Get Over It*

After a much-needed battery recharge our Blog returns anew with a tongue stuck firmly in cheek pop at disputed decisions and dubious rejected claims all of which prove that life is too short for misplaced trust; in football players, managers, head coaches and referees ever agreeing on much more than the ball being round (mostly round) Anyone who loves a cliche will be all to aware of the maxim ‘there’s no game without the referee!’ Some of us more practical types know that sometimes especially Wednesday’s indoors, we do carry on regardless The more latitude that is given under the guise of sportsmanship the closer play strays into the realms of disagreement and potential villainy So whatever your beef might be just suck it up and get on with it Life’s too short

The Monday morning Ruskin Sports Village session was played under heavy skies but thankfully remained dry for the duration A very decent turn out of 40 members meant we could have an 6 a side match for the session duration plus two 7 a side games with the four teams switching half way through proceedings to keep things fresh

Those sides were;

Old Gold - Rob C (Nesbitt?), Enoch, Snakehips, Mark NR, El Presidente, Little John and Lefty Bridge

Purple - GRAV, Tom Derby, Rick, Barry Wizz, Steve Harding, Gonzalo and Eileen

Green - Phil the Cat, Tomo, Big Tony, Phil the Moss, Ian Connor, Phil the Power and Ashy

Referee in neon camouflage Kev McGovern who took Pitch B games controls

Red - Les Meldrew, Trish, Lord Rainford, Wickie, Jenko, Haggis and Tom Stretch

Black - Steve Jones, Andy Man, Dave Roberts, Kirsty, Glen, Chopper and Sheila

Blue - Monday Michelle, Mike Bates, Steve Honeyman Triallist, Roger, Mike Thomo and Mika

The other Refereeing duties were shared by Lord Rainford and Mika (half game each) with Charlie mopping up affairs on Pitch A

Pitch B games were both close affairs with Blue pipping Green by the odd goal in a close three goal thriller In their second game Blue were stretched by a Old Gold but held on for a deserved draw 2-2 the final score

No details of the goal scorers but Kev has promised to add these to his next report

On Pitch A Charlie took charge of a real see-saw match with Purple and Old Gold serving up a cracker Ian Lefty Bridge fired Gold ahead a lead doubled from the penalty spot shortly after by El Presidente 2-0 Gold ahead but Purple hit back via Gonzalo with a deflected shot before racing into a healthy lead with Gonzalo proving too sharp to pick off any defensive stray passes GRAV stretched the advantage to 4-2 but Lefty Bridge in excellent form completed his hat trick to set up a nervy finish Gonzalo sealed the Purple victory with his 4th goal 5-4 the final score

In the final game Purple shaded their fixture with Green Two more goals for Gonzalo enough to ensure the victory Tomo claiming a consolation for Green Another excellent contest 2-1 Purple prevailing

In the morning’s 6 a side contest Black and Red were evenly matched with all players contributing to an engaging contest Red walked away as winners despite two collector’s items a rare goal by Chopper (described elsewhere as a worldy) plus a neat Steve Jones goal for Black But a hat trick by Tom Stretch with two goals to draw Red back level and finally a sensational winning strike caught the eye There were some terrific saves by Haggis to keep Black at bay Tom Stretch had redeemed himself having conceded each of the Black goals Can’t keep a good man down

Sutton SoccerDome was a real tester especially outdoors with standing puddles of rain giving doubt to the claim of ‘all weather’ pitch The indoor session was the usual soft shoe shuffle marred by some attitudinal malfeasance The problem will of course disappear with the re-introduction of a Referee next time but really people need to ‘get over it’ It's a game nothing more or less

The outdoor game was a 9 a side full blown encounter played in appalling conditions For the record the behaviou4 of all players was commendable No tetchiness or pointless complaining The Referee, El Presidente, set out a early reminder that the conditions plus narrow pitch would present problems that needed a thoughtful approach Players adhered and consequently the degree of sportsmanship and common sense were first class

The teams were

Pink - Nigel, Simon, Andy Man, Steve Carine, Chris 10P, Haggis, Chris Sully, Little John & Benno

Blue - Steve Smith, Mike Thomo, Mark Dav, PJ, Chris 4G, Midweek Michelle, Tom Stretch, Jason & Neil Stretch

Blue took early command with Mark Dav and Jason goals against the possessional hold that Pink had claimed The Pink patience finally paid off Chris 10P on target 2-1 Steve Carine found the net for 3-1 Andy Man netted for 3-2 before Chris 10P drew the scores level once more at 3-3

The rain intensified and puddles become stretches of standing water 3 or 4 metres long One side of the pitch was particularly affected With just 10 minutes left El Presidente did consider calling a halt to play such was the difficulty of passing But in truth any early end would have been a pointless shame Further goals by Carine, Jason and Dav took the game away from Pink who were struggling to re establish their early fluency The difficulty in keeping his notebook dry was causing El Presidente major problems The game ended with smiles and wet handshakes all round

Full marks for all who contributed to an enjoyable but very wet hour

The Innards were;

Yellow - Les Meldrew, Tracey, Honeyman, Ian Hilton and Phil the Power

White - Paul Robbo, Lord Rainford, John Cousins, GRAV & Helen

The game was tight throughout with White just holding off Yellow despite Robbo playing with a hamstring injury towards the end of the session White goals were shared by Rainford with 2 including his trusty Sussex Sweep, John Cousins, Helen and Robbo Yellow held an early two goal advantage thanks to the Honeyman But it was 4-3 to White at the break Ian Hilton added the third Yellow goal before Tracey converted following a corner Yellow squandered penalty chances, one a fine save by Robbo Time elapsed with Yellow scrambling to equalise Tight finish with too many wasted verbals Get Over It*

So another week of walking football ends with a new set of challenges on the horizon Can’t wait!

Get Over It* - The Eagles

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R2uRRDV63ns