Eldwick Juniors FC

Under 9's 07/08

Here for match reports

16th Sept - Hawks v Myrtle Pk

23rd Sept - Guiseley v Hawks

14th Oct - Hawks v Queensbury Cougars

16th September 2007

The Hawks  3 - Myrtle Park 4

What a great match!

Parents one and all gave a standing ovation at the end and well deserved.

Myrtle Park took the lead, as early as the 2nd minute, as a goal bound shot was handled in the air and the subsequent penalty was dispatched with aplomb. 0-1

Without dropping their heads, "The Hawks" bounced back within a minute when James Wood ran onto a pass from Alex Errington and coolly slotted the ball home in the

bottom right hand corner. 1-1

We then witnessed a see-saw game, with Oliver Bentley, ably supported by Jo Hurdman, initially reducing the deficit to 2-2. This was after some very good work by the midfield quartet of Thomas MacAllister, Alex Errington and James Wood. Elliott Haran pulled off two very good saves, only to see a difficult shot go under his despairing dive at the near post, to produce a 2-3 score at half time.

Some very good defending by Jake Waterhouse, Sam Russell and Adam Slater in the second half ensured that the game remained very tight, especially after "The Hawks" drew level through Macca and the Myrtle Park goal was besieged for the remaining 10 minutes, as the home team kicked on. However, some desperate defending saw a long clearance fall kindly for the opposition striker and with an unlucky bounce beating the last defender, the ball was put into the back of the net.3-4

The final whistle interrupted what was a fantastic game and this manager, for one, was extremely proud of how well the boys had played. All the training now appears to be paying off, with all the boys becoming aware of the space that they are playing in, along with the importance of getting their heads up and passing the ball well. 

Last seasons results of 5-0 and 8-0 were well and truly resigned to the history bin.   

Man of the match: Jake Waterhouse.

23rd September 2007 - Guiseley Whites 2 - The Hawks 0

This was a tale of two halves.

The Hawks conceded two very soft goals in the first half, although neither team rarely troubled the respective goalkeepers and there was a lot of huff and puff.

When the Hawks managed to control the ball and pass it around, they were the more dangerous, with some good touches and movement by the whole team.

Some excellent defending and covering by Alex Errington ensured that the Hawks did not concede in the second half and he was pipped to the MOM award by Oliver, who, on the day, was the Hawks most dangerous player.

Special mentions go to James and Adam for some excellent sliding tackling, along with Jake for some brave defending who ended up with super bruise/shiner on his forehead for his troubles…. What commitment and we all hope he will be fit for next Sunday.

Man of the match: Oliver Bentley.

The next game (30th September 2007) is at home against Sutton Rascals, 10.30 am kick off.

As we will be two players down on the day, due to other commitments, please ensure that you keep yourself fit!
 

New kit:

Unfortunately there has been a delay in the kit, however the aim is to have the new kit on October 1^st
There will also be training jackets provided this season along with the kits, again at the start of October.
To mark the occasion there will be a ‘photoshoot’ at Beckfoot on Tuesday 9^th October for the website etc.

Please note – the club is collecting Tesco sports vouchers again. Last year our team managed to gain a decent training ball through the scheme – obviously the more vouchers we collect the more chance we have to benefit.

The scheme runs to 04.11.07 – any vouchers to me please.

The Hawks v Sutton Rascals – 30^th September 2007

Due to a number of the boys being absent, both Thomas Moore-Wilson and William Jowett kindly agreed to step in and help the team out and they did not disappoint. 

Sutton have had a very good start to the season, but The Hawks held their own for the first 20 minutes. Some very good work between the midfield and strikers, Alex, Oliver and James, carved out an opening for Oliver who narrowly put his shot wide.

After severe pressure form the away team, who had a large number of consecutive corner kicks (so many I lost count!), The Hawks defended stoutly, only for Sutton to sneak a goal halfway through the first half. 

Undeterred, The Hawks rallied and pushed strongly for an equaliser, with some good work by the midfield trio of Alex, William and Thomas, ably supported by Oliver and James and good defending by both Adam and Sam kept the score line to a very respectable level.

Half Time score: 0-1

After the break the game ran away from The Hawks and Sutton eased to a further 5 goals during the second half, without reply.

Not a great deal went for the home side and, tactically, Sutton played a much better game. Some excellent saves from Elliot, once again and fantastic defending by Sam meant that he deservedly won the man of the match award. 

Final score: 0-6 

Man of the match: Sam Russell

Thackley Knights v The Hawks – 7^th October 2007 

First impressions of this match was that the pitch was huge (11 a side?) and was clearly of benefit to the home side! 

The squad was nearly back to full strength, other than the absence of last weeks man of the match and the game, once again, started well. 

A new formation was set up, with Oliver playing wide left, Alex up front with James and Thomas taking a more central midfield role. Adam partnered Jake in defence. It took a little time to settle down and whilst the Hawks were finding their feet, Thackley took advantage and scored a good goal.  

Once again, The Hawks pushed on and some good defending from the home side restricted our chances.

Half time score: 1-0

Jo had some very good moves down the right hand side and realised that he could take on the Knights full back and beat him for pace and with a bit more luck, one of his crosses should have been converted. The Hawks tired considerably in the second half, but with good encouragement from the sidelines, a few chances were created before Thackley took eventual control by picking holes in The Hawks defence, as we pushed on to hard to try and get back into the game. 

The Thackley forwards took their opportunities really well and but for some excellent saves from Elliot, the score line may have been even greater. 

Whilst the formation may have changed, we do need to persevere with this, as it does give us good balance on the left and right and down the middle. 

After two disappointing results, the boys should not be disheartened. We have played two of the form teams and have only conceded one goal by half time.

We need to:

• Concentrate on our play

• Work as a team to defend and attack

• Get our heads up and pass the ball where possible

• Do not worry about the results. If our play improves, which it has been doing, then the results will take care of themselves and we will see a change in the final scores.

Next Match: The Hawks v Queensbury Cougars – 14^th October 2007, KO: 10.30 am

The Hawks v Queensbury Cougars - Sunday 14th October 2007 

Man of the Match: Alex Errington