Match Reports
Reeves Blues U9 vs Wokingham& Emmbrook BYDL Division 4
Saturday 21 January 2012
Conditions: Dry but very windy.
The strong wind had a big effect on the match. In the first half Reeves had the wind behind them and played a lot of attacking football and had several shots. The first half was very close with both teams struggling to control the ball in the high wind.
George (in goal), Henry, Matthew and James played well in defence and kept a first half clean sheet. George in particular had another great performance in nets and made lots of important saves and his goal kicking started many of our attacks. Sam, Jake, Milo, Tom and Harvey created several chances up front.
At the start of the second half, Harvey had a great long range shot which narrowly went wide and may have gone in but for the wind. Despite playing against the wind Matthew, Ethan and Sam made several strong runs into Wokingham’s half and created lots of chances.
With the wind behind them Wokingham had lots of shots and Tom made several brilliant saves including a point black block and a shot which hit the post and ran across the goal line before running out for a goal kick. Eventually, Wokingham’s pressure told with a shot with the wind behind it that went like a bullet into our net- unstoppable. Reeves kept pressing and never gave up but just at the end of the match another shot came off Milo who had defended magnificently and went into our net as the final action of the match.
Reeves put great pressure on Wokingham and never let them settle and can be proud of a solid performance against a very well organized team.
Man of the match went to Henry for his great tackling and confidence to run with the ball and take on the opposition.
Reeves Blues U9 vs Caversham AFC Argyle BYDL Division 4
Conditions: Dry and cold.
The team found it tough going in the first half and Caversham dominated with lots of attacks and scored three goals in the 7th, 12th and 16th minutes. It would have been more but for George in goal who defended corners well and had lots of shots to stop. Going forward Ethan showed he can play equally well on the right side as well as on the left.
In the second half, Reeves played much better dominating a lot of the play. Matthew got into some good attacking positions and along with James and Ethan had lots of shots on Caversham’s goal. This resulted in a goal from Ethan on 28th minute following good play from Matthew and Jake. Jake played brilliantly in midfield frequently putting in tackles to break up Caversham’s play and setting up another Reeves attack.
Reeves’ defence played much better in the second half closing down Caversham and restricting the number of shots they had.
Despite a disappointing first half the team fought back brilliantly in the second half to bring the score back to 4-2 to Caversham
Man of the match went to Sam for his outstanding goalkeeping
Reeves Rangers Blues U9 vs Whiteknights Panthers
Conditions: Dry and mild
The team was excited and knew the need to win to avoid relegation. Right from the start, Reeves went on the attack. Sam Clift had a shot on target in the second minute and James Starkey supplied some good passes finally setting up Milo Van Vliet for a goal on 7 minutes.
George Watkins was outstanding in nets. He saved several shots from distance holding on to the ball well each time and saved a one on one chance on 13 minutes. Harvey Overton came on in attack and made an immediate impact with several shots.
The game remained close as Panthers looked for an equalizer. But Jake Melhuish, Henry Fieldsend and Tom Pope, all in defence, kept Panthers shots to a minimum by marking, tackling and clearing well. Tom in particular made some good passes out of defence and kept Reeves in possession really well.
Reeves kept up their attacking play in the second half. Matthew Ogden had several shots and pushed the Panthers back into their own half of the pitch for most of the second half. James, Matthew, Sam and Ethan Holman were outstanding linking up in attack. James showed great awareness of other players and kept providing great passes to set up other members of the team with scoring opportunities. It was no surprise when Ethan scored on 24 minutes. Ethan showed great tenacity and was a constant threat to Panthers defence with his tricky dribbling and willingness to get the ball.
Matthew scored on 33 minutes with a great shot after James had won the ball and run down the left wing and supplied a killer pass to Matthew. Panthers fought back and
Reeves ran out worthy 3-0 winners.
Man of the match went to Matthew Ogden for his great all round play capped off with a well deserved goal.
Reeves Rangers Blues U9 vs Woodley Saints Cougars
Conditions: Dry and windy
Both teams were evenly matched. Matthew Ogden had some early shots. Saints also had several shots which Sam Clift handled well in nets. Reeves had several corners. The highlight of the half was a goal line clearance by Matthew on 15 minutes. Matthew bravely moved into the path of a hard shot and the ball went over the bar.
Jake Melhuish was tenacious in midfielfd and several times broke down Saints’ attacks. Henry Fieldsend, James Starkey and Milo van Vliet were solid in defence and played well to keep the score to nil- nil on half time.
In the second half, Reeves made a slow start and Saints scored two goals in 5 minutes from the kick off. One goal was a hard, unstoppable shot into the roof of the net and the second went into the left hand corner. This stirred the team into action. James Starkey covered the whole pitch winning the ball and setting up several attacks. Ethan Holman showed his dribbling skills and was not frightened of putting in tackles too.
Tom Pope and George Watkins played well in attack. They kept the pressure on the Saints defence to keep the ball in their half for most of the second half. Harvey Overton was able to push up from defence and as usual made an immediate impact when he moved into the opposition’s half.
Reeves had lots of chances with James and Tom all going close. Matthew had a great shot that flew past Saints right hand post. Finally on 39 minutes Matthew broke free and scored coolly in a one on one. Reeves continued to press with Tom also creating a chance which was saved. Reeves finished the game dominant but ran out of time to get the equalizer. If we could have shown the dedication we showed at the end of the match throughout the game then the result could have been different from the final 1-2 defeat.
Man of the match went to Matthew Ogden for his great tackling and shooting capped off with another goal for the second week running.
Reeves Rangers Blues U9 vs Woodley Wanderers Sharks
Both teams were evenly matched. Matthew Ogden and Sam Clift had some early shots for Reeves. It was end to end with Woodley looking dangerous going forward. James Starkey played in goal for Reeves in the first half. James’s strong handling and kicking kept Woodley from scoring in the first half. Tom Pope swung in a great corner in the 13th minute which was nearly turned into the net. The deadlock was broken when Sam Clift won the ball and skillfully created the space to pass to Matthew who struck the ball low and hard into the net to put Reeves 1-0 up.
In the second half, George Watkins took the gloves for Reeves and James played up front. Woodley straightaway came out on the attack. They had several shots hitting the post twice from long range shots. George made several brave saves but Woodley eventually scored on 22 minutes to bring the score level. Woodley continued to press and another long range shot came down off the Reeves cross bar and bounced over the line before bouncing out into the goal mouth. Woodley were now ahead and Reeves showed their spirit by pushing forward with Matthew, James, Ethan Holman and Sam all going close with several shots. James put in some great corners and Woodley’s goalkeeper made some great one on one saves.
Henry Fieldsend and Tom Pope were solid in defence after Woodley’s early attacks. It was a hard fought match and Woodley ran out 2-1 winners.
Man of the match for Reeves went to Sam Clift for his great dribbling and tackling.
This was Reeves Blues last league match of the season. Special mention should also be made to Harvey Overton and Milo van Vliet who could not play in this match but who have played all season and been among our strongest players.
Reeves Blues U9 End of Season 2011/2012 Tournament BYDL Division 4
Conditions: Wet and cold.
We had
Whiteknight Panthers (1-0)
Jake played in goal and showed great handling to keep a clean sheet.
Caversham Argyll (0-2)
As the rain came down, Reeves shrank into themselves a bit and switched off defensively. Caversham were too strong in attack and scored twice in quick succession. James and Matthew fought back bravely and worked well up front.
Woodley Saints Cougars (0-0)
Tom and Harvey played well in defence. Sam and Henry made some good runs and were tenacious in tackling and Woodley never looked like scoring. Ethan played well in attack.
Caversham Rovers (2-0)
Our best performance of the day. Jake back in nets and another clean sheet.
Man of the Tournament went to
