Match report

Match report

A warm, still morning at Springbank Secondary College set the scene for another high scoring U15 round with Blackwood Forest hosting Strathalbyn.

Strathalbyn wasted no time in establishing their dominance with Finlay G scoring their first goal within mere minutes of the first whistle. After the reset, Strathalbyn slipped straight through a very sloppy Blackwood defence towards the goal, the shot ended up wide.

Blackwood took control of the ball and sent it through to their offensive half. Ben A got a head on the ball, directing it to his feet and planting an equalising goal in the back of the net. In answer, Strathalbyn demonstrated some lovely ball control skills of their own: Finlay G scoring a second time. In the following 6 minutes Blackwood’s Ben A had a further 2 attempts: the first wide of the goal; the second hitting home to bring the score to 2-2 by 10.10am.

Strathalbyn zoomed down the pitch from the reset, earning a corner. The shot on goal was just wide of the post. In response, Blackwood brought the ball down to the other end of the pitch with Elisha S’s attempt hitting the post.

In the following 15 minutes Strathalbyn showed their hunger to break the tie and went back into the attack. 2 great saves by the Blackwood keeper, Angus D, frustrating the team. A further Strathalbyn attempt didn’t make the net, however the next one aimed true for Ben G to bring the score to 2-3. Blackwood and Strathalbyn each had a further 2 attempts on goal before Strathalbyn scored their 4th to lead by 2 goals at half time.

Whilst the teams looked quite evenly matched in the first half, Strathalbyn dominated the second half. The Blackwood defence crumbled and the opposition made the most of each mistake. If not for the brilliant keeping by Angus D, the final score for Strathalbyn would have been 5 goals higher. Following 2 initial Blackwood saves in the opening few minutes of the second half, Finlay G successfully scored 2 goals within minutes of each other, giving him a total of 4 for the match. Another 2 saves by the Blackwood keeper, kept the opposition temporarily at bay before Strathalbyn’s Jack H made his mark on the score line. Taking lead from his teammate, Jack H scored 2 goals within minutes of each other. With the score now Blackwood 2- Strathalbyn 8 only 15 minutes into the second half., Blackwood did not let their heads drop. After another Strathalbyn shot landed high and wide, Blackwood took the ball into their attacking half. Elisha S’s second attempt for the match was denied by the Strathalbyn keeper. A few minutes later he passed a beautiful ball into Loki N, who directed the ball straight to the feet of Austin N for Blackwood’s third.

Spurred on by their success, Blackwood took it once again to Strathalbyn, who were lucky not to score an own-goal as the ball deflected unexpectedly. With 8 minutes remaining, Jack H scored his team’s 9th goal, and his 3rd for the match. 6 minutes after Strathalbyn’s success, Angus D made another stellar save to keep the visitors from reaching double figures.

The final score line: Blackwood 3 – Strathalbyn 9