Fleece 'B' Vs. Snydale Athletic 'B'

2-2.

lf one player made an impression on a game then this one seems to be it. For whatever reason, Dave W. was well fired up before, during and after - it could've been losing out as first choice keeper for the 'A' team and out to prove a point in the lower ranks, some row lingering from home, work or merely natural character. Whatever it was he was well on the boil.

During practice games a couple of 'keepers in particular like to strut their stuff out on the pitch - maybe for the change or to prove a point. Dave plays fairly well out of goal and when on a run is often like a knife through butter - although finishing leaves a lot to be desired.
In this game he played centre of defence and his call - 'Dave's up!' was a regular feature. Seemingly every long ball into the Fleece half, every throw-in was met with this call, Dave clearing and letting the opposition - and everyone else - know that not much was going to get through. Despite this solid presence though it began to rattle more than just the opposition as Dave became too competitive, to the point of wanting to win everything and then playing out his own team-mates. Sure, he did undeniably good work but just lacking that touch that would have made his efforts fit in with the rest of the team. For instance, when it's proven that every ball in can be defended against then look for a team-mate to pass to rather than repeatedly nodding the ball out into touch and ceding possession.

Come half-time team-mates got an ear-bashing, later on in the game the ref came in for some not too constructive criticism. And afterwards . . . ? Jesus Christ! he was still blathering on. Difficult to criticise when he'd played well as an individual and in some part leading the way, just not tuned in to the team proper . . .

One other memorable moment during the match came when Si Kelly chased down and battled for a lost cause ball cutting back to set up Andy Sugden for an easy slot home.