Match report

Season Date Round Venue
2021 U9 21st August 10:00am League Round 18 WWSC Modified 1
Match report

Woodside Warriors Soccer Club U9 Red versus Woodside Warriors Soccer Club U9 Blue

 

Derby day at last! The streets of Woodside have been thick with anticipation all week and the tension has built to just about breaking point. The chatter in the pubs, cafes and schoolyards has been entirely focussed on the game: Who would come out on top – the Reds’ piercing attacking runs or the Blues’ well-organised defence? Do the Blues need to sign an attacking midfielder next season? Will the Reds manage to hang on to their pacy forwards during the summer transfer window? Was that goal in the 1968 cup semi-final really offside?

 

Despite a pessimistic forecast for the weekend, the morning of the match presented perfect weather for football: bright and dry but cool. The Blues won the toss and started the match defending the shed end. Drawing inspiration from the catenaccio system, the Blues lined up with three in defence: a sweeper and two marking centre-backs. This was a big ask for defenders Theo Nicholson and Jock Mills whose roles were to mark the Red forwards, and they rose to the task admirably, tirelessly tracking forward runs and snuffing out attacks. At the other end of the pitch this week’s Captain Charlotte Cosgriff and Forward Lachlan Mitchell both found some good possession in the attacking third and on a different day either of them could have had the ball in the back of the net. All this made for an entertaining first half, but the Reds gradually imposed themselves and they headed into the break with a decent lead.

 

In the second half Austin Levy joined the defence to take up the role of marking the Reds’ attackers which he stuck to with enthusiasm, imposing himself several times to limit the Reds’ chances and contributing to some very solid defending that the Reds required considerable persistence to break down. Forward Tommy Garden showed he learnt something from watching Pogba’s through balls take Leeds United apart last weekend, playing a neat forward ball straight from a restart that sliced through the Reds’ defence and allowed Sam Balacco – in a purple patch of scoring form – to latch onto the pass and slot past the keeper at the far post, which cheered the Blue team and their supporters as the final whistle approached. The game concluded with plenty for both sets of fans to talk about in the close season with the Reds having scored a handful of well-deserved goals that showcased some fine individual skill and the Blues showing they are organised and can be dangerous moving forward.

 

With Woodside Red generally on a hot streak this season the Blues’ approach to the game was to track forward runs, mark tightly and try to sneak a goal or two on the counter. Our under-9s did spectacularly well to stick to task, defend solidly, create chances and most importantly they kept their heads up despite having to chase the game. This all bodes well for another tough match against Stirling Districts next week.