Men's Division 5 White Teamtalks
17 May 2008: Western 2 Coastal Spirit 3
We went into this game knowing that Western hadn't lost a game yet and what we found out straight away was that they weren't planning on losing another, especially to a team of young fellas. The game started scrappy to say the least. No actually, the game started more like a boxing match with either side serving up insults, shoves, pushes and general lack of unity, but what happened after that was something I have never seen happen in football and to be honest, (as bloody funny as it was) I don't think I'll ever see it again. As I'm sure all of you can agree, from time to time neighbours of football and sporting fields can get somewhat aggravated with the goings on around their house - well, today one neighbour of Macfarlane Park lost the plot completely, stormed onto the field while the game was going on (1st half ) and proceeded to unleash no ends of abuse at US, the away team, for parking outside his house. Now, being the kind gentle folk we are, we calmly pointed out to the gentleman that we were in fact the away team - not the ones that use the field every week as their home ground. Unfortunately for this gentleman, he decided it better to verbally abuse us. Now you can only take so much abuse before you let rip back and with some dickhead standing on the field while you're trying to play, it didn't take long before the sub bench, coaching staff and players from both sides told him what-for and where he could shove certain things. All good. Irate neighbour storms off. Both teams continue playing after having slight chuckle to themselves. Game continues at the same level - very low half time 2-1 down.
Second half: we had a good chat and agreed that we should play at our level, not sink to the level the opposing team had got us to in the first half. After the guys retook the field, you could visibly see the change in their game. They were playing at the level that I have become used to watching - damn good. There was still a lot of on-field banter (to put it nicely) and the occasional cheap shot - but, all-in-all, their level had increased.
Now 10 mins into the second half, something happened that absolutely amazed me. You will remember our encounter with the angry neighbour: well, this fella decided to take things a whole heap further. We were descended on by council officers armed with cameras and ticket books at which point the game had to be stopped - yes, stopped - while everyone (and we are talking both teams' players, coaches and supporters) had to move their vehicles or have them ticketed and towed away because we had parked in front of this fella's house. After everyone moved their vehicles, something else had changed - everyone's attitude on the field. Both teams had gone from being worst enemies, to standing in a group, laughing and joking about what was happening off-field.
To both teams' credit, this is how the match continued with the end result: Coastal 3 Western 2 . The final two goals from Coastal being bloody outstanding as well. Until today, I have considered the games we have played so far to be nothing more than an extra practice session for us (I know this sounds cocky, but the team are playing at a level below their skill), and as per the scoreline, most games have been a walk in the park. Today's game was very enjoyable in that the competitiveness of Western, their skill and general on-field presence, were a good worthwhile match for us. We were more than happy to shout and have a beer with them after the game, which is something we haven't done with an opposing team before. Today was Western's first loss of the season and I think it fair to say probably their last [apart from the return match v Coastal] and we look forward to playing them and enjoying a cold one or two after the game again . Once again, as always, a huge thanks to the wives and partners that line the sideline each week to support the guys, our sponsor Clark Plumbing, and a huge shout-out to our assistant coach and former captain Wozzer, who goes under the knife this week to try and repair the knee injury he got in the pre season game against the reserves. We are all thinking of you mate.
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26 April 2008: Coastal Spirit 8 Rolleston 1
We went into this match looking to improve on previous weeks' performances and the guys delivered a very convincing win. Credit to Rolleston who played well, but were simply outclassed by a far better team.
First half started with the Rolleston defence being broken down almost immediately from the kickoff. From there, they never looked like they had a decent chance to get a foot into the game - with their only goal of the game coming from a penalty kick.
Hard work and some clever passes - plus a few lucky shots - were rewarded with eight goals being scored by Coastal, including a hat-trick in the first half to Tom Marsh .
Once again, I find myself being amazed by the level of skill of my squad and, to be honest, I can't take any credit for it - they are just a naturally talented team, who are lucky enough to have great coaches like Wozzer and I looking after them. LoL.
As always, huge thanks go out to the people that line the sideline every week, cheering the guys on and to Clark Plumbing for their ongoing sponsorship.
And, just in case you missed it while you are reading this, final score: Coastal Spirit White 8 - Rolleston 1.
Comment on team talks at the Coastal Spirit Forum