Match Report

Dunton Dynamos 0 - 8 Grays Athletic

U11 League Match - 9th March 2008

Table-topping Grays Athletic were the visitors to Dunton's home ground this week and we knew we were in for a tough game. Dunton had a full squad of players available for the first time in several weeks, except of course our superstar goalkeeper who's still out of action with a broken foot.

Jordan once again deputised in goal, with Jack occupying his normal right-back position and Cameron in the left-back role. In the centre of defence we had Ben and George. In midfield, Luke played on the right-hand-side, with Sonny occupying his familiar role on the left-wing. In the centre we had Dave and Calum with Ethan and Billy up-front. Calum was once again captain whilst Harry and James started on the subs' bench.

The match itself was played on a bright, sunny morning. There had been overnight rain, but the pitch was once again in immaculate condition. Grays won the toss and elected to kick-off playing in their familiar sky blue shirts, shorts and socks whilst Dunton were in their usual all-white kit.

Straight from the kick-off it was obvious the Grays side meant business. They were pressing forward, putting our back four under immediate pressure. Jordan once again looked supremely confident between the sticks and was working well with his defenders to keep Grays at bay.

Ten minutes into the game, Dunton conceded a corner. The in-swinging kick looked like it would be dealt with by our right-back covering the post, however his attempt to clear the ball didn't go to plan as he sliced the ball into the back of our own net. This was very unfortunate as we didn't deserve to go behind at this stage.

Soon after, Grays scored a second followed by a third, but still we kept fighting for every ball. Indeed we were unlucky not to be awarded a penalty when Sonny broke through into the Grays box to be pushed off the ball. Clearly, the referee didn't see the incident as those that did all shouted for a foul. Billy and Ethan continued to chase every loose ball and put the Grays defence under pressure. The also linked up well with Sonny, Luke and Dave who were all battling in midfield.

The score remained 3-0 until the half-time interval. The boys had done extremely well to keep the score down and arguably deserved a little more for their efforts. The back four in particular had played particulary well, especially George who looked a natural in the centre-back position. He was clearly going to be a contender for the man-of-the-match award, given the number of fantastic challenges he made, together with his positional awareness.

In the second-half, Harry came on to replace Dave whilst James came on to replace Cameron. Ben slotted into the left-back role whilst James took on his usual centre-back role.

Grays piled on the pressure in the second half and were rewarded with three quick goals to put the game beyond doubt. To their credit, Dunton continued to battle and had a number of good breaks into the Grays half. They were however unable to break down this well-drilled defence.

Jordan played extremely well in the second-half, getting better and better with each passing minute. He made an outstanding safe from a rifled right-foot drive from the Grays right-winger. The ball looked to be heading for the roof of the net until Jordan leapt like a salmon to tip the ball over the crossbar. If he carries on in this manner, Liam may have a fight on his hands to reclaim his place in goal!

Grays scored two more goals before the final whistle to end the game at 8-0. Their physical fitness was clearly superior to that of the Dunton side as we appeared to run out of steam in the last ten minutes.

Man of the match today was Ethan who worked his socks off up-front. He's clearly been working on his own personal fitness levels as he chased every loose ball from start to finish. He was also responsible for some excellent passes and held the play up where necessary to enable his team-mates to join the attack. Other strong performances came from Jordan in goal, George in the centre-back role and Luke on the right-hand side. That said, this was a very good team performance with everyone playing to the best of their abilities.

We'll have our trusty goalkeeper back next week (after his foot comes out of plaster) so things are looking good the the remaining fixtures this season. We know we're not going to win any trophies this year, but the boys have remained positive throughout and will surely benefit next season when they play teams better matched to their standard.

Our thanks go to the Grays Athletic side for a good game and we wish them well for the remainder of the season. The one other bit of good news is that we won't have to play them again this season!