Reminder – in accordance with FA rules we do not publish the results of teams participating in U7 to U11 games. We celebrate effort, teamwork and participation in the younger teams.
Lions (U16) sponsored by Makewell
Lions U16’s took 2 strong teams to the MK Wanderers tournament and had hopes of having both teams in a plate and cup final. There were some strong teams all bar 1 representing divisions and leagues higher than our league position at the end of the season and it was clear from the early games that this was going to be a tournament of few goals so we knew we were relying on a strong defensive display and try to nick a goal here and there.
Both teams competed well and were hard today beat with Archie and Lukas the 2 keepers both having an excellent tournament. Upfront it was proving tricky but we did get a couple with Eoin and Chris getting on the score sheet. When all the games were complete and the dust settled we had one team in the Cup and the other in the Plate. Was the dream really on?
The plate semi final game was a cagey affair and late on the deadlock was broken as Josh and Chris combined to score a lovely goal to put us in the plate final.
The cup semi final was another solid defensive display against a Luton team from the JPL prem with Aidan, Cornelius and Lukas doing a great impression of a brick wall, as the game was closing keeper Lukas got a dubious yellow so he would be suspended from the final if we got there…final score 0-0 and on to the dreaded penalty shootout. Lukas was the hero of the moment saving 3 and putting us into the cup final.
The plate final pitted us against a strong Wanderers side and we knew we would again have to defend well and the boys didn’t disappoint with Archie making a fantastic save in the last minute to take the game to pens. Unfortunately we just ran out of steam and luck and Wanderers took the Plate home.
Onto the cup final again against MK Wanderers and it couldn’t have started worse for City as we went 1-0 down in the first minute. We went all out attack and dominated the game for large parts and about half way through Trivon headed home a cross from Harvey 1-1 and game on. We pressed and were unlucky not to win it late on as Theo danced through only to be tackled as he was about to shoot.
Pens again and without our first choice keeper Cornelius stepped up and took the gloves. City penalties were on point and Corny was unbeatable in goal saving 3 in a row then upstepped Corny to smash home his penalty and send the lions support and the boys into raptures.
Great day had by all and special shout-out to Wanderers for putting on a cracking tournament and the 2 referees that were allocated to our group, both were excellent.
Jaguars (U12)
The Jaguars played their second pre-season game at U13, 11 a-side this morning in completely different weather than the rest of the week has been.
We invited Winslow Tigers, who finished 6th in our league last season. Last year, they beat us in both games we played.
The Jaguars also invited some of the girls from the promotion winning U13 team, so we were joined by Ava, Arabella and Grace. The girls fit in perfectly with the dynamics of the team and played really well, assisting the team to control the game. They are more than welcome to join us again in the future.
The Jags kicked off the game and from the start were on the front foot pushing straight into the oppositions half and that’s how it stayed for most of the first 35 minutes. With the pressure we were putting on, it didn’t take long for the break through, with Mazen bursting in the box and scoring our first goal in the bottom right corner, with 2 mins on the clock. This proved the impetus and confidence for the team to push on. With some great interchange play, Mazen was again found in the box on 5 minutes for his second goal of the game. That’s how the score line stayed for some time with the Jaguars just not being able to get the 3rd goal. There was an amazing shot from Grace from the right wing, that we saw cannon back out off of the post. The Jags kept pushing on and were winning numerous corners. IT wasn’t until the 30 minute mark that Mazen completed his hat trick!
All of the team by this point were buzzing, having never had more than a one goal lead before. 2 minutes later, Mazen again found himself with the ball getting himself his 4th goal of the game, but he wasn’t done there as after another 2 minutes, Mazen completed his scoring with his 5th goal of the game!! At this point as the manager, I was torn between letting the lads keep going and running riot or trying players in different positions.
When half time came , I made the decision to mix it up and place players in positions that they would not normally have played. Lots of position changes were made with two notable ones being with Mazen moving to center back and our usual right back, Ryan was moved to striker. Surprisingly, this didn’t halt the team and two minutes after kick off, Ryan found himself in the box with the ball amongst a mele of defenders, he swung at the ball and everyone on the team, not least Ryan himself, was shocked and amazed to see him score his first ever goal. Ryan wasn’t finished and amazing us as he got himself a second goal with a shot to the right side of the goal that was deflected off a defender and went into the bottom left corner. It was at that point, with the changes we had made and a fight back by Winslow that saw the Tigers get back into the game with 3 goals on 45, 50 and 52 minutes.
The game finished 7-3 with the Jaguars getting themselves their first ever win and it was much deserved. It will be well celebrated by all involved and hopefully will give the team a lot of confidence for the season ahead!
Jaspers (U9)
So Jaspers travelled to Shefford to play in their tournament. There were 7 teams and all the teams where good but Jaspers tried really hard and after all their hard work came 3rd place. This is amazing and yes we didn’t win it but the girls all did amazing as we where the newest team from the league.
I am so proud of all the girls and the coaches did amazing and the girls remembered what they had learnt in training and took all the training on to the pitch. The girls were all happy but unfortunately a few got a little upset but I made sure that all went away smiling as they played absolutely amazing and as already said the team is new.
All the girls recieved a medal as we could not choose as they all did great 🙂
