8 Boys Football Tournament

On Wednesday 22 February I was back at Gordano for the second day running in the driving rain and wind! This time it was the turn of the year 8 boys for their football tournament. There were 10 teams in total for the event with two pools of five competing for a final play-off game against the school who finished in the same position in the other pool. St Katherine’s would face Gordano, Churchill, Clevedon and Worle in their pool matches.

Max ANDREWS, Finlay BELCHER, Seb DE MONTFORT, Ajay DIMAMBRO, Louie DUN, Ethan EMERY, Brandon GEATER, Beau GILBERT, Finley KING, Charlie MEDDER, Jazper PEACEY, George TURNER

The boys faced Gordano in their first match and were battling against opposition and weather conditions. Looking back at the photographs it reminded me just how bad conditions were as so many of the boys were captured with their eyes almost completely shut running into what was effectively a wall of water! St Kath’s started the better of the two sides and almost the first action of the match was Max Andrews picking up on the ball having dropped back into midfield and then driving it hard down the left hand side only to hit the side netting with his effort. So often first touches and contributions can set the tone for a player and Max would go on to have a fantastic afternoon earning himself man of the tournament. Unfortunately the SK boys were penned in for the rest of the match as Gordano ran out 5-0 winners. The conditions were making things difficult but SK didn’t make things any easier for themselves by playing far too deep and inviting pressure. The pace of Geater and Gilbert at the back meant that they could afford a higher line.

Their second game was against Churchill and instantly you could see that the boys had taken on board the messages about a higher line. Immediately it was their turn on the front foot creating attacking pressure as they mounted a charge towards the Churchill goal. Finley King was really getting into this game and was the catalyst for a lot of the good football that came from the boys in red for the first half. They forced a couple of good saves from the Churchill keeper and were on top. They couldn’t believe their rotten luck when the last play of the half saw Churchill on the attack. They played a neat passing move down the left, crossed the ball well and finished even better to take the lead at half time. The boys were crushed and never recovered from that cruel blow losing the one to nil.

The year 8 boys have bags of energy and character but are often guilty of lacking a little resilience when the going gets tough. They are great when they are on top but find it difficult to recover after going behind. This was really evident in the Clevedon game where they folded after conceding the first goal although some boys kept working tirelessly. Seb De Montfort was great in goal changing with the near frozen Ethan Emery. Brandon Geater was a man-mountain in defence all afternoon and the Clevedon game was no different. Max Andrews was still working hard and letting the opposition know all about himself. Final score was Clevedon 5 St Kath’s 0.

The boys then faced Worle in their final match but were really struggling with their state of mind. They had almost resigned themselves to defeat before taking to the pitch and were letting the weather conditions really get them down. They were more than capable of competing but were starting to get critical of one another which only ever ends in one way. In their final pool match the boys were on the losing side with the score finishing 3-0 to Worle. Louie Dun led from the front well in the Worle game and really did all that he could to spur on his team mates. Brandon Geater and Max Andrews once again were top competitors and were really up for the competition physically and mentally. Seb De Montfort had a fantastic game in goal and made some brilliant saves to keep his team mates in contention.

In their final match against Broadoak the boys took a much more positive approach and this made such a difference to the quality of their football. George Turner and Louie Dun showed their quality in the middle of the pitch and played some really cute passes with conditions tricky underfoot. Finlay Belcher had some smart touches in the final game and was a positive influence in attack. In one final cruel twist the boys were on the losing side once again after a freak own goal right at the end of the game.

It was impossible for teams to play their best football at the tournament with the weather the way that it was and every school was struggling with the conditions. It was true that to stand out in the weather for the afternoon really was a test of the boys’ character and the test couldn’t have been any tougher as the boys went without a win or a goal. To put things into context the boys played Churchill in their second match losing by just 1 goal having been dominant for large parts – Churchill finished in second position. Their final finishing position really isn’t a true reflection of their footballing ability and I am looking forward to seeing how they set about proving this in their upcoming friendly fixtures.

Well done for your efforts on what was a really tough afternoon gents.

Mr Cook