| Match Report |
We arrived at the pitch with a very young and inexperienced side to find an Aldridge & Walsall team full of players in their twenties. Undaunted we began the game and played some good possession hockey in the Walsall half. As often happens we were guilt of pressing too high and got caught on the break and despite the heroic efforts of Samraj to get back at the forward and Dillworth standing tall the Walsall striker made no mistake. We restarted and continued to press with good interplay between our younger players and Stu hovering up in defensive midfield. Again we got caught and Walsall’s powerful striker unleashed a fierce shot for 2-0. We pressed on, recirculated the ball, looked backwards when under pressure and did all but score. Reece had a good effort from a PC saved at the right post and Stu and Eddie both came close. Halftime arrived and the talk was all positive. Early in the second half some good midfield play got Stu in for a shot at goal with the keepers save falling to Eddie who calmly collected the ball and drove it home for 2-1. The physical size and strength of the Walsall team began to tell and our young midfield and forwards began to tire. Our possession became less positive and the play slowly compressed into our own half. We conceded another 2 goals despite some heroic last ditch defending and excellent goalkeeping from Dill, who I think was again worthy of Man of the Match. The game finished at 4-1 but this result did not do our first half performance justice. |