Thursday April 24th
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Jossy's Giants FC is now under new management!
Our thanks to the 'old guys' who have invested so much time and effort, hopefully we can continue taking the club forwards. The new managerial structure is as follows:
Mike Douglas - Chairman
Andy Furness - Club Secretary
Ian Rees - Treasurer
There will be a few changes to match and signing-on fees to cover increased admin expenses, all of which will be detailed in the coming weeks. We have new players joining the club this season who should improve our squad from last year, and three pre-season friendlies to blend the team will be arranged for August/September. We will be sorting out signing-on and end of season voting forms shortly...
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Sunday April 6th
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* JOSSY'S GIANTS 2 - 3 GRANLEY ROVERS *
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The curtain came down on our 2007/08 season on a cold and snowy April morning in Chandlers Ford. Spirits were high before the match... even Ting managed to arrive in plenty of time for kick off! Unfortunately though the pre-match optimism wasn't matched by a performance on the pitch, and our season ended in much the same fashion as it had begun. We soon found ourselves one down when the defence afforded Granley a little too much space, and
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Dan was beaten by a well placed strike from the edge of the box. A measured lob from Ian Stevenson restored parity almost immediately though, and this led to our best spell of the match as we moved the ball around well, albeit without creating any clear cut chances. At half-time we felt we were in a fairly good position, but were unable to raise our game in the second half and saw Granley ease into a two goal lead. It could have been worse were it not for Dan's fingertips pushing the ball onto the crossbar from a well struck shot. At the other end our only chances of note saw a snapshot from Jamie go just wide with the keeper out of position, and Will foiled by the keeper in a one-on-one. Desperate not to end the season in defeat we pressed forward in search of goals, but it wasn't until two minutes from time that a superb run and cross from Jamie was coolly headed home by Mike. Time was against us now however, and there was to be no dramatic comeback on this occasion. So the season ends in disappointment, and we must now wait before our eventual fate is known - both in terms of relegation threat and the future of the club in general...
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Sunday March 30th
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* JOSSY'S GIANTS 1 - 5 EXCHANGE *
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Another disappointing display saw us succumb to FC Exchange for the second time in eight days as they eased to a 5-1 victory. We started brightly though and actually took the lead early on. A promising through ball from Rich Maiden released Will, but the onrushing keeper just got there first. However, he somehow managed to completely miss his clearance, leaving Will to roll the ball into an empty net from just outside the box. The game soon
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turned on its head though, as two clever through balls left the defence flat footed and smart finishes gave Exchange the lead going into half time. We were indebted to Ian for a good save, but it could also have been very different had Mike's volley following some great build up play by Will and Rich not been deflected wide. The second half was more one-sided as Exchange took control with the slope in their favour, and we struggled to find any rhythm to our play. Half chances were all we could muster, whilst some poor marking and indecision at the back led to three more Exchange goals to kill the game off. Ian made a couple of good saves to keep the score down, but overall the game had a bit of an 'end of season' feeling to it, and we know we must step up our performance if we're to finish the campaign with a victory against Granley Rovers next weekend.
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Sunday March 23rd
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* EXCHANGE 5 - 2 JOSSY'S GIANTS *
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A sloppy first half performance saw us throw away any chance we had of taking three points from this game and left us with a mountain to climb. In fact, had it not been for some good saves from Dan we could have been even worse off than 3-0 down by the interval, as the outfield players struggled to find any momentum or cohesion. One bright spot was a shot from Ian Rees, which unfortunately summed up the display as it was blocked by
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one of our own players! The second half showed an improvement as we managed to get the ball down and looked to pass it around. A spectacular long range strike from Dicko briefly gave us hope, before some more dallying at the back let in Exchange to restore their three-goal advantage. We refused to give in and kept pressing, to be rewarded when Jamie got on the end of a cross from the left to make it 4-2. Simmo had a header cleared off the line, but despite having the lion's share of possession we were unable to reduce the deficit further. Exchange added a fifth towards the end, which finally killed the game off. Revenge could immediately be at hand though, if this defeat can spur us on to better things in next week's rematch.
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Sunday March 9th
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* NEW CLOCK INN 1 - 2 JOSSY'S GIANTS *
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A hard fought win against one of our relegation rivals saw Jossys rise to the Wuthering Heights of sixth place. With three games to play, we should only now require four points for safety, although a maximum return could see us end up in third or fourth, meaning there really is everything to play for. With several big names missing, we welcomed back Dan in goal, Dave in midfield and started with an 'experimental' forward line of Jez and Will (making
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his 100th appearance) up front. The first half saw us largely dominate with Luke having a header cleared off the line and Dave and Gaz making some good runs down the wing. With Jez winning most of the balls in the air up front and Dicko doing likewise at the back, New Clock had to play on the ground where Ting and Rich cleared up. Watched by Mrs Huxford, we pressed on in search of a goal, only to fall one behind as Dan pushed a corner into our net under some pressure from Mr Wind. At half time we felt hard done by and renewed our efforts. Seeing more gaps, Luke and Ian started pushing further forward in support of our wide men and we began to force errors which, with a bit more composure, we could have punished and made the game safe. An equaliser came when Ting hoofed the ball forward only to see it deflect off a defender's knee past the hapless (and toothless) goalkeeper. Cue muted celebrations as nobody really knew who to congratulate. New Clock's heads went down immediately and we thoroughly dominated from thereon in. With our back four looking increasingly confident and Rich and Jamie controlling midfield, Luke told Dicko to "f*** off forward". Doing so enabled him to finish off one of our best passing moves, starting with Dan and going through Luke, the midfield, and ending up with Dave squaring to Dicko, whose shot (in true Frank Lampard style) deflected wildly off a defender and spun just inside the far post. It was to prove decisive, as we held on for a vital 2-1 win which, in truth, was no more than we deserved having largely dominated the game from start to finish.
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Sunday February 24th
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* JOSSY'S GIANTS 2 - 2 HARESTOCK HARRIERS *
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An excellent collective performance saw us twice take the lead against Harestock, only to ultimately have to settle for a share of the points. We started slowly, but always looked threatening on the break and it was from such a break that Ian managed to beat two players on the by-line before somehow slotting past the keeper at his near post. We then rode our luck as a couple of chances went just over the bar, before Simmo saw a shot go wide
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at the other end. Harestock restored parity though, when a borderline offside decision combined with a scuffed finish left Ian with no chance. We were also indebted to Rich Maiden who later covered well to clear off the line. Just before the break we took the lead again when Jamie's though ball released Will, whose almost perfect lob came agonisingly back off the bar. Luckily Ian was on hand and showed composure to slot away his second goal. After the interval we took the upper hand and created a number of chances early on, with Mike having a volley saved and several shots from distance missing the target. We were then dealt a blow however as Harestock equalised on the break after a shot came back off the post and fell kindly for their striker. From then on we pressed forward, trying to regain the lead for a third time, but to no avail. Ian twice had chances to complete his hat-trick whilst Simmo and Jamie both saw efforts saved. Harestock had their moments too but Ian saved smartly when called upon, and was well protected throughout by Ting and Alsy. In the end neither side could find a winning goal, and a draw was probably a fair result on balance.
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Sunday February 10th
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* JOSSY'S GIANTS 0 - 6 TWYFORD ROVERS *
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A battling performance saw us lose against a technically superior Twyford side, but a series of mistakes saw the scoreline inflated and possibly flattered Twyford slightly. Our effort could not be faulted and the fact that our best chance came from almost the last kick of the match showed how hard we worked throughout the game. In fact, in the first half we matched Twyford for long periods and had half chances to take the lead and then to fight back after we had fallen |  | |
behind. Unfortunately we were unable to take any of these chances and saw the lead gradually extended as individual errors proved costly.
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Sunday February 3rd
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* ACCUTEK 1 - 4 JOSSY'S GIANTS *
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A superb win on the "wild and windy moors" at The Worthies saw us register three points against the League leaders, who hadn't lost a match all season. From the start it was clear that Accutek's ability to pass the ball in tight spaces would be compromised by the state of the pitch, and we capitalised on this within ten minutes with a wonderful strike by Simmo from Andy's through ball. Ian supported Simmo superbly throughout, and between them
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they gave Accutek's defenders a seeing to, allowing them no time on the ball throughout the first half. Twenty minutes into the game and Simmo's second saw him gather the ball near the halfway line before beating two defenders for pace, driving into the box from the byline, drawing the goalkeeper out and slotting it calmly inside the near post. Very rarely using the wings, Accutek continued to play into our hands and going in 2-0 up at half time, Dicko memorably said "lads, just two words to say to you all... remember Winchester Irish!". Although somewhat numerically inaccurate, everyone knew what he meant and re-focussed their efforts on keeping it tight for the second half. Accutek changed tack after the interval and began to play a little more direct but, as with the first half, our defence snuffed out any aerial threat whilst the midfield closed down, fed off scraps and drove us forward. With Reevesy and Rich providing options on the break we always looked likely to score again, and when Ian Stevenson lashed home with only the goalie to beat from 25 yards, Accutek looked a beaten and resigned side, especially when Reevesy cleared off the line. Ian has now scored as many goals as Al Huxford, many of them better. As the game wore on, we continued to disrupt Accutek and more good work from Andy released Jamie on the right who ran at their defenders before finishing coolly past the keeper. A late flurry from Accutek saw them inside our penalty area to pull one back with a scrappy goal which denied our superb defence a clean sheet which, along with Ian in goal, they richly deserved. However, we were very 'worthy' winners and this victory sees us scale the dizzy heights of fourth place!
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Sunday January 27th
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* HARESTOCK HARRIERS 3 - 1 JOSSY'S GIANTS *
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A disappointing first half performance eventually proved to be our downfall against a skilful Harestock side. We had the best of the early exchanges, competing well initially and looking dangerous going forward, although our defence was also stretched at times. However we failed to find a breakthrough and this was to cost us dearly as a couple of careless defensive moments saw us fall two behind. First Ian was unable to hold a long range free-kick, and
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from the resulting scramble Harestock managed to stab the ball in. Further penalty area indecision led to a second goal, as we paid the price for failing to react and clear our lines. We had chances to pull a goal back before the break, with Rich Maiden and Will both seeing efforts go close, but came off the pitch disappointed. The second half was much better and we managed to pile on the pressure in the opening twenty minutes or so. We pulled one back early on thanks to Rich's long range lob over a stranded keeper, after Will had pressured him into a hurried clearance. For all our possession, we struggled to create any clear cut openings, but put up a much better showing than we had in the first half. We had to ride our luck on occasions, but with the game hung in the balance we were hit by a sucker punch as Harestock broke through the offside trap to score and effectively kill the game off as a contest. Some positives to take from the game, but also lessons to be learnt about competing for the full ninety minutes if we are to secure more precious points between now and the end of the season.
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Sunday January 20th
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* JOSSY'S GIANTS 3 - 2 WINCHESTER IRISH *
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An excellent team effort saw us take three vital points from our re-match with Winchester Irish (at full strength this time) to put the disappointment of our last meeting behind us. The first half started slowly and we had to deal with a few difficult moments at the back, in particular from some dangerous long throws, but we managed to hold firm and then took the lead as Mike controlled the ball on his chest and acrobatically hooked it past the keeper.
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Clearly fatherhood agrees with him, but where was the now almost obligatory 'baby rocking' celebration?!? One soon became two, this time with a rare Dicko goal after his header from a corner gave the opposition no chance. Half-time came and we were left to reflect on the fact that we had been in the same position two weeks previously, but had contrived to let it slip away. We were determined not to suffer a repeat this time around. Our task was made considerably easier early in the second half, as some great work from Ian Stevenson in midfield released Jamie, who timed his run perfectly and finished with ease. From then on we stuck doggedly to our task, but had Ian Rees to thank for a number of excellent saves to keep Irish at bay. With a few minutes remaining a through ball somehow managed to evade everyone in the box allowing the opposition to reduce the deficit. And within seconds of this it was game well and truly on again as a long clearance got caught in the wind and sailed over Ian's head. Fortunately we were able to hold firm until the final whistle, and can now begin to look up the table instead of down.
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Sunday January 6th
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* WINCHESTER IRISH 4 - 4 JOSSY'S GIANTS *
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Against a ten-man Winchester Irish we twice squandered a two goal lead to eventually draw 4-4 in a frustrating start to the New Year. Having started the game well, we quickly found ourselves two goals up. Ian Stevenson beat the offside trap to slot home coolly, then Rich Maiden drove the ball into the corner after Jamie's shot had been blocked. Before half time however, a loss of concentration at the back led to Irish scoring twice in quick
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succession to level the scores. Ian made a fine save after an Irish attacker ghosted through our defence, but was unable to prevent the rebound from being tucked away. Then a lapse in marking led to a cross from the left being converted with ease. There was one further scare when Will cleared from the goal line with Ian beaten, but we held on to go in 2-2 at half time. The second half followed an identical pattern as we again took the initiative and regained our two goal advantage. Jamie's sweetly struck effort from the edge of the box was perfectly placed to give us the lead, which Ian soon increased courtesy of another neat finish from a one-on-one with the keeper. Alsy saw a couple of decent efforts just miss the post, but despite this pressure we were unable to add to our tally. As we tired, Irish grabbed themselves a lifeline when an inch-perfect cross from the right was headed home, but worse was to come. Gibbo slid in from behind as their striker broke into the area, leaving the ref with no option but to point to the spot. Ian had no chance with the penalty which levelled the scores at 4-4. We pushed for a winner but failed to carve open any clear opportunities, and left the field ruing what might have been.
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Sunday December 16th
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* WINCHESTER TRIDENT 1 - 3 JOSSY'S GIANTS *
An excellent team effort coupled with some well taken goals saw us head into the festive break with a much needed victory. Right from the start we were dominant and it was only a matter of time before we converted our superiority into goals. Firstly Dicko and Gaz combined to release Simmo down the left, who did well to keep the ball in play before cutting inside and beating the keeper at his near post. Minutes later a superb break down the right by Mike saw the ball eventually arrive at Andy's feet in the area, and he finished coolly past the keeper. It was soon three as Mike fed Gaz down the left, whose cross was controlled well and hit home by Ian Stevenson. It could (and possibly should) have been more as Mike, Simmo and Ian all had good chances to increase the lead, and Dicko and Luke saw efforts narrowly miss the target. The second half was more of a struggle as our lack of match practice in recent weeks began to tell. We still carved out chances but had to rely more on a strong defence as Trident threw everything they had at us. We held firm until the last quarter of an hour when a few minutes of madness ensued. Firstly a long ball over the top caught the otherwise excellent back four unawares, and following a scramble in the area Ian Rees was adjudged to have tripped the opposing striker. The resulting penalty was duly converted by Trident to give them a lifeline. Then Gibbo was involved in a scuffle and, having raised his arms and pushed an opponent, left the ref with no option but to show him the red card. These obstacles were overcome however, and we saw out the remainder of the game without further alarm to send us into 2008 in a positive frame of mind.
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Sunday November 25th
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* JOSSY'S GIANTS 1 - 7 TWYFORD ROVERS *
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A shambolic pre-match preparation and first half performance against league leaders Twyford Rovers saw our cup endeavours for 2007/08 ended for good. Not for the first time this season, we failed to turn up for the opening forty-five minutes, and could have no complaints at going into the interval 6-1 down. Two of Twyford's goals came from near-unstoppable shots from thirty yards, but the others were largely down to our own defensive
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frailties, inability to track back, and individual errors. At 3-0 down we were given a lifeline which we probably didn't deserve, as their captain sliced a clearance spectacularly into the top corner of his own net from twenty-five yards. But we failed to take advantage of this, and fell further behind. A few frank words were exchanged at half time, and the second half saw a much-improved level of commitment and attitude as we held our own for the remainder of the game. Andy and Ian Stevenson both had chances to reduce the deficit, whilst a couple of smart saves from substitute keeper Dan kept Twyford out at the other end. In fact only a scrappy goal from a corner late in the game added to their lead, and in the end we were at least able to leave the field with a few positives to take into next week's game.
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Sunday November 11th
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* JOSSY'S GIANTS 2 - 0 LITTLETON CC *
At the ninth time of asking, we finally recorded our first win of the campaign with a determined showing against Littleton CC. Buoyed by an improved performance last weekend, we started brightly and had the better of the first half. Slick passing and controlled play saw us create a number of half chances, but we were unable to find the net due to a combination of bad luck and a tendency to over elaborate certain situations. The closest we came to breaking the deadlock saw an effort from Jamie hit the top of the bar, while at the other end we were grateful for a smart stop from Dan to keep the scores level. As the match progressed we began to dominate but struggled to maintain our composure in front of goal as chances eluded us. A two-goal burst in five minutes however effectively ended the match as a contest and gave us some welcome breathing space for the remainder of the game. Firstly a cross-field ball from the left found Reevesy who took the ball down the flank before centering for Jamie to finish. Rich Maiden soon made it two, converting a free-kick after Will had been fouled on the edge of the box. The final whistle brought a mixture of relief and celebration, and we now feel that our season is finally up and running...
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Sunday November 4th
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* GRANLEY ROVERS 0 - 0 JOSSY'S GIANTS *
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Sunday October 28th
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* JOSSY'S GIANTS 2 - 4 EXCHANGE *
Another disappointing defeat saw our defence of the North Hants Cup fall at the first hurdle. Fifteen poor minutes in the first half were enough to gift the Exchange a 3-0 advantage which left us with too great a deficit to overcome. Even more frustrating was the fact that all three goals came from our own mistakes rather than incisive play from the opposition. It could have been a different story had we been able to take a number of half chances. Reevesy created an opening for himself when he brought down Luke's diagonal pass, flicked it past a defender and then fired just wide. Rich Maiden, Ian and Reevesy all saw crosses flash across the area without getting the necessary contact. Then a great long range effort from Ting just before half-time went in off the post, sending us into the break with renewed optimism. Unfortunately our hopes were dealt a huge blow early in the second half as replacement keeper Ian was beaten following a slick move. From that point on we dominated possession but were unable to convert this into chances. Reevesy's shot from distance which flew over the keeper was all we had to show for our efforts, although there were blocked shots aplenty and a couple of efforts from distance that on another day could have gone our way. So a disappointing cup story this time around after last season’s unrivalled success, but at least we could be pleased with the majority of this performance compared to those of recent weeks...
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Sunday October 14th
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* JOSSY'S GIANTS 2 - 3 NEW CLOCK INN *
Another disappointing performance saw us fail to register our first points of the season against New Clock Inn. We started the game brightly though, and took the lead midway through the first half when the ball broke for Gaz in the area to cross for Reevesy to fire home. However, we then pressed the self-destruct button and handed the advantage to the opposition. An equaliser came via the penalty spot after Dicko was adjudged to have handled in the box, and from here the same problems of recent weeks came back to haunt us. Poor passing and control throughout the team led to sloppy mistakes and presented New Clock with chances to open up a 3-1 lead going into the interval. The second half saw an improvement, and had we been able to take our chances we may well have emerged with something to show for our efforts. With our opponents restricted to half-chances on the break, we were able to fashion a number of opportunities for ourselves. Dan Gallant saw an effort clip the bar from thirty yards, Jamie's half chance went over, Reevesy saw a cross-shot spilled by the keeper and scrambled away, Alsy rushed a shot wide following a mistake from the keeper and then saw a penalty go the wrong side of the post. Still we kept pressing, and were eventually rewarded when Alsy managed to hold off a defender and squeeze the ball home to pull one back. We were still pressing for an equaliser when the final whistle blew, but once again, it was not to be.
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Sunday October 7th
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* TWYFORD ROVERS 7 - 2 JOSSY'S GIANTS *
A welcome break from the League failed to bring a change in our fortunes, as a disappointing result against a strong Twyford side saw us eliminated from the Hampshire Intermediate Cup at the first hurdle. We knew we would have to start well to stand a chance against the current league leaders, but soon found ourselves two goals down after a strike from distance and a free header from a corner. A third for Twyford followed, again from distance, before we grabbed ourselves a lifeline. Ian Stevenson, on as an early injury replacement for Mike, got on the end of a flick-on and managed to squeeze the ball past the Twyford keeper. Unfortunately we conceded a fourth before half-time, which effectively ended the match as a contest. The second half saw an improvement and we gave ourselves a fighting chance when Alsy finished well after a good ball from Dicko. Three more goals for Twyford however cemented their victory, although we were at least able to put in a better showing and create a few half chances. Our commitment and effort could not be faulted, but we know we now need to cut out the sloppy mistakes and start making better decisions if we are to return to winning ways.
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Sunday September 30th
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* JOSSY'S GIANTS 3 - 4 WINCHESTER TRIDENT *
A poor second half performance which culminated in a freak winner at the death cost us what could, and probably should, have been our first victory of the season. We left the pitch ruing a number of mistakes and a lack of composure that spread across most of the team and ultimately cost us the match. It had all looked so different at half-time when we went in leading 2-0. Simmo caused a number of problems up front as the opposition failed to deal with the direct ball, and although we rode our luck at times, we were reasonably happy with a two goal advantage. The first came courtesy of Alsy from the penalty spot after the keeper had brought down Mike. The second was slotted home by Gaz following a good move and then a cross-shot from Reevesy. From here though, the second half started badly and got slowly worse. Trident soon pulled one back as Dan came out of his area and failed to reach the ball in time, allowing the opposing striker to finish comfortably. One then became two as a sloppy throw presented an opportunity which was taken with aplomb and left Dan with no chance. The decline continued as Trident took the lead, but not before Dan had atoned for his earlier mistake by making three top class saves. We then managed to get ourselves back into the game as a foul on Simmo gave Alsy the chance to equalise from the spot. He duly obliged with a second well taken penalty. Unfortunately as time ran out the ball fell to Trident more than thirty yards from goal, and an unstoppable strike past Dan gave them all three points. Lessons must be learnt quickly if we are to stop the rot and turn things around.
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Sunday September 23rd
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* JOSSY'S GIANTS 0 - 1 ACCUTEK *
A terrific effort by a ten man starting outfit saw us come up just short against Accutek. We battled from the off and managed to frustrate the opposition, but with luck well and truly against us, injuries to Jamie (early in the match) and Ian later on saw us effectively finish the game with eight fit men. However, it was not until the final minutes that Accutek finally breached our brave rearguard action to steal a winning goal. If we can continue with this level of effort and commitment then things should start looking more positive soon.
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Sunday September 16th
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* TWYFORD ROVERS 2 - 0 JOSSY'S GIANTS *
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A patched up Jossy's side made the trip to Twyford desperate to improve on last week's poor showing. With plenty of enforced changes and three debutants called upon, we actually produced a much improved performance, showing application and desire that was lacking last week. Twyford however look very strong this season, and may well be early favourites for the League. Having fallen behind after just a few minutes following a header from a
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corner it would have been easy to let our heads drop, but we showed commitment throughout and managed to keep ourselves in the game. Twyford looked threatening but Ian showed a good command of his area to thwart a number of attacks, and when we got the ball down and began to play we caused a few problems and created the occasional half chance. Gaz, Will and Rich all had opportunities to equalise, with Jamie coming closest when his shot struck the post. As it was we went into the interval a goal down, but not disheartened. The second half saw more of the same – conceding early and then battling hard to keep ourselves in with a fighting chance. As legs tired and the game became more open Twyford had further chances, but we were able to dig deep and prevent any further score. A somewhat harsh second yellow card reduced our opposition to ten men, but we were unable to capitalise on this and never really threatened their goal in the second half. An encouraging if ultimately rewardless performance, which should give us increased optimism for the coming weeks and the remainder of the season.
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Sunday September 9th
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* LITTLETON CC 4 - 1 JOSSY'S GIANTS *
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After an encouraging pre-season friendly last weekend, our league season got off to an awful start following a below par performance against a determined Littleton side. It all looked rosy early on as we started reasonably well and actually took the lead, with Alsy converting a spot kick after he himself was brought down in the box. It was level at half time however, after a long ball from the back found its way through to a Littleton striker who finished
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calmly. The end result could have been different had a header from Mike found its way over the line instead of finding the defender on the post, or Alsy's left wing centre found a target in the box, but shortly after this we found ourselves behind as a move down their left culminated in a far post finish past Dan. Two more well executed goals quickly followed as we were unable to find any fluency and lapses in concentration served to cost us dear. A much improved performance will be required in a tough encounter against Twyford Rovers next week...
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Sunday September 2nd
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* ACCUTEK 3 - 4 JOSSY'S GIANTS *
A much needed pre-season friendly saw us put in a strong performance against Accutek. We welcomed Simmo back into the Jossys fold, and with Jamie on the bench, Dicko and Rich in centre midfield and Gibbo at centre half, we had an air of unfamiliarity and ring-rustiness about us. After a long summer break and sporadic attendance at training sessions, this was a chance to banish those cobwebs and get some minutes behind us before the new season. We started brightly and took the lead following a controlled finished from Alsy as he ran onto a through ball. Rich Maiden then added a second from forty yards (apparently) into the top corner. Pulling more strings from midfield, Rich's flighted through ball was brought down by Gaz before he finished coolly. Mike then added to the lead with a chipped finish following good work from Dicko and Rich. Accutek pulled a couple back before the break but overall we could be satisfied with our efforts. The second half saw less invention and more hard work as the lack of match fitness combined with the heat took its toll. However, we battled hard and created chances, most notably for Mike and Alsy. We had to ride our luck at the other end, with one effort cleared off the line by Martin (and straight back into sub goalie Ian's hands!) and another bouncing back off the bar. A special mention must go to the defenders who put in an outstanding effort, superbly marshalled by Simmo, throughout the ninety minutes. Overall, this was a very useful exercise that gives us a great deal of hope going into the new campaign, particularly with three players still to come back into the fold.
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