Phil My Little World*

This week’s Blog title is an appalling abuse of a play on words A tactic employed to highlight a very productive Monday morning Ruskin Sports Village session for the Phil’s; Messrs The Power and The Moss were on fire for Black but more of that a little later

September has seen a slight downturn in temperatures but the playing heat has remained firmly on high with 36 players vying to catch the eye of Football Manager Andy Houghton

Charlie undertook sole Refereeing duties with Brian, Eamon, Jeff Betty, Dermot Gallagher, Pierluigi Collina and Clive Thomas sharing the responsibilities whilst also pretending to play without fear or favour (Editor - we get the point)

In a very encouraging break from the norm, we are indebted to Brian, Gonzalo and Jeff Betty who penned mini-reports of the mornings happenings to illuminate this Blog with a rare glimpse of accuracy and insight More for the future would be greatly appreciated

The teams selected were;

Blue - Steve Honeyman, Wickie, Amazon, Cockney Rebel, Sheila and Snakehips

Old Gold - Glen, Mike Thomo, Haggis, McSpeed, Kirsty and Mark NR

Purple - Jeff Betty, Mike Bate, Geoff Prout, Eamon, Tom Stretch and Phil the Cat

Green - Les Meldrew, PaulF, Andy Man, Citeh Geoff Triallist and Rick

Red - Mika, Barry Wizz, Chopper, Chris K, Margaret and Geoff Poole

Black - Tracey, Gonzalo, Grav, Phil the Moss, Phil the Power and Ashy

Blue faced Red in Brian’s grand opening fixture Cockney Rebel caught the eye with a piercing through ball that carved the Red defence wide open The unmarked Steve Honeyman controlled and lashed the ball into the net to put Blue 1-0 ahead Red took a grip on possession but it took a fine bit of individual endeavour from Chopper to unleash a daisy cutter that flew into the corner of the Blue net 1-1 a fair reflection on an excellent game played in a very sporting manner “my refereeing debut a breeze” remarked Brian We are assured it’s 2 years since Chopper last found the opponents net Cue a new song, his follow up to Grandad’s Playing Football?

Confidence now flowing Black v Green was next on Brian’s agenda for the morning

Les Meldrew seized on a Black faux pas to tuck the opening goal away Green taking full advantage of a loose clearance Grav drew Green level with a good finish from the edge of the area 1-1 would this encourage both sides or would Black hit back? Tracey and Phil Moss were involved in a sweeping move to set up Phil (but which Phil? I hear you ask) who turned and fired home 2-1 Black regaining the lead Shortly afterwards Black withstood some Green pressure before Gonzalo scored a neat goal to stretch the advantage to 3-1 This game proved more difficult to manage with Black committing 3 not running fouls but avoiding a penalty sanction with some shrewd team discipline

Eamon dispatched a penalty for Purple (penalty area encroachment) to push purple ahead in their first match with Green This would be the Purple high water mark as some dire defensive clearances presented Green with chances that Andy Man gratefully accepted at the double 2-1 the final score Andy & Green taking full advantage of Black largesse

Red were put to the sword by Purple with “two corkers” scored by Jeff Betty and Geoff Prout (honest not joking!) The description supplied by J Betty should serve as a reminder and warning

Black and Old Gold was possibly the match of the day, certainly if it’s goals that float your boat it was Phil the Power grabbed a superb hat trick Gonzalo a brace with a solo strike by Grav completing Black’s six goal salute Old Gold recovered from a 5-1 deficit to push Black all the way A McSpeed hat trick and brace by Mike Thomo were the goal scorers as Old Gold came up just short 6-5 the final score Terrific game with end to end action Black just a little more clinical

Blue ended their morning with a handsome victory over Old Gold by 4 goals to 1 We do have confirmation that Cockney Rebel hit a brace mate! The Honeyman found the net for Blue

An element of confusion concerns the other scorers however Kirsty and McSpeed have been credited with a goal each but both were attired in Old Gold Does this mean there was an unfortunate own goal? Or does this mean the score might have been 3-2 Who knows Dear Reader? Who knows and who really cares? Great morning, the outcome a Blue win the score possibly irrelevant unless McSpeed really is on a goal scoring bonus?

A good week for Phil the Power continued at the Sutton SoccerDome as he continued with another goal in the night’s action 24 players made their way to the AstroTurf acres with one wary eye on the weather There was the distinct possibility of rain during the session, thankfully the downpore passed over without dampening spirits too much

The teams on show were;

Black - PJ, Phil the Power, Lord Rainford (complete with wicket keeping gloves), Mutchy, Haggis and Steve Carine

Yellow - Deggs, Les Meldrew, Neil Stretch, Andy Man, Cockney Rebel and Steve Smith

White - Jason, Gonzalo, Helen, James, Jo and Wickie

Orange - Kirsty, Tom Stretch, Louise, Simon, Joe the Ghost and Grav

Refereeing duties were undertaken by Jeff Betty ruling the roost on Pitch 1 and El Presidente his usual all knowing self on Pitch 2

Black and White opened proceedings on Pitch 2 a really compelling contest that went largely the way of Black, ahead early from a smart Gonzalo finish But with time elapsing Steve Carine struck to force a draw when it looked certain Black could hold on Plenty of good action, two excellent teams and a fitting way to start the night

Elsewhere the Citrus Derby ended all square with a Cockney Rebel goal for Lemon (Yellow) cancelled out by a Grav goal for the Orange Two very evenly matched sides produced some fine passing moves despite the worsening conditions

In the second games White dismantled the Orange defence with a rousing 3-0 win Jason and a Gonzalo brace the deciding factors Orange forced numerous corners but lacked the vital finishing edge 3-0 the final verdict

The last game of the night was a knife edge thriller with Black and Yellow trading shots from the very start Steve Smith was adjudged to have ‘not walked’ as he powered on to fine One-Two with Andy to find the net But minutes later he made no mistake to fire Yellow 1-0 ahead Cockney Rebel doubled the lead with a stinging shot Undaunted Phil the Power struck back to offer new hope for Black There was a hint of good fortune as Cockney Rebel found the net with a shot that deflected off an unfortunate Black defender 3-1 Yellow good value for their lead But Black were certainly not out of contention with PJ becoming increasingly influential as the game progressed He was rewarded for his work with a very fine drive through the Yellow keeper But time passed with slightly cheery weather Black unable to find a way through as Yellow held on for a 3-2 win

A good week then marked in the Boot Room media conference with excited Club Officials beaming with the good news

Phil My Little World* - The Feeling popular beat combo with a jaunty little anthem