7 Boys Football v PCSA

On Tuesday 28 March the year 7 boys faced the first of two contests in as many days and were in a positive frame of mind ahead of the clash. Earlier in the year the boys had faced Priory after being sorted into a pool alongside them based on standard and the game had been a reasonably close affair. Once again there were a couple of debutants for SK and it was great to see Dom and Ciaran out representing the school – two more of the 22 different boys who have done so this season! It was also a real treat for me to have Caolan Pearce referee the game – Caolan has recently completed his refereeing qualification and regularly takes charge of games locally to him. Caolan is a fantastic role model for the younger boys and they really look up to him.

Ben BOHIN, Shadrach BUNKETE, Nana GYIMAH-SARPONG (captain), Ciaran LARGE, Dom LLEWELLYN, Benjamin LUMOSO, Hamza MAXAMUUD, Joseph PAICE, Caolan PEARCE (referee), Jody QUINN, Toby RICE, Ollie STRATTON, Leo WEST, Mansur YILMAZ

The boys began the game in really bright fashion and the contest was really even in the opening minutes with both sides enjoying spells of attacking play and being tested defensively. If anything, St Kath’s looked the stronger of the two sides in attack when they were able to get the ball out from under their feet and pass. After just 3 minutes the home side were engrossed in team celebrations after taking the lead. The ball was moved into the midfield to the feet of Joe Paice who managed to shift it passed the first man and get it out from underneath him to play a perfectly weighted pass to striker Ben Bohin. Ben did what Ben does best and carried the ball at pace towards the goal finishing impressively to beat the Priory goalkeeper. St Kath’s were delighted to have taken the lead so early in the game but weren’t quite expecting the backlash that ensued!

The opening goal really sparked Priory into action and you were soon able to spot a number of their players coming to the fore. Priory looked to have a great mix of technically sound players as well as some boys who were impressive athletes and both started to cause SK some serious problems defensively. Having scored the first goal the midfield were keen to push on to increase the lead which left the boys exposed defensively. Priory enjoyed a long spell of possession after conceding and it wasn’t long before they were back level in the game – in fact SK had only held their lead for four minutes!

SK were really under the cosh in the later period of the first half and Priory had all of the play. The defending was valiant if not a little last ditch in desperation. Nana led the resistance alongside defensive partner Dom. Ben Lumoso and Shadrach supported from full back positions but they were simply over run and could not stop the onslaught. Before the half time break St Kath’s conceded 4 goals and their 1 goal lead had quickly slumped to a 3 goal deficit.

At half time the boys were desperately disappointed but were started to let signs of their frustration show in their performance. They were second to the ball and their effort level had fallen well below par. So often when heads go down players look to their leaders for their example and there were a couple of boys who were really fighting back. Ollie Stratton had a phenomenal second half and showed an unyielding desire to win the ball for his team as they went in search of getting back into the game. Ollie had seen that Priory were first to everything and really set about wrestling back the momentum during the second half. Captain Nana GS worked tirelessly in defence under serious pressure and was often the last line of defence coming up with a vital intervention that stopped a Priory shot or final pass. Goalkeeper Toby Rice was as vocal as ever between the sticks contributing in droves with encouragement and communication for his team mates as well as a number of excellent saves. Ben Bohin was busy when the ball made its way up to him and was causing the Priory defenders some serious problems but was just isolated and cut out of the game for extended periods as his team had their backs against the wall.

Priory were on top for much of the second half but a more resolute defensive effort from all 11 players meant that they could only score 2 more goals to take their total to 6. SK did have an opportunity for a consolation goal in the dying seconds of the game when Leo West was fouled after holding the ball strongly in the penalty area. It really did sum up their afternoon when the spot kick went agonisingly wide but it would have been little more than a token at the end of a difficult match.

It was no secret and no surprise that the boys were frustrated as there were some harsh lessons learned in terms of defensive principles, work ethic and positive mental attitude. As is so often the case with sport, the next opportunity is never far away and some of the boys had less than 24 hours to learn the lessons of this match and take them into their next contest against Sidcot in combination with the year 8 boys.

The year 7 boys had a lot of potential on the football pitch and although some results may not have gone their way this season, I am really positive about this group of young men! With so many fantastic young characters that are determined to do well and improve, they already have the most important ingredients that you cannot teach!

Mr Cook