The match against Winchester heralded the first true winter match where, despite the sunshine, there was a real bite of cold in the air which brought with it a certain iciness to the pitch. But the condition of the pitch was not the first challenge the Gondoliers had to face, the first challenge was that the team was without a goalie and so Tim boldly stepped up to the challenge; relinquished the offer of goal keeping kit opting instead for a tracksuit to ward off the winter weather.
The match opened with an immediate charge by the Gondoliers into Winchester’s half where the Gondoliers held the ball through some good passing and were constantly looking to push the defending side back into their “D”. The Gondoliers were also able to capitalise on some poor passing by Winchester, picking up the ball and placing even more pressure on the opposition defence. The Gondoliers attack was soon rewarded with a goal, whilst Winchester responded with the occasional darting attack into the Gondoliers half. The attacks were firmly held off by the back four under Tim’s direction from goal. Eventually the ongoing Gondoliers attacks were rewarded by another goal (or was two?) in the first half.
The second half saw Winchester pressing harder in the attack and they were eventually rewarded with a short corner and a goal. The Gondoliers responded with another goal before the final whistle went and the home side left the pitch with a 4-1 victory.
For the record, Nick and Nigel took a goal each and Alistair added two more to his seasons’ tally.
The match result put the team in excellent spirits for the post-match tea where the evening dinner was eagerly anticipated with hopes of dancing and ladies. (Is there a match report for that event?)
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