4th Team Vs Shrewsbury

Tough game this one, arriving with only ten men and whilst the average age of both sides was probably much the same, Shrewsbury's age spread was probably 15 years and ours was about 55! The first half was basically constant Shrewsbury pressure with them moving the ball around well, but for the most part squandering their chances against a very resolute defence who had already concluded that this game would have something of the "Alamo" about it.

Nevertheless, for the most part we held our ground and by the time we got to half time we were only 1-0 (or possibly 2 - can't quite remember!) down and playing well against a very frustrated Shrewsbury team.

We started nthe second half well and with some nifty work by the midfield and forwards pulled one back through a Jandu special and nearly drew level after some good work from Tom Hodgetts. However from then on a combination of the extra man and our age/fitness began to tell and we were caught at the back on a number of occasions and the goals ramped up.

Overall though, some encouraging performances from the younger players which we can build from and "men" of the match are Tom Hodgetts for a strong perfomance in attack and Samraj Rai for an equally stalwart defensive role including two great goal line clearances. 

Special mention also to the 13 year old Shrewsbury umpire who did an excellent job. Good tea too with three choices and seconds - so a good afternoon out in my books!!

Steve Rowlands