Match report

Match report

It’s June already, which means that the transfer window has opened and just like the other big-money clubs Woodside U10 Blue has made some crucial early moves in the transfer market. Whilst Haaland proved beyond our means, the team management had a busy Friday night and early Saturday morning wheeling and dealing with agents and other team managers, getting late-night medicals completed and finalising the all-important paperwork. As a result, Woodside U10 Blue lined up on Saturday morning with two loan players from the Reds and trialist Charlie Hartas. Unfortunately the transfer window also means that players will depart the club and sadly we have lost Amelia Wakefield for the rest of the season. We will miss her and especially some of the excellent defensive play she brought to the team.

This week marked our first outing against Mt Barker United Red since the two teams formed from the large squad we saw in the first round, so they were always going to be something of an unknown quantity. The game started somewhat scrappily before both sides settled into in a tight contest for control of the midfield. Charlotte Cosgriff had an excellent first half playing down the right wing, intercepting the ball and finding some good passes to her teammates, and newcomer Charlie Hartas found his feet in defence, stealing the ball handily from the Barker forwards. United broke the deadlock about 10 minutes in with a sublime lob from the right wing that looped over the defence and into the far corner of the net – a lovely piece of skill that Woodside could do nothing about. This seemed to galvanise first half keeper Jock Mills who saw out the first half by making several tidy saves, getting down well and putting his body behind the ball, and a fantastic block just before half time to keep the margin at a single goal as the whistle blew.

The second half saw Mt Barker double their advantage about ten minutes in. Despite this setback it remained a tight contest and Woodside kept pushing for a goal. Forward Tommy Garden managed to find some good space up front and would have brought Woodside back into the game after breaking through a high Barker defensive line but for some excellent goalkeeping. Arthur Lean played a deep forward position, working hard to win the ball and reassert Woodside in midfield. The Blues pushed up the park in the last ten minutes trying to find a way back into the game and as a result left themselves exposed at the back. Almost as if fate were taunting the U10 Blues coach, Barker’s third goal of the game came right on the final whistle as they broke free of the defence and beat the keeper in a one-on-one situation that was eerily similar to Dovbyk’s goal for Ukraine against Scotland on Wednesday night.

Overall this was a quite a physical encounter with the Blues regularly finding themselves second best in challenges from a stout Barker defence. Woodside definitely deserved to take more from the game but the difference between the teams really came down to Barker’s ability to muscle Woodside off of the ball, a really solid display from their goalkeeper and a few moments of individual skill. Finally, a huge thank you to our loanees Elliot Stewart and Logan Bridge who were a credit to the side, putting in a massive effort to win the ball and create chances for the Blues. We have a break coming up for the long weekend then we get to host the second Mt Barker team on the 18th.