Match report

Match report

Last Saturday, Murray Bridge United U14 Blue travelled up the Hills to be hosted by Woodside Warriors U14 Blue. The match pitted two evenly matched teams against one another and promised to deliver a tight and entertaining tussle. It delivered!

Right from the outset the ball surged from end to end. Both sides created opportunities as they pushed the ball long, through the defensive line, to threaten on goal. But just as each team looked certain to score, they were denied by the persistence and determination of their opponents. Whether it was the defence denying their opposition free passage, or the cavalry, in the form of the midfielders, raging back to cover, both sides maintained a clean sheet for the majority of the first half. Eventually the deadlock was broken as Bridge fired a terrific corner into the box. After a brief melee for the ball they shot at the net, only to be denied again by a Warriors boot clearing the ball off the line. But the ball didn’t clear the box, landing in traffic and pin-balling around the danger-zone. Eventually, the Warriors back-men did clear the ball, but not before the referee found a hand-ball from somewhere in the congestion. Depending on the natural bias of the spectators, this decision was viewed as either a fifty-fifty call and good reward for getting the ball in front of goal, or dubious-at-best. But the call stood, and to the credit of all present, not a single player or spectator openly questioned the decision. The penalty was executed with deadly precision, giving the goal keeper no chance to pull off a miracle. The rest of the half proceeded without further score and Bridge carried a 1 – nil lead into the break.

In the second half, the tight and even tussle continued with renewed vigour and intent. Bridge had come out firing and looked intent to extend their lead. But the Warriors were living up to their namesake, rising to the challenge and showing a resolute determination to equalise and then strive for victory. Perhaps the most pleasing sight for the Warriors’ fans was to see the improvement from some of the newer members of the squad. In their previous encounter, several young Warriors had been forced to play in a team of ten men, as AHJSA commitments had removed many of the leaders from their ranks. But from this adversity had come new strength. Adversity had introduced these young men to themselves, and they were now aware of the courage that lay within. This self-belief, borne in the discomfort of defeat, saw the young and less experienced Warriors defending well above their station. They refused to go down a second goal and repelled every effort that was levered against them. At the other end of the park, their hearts burned with fury as they strove for the net. And finally, after numerous raids, they successfully goaled through a beautifully timed strike from well out. Another new player to the team had made a telling contribution, this time on the scorecard. Both sides lifted again on the back of this goal! To see such effort and determination from the young men and women on the ground was an inspiration. And the future of the game seems bright. But neither team could supress the will of their opponents for the remainder of the match and the game finished as a 1 all draw, a fair result for two such evenly matched teams.