Around the Grounds
Round 10 saw the Winter Winds come in early and it was a chilly morning around the grounds for the first round back after the holiday break for the NAIDOC week round. A few cobwebs were blown out and some great team play saw a number wins down at the Grovely Sports Grounds!
U7 Lions
We were met with a chilly wind for our match against Samford Rangers Glory on Saturday morning in Samford, but it was great to be back on the pitch!
It was a really competitive game, with the ball moving up and down the field, both teams intercepting passes, taking shots for goal and defending the goals. It was a very exciting game, with the team working so well with each other.
Our extra training over the holidays definitely paid off. Victor and Xander did a great job reading the play, Ethan’s kicking was strong and direct, and Clara, Bob and Byron moved well with the play, looking for opportunities to get to the ball.
We had our second win for the season, 3-1 with Victor, Byron and Xander as our goal scorers on the day.
Player of the Day Awards this week went to Byron and Bob, who did not stop running all match, continually going for the ball. Well done Lions!
U8 Goannas
After a well-deserved break, the Goannas reunited to kick off the second half of Season 24 against The Gap Liverpool. Our lads were pleased to be back in their happy place and came out firing on all cylinders under the guidance of coach Joe. Playing on a smaller field worked in our favour as we had only one sub, resulting in a fair and even distribution of playing time. We went into the break nil all but claimed two points quickly after returning to play. Eckard scored a tricky goal that rebounded off the goalposts in his favour, and an own goal resulted in a 2 – 0 victory to the Goannas! The lads played a consistently good game, and with the support of coach Joe, they held their positions, defending, passing, and playing brilliantly as a team. Players of the match were awarded to Charlie, Liam, Toby, and Felix. Well done, Goannas!
U8 Chameleons
The game today was a rematch against the Bardon Roar. With a previous loss, no subs, and not being able to practice this week we didn’t know what to expect. However, the Chameleons shined on the field making it such an amazing game to watch. The team used space well, found the benefit of the closest person being the first to the ball, and looked for every opportunity to move the ball forward. Goalies Angelica, Isabela, and Freya had good positioning and courage as they stopped a few good shots. On the field the team took a few touches before making some great passes and created some goal scoring opportunities.
Elijah started the game with the first goal and Bardon responded with a goal of their own. Elijah put another ball in the back of the net just before halftime. In the second half, Elijah scored another to make the hat trick and to secure the lead. With great follow up and follow through, Isabela scored. Bardon got two additional goals, which left the final score 4-3 Chameleons.
Elijah earned himself player of the match with his goal scoring skills, solid defending, ability to dribble through defenders, and create opportunities near the goal.
Warren also earned player of the match for his quick movements on defense, his ability to turn the ball around, and his skill in gaining good possession to move the ball forward.
It was such an exciting game to watch! Well done Chameleons!!
U9 Bees
The first game back after the holidays saw the Bees play Toowong at home and they launched back into it with gusto. Parker was in goal for the first half and the Bees dominated possession for much of the half. Aureus earned his first goal of the season as he slid the ball past the Toowong keeper as the Bees opened the goal scoring for the match. Toowong managed to level the game with a goal shortly after though the Bees continued to apply pressure in their attacking third. A shot from Oskar just missed before Tommy’s attempt at goal just hit the crossbar. Tight defence from Austin and Henry saw the resulting goal kick return the ball to the Bees possession and some excellent passing by Austin and Guénhaël to get the ball into Tommy resulted in Tommy’s first goal, before he followed it up with a second shortly after. The Bees headed into half-time 3-1 up.
Some nifty play by Toowong resulted in their second goal of the match early on. The Bees responded with a goal from Guénhaël flying into the top corner. Henry, having taken the purple jersey for the second half, then made a solid save with a shot on target from a Toowong corner and the momentum continued in the Bees’ favour. Another shot by Tommy bounced off the post and the Bees continued to threaten for another ten minutes with Theo and Adam getting the ball efficiently through the midfield and tirelessly chasing down passes in defence. Guénhaël looked on track to score again before his shot going just over the crossbar before Parker’s clinical shot shortly after got past the keeper for the Bees’ fifth goal. Before the final whistle blew, Adam’s cross to Parker in front of goal set Parker up for his second goal in probably as many minutes.
The boys showed wonderful teamwork, increasingly seeking out opportunities to pass onto their teammates, and are continuing to develop their sense of space on the pitch. It was a well-deserved 6-2 win to the Bees.
U10 Falcons
First match of the second leg and the boys were keen for revenge on the UQ Angel’s who convincingly beat them in the first match of the season. UQ were a little short (down to 8 players) and the Falcons graciously went down to 8 for a fair match (cause that’s the sort of kids they are).
We played fair, holding our own to quite a pushy side but not to be out muscled. Some beautiful side runs, crossing into the centre and great supporting play saw us start to put the goals away. A brilliant strike from afar from Elijah was one. A daring dash and quick thinking saw Ned score another. Leo on a great run saw 3 and Harper, making it a regular thing got another on his belt.
A clean sheet for Woody in goal in the 1st half, another clean sheet for Ellis in the second saw us 4-0. Not to mention our solid defence the whole match.
Great job Falcons!
U10 Vultures
The U10 Vultures put in a valiant effort today with a home game against Toowong Black, narrowly losing 1-2 in a match that came right down to the wire.
Harry scored a fantastic goal, shooting from up front to put us on the board. We had several other close chances but couldn’t quite convert them. A last-minute goal from Toowong Black was a superb shot to the top right-hand corner, a difficult save for any goalkeeper.
Our defence was rock solid throughout the game. Jackson, Samuel, Sam, Leo, Billy, and James all put in excellent performances, making it tough for the opposition to break through. Samuel’s one-on-one defence and accurate passing were standout moments.
In goal, Ben’s first-half performance was commendable, with perfectly positioned goal kicks. Max took over in the second half and was phenomenal, stopping several attempts, including a penalty kick.
Jasper put in a lot of hard running through the middle, dealing with tough players to mark. Owen showed great determination, playing despite an injury.
A special mention goes to Harry and Max, who received the Coaches’ Awards this week for their fantastic contributions.
It’s worth noting that Toowong Black’s coach remarked on how hard-fought the game was, especially since they beat us 11-0 earlier in the season.
This demonstrates the significant improvement and effort from our team. Well done, everyone!
U11 Brumbies
The Brumbies turned up meaning business in the first game after the school holidays. They played with purpose in a highly-entertaining first half, where they conducted multiple raids against Taringa on their side of the field.
The Brumbies were a bit unlucky not to have scored after incursions from Emily (you couldn’t miss her with her striking bright blue braids!), Hannah, Sybella and more. Amber, Peyton, Nadia and Josie were solid in defence and midfield, clearing the ball and creating opportunities downfield. Everyone’s efforts, including a couple of saves from goalkeeper Quinn, meant the Brumbies were happy at the half-time break with scores nil-all.
In the second half, Taringa fought back and eventually scored. But the Brumbies kept on kicking. Risha kept peppering the defence with her footwork. Willow took a full-blooded shot that went just wide. The game moved up and down the field, but Taringa scored twice after some good passages of play. However, what was pleasing is that the Brumbies kept at it for the entire game and never gave up.
Congratulations to Abby and Maia who earned Players of the Match. They didn’t stop running around the park all game!
U12 Blazers
The Blazers faced off against The Gap on the weekend in a hard-fought match that ended with a score of 3-1 to The Gap.
The lone goal for the Blazers was scored by Chloe, who demonstrated her skills on the field with a well-timed strike, assisted by the ever-supportive Ema.
Player of the Day awards were handed out after the match. Lucy was recognized for her stellar performance as striker, contributing consistently to our attacking efforts. Piper received accolades for her outstanding defensive skills, which proved crucial in keeping the opposition at bay for much of the game. Chloe also received an award for her resilience and determination, as she battled through an injury towards the end of the game.
Despite the score, the Blazers displayed a never-give-up attitude throughout the match, continuing to push forward until the final whistle.
Special thanks to the Brumbies players for filling in during the match this week, contributing to the team’s effort and camaraderie.
U12 Warriors
After what feels like a looong break, the Warriors were back in action late this morning, away (across the burn) to local rivals the Mighty Mitchie.
As is the way, the team were facing a depleted squad midweek as Rhys, Benson and Eddie were found to be unavailable for selection due to their commitments with their international clubs at the Euro Finals. Fortunately, new Coach Kieran comes with friends in high places and used his influence to bribe/encourage English Jon, Eli and Big Jack to help out.
(The Warriors found themselves on the opposite side of today’s temporary trio and the rest of their U13 team during the holidays when they played a “friendly” instead of training. Despite our younger team suffering a 6-0 defeat, it was a good game and great experience for our boys to see what they will be up against next year. The extra maturity, skill and composure was evident and, in my eyes, is proof of the great job the coaches and Club do in shaping our boys.)
Meanwhile, back at the Mitchie home turf, Grovely were off to the races with a full team and a sub to boot.
It wasn’t long – 3 minutes in fact – and Eli shot one high into the home sides net to give our boys an early lead, a confidence boost and a safety net to allow them to settle down and play their own game.
With the wind in their faces and Connor between the sticks, the rhythm of the match seemed to find itself, and the beat was to the benefit of Westside. Charlie was commanding on the right and Jack made a couple of uncharacteristic but strong runs from defence on the left. But this left a bit of an opening down that side for Mitchie to advance and meant some extra work for Dash and Eamon – who were more than up for the job. Dash had a great shot that on any other day would’ve burst the net, but today was expertly pushed over the bar.
The second half saw the wind as an advantage and Eli grabbed a goal in the 1st minute. Also at the pointy end, Lennon was making runs on and off the ball and into the box, that eventually paid off when he scored goal # 3 for the away team.
Ring-ins Jack and Eli were instrumental in the flow and offensive play that the rest of the team were dialled into and ring-in Jack was also rewarded with a cracking goal for his efforts. Thank you for your hard work today boys.
Meantime, at the less glamorous end, Eamon was making sure the backline was rock solid and Sam was providing his usual unfaltering defensive support on the right – at times under a magnitude of physical pressure that we haven’t seen much of so far.
Giving as good as he got in the middle was Remi as he won tackles and offloaded for Lennon and Eli to run onto.
Talking of Lennon, a kid who in my opinion was born the be a striker. His natural ability is unquestionable. He’s nimble, but strong on the ball and his quick feet enable him to create space when he needs it. On top of all this he knows exactly where he needs to be to give him the best scoring “opperchanceties”- definitely a crowd pleaser and a player to watch for the future. Congratulations on another MotM today.
Mitchie were still trying though and broke through a few times, but Connor was on the dance floor and was communicating tremendously with his team mates to keep the green machine at bay. Then, with around 5 minutes to go, the home team managed a consolatory goal, but it meant nothing; and I think all observers would agree that they were beaten fairly by a more skilful and agile team.
Great job by our boys, the coaches and the “far travelled” fans who made the journey across the burn.
See you on the sideline.
