Jones. A deflected equaliser from Jordan Tremlett squared things up before Lee Tookyn Jones put the Arabs ahead early in the second half. Another goal from man of the match Kane Rowlands put the Vaders on equal terms once more and a missed penalty from Lee Jones, looking to get one over his old team, looked to spell further doom for The Vaders. Nathan Whelan made them pay further with a neat finish from a tight angle, but Richard Boydell fired in a half volley with the final kick of the match to rescue a point.
All in all a very good week for Scouting for Goals, who not only pull clear of the Young Arabs but gain ground on everyone else above them with the only 3 points of the week. Everyone has faced each other once now, so there’s no surprises going forward. But who has learned the most and who will excel in the second half of the season? With rugby and football training kicking in over the coming weeks, this could have a telling influence on who finishes the strongest.
Good luck once again to all the teams for the second half of the season.