Before the game I saw this weekend as a key one , with our rivals Henbury facing a tricky away match against third place Highridge and us having a relatively straight forward game against a side who hadn't yet won this season. Instead we produced our least convincing performance so far and allowed ourselves to be out-fought by a side showing far greater determination.We were missing Matt Baker, Scott Crane and Josh Seymour and called Sean up even though he had been off school all week but even so I still thought that we would have enough quality to win. 

 

The game could not have started better for us as in the first minute a Lockleaze defender cleared across his own six yard line and James Winward thumped the ball past the helpless keeper for a one goal lead. For the next 10 - 15 minutes we did well without quite getting the breakthrough - Dan Abbott had a golden chance to double the lead but again delayed getting his shot in and was tackled. Dan was involved in a lot of our best play with some excellent lay offs and passes, particularly out to the left flank where Joe Thwaites had some good runs.

It was noticeable that the two wide players were a bit hesitant when faced with a defender and momentum was frequently lost from good positions. The final balls into the box were not good enough and frequently we wasted good opportunities. In the centre of midfield we were not competing for the ball and were getting overrun. It was clear that Lockleaze had a few very capable front players and we simply allowed them to do whatever they liked , letting them ride tackle after weak tackle. Arran , Matt Newbery Callum and Joe A battled manfully and defended extremely well as a unit but with no support from midfield and no ball retention further up field the equaliser was on the cards and duly arrived just before halftime with a break right through the middle . Dan Ellis made a valiant attempt to block but the rebound ran past him and was tapped in.

 

Halftime came with a one all scoreline but some very harsh words about the need to compete in a more determined fashion. Instead we completely capitulated , conceding four goals in a fifteen minute spell just after the restart . Dan Ellis did well on a number of occasions to prevent further goals and bravely carried on after receiving a nasty and unnecessary bump on the head . A couple of the goals occurred when opponents were allowed to drift past a succession of weak undetermined tackles from midfield and get shots in .On the positive side the boys never gave up and responded positively , with a goal for Dan Abbott and numerous chances in the last 10 minutes to score a few more . Sam hit a vicious shot a bit too straight ( a yard either side and its in , Sam !!! ) and we had a number of breaks , particularly when we went long , but ultimately the decision making by the wide players was not good , either mis-hitting crosses or shooting when team mates were better placed.

The last 10 minutes showed me that had we approached this game in a more determined fashion Lockleaze were sufficiently weak at the back to have been beaten , but instead we completely threw away the initiative after our early goal and deservedly lost .

 

Match Performances

 

Dan Ellis - no chance with any of the goals , bravely carried on after a bad knock

 

Arran Moran - very good again , he showed huge determination in the tackle that was not matched by many of his teammates

 

Matt Newbery - good performance in the heart of the defence ,  no assistance from midfield

 

Callum Hawkins - another captains performance , his tackling was determined and his distribution and coolness on the ball superb

 

Joe Alemzadeh - worked hard against a tricky opponent , heading has improved in the last few weeks

 

James Page - game passed him by , did not tackle well enough but made a few good passes late in the match

 

Andy Webb - did not provide the usual safety blanket in front of the back four , worked hard but often chasing shadows

 

James Winward - great start but too often turned into trouble , final ball not effective enough

 

Joe Thwaites - made a few good runs but appeared hesitant when faced with his opponent , this will improve with confidence

 

Sean Fahey - got off his sickbed to help the team , did well at the start but unsurprisingly faded

 

Sam Vankuylenburg - unlucky to start as sub , was moved to several positions as I tried to stem the flow and did well in all of them , desperately unlucky not to score with a powerful shot

 

Liam Vincent - linked play quite well but wasn't given the time to get the ball down and influence like he usually does

 

Dan Abbott - passed the ball well , longer grass stopped him dribbling so effectively , would have scored more than one if he would only get those shots away quicker