Matches – Page 6

AFC Cubo 2-0 Coulsdon Town

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Date: Saturday 3rd December, 2011

Starting Line-Up: Gaz Stewart, J-Pat, Sutton, Ben McG, Goughy, Joe Diamond, Northy, Bradders, Daunter, Every, Noble

Subs: Chris Gray, Eddy Jackson

Cubo entered this fixture on the back of a perfect November, and were looking to notch up their sixth win on the spin against a side who had given them a 3-0 tonking back in August. Despite looking like title contenders on that day Coulsdon have enjoyed mixed fortunes since, suffering 5 defeats in a row shortly afterwards which has left them languishing in mid table. However the previous week had seen them record an impressive 3-1 victory over table toppers Epsom Athletic in the Cup, the only defeat they have suffered so far this season. The absence of skipper Oli Watkins and Hung Nguyen meant that Joe Diamond came in at centre half, with Ben McGeown stepping in at sweeper to inject a much needed dash of style and panache to the Cubo backline. With last week’s two goal hero MTM out injured, club beefcake Andrew Noble made a first start since his injury and Chris Gray made it on to the bench.

In the pre-game chat the focus was on stopping the ball into the big Coulsdon no.10 and pressuring the Coulsdon backline when they were in possession. The first 20 minutes saw Cubo implement this very effectively with Noble, Daunter and Every doing a great job harrying the Coulsdon back four, who were being forced into rushed clearances, which often gave Cubo possession of the ball in their opponents half. At the other end Goughy was doing a great job on the no.10, preventing him from bringing any of the supporting runners from midfield into the game, whilst Joey D was ensuring the number 9 would have more impact with the stuff he was doing off the ball than anything he did with it. Despite having the better of the early exchanges Cubo were served a reminder of the danger of any lapses in concentration when Ben McG was caught out of position and a cross into the box was nodded down by the 10 before being volleyed high over the bar by his strike partner. A let off of sorts though, given his later heroics it would have had to be some strike to beat Gaz.

Cubo’s pressure was beginning to tell with only a superb block in the area preventing Northy from opening the scoring after a goalmouth scramble. Cubo’s ability to keep the ball in the danger zone finally payed off when great pressure from Every and Northy led to the blonde bombshell tackling his man in the box, sending the ball flying past the keeper to make it 1-0 Cubo. A well deserved lead for the boys in baby blue, who continued to look the side more likely to score with Goughy putting a header wide from a long throw. As the half time whistle approached Cubo’s hitherto solidity started to look a little fragile with the Coulsdon right backs ability to get forward causing them issues. As was the case last week, Cubo were given some practice defending corners and as with last week they stood up to the test, more impressive perhaps given Coulsdon’s aerial prowess.

The second half continued along much the same lines as the first with Cubo working hard to prevent their opponents from having any time on the ball, particularly in the middle of the park where Northy and Bradders were fighting a real battle of attrition against their opposing centre midfielders, and winning it. With Coulsdon pressing and Cubo increasingly sitting deeper in their own half, Coulsdon thought they had drawn level when a shot from the edge of the box appeared destined for the top corner, only to be palmed over the bar by Gaz. Fine save though that was he then made two even better ones. The first saw him diving low to his left to stop a header, and, with two strikers bearing down on him for the rebound, somehow getting a big enough hand to it to bat it over their heads to safety….or so he thought until Ben McG shanked his clearance back towards the goal. Managing to regain his feet and hurl himself across the grass he again got a big enough hand to the ball to push it away where it was cleared properly this time. A lucky escape for goal shy McGeown.

Having seen a combination of skill and luck keep them in the lead at one end Cubo promptly went up the other end and took the game away from Coulsdon. Chris Gray had only recently come onto the pitch, making his first appearance in six weeks, when he picked up the ball and released Noble who beat the offside trap and lobbed the keeper to make it 2-0 Cubo. With Coulsdon bringing on another striker it was backs to the wall stuff for the home side who were forced into a couple of goal line clearances, most notably when Joey D put in a ‘For the Cameras’ diving header to put a goalbound (was it really Joe??) effort wide. At the other end gaps were emerging and Cubo really should have added a third given the space available, though they were let down by some poor decision making.

A great win for the Baby Blue Army, making amends for the heavy defeat they suffered early in the season. Coulsdon are a strong side who will no doubt be in the shake up at the end of the season. Credit must go to an excellent defensive performance from all involved, the front men showed excellent work rate to pressure the Coulsdon backline, the midfield may only have passed to each other once all game but ensured that they kept their opposite numbers quiet, whilst Joey D and Goughy were uncompromising at the back.

Final Score: AFC Cubo 2 Coulsdon Town FC 0

Scorers: Northy, Noble

Man of the Match: Gaz Stewart – 3 superb saves at a crucial juncture of the game, ensuring Cubo could celebrate another 3 points.

Match Report: Benny Mac

AFC Sevenoaks 1-2 AFC Cubo 2nd XI

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Date: Saturday 3rd December, 2011, 1.15pm KO

Starting Line-Up: Sadler; Hooper, Lye, J. McGeown, Rushnall; Moody, Thethy (C), Burt, Hill; Griffith, Taylor.

Subs: Keegan, Palacio.

Back in 1836, Davy Crockett and his small group of heroes fought a battle for 5 days against the relentless onslaught thrown at them by an army 10x the size of his own. They stood firm and battled hard, but unfortunately after the 5 day skirmish the mêlée was lost, but boy oh boy didn’t they go down with a good fight. There were many parallels with this diminutive war and the game the 2’s found themselves in against AFC Sevenoaks, barring 2 obvious dissimilarities.

The game was not going to last 5 days
The main protagonist attacking Davy’s men wasn’t wearing a number 23 shirt who couldn’t hit a cow’s arse with an oversized banjo.

*there may be some massive factual inaccuracies in the above, as I know nothing about American military history.

Usually a flank offensive, Gatling gun wielding, Rob Sadler would be rallying the troops down the wings, but due to an injury from a previous battle he bit the bullet a took the number 1 shirt for the first time since impressive debut for our beloved baby blue battalion. Corporal Hooper stepped in at full back and looked like he had brawled there all year long.

Young sniper Jordan Griffiths stepped up from the cadets to form our strike force with our veteran of many blood baths Stevie T, and didn’t it work well! Comrade Moody mowed down their vulnerable left back and before you could say “tally ho chaps” Stevie T had fed a pass to Jordan, and kaboom… Cubo go 1-0 in the lead. This was well deserved and a sucker blow to AFC as they felt they were on top.

“oh my gosh bruv, we were all over em, innit” AFC Sevenoaks Captain and number 99

The oppo then re-grouped and forged a new offensive known as the school boy attack. Not as paedophilic as it sounds, but a move which entails a midfielder getting the ball, then everyone else running ahead of him, shouting as loud as they can to get the ball. This proved very affecting, and mixed with the long range punt from the back (aided by the wind and glaring sunlight) caused private Jez and McGowan many bouncy headaches down their right flank.

Sevenoaks found themselves within shooting range of our goal, and it was in the form of a free kick. Standing eye to eye with their assailant our mighty wall stood firm, and did just enough to make their rifleman hit a strike against the post.

All of a sudden there was a serious problem, Corporal Hooper found a sneaky marksman in a trench between himself and Sads and then there was a thunderbolt from the blue. A fierce strike, so sure and blistering that not even a real life superhero could save it – it soared into Rob Sadler’s top right hand side of the goal with true aplomb.

This is how it will stay in the history books, but if truth be told, a winger hit a lame effort mildly towards the goal and somehow it squirmed through our keepers legs.. but let’s not dwell on that.

Pete Hill was doing admiral work down the left wing, and on a number of different occasions caused their defence all manner of problems, and it was his free kick (or corner, I can’t remember—maybe it wasn’t even Pete.. (Hoops: I think it was Andy Burt) but hey ho) that set up a lovely attack with the ball slung over towards Corporal Hooper to side foot back across the 6 yard box to our Anzac battler Griffiths to convert at the back post.

As far as chances go, that was about it for the 2^nd Fusiliers of Cubo. Private Jez had a glorious chance from 40 yards out, but hit fresh air with his shot, Marine-Keegan also came on and struck the post, but really that was it..

Captain Salty and Field Marshal Burt did a sterling job in getting to grips with their midfielders but at times they were outnumbered and then the fight intensified. I could go into details of every single shot that they missed but it would just take too long.

Not only did their number 23 put the ball over the bar from 2 yards, but he skewed another 2 open goals horribly wide. He jinked into the box causing our defence many problem, but the only time Rob was brought into action he ended up getting a yellow card. The ball was outside the box, so he tried to shepherd the ball out, and failed, then he tried to bring it back in the box, and failed, so he fell on the ball outside of the box, gave away a free kick and got a yellow card. Many people would be upset at Rob, but due to the emotional distress he is going through at the minute (with the tragic loss of his brand new Cubo merch) I’m sure we can forgive him.

Their big number 99 also slammed Rob’s head against the post late on in the game, but he got up and threw himself right back into the battle. It wasn’t just their number 23 who missed many chances, at least every outfield player on their team seemed to miss an open goal.

When the final whistle blew and the battle was over it was Cubo who progressed into the semi- final of the London Cup. Where we will don our uniforms, strap on our bayonets and do battle again, for the next step is the final and the opportunity to become true warriors. Jordan Griffiths picked up the Victorian cross for his offensive efforts, and well deserved it was. This was our very own battle of the Alamo, but unlike Crockett we won – the sweet smell of victory is in the air, and we like it!

Final Score: AFC Sevenoaks 1-2 AFC Cubo 2nd XI

Goals: Griffith x2

Man of the Match: Griffith

Match Report: Steve Keegan

Oxted & District 2-5 AFC Cubo

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Date: Saturday 26th November, 2011

Starting Line-up: Neil Clark, Rob Sadler, Mark Sutton, Oli Watkins, Richard Gough, Hung Nguyen, Michael North, Ben McGeown, Paul Every, Michael Neal, Simon Daunter

Sub: Andrew Noble

Cubo’s tour of the lovely county that is Surrey continued with a trip out to leafy Oxted, where they were looking to extend their winning run to 5 games. With only one change to side that secured a hard-fought victory over Tooting Bec this was the most settled side Cubo have been able to name in many weeks. Despite this, Cubo were sloppy out of the blocks and it was the home side who took the early initiative winning a series of corners which kept Cubo penned in their own box. With the pressure building it was only a matter of time before Cubo paid the price for their slow start. Making a rare return to his own box to defend another Oxted corner, Daunter won a good challenge before his overly ambitious attempt to use his next touch to beat two men led to him hauling down the Oxted man for an obvious penalty. Instead of finding themselves (deservedly) a goal down, Cubo had penalty saving beast Neil Clark to thank for adding another save to his CV, throwing himself to his left and then snaffling the rebound as well.

The penalty was perhaps the shot in the arm that the Baby Blue Army needed as they immediately went up the other end and scored. The ball was sprayed out to Sutton on the left touchline whose cross into the infamous ‘corridor of uncertainty’ made its way all the way to the back post where MTM controlled well before firing past the keeper. 1-0 Cubo. A second was added shortly after when great pressure by Every saw him block the Oxted keepers clearance before squaring to Sutton, steaming in from the left, and he fired an excellent finish in at the near post. 2-0 Cubo.

From being on the ropes for a majority of the half Cubo found themselves two goals to the good and the confidence from this allowed the away side to finally start playing some football. However they couldn’t quite shake the early sloppiness and this was evident when they failed to clear their lines from a long clearance and the Oxted hooked a speculative volley from the edge of the box over the stranded Clarkie to make it 2-1. As with Cubo’s goals Oxted’s came in quick succession. A massive punt from the Oxted keeper sailed to the edge of the Cubo box where the big centre forward flicked a header over Clarkie who again was left stranded on his six yard line. 2-2.

In the space of a couple of minutes Cubo’s two goal cushion had been wiped out though encouragingly they had, in the same period, finally begun to play some football. The backline were moving the ball with increasing confidence, and providing Oxted headaches with their ability to build attacks for Cubo, no more so than when Goughy carried the ball 40 yards before seeing his pot shot fly over the bar. Cubo were rewarded for their efforts just before half time when Every picked the ball up on the edge of the box and fired in low off the post to give Cubo the lead going in at half time. 3-2 Cubo.

Emerging for the second half a goal to the good, knowing they had weathered a tough first 45 minutes clearly gave Cubo confidence as they began to look like the dominant side. A neat move down the right hand side saw MTM slip a pass in behind the Oxted defence and Every was hauled down by the Oxted keeper. Daunter stepped up and slotted away his penalty with trademark confidence. 4-2 Cubo. Oxted came back strongly but Clarkie was rarely forced into action with the big striker shackled well by Goughy. Cubo continued to look dangerous on the break with Sutton nearly adding to his tally if only he’d been able to keep his finish down. The game was finally killed off when Northy’s great strike from outside the box struck the post and fell to the ever predatory MTM who added his second of the day. 5-2 Cubo.

Final Score: Oxted & District 2-5 AFC Cubo

Goals: MTM 2, Sutton, Every, Daunter

Man of the Match: Daunter / Every

Another good win for Cubo which sees them rise to 3rd in the table, albeit having played quite a few more games than some of the sides around them. Strong displays by the front men complimented a defensive shape that is benefitting from consistent selection and the return of some important players all bode well for the season ahead.

Match Report: Benny Mac

AFC Cubo 2nd XI 0-3 Union FC

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Date: Saturday 26th November, 2011

Starting Line-Up: Stevie T, Jack, Darlington, A. Clark, Haddon, Hooper, Burt, Neil, Denno, Moody, O’Hara.

Sub: Pally (injured).

Football is a cruel mistress. After battling to a number of single goal victories at the start of the season, the 2nd XI are now finding life a little tougher. In fairness the side picked itself earlier in the campaign, but of late an injury epidemic has swept aside much of the resources and it’s been incredibly tough to scrape an XI, let alone a settled side.

Union arrived at Barn Elms bottom of the league and with the 2s confident of a victory, despite the reshuffled pack. Sadly for Cubo, Union (with hindsight) were able to field what was their strongest outfit of the season and they swept aside the hosts in convincing fashion.

Cubo could not be faulted for effort or application but, in truth, little went right for the Baby Blues. The deadlock was broken midway through the first half after a hopeful ball down the inside left channel was not dealt with, allowing the attacker to strike the ball across Stevie and into the far corner.

Hooper and Burt were struggling to get going in the centre of the park, and with Gaz and Trev both looking to come to the ball the Union defence were happy to push up the pitch and condense the space. This allowed the Union midfield to compete and use the ball better than their hosts.

The pick of the opposition was the number 7 who was very adept at dropping between the lines to create an extra man in midfield or pull one of the Cubo centre halves out of position. Although this didn’t necessarily contribute to any goals directly, it cause unrest and will be something Cubo need to deal with quickly in the return fixture.

With the home side struggling to both a) pass to a teammate and b) control the ball, clear cut chances were at a premium. However, with a 1 goal deficit things were still delicately poised. Sadly the killer blow game just before half time when Denno was robbed on the half way line and, quick as a flash, the Union player was able to spot the ‘keeper off his line and drill home a magnificent left footed effort from fully 50 yards.

Cubo switched Stevie into an advanced role in the second half with Luke taking the gloves. However despite Trev slotting into midfield and Andy trying to replicate his excellent set pieces from open play in a wide area, Union made it 3 when the striker rode a couple of challenges before side footing into the bottom right corner from just inside the box.

Cubo tried to reduce the arrears with Moody twice going close and Jack’s curler picking out the goalkeeper, but in reality it was one of those days.

Final Score: AFC Cubo 2nd XI 0-3 Union FC

Man of the Match: Vote abandoned!

A strong looking squad for Saturday’s London Cup assignment versus AFC Sevenoaks will be hopeful of getting back to winning ways. As the song goes: “Weeeeee are the Cubo….”

Match Report: Hoops

Merton Orient 1-2 AFC Cubo 3rd XI

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Date: Saturday 26th November, 2011

Starting Line-Up: Busy, Lye, Ingle, Nathan, Antonio, Turner (C), Lukas, Jeph, Hennerz, Field, May.

Sub: Smith

“I think a curse should rest on me — because I love this war. I know it’s smashing and shattering the lives of thousands every moment — and yet — I can’t help it — I enjoy every second of it.” – WINSTON CHURCHILL, 1916.

And so it was that on a blustery afternoon as far down the map as the Northern Line takes you both sides packed the central midfield, and knuckled down to it. Yes Merton and CUBO lined up like for like, both with three central midfielders a piece, two wide men and a big fella up-front. For Merton this was clearly the best way of arranging the talent they had at their disposal, for CUBO it was the only clear way of getting Captain Matt Turner into a midfield that already contained Lukas and Jeph.

Both sides started brightly, Merton visibly switched on and focussed from their extensive high energy pre-match warm up attacked the ball with vigour in the early stages but found the CUBO boys (similarly full of well conserved energy due to their total lack of pre-match warm up) to be just as solid and competitive.

And in the early stages this was how the game continued. The ball often bouncing up on the firm surface and taking off in the strong cross field wind was very difficult to control, both teams in periods gaining some possession and trying to create but being batted back by numbers and good work rate from the opposition.

When CUBO got their foot on the ball they did begin to look more and more dangerous, both Lukas and Jeph getting the ball down and bringing in Field and Neville on the flanks, who in turn were feeding passes into the increasingly dangerous looking Paul May up top.

This pressure eventually told when the second or third corner from CUBO in a matter of minutes was cleared to the edge of the box, and as the ball sat up Lukas showed impeccable technique, guiding a left foot volley into the bottom right hand corner of the net – 1-0 CUBO.

Merton fought hard to regain parity and fed more and more balls forward, but perhaps for the first time this season, the CUBO backline remained very solid dealing with every attack be it on the deck or in the air. The back four of Lye, Ingle, Nathan and Antonio kept a good shape, and with Turner in particular racing into every challenge with gusto just in front of them, this was perhaps the most solid the CUBO boys have looked all season.

“All warfare is based on deception” – Sun Tzu (Chinese philosopher)

And with 35 minutes on the clock a throw in from the right landed at the feet of Merton’s talented, Jimmy Bullard haired centre forward inside the box. As he tried to turn a tightly glued Nathan he hurled himself to the ground, and a penalty was given. I’ve seen them given, but then i’ve seen Matt Turner sleepwalk over to a living room chair and urinate on it until it’s drenched, then calmly climb onto it again and go to sleep – it doesn’t make it right. It was slotted home and the game was all square.

That looked like how the first half would end until Paul May, who had caused chaos in the Merton backline the whole game latched on to a pass, muscled off a defender and from a seemingly impossible angle, drilled a shot through the Merton keeper into the net. A great solo effort and sent the CUBO boys in 2-1 up at half time.

The second half took on much the same pattern, with Merton squeezing up the pitch looking for the equaliser and CUBO fighting hard in the middle. James Ingle was confidently marshaling the new look back line and was imperious in the air as the ball was knocked up with ever increasing regularity towards the Merton front man. CUBO weren’t just sitting back though and were hitting Merton hard and fast on the counter attack. Jeph in particular was regularly latching onto balls in the centre of the park and striding up the pitch, and May should have had a free kick awarded as he was set free towards goal in the right hand channel and was seemingly hauled to the ground, a lucky escape for the Merton centre back who could have seen red.

As a dud corner was played back out to him by Ingle, Neville rounded the Merton covering man and cut a ball back to Matt Turner who fired over, and another cross from the right hand side saw Jeph force a smart save from the Merton keeper. Then a sweeping move from CUBO saw a smart interchange of four or five passes at full pace leading to a centre from Turner towards May, he took a touch and tried to slide the ball past the keeper who made another great save. It was unlucky, it would undoubtedly have been team goal of the season.

As Neville got cramp in both calves (he didn’t get his 33% extra from his Powerade before the game) CUBO’s team work ethic didn’t drop and the final minutes of the game were seen off in confident style.

A great result from the boys in baby blue, showing a certain know-how and will to win that wasn’t evident last season. This team should go into the New Year full of confidence and still in with a genuine shot at the title.

Final Score: Merton Orient 1-2 AFC Cubo 3rd XI

Goals: Lukas, May

Man of the Match: Stand out performers on the day included Paul May who played the role of lone front man very well, Matt Turner who put in an assured and high energy performance in the middle, and James Ingle who looked confident and impermeable at the back.

Match Report: Henry Neville

AFC Cubo 2nd XI 0-0 Partizan Wandsworth

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Date: Sat 19th November, 12.30pm KO

Starting Line-up: Stevie T, Noodles, Darlington, A. Clark, Rutting, Salty (C), Hoops, Trev, Denno, PeteHill, Keegan.

Sub: Haddon

After assembling for an early 11.30am meet for their league fixture with Partizan Wandsworth, Cubo 2s were in the unusual position of having to wait for the Baby Blue kit to arrive. As it happened, it never materialised, as the players were surprised to learn they were in the changed strip of Crimson shirts, Navy shorts and Crimson socks. Admittedly the colour of the kit could also be described as ‘Red’, but we’ve never settled for ‘Light Blue’ and Lord knows we’re better than just….Red.

A slightly reshuffled team was assembled in the absence of Player Manager Pally (wrist knack) and Goalkeeper Clark (1s), while Bradders’ good form for the First Team also saw him once again missing. Utility Man Hooper and Darlington returned to the squad, while Steve ‘Box Office’ Keegan made his first appearance since becoming a Father earlier in the year.

The home side started the game particularly brightly, snapping into challenges and getting their wide players into the game immediately. In midfield, Moody was the player instructed to break and give support to Keegan who was leading the line on his own. Despite their relative comfort, Cubo weren’t quite able to fashion any real goalscoring opportunities, with the final ball or pass slightly below what was needed to really unsettle the Partizan defence.

At the back, the new partnership of Darlington and Clark looked strong, protecting Stevie T (in a Matt Cardle train drivers hat) with a number of strong aerial and ground challenges. In fairness to the soon-to-be-painter-and-decorator-who-is-currently-masquerading-as-a-pop-singer-even-though-it’s-not-actually-Matt-Cardle-it’s-still-Stevie-in-a-cap-and-a-luminous-yellow-goalkeeper-jersey (with baby blue under armour long sleeve turtle neck, Ugg boots and grey joggers for afters) when he was called upon to make a couple of saves in the first half, often from a long throw threat, he looked very natural between the sticks. In fact the only thing lacking from the midfielder’s goalkeeping performance was the ability to kick the ball – the watching Alanis Morisette, enjoying an Autumnal stroll through Barn Elms, was heard to remark on the irony of the Barnsley Beckham’s aforementioned shortcoming.

With the score at half time locked at 0-0, Cubo remained convinced that if they could remain composed in the final third, and continue to press Wandsworth on the small pitch, they would have enough in their locker to win. A nice piece of play that started from a wonderful piece of control by Keegan, saw Hooper switch the ball to Dennison in the right hand channel, but with a narrow angle to work with his low drive was straight at the keeper. Keegan later went close with a back post header which he couldn’t quite direct on target.

Cubo suddenly were swarming over their vistors like a… swarm of bees, Pete went close with a stinging 25 yard free kick that was pushed around the right-hand post by the keeper, before the best move of the match saw the visiting keeper make an even better save to deny a 20 yarder from Moody. The keeper was male not female, but if he was the latter ‘she’ would have been relieved to keep the ball from hornet. If there was a crowd they would have been buzzing. If this section of puns goes any further it would be disastrous.

Haddon replaced Noodles at Right Back around the hour mark, while Keegan, after putting in a typically gutsy shift, took over from Steve in goal. He was welcomed up front by being smashed in the back by Partizan’s moustached left back – possibly aggrieved at Rebecca Ferguson being denied victory in X-Factor last year.

Despite Cubo coming close to scoring in the second half 0-0 is obviously a dangerous score line and it would be disingenuous to suggest that Partizan did not have their moments to break the deadlock themselves. Keegan was relieved that a header was only slightly to his left, while another effort following a dangerous cross from the left hand side was again handled confidently by the stand-in sticksman.

With the game becoming increasingly stretched Darlington thought he had capped a dominant performance with a looping header from a corner, only to see his effort cleared off the line. With both sides fully committed to securing all 3 points, there was a lot of huffing and puffing, but neither team found that bit of composure or opportunism to snatch a win.

Final Score: AFC Cubo 2nd XI 0-0 Partizan Wandsworth

Goals:

Man of the Match: Steve Keegan took it for his efforts in leading the line. When he was able to bring the ball down and involve the midfield Cubo looked very good. He also brought out an outrageous trap using his arse. Welcome back mate! Joe was runner up although all of the back line played well with Rick and Clark getting deserved votes.

Match Report: Thom Hoops

Tooting Bec 1-2 AFC Cubo

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Date: Sat 19^th Nov 2011, 2pm KO

Venue: Raynes Park Sports Ground

Starting Line-up: Neil Clark, Bobby Sadler, Mark Sutton, Oli Watkins (c), Richard Gough, Hung, Ben McGeown, Mark ‘Gunners till I die’ Bradley, MTM, Paul Every, Simon Daunter

Sub: Michael North

A gloriously crisp autumnal day set the scene for Cubo’s league fixture against their local rivals and cup conquerors Tooting Bec. The day was brightened further by the arrival of the new merchandise (most of it anyway…), which was met with solemn nods of approval from all in the changing room. The return of newly RIP’d keeper Clarky meant that Cubo were able to name an established keeper for the first time in a month, a source of confidence despite the sterling work of Sutton and Ben McG in recent weeks. With Every making a first start since his injury and Northy making a brief appearance in the country between holidays, the squad had a strong look about it on paper.

Tooting had shown in the first fixture between these two sides that they were a very capable footballing side and they started the game in a similar fashion with the fluidity of their midfield causing Cubo particular problems. With the home side outnumbering Cubo in the key areas of the pitch and finding space at will a tactical change was called for. Going man for man Cubo were able to apply greater pressure on Tooting’s backline with positive results. Cubo’s greatest source of joy was down their right side where Sadler was seeing more of the ball than most, unfortunately they were unable to provide the quality in the box to really punish Tooting. A well worked move saw Daunter released out wide but again his cross was easily dealt with by the Bec keeper.

At the other end Tooting continued to look dangerous with the big Bec targetman drawing a number of free kicks in dangerous positions which saw a succession of crosses being delivered into the Cubo box. It was only thanks to some stout defending that the game remained goal-less, with the Cubo backline showing the kind of determination not to concede that characterised last season. In a half high on tension but low on quality, Cubo thought they had taken the lead when MTM flicked the ball through to Every whose lob appeared to hit the back of the net. Unfortunately the ripple of the net was caused by the back tracking defender with the ball bouncing just over. Coming in at half time Cubo could be encouraged by the fact that despite the dodgy start, where they were in fairness given the run around at times, the change of shape had had a positive effect and the increased pressure on the Bec backline showed they were likely to give up chances.

Cubo made an immediately positive start to the second half by winning a corner on the right hand side. Sutton’s delivery when given the opportunity in the first half had been of a high quality and this one was no different, giving Daunter a great opportunity to attack the ball. An easy finish was only prevented by the Bec keeper who bravely came out to collect at the expense of a clattering by Cubo’s answer to Zlatan Ibrahimovic. Clearly fazed by the challenge the keeper was not right afterwards, having to forgo his goal kicks to a team-mate and this may have played a part in what was to come. Soon afterwards the high pressure tactics paid dividends when Bradley forced the Bec defender into an error which saw the ball drop to Every in the box and he fired past the keeper, who perhaps could have done better, to make it 1-0 Cubo. A fortunate goal but one which recognised the shift in the games momentum.

The goal had the effect of galvanising both teams with the game taking on a cup tie feel as the ball shifted from end to end. Cubo appeared to be going for the second goal which would probably tie the game up but at the same time leaving themselves open to conceding at the other end. They were thankful to Clarkey when a long ball released the Bec striker clean through on goal but his effort was well saved by the Cubo keeper. In an effort to settle the game down Northy was introduced in the centre of the park, making an immediate impact with a massive header from a goal kick that rocketed straight back to the keeper. His second touch was just as decisive, clearing the Bec right backs legs from under him as attacked a cross into the box. The ref had no hesitation in awarding the penalty. Clarky has shown his penalty saving tekkers on numerous occasions in the past and was inches away from adding to the list of spot kick saves but could only get fingertips on the ball as it beat him to his right hand side. 1-1.

With the home side galvanised by the equiliser and having the benefit of shooting downhill the odds appeared to be on them going on to win the game. However the high line that Every had exposed in the first half was their downfall again as Northy picked the ball up in the middle of the park before releasing MTM in the right hand channel and he made no mistake with a low finish across the keeper and into the corner. 2-1 Cubo. With 20 minutes still to play and signs of fatigue throughout the side it was clearly going to be a tough final stretch for the Baby Blue Army. The cause wasn’t helped by Cubo’s inability to hold onto the ball when they got hold of it which meant that their backline faced a fairly constant stream of pressure. Whilst the quality may have been lacking there was nothing to fault in the work-rate with Every, Sutton and Bradley putting in outstanding shifts to stop Bec building attacks of any quality. With Watkins, Hung and Goughy again excelling at the back Cubo were able to see out the final period to secure another 3 points.

Final Score: Tooting Bec 1-2 AFC Cubo

Goals: Every, MTM

Man of the Match: Paul Every (notable mention to Sutton who missed out on MOTM by one vote having made the schoolboy error of voting for his closest rival, only to see Every then place his vote with a non-contender).

A great win for Cubo who were made to put in a real shift by their opponents, whose position in the table does not reflect the talent in their ranks. Some stoic defending from Cubo was complemented by a real cutting edge up front that allowed them to nick two goals from two of the limited clear cut chances they were able to create. Another encouraging performance, particularly given the problems Tooting caused Cubo in the first 15 minutes, the ability to adapt to a side playing with a fluid shape will serve Cubo well later in the season.

Match Report: Benny Mac

AFC Cubo 3rd XI 3-1 Kiwi FC

21/11/2011thomhoopsLeave a comment

Date: Saturday 19^th November 2011, 2pm KO

Starting Line-up: Ash, John, Jonesy, Antonio, Luke , Henners, Lukas, Jimbo, Timmy, Lenny, Billers

Subs: Jeff, Dan Cucos, Bushy

With anticipation feverish before kick-off, both for those new to playing with Jeff and for the arrival of new stash, it was easy to forget we were playing the run-away league leaders, Kiwi. This however was made clear to us upon watching Kiwi’s warm-up, consisting of elaborate and well-rehearsed drills, sprints and a game of touch rugby. The boys in baby blue elected to prance about and stroke the ball to each other, remarking on how nice the pitch was and wondering aloud what ‘stud’ to wear. Classic Cubo.

With Jeff running late, lost and not speaking much English, Cubo kicked off into the sun, the match progressing at a frenetic pace. The Kiwi plan of constantly smashing high balls over the Cubo defence almost paid immediate dividends, and the back line was looking shaky, unsure of how best to deal with the Kiwi direct, fast and aggressive style. The first real chance came from just such an attack, with the Kiwi no. 9 through on goal. Glenn just managed to toe poke the ball away from him before he shot, diverting it onto the post. Calamitous defending from Jonesy (literally 2 minutes after chewing Glenn out for not releasing the ball quick enough), resulted in the no. 9 again going through on goal, and rounding Ash before harmlessly passing it into the side netting. Unfortunately the back line could not hold out under this constant pressure, and Kiwi finally broke the DEAD LOCK after 8 minutes. As Jonesy ran back to make yet another clearance over our heads, he was unceremoniously fouled and tripped up, allowing the Kiwi no 10 to lift the ball around the onrushing Ash to go 1-0 up.

An erroneous call of ‘home’ from Ash to Glenn resulted in a header back to him being intercepted by the no. 9, who cleverly won a penalty from the outstretched keeper. Saving Glenn’s blushes, Ash confidently palmed the penalty away from the aforementioned striker, leaving Jonesy to smash it over the bar from about 6 inches off the line.

Kiwi however had not had it all their own way, with Cubo looking sleek and dangerous on the break. A strong run from Haddon on the left wing saw him sandwiched and brought down between two Kiwis inside the edge of the box, and the referee unerringly pointed to the spot. Billers confidently despatched the penalty, sending the keeper the wrong way. Unfortunately it was to be one of his last contributions, coming off with a dead leg to be replaced by Jeff. Cubo’s second came not long after, after some excellent pressing from Timmy resulted in an unforced error from the Kiwi left back, leaving Lenny to storm through and expertly lob the keeper.

Without Turns present to slag everyone off, the half time team talk was actually a positive experience, and Cubo kicked off the second half in good spirit. The back line was much improved, and Cubo were able to soak up the Kiwi pressure, Antonio and Jimbo impressing on the ground and in the air after Jonesy had been forced off. With the two talented midfielders of Lukas and Jeff now running the show and spreading it wide at every opportunity, Timmy and Henners began to see a lot more of the ball, both comfortably beating their men and whipping in dangerous crosses. One chance from Kiwi saw Cubo clear the ball off the line, and the resulting break through Timmy, Lenny and Lukas nearly saw a goal scored immediately, in some of the best football we’ve played this season. Cubo finally scored their deserved third after some excellent solo work from Jeff, who battered the ball confidently under the Kiwi keeper. The game finished without further incident in either goalmouth, Lukas impressing after a magnificent 60 yard dash to make an important slide tackle.

A good win against a physical and mentally strong side, in an incident packed, chaotic match. The thirds move to third in the table with a game in hand on the leaders. Props also to Ash and the back line for keeping out a New Zealand International, Daniel Ellensjohn off the scoresheet:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Daniel_Ellensohn

http://www.facebook.com/?ref=tn_tnmn#!/daniel.ellensohn

Final Score: AFC Cubo 3rd XI 3-1 Kiwi FC

Scorers: Billers (pen), Lenny, Jeff

Man of the Match: Ash – for his penalty save and constant chat to the Kiwi no. 9 who left the field a broken, shell of a man. Props to Jimbo and Henners for playing in 3 different positions, and Lukas and Antonio who were superb throughout.

Match Report: John Glenn

AFC Cubo 6-0 Farnborough North End

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Date: Sat 12^th November 2011, 2pm KO

Starting Line-up: Ben McG, Oli Watkins, Hung, Goughy, Sadler, J-Pat, Bradders, Hooper, Ryan, MTM, Daunter

Sub: Every

Following 2 weeks on the road Cubo returned to Barn Elms with a spring in their step having taken 6 points from those fixtures, most notably the hard fought win over Crescent Rovers last week. The starting line up was juggled once again with skipper Oli Watkins returning to the starting line up and J-Pat pushed into the centre of the park to cover for Ben McG, who was donning the gloves for a second time this season. Cubo have struggled at home so far this season, though not quite as much as their opponents have in the league. Farnborough North End were member of the Combined Counties as recently as last season but they have obviously fallen on hard times as their league position testifies.

The first fixture between the sides saw Cubo run out comfortable winners and the initial phases of the game suggested that this would be the case once again. FNE’s line up had a very youthful look to it and Cubo’s physical dominance would be a feature of the game with some strong challenges early on setting the tone. The first goal did not take long to come. With the FNE keeper straying from his line to clear a through ball, Daunter showed great composure to volley the clearance back into the empty net. 1-0 Cubo and another difficult finish made to look easy by the big frontman whose return to the Baby Blue Army has played a big part in the recent upturn in form.

A relatively flat period followed with Cubo unable to put together any passing moves that really hurt their opponents. However with Bradders and J-Pat starting to click in the centre of the park, the home side were increasingly able to bring their wide men, particularly Hoops into the game. A second goal was added on the half hour mark when MTM showed the elusiveness that has been a highlight of his career to lose his marker in the box and expertly volley home with the outside of his boot. 2-0 Cubo.

The home side then effectively put the nail in the coffin by scoring a third before the end of the half when MTM rounded the keeper to fire home for his second of the game. 3-0 Cubo. The half time team talk focused on maintaining discipline and getting more from the game. Whether it was the team talk or, as is more likely, a dig from his brother about a lack of goals, Goughy showed exactly the kind of ruthlessness that Cubo were looking for when he bullied the ball over the line from a Daunter throw. 4-0 Cubo and another goal for the prolific centre half, who is more than making up for the reluctance of his regular centre half partner to score any goals whatsoever (Goughy 5 goals, Watkins 0 goals….).

Credit goes to FNE who continued to make a game of it, albeit without threatening the Cubo goal. MTM added a fifth to complete his hat-trick before Every, returning from a troublesome hamstring injury, came off the bench to score the sixth, and final, goal of the game.

Final score: AFC Cubo 6-0 Farnborough North End

Goals: Daunter, MTM 3, Goughy, Every

Man of the Match: MTM

A solid performance from the Baby Blue Army who made it 3 wins from 3, lifting them to 4^th in the table. The return of a goal threat to the Cubo line up in the form of Daunter and MTM has contributed massively to Cubo’s recent results, and this will be only be strengthened further by Every’s return to fitness. Cubo will be looking to maintain their perfect November in next week’s local derby against Tooting Bec who booted them out of the Cup last month. A special mention should also go to Ryan for heroically managing not to get booked for at least one week, will the plucky Northerner be able to make it an unprecedented 2 weeks without attracting the attention of the Surrey Elite refereeing fraternity?!?! Only time will tell, though if I was a bookie I would not be taking bets on it……

Match Report: Benny Mac