Bramhall Rangers 3 Brinny Youth Returns 11
"I would not be bothered if we lost every game as long as we won the league." - Middlesbrough and Oz fat boy Mark Viduka.
For the first time since 22/09/05 – 29/09/05, Rangers were able to field an unchanged side. Those games involved the now retired Dr H, and Belly was in goal. The outcome for the Rangers in both games was predictable, losing both by margins of 10 goals or more.
This week was the start of the second half of the season, so newcomers Brinny Youth Returns were the opponents. Despite their relative inexperience they were doing very well, sitting joint top of the league with The Griswalds. They are a very skilful team, with a lot of individual flare, often the sort of team Rangers struggle against. Pushing them close in a 4-3 defeat first time out, Rangers were hoping to go one better. But BYR were more experienced and wiser now and when it came to quick feet, passing and movement were very comfortable.
Rangers did match BYR for the first half. Despite falling behind on two occasions, Rangers pegged them back both times. Piggy rediscovered his shooting boots to get both goals, with some clinical finishing taking his total to 80 for the blues since Powerleague began. It was a great display of shooting, which begs the question why not every week?
BYR were matched in the first half, and couldn’t break down a resolute defence with Shiz pulling the strings. Mr T in goals was directing the play with good communication and Nev was sturdy at the back. Mini struggled to find the scoring touch this week and had a few efforts saved or narrowly miss. Piggy crashed a half volley onto angle of bar and post. Rascle and Pie both made good runs down the flanks, and showed strength but struggled to get a stranglehold on the game. Pie limped off toward the end of the half with his customary injury. The whistle went and it was all square.
Half time is normally a very sobering experience as often the game is already away from the Rangers, however, this week there was a sense that we had done well and deserved to be level. Eager to start the second half well, the team were fired up. It started quite well, soaking up the early pressure but then the mistakes crept in. Failing to follow the runners on one-two’s and standing to far off the attackers and tempting shots allowed Brinny to pull away. At the other end Rangers threatened little, and were pegged back for the most part. It seems that after Rangers go 2 or 3 goals behind they are resigned to defeat, and that is when heads drop and panic sets in. This was no different. Chasing the ball (like schoolboys) is when the team loses its shape, others have to cover and risk their man coming free. Not good at communication at the best of times, when players go wandering there is little hope of salvaging anything from the situation.
Rangers pulled another back, but it was too little too lat. An opportunist goal from Mini turning and hitting instinctively was his 121st in a Rangers shirt. Chances were few and far between though, as confidence was sapped.
Pie limped off at the start of the half again with a “pulled hamstring”, and the other moment of note was a lash out by a BYR player at Shiz after being dispossessed by a combination of Pie and Shiz. The whistle for the end of the game was blown nearly straight away, denying Shiz the Chance to “cream him against the boards”, which was probably for the best.
In discussions after the game, Shiz and Mini, thought that there need to be some changes to the Rangers routine on match days. Here are the suggestions:
1. Before the game, we do not get the balls out for an unorganised kick about that does no one any favours. Instead we will all take 5-10 minutes warming up, doing stretches etc. This will reduce dramatically the number of injuries that players get (Pie especially – which to be fair is bordering on the comical. One or two a season is unlucky, one or two a game and you have to ask serious questions). Some players do this already, so we should all give it a go.
2. At half time, rather than basically all grinding to a halt, relaxing and cooling down, we will get the balls out and pass the ball around, to keep alert, keep moving, motivated and thinking. This will mean that when the second half starts every one should be 100% prepared and ready.
3. At the start of the second half, we will aim to have our best defensive team on the pitch. This would probably be Shiz, Nev, Rascle/Pie and Mini (using this game as an example). Once we have ridden out the first 5 minutes, then we can look to build on it.
Any other ideas, are much appreciated, and please add them in the comments box.
Another game to chalk down to experience, Rangers slipped a place in the league to 2nd bottom, after Omatha defeated Cheadle Utd. Monkhouse Gladbach are still in sight after losing to Puss in Boots and sit two places and three points above the Rangers.
Final Score – Bramhall Rangers 3 Brinny Youth Returns 11
Goals - Piggy (2), Mini (1)
Nev goal watch – 21
Pie goal watch – 11
*New feature* The "Piggy needs velcro" watch - 2 (see comments)
NB. See below for some stats.
For the first time since 22/09/05 – 29/09/05, Rangers were able to field an unchanged side. Those games involved the now retired Dr H, and Belly was in goal. The outcome for the Rangers in both games was predictable, losing both by margins of 10 goals or more.
This week was the start of the second half of the season, so newcomers Brinny Youth Returns were the opponents. Despite their relative inexperience they were doing very well, sitting joint top of the league with The Griswalds. They are a very skilful team, with a lot of individual flare, often the sort of team Rangers struggle against. Pushing them close in a 4-3 defeat first time out, Rangers were hoping to go one better. But BYR were more experienced and wiser now and when it came to quick feet, passing and movement were very comfortable.
Rangers did match BYR for the first half. Despite falling behind on two occasions, Rangers pegged them back both times. Piggy rediscovered his shooting boots to get both goals, with some clinical finishing taking his total to 80 for the blues since Powerleague began. It was a great display of shooting, which begs the question why not every week?
BYR were matched in the first half, and couldn’t break down a resolute defence with Shiz pulling the strings. Mr T in goals was directing the play with good communication and Nev was sturdy at the back. Mini struggled to find the scoring touch this week and had a few efforts saved or narrowly miss. Piggy crashed a half volley onto angle of bar and post. Rascle and Pie both made good runs down the flanks, and showed strength but struggled to get a stranglehold on the game. Pie limped off toward the end of the half with his customary injury. The whistle went and it was all square.
Half time is normally a very sobering experience as often the game is already away from the Rangers, however, this week there was a sense that we had done well and deserved to be level. Eager to start the second half well, the team were fired up. It started quite well, soaking up the early pressure but then the mistakes crept in. Failing to follow the runners on one-two’s and standing to far off the attackers and tempting shots allowed Brinny to pull away. At the other end Rangers threatened little, and were pegged back for the most part. It seems that after Rangers go 2 or 3 goals behind they are resigned to defeat, and that is when heads drop and panic sets in. This was no different. Chasing the ball (like schoolboys) is when the team loses its shape, others have to cover and risk their man coming free. Not good at communication at the best of times, when players go wandering there is little hope of salvaging anything from the situation.
Rangers pulled another back, but it was too little too lat. An opportunist goal from Mini turning and hitting instinctively was his 121st in a Rangers shirt. Chances were few and far between though, as confidence was sapped.
Pie limped off at the start of the half again with a “pulled hamstring”, and the other moment of note was a lash out by a BYR player at Shiz after being dispossessed by a combination of Pie and Shiz. The whistle for the end of the game was blown nearly straight away, denying Shiz the Chance to “cream him against the boards”, which was probably for the best.
In discussions after the game, Shiz and Mini, thought that there need to be some changes to the Rangers routine on match days. Here are the suggestions:
1. Before the game, we do not get the balls out for an unorganised kick about that does no one any favours. Instead we will all take 5-10 minutes warming up, doing stretches etc. This will reduce dramatically the number of injuries that players get (Pie especially – which to be fair is bordering on the comical. One or two a season is unlucky, one or two a game and you have to ask serious questions). Some players do this already, so we should all give it a go.
2. At half time, rather than basically all grinding to a halt, relaxing and cooling down, we will get the balls out and pass the ball around, to keep alert, keep moving, motivated and thinking. This will mean that when the second half starts every one should be 100% prepared and ready.
3. At the start of the second half, we will aim to have our best defensive team on the pitch. This would probably be Shiz, Nev, Rascle/Pie and Mini (using this game as an example). Once we have ridden out the first 5 minutes, then we can look to build on it.
Any other ideas, are much appreciated, and please add them in the comments box.
Another game to chalk down to experience, Rangers slipped a place in the league to 2nd bottom, after Omatha defeated Cheadle Utd. Monkhouse Gladbach are still in sight after losing to Puss in Boots and sit two places and three points above the Rangers.
Final Score – Bramhall Rangers 3 Brinny Youth Returns 11
Goals - Piggy (2), Mini (1)
Nev goal watch – 21
Pie goal watch – 11
*New feature* The "Piggy needs velcro" watch - 2 (see comments)
NB. See below for some stats.
posted by Mini at 10:00 am
12 Comments:
Yeah sorry about the knocks. They were both my fault - the first when i made a really poorly timed lunge and smashed knees against one of their guys. That wore off by half time, but because I had been off the pitch then for a good part fo the first half my muscles had cooled down a little and so when I went out in the second my hamstring was a little tight.
Anyway, as a team I think the big thing we should look at learning this week is using comon sense. If possible (and I know it isn't always possible to do this) but try to take a second to think about who your passing to and where they are on the pitch. There is no point, for example, passing the ball to Nev when he is facing his own goal against the boards on one side of the pitch with two opposing players closing him down. I have to admit the Mark was doing this a bit from his throw outs, though perhaps that could be put down to a lack of movement at times.
First off, it's no wonder Mini has so many recorded goals when he multiplies each one by 3 :) sort it out Mini man
Obvious comment, but it was a game of two halves. One we were very good in and showed that teamwork, tight marking, and keeping it simple can match twinkle toe pre-Madona's.
The second is one we can learn from. The most biggest mistake, that was the root cause in my opinion for many of the goals, was:
- Teamwork and self awareness. We had a long spell in the second where it simply wasn't working, people were tired, injured, shoe laces coming undone and tempers flaring. NOBODY on the pitch thought "This isn't working, I'm not playing great in this session, I'll concede a free kick in a non-dangerous situation and sub myself". People just carried on. In the end there were four knacked players on the pitch, all of who seemed to think it was everyone elses but there fault (A "Why should I sub" mentality). There was only two subs, and the knock on was that when the subing eventually came, the two who remained on the pitch really struggled to keep up with their men, meaning the two fresh people (Russ and me), very rapidly became burnt out with all the extra effort to cover, and the two on the sideline were so knackered they never really recovered.
It's all very well trying to be the one who changes it around by bagging a goal (I'm talking about EVERYONE here, as we were all trying to, despite the fact that only two managed to), but if we concede three due to everyone being knackered, how has that helped the Team?
I welcome people pointing out specific areas of the game that I can improve, the easier and simpler they are, the more likely I'll be able to successfully do them. So in this spirit, and its meant in a constructive way, I have the following to start with:
Pie - As mentioned, stretching is something you NEED to do. Spot the pattern.
Pie/Piggy - You are two of our biggest players physically. We played a bunch of skeleton men. Pie, don't be afraid to steam roll someone in the right circumstance; if some gangly idiot runs in your path to obstruct you when chasing a ball, make him bounce off you! Piggy - how are you getting pushed off 50/50 balls by players 4 stone lighter than you (you're almost the perfect physical body frame for a footballer!)... they were taking the piss on the sidelines about it!
Piggy - You should add shuttle runs to your exercise routine. Mastering quick acceleration and braking, and quickly turning 180 on a spot are simple ways to dramatically increase your game
Russ - Awareness on free kicks. Walls mark the kicker. Any decent player is guarnteed to move, so staying on the balls of your feet and anticpating movement (generally to the closest area where they get a better angle on goal) is essential.
Me - Thought I'd put one publicly on me to. Helping out in attack. I will now consider myself to have had a bad game (regadless of defensive performance) unless I have scored a goal, or set two up (I passed it to the person who scored). Just as I expect attackers to mark men, as one of the fitter defenders with pace, I need to be up and down more to help the attackers. Mini - I'd like you to point out when I haven't met this challenge.
Damn, Shiz you have foiled my plan. I have recalculated the goals and it turns out I have only scored 4 in all the time we have played at Powerleague!
I have to agree with all those points. I was on the pitch too long in the second half, and should have come off sooner. I consider myself one of the better players which is why I feel I need to be on, but accept that in the throws of the game this isnt the best option, so will try to sub off more.
I wasn't firing on all cylinders last night, but have found the last few games particularly demoralising. I have tried to close down throw outs more and think I have achieved that in the last few games.
I get sapped of confidence when we go two or three behind because I know the inevitable is happening and theres not alot we can do.
Hey ho!
On stretching I agree it is important. I usual do (though admit yesterday I was a tad more laxidasical about it, though that was more down to trying to keep up the warm up of passing the ball around - something which Piggy STILL seems not to grasp!! You could see people getting annoyed with him (Nev in particular) when Piggy came to close him down because we were just concentrating on getting the ball and passing it around.
Anyway back to stretching it was because after i got my knock in the first half i was off the ptich for a good 15 minutes or so until half time, but instead of keeping moving i stood around. Poor on my behalf.
As for using my weight, I have no problem with that, though I admit I'm not as good at useful at doing it. One of the problems I see though means that if i put my weight into a challenge and the guy skips round me then I've been done and we are under pressure...
Indeed, stranger, you are correct. My bad. I shall alter it accordingly!
:)
I think the real point of my comments above was lets accept where there are general player specific weaknesses (i.e. not specific incidents from one match, but trends from most matches this season), and admit there is a problem. That way the rest of the team can suggest ideas on how to overcome them. Lets take the comments as adults, and accept other peoples opinions.
After all, we're a group of mates, so we're not going to drop players and bring in better ones, so the only other way to improve is the hard way. I play the matches for fun, but it's no fun losing when we're gifting the opposition goals due to easy to fix problems. If you think there is a simple improvement a specific player can make to their game (a generic issues, not just a one off mistake in a specific match) then lets either mention it here or face to face down the pub. Lets remember also that it's not really a single players weakness as such, but a TEAM weakness, so for example, Marks (and mine) throwing speed/distance when in goals isn't as good as Belly's. If we want Mark to stop giving it to the opposition, OUTFIELD players need to help him by not running away from him at speed. Mini was doing this well for large parts of the last match. hanging back (recognising that some of the defenders aren't the best with control and passing, and that he is better than Piggy at it), picking it up, and trying to thread it through to Piggy (who has a great first time shot on him). A positive way to address a TEAM weakness.
On a more sarcastic note, I'd like to help Piggy by offering to buy him new shoe laces for his boots. I'd also suggest we have a "Piggy needs Velcro" count on the match report. I can remember at least the last two consequtive matches his laces coming undone, so there's a minimum count of two. If he reaches 5 I'll even offer to tie his shoelaces for him. Sort it out Piggy, I'm not interested in excuses, just solutions :)
As the Genie said to Aladin, "Your wish is my command!".
:)
Sorry Shiz I wasn't having a go at Mark per se about his throwing out. Because I thought he played well in net. But something I noticed with his throw outs was who he was sometimes throwing too. Though as I said i don't necessarily put that soley down to Mark, but the rest of the team not coming deep (especially the players who are more comfortable getting the ball and passing). I have to admit last night I wasn't dropping deep so much to collect the ball as I usually am.
Oh, and yesterday I had a shoelace problem too. But I waited until the play had stopped first time, then until I came off the pitch the second time.
Not sure what happened last night, but I will be trying to ensure it doesn't happen again!
I noticed, but as I said... not interested in excuses!
:)
We are going to get some special edition Nike, BRFC emblazoned astro's that are actaully fused to peoples feet and require no laces. Once they are on you cannot remove them for the rest of your natural life.
In Piggy's we will get a microchip so that whoever is off the pitch can control his movement, thus improving his game. You can also make him do the Riverdance if you see fit!
:)
The only comment i'd like to make is that overall i believe no-one on that pitch had a good game. Sure we can all pick out good moments of play that we did. I remember for one of mini's goals i took a good first touch to round a player. placed a good pass which was nicely put onto mini's foot and a goal was scored. Great well done. But that was just that. A moment of good play. There wasnt a player on that pitch that played more than 5-10 minutes of good football. Anyone could tell we were having a shit game when even mini, usually a temple of composure, lost his temper on the pitch and in fighting started. I started to take up piggy's tactic of pointing at a player 8 foot away and saying "yeah, i'm marking him". When a break was on, i gave up. Why bother sprinting back when i felt no-one else was.
Alas i have played in 16 games now for the rangers without a win. August 25th against CUT to be exact. I know i missed a large part of the season, and missed our only win this season. But it does get very depressing. £80 and only a goal or two to show for it.
Warming up puzzles me. I spend a good 7-9 minutes warming up. Making sure every leg muscle group is warmed sufficiently and making sure i stretch my back and my upper body muscles. I then like to have a brief jog on the pitch and strike a few balls. Get my shooting feet on. I've never worked out why i dont see anyone else doing this! They recommend you stretch each muscle for 12 seconds before exercise and about 15 after. Last 2 matches i've been so pissedoff with poor performances i've walked off the pitch near the end and gone to warm down. May as well.
Lets face one thing. We have basically covered EVERYTHING this team needs to do to improve over the last 2 years. Some stuff we've done, some stuff we haven't. But can we really say we're better than a year ago? Because this time last year mini was scoring for fun. 4-8 a match.
I only ask one thing. If you KNOW you're having a bad game. then TAKE A MOMENT TO GATHER YOUR HEAD. Try not to dwell on the bad stuff whilst on the pitch. I still think pussy-footing around the mistakes we make and praising the 5 minutes of good footy we're doing doesnt always work for our improvement. But dont think about it on the pitch. Either sub off, or if its a free kick grab the ball and see if you can take it slowly. Non of us enjoy losing. We weren't going to win against brinny. they were obviously skillful and had more fitness. But lets not make it easy on them!!
And yes, this includes me. I'm happy to hold my hands up and say i played terribly on thurs and am happy to drop out the team for a week to get my head in gear, tho pie said shiz is out on thurs so not sure thats possible. We'll see.
On the positive side mark did well saving some hard shots, piggy managed to score tho i still believe his overall performance wasnt great. But you did see some good flashes of, dare i say, genius on the ball. Lets just get this training session sorted yeah? so we can win a game!
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