We started with a 4-1-4-1 formation, something that we all look very comfortable with now. We changed formation three times in total last night, chopping between 4-1-4-1 and 4-4-2. Each and every time we did so, it was seamless, with everybody on the pitch keeping their focus on the task in hand. Our strict discipline to keeping our shape certainly makes our task of containing our opponents much easier, and so it proved again last night.
Dolphin, forever heralded as a "passing team," had to resort to long balls over the top. These, of course, are bread and butter for our defence. In the first-half it was the returning Neill Robertshaw and the forever willing Phill Arnold who mopped up the ball time and again. And with Lee Clifford behind them, a keeper who never hesitates to race off his line, we looked really solid and unlikely to concede. When Dolphin did finally find a way through, we were confident enough to not let it knock us off our stride. We continued to play our own game, concentrating on the good things that we can do as opposed to worrying about what the opposition could do, and it was one of our many positives that brought a penalty, and the equaliser our way. Joe Bowkett, forever a menace when cutting in from wide positions with his natural pace and ability on the ball, was cynically hacked down (not for the first time or last time on the night), and the referee immediately signalled for a penalty to us, despite the protests of the Dolphin players. Personally, I was staggered to hear the abuse hurled at the ref for the penalty decision, considering the challenge was two-footed, and resulted in Joe being helped off the pitch, I really think that was a particularly sour moment in the match. The penalty was then successfully dispatched to bring the scores level.
Unfortunately, the challenges continued to fly in from a large number of the Dolphin players. They have often displayed this side to their game when things aren't going their way, and the best way to respond for us, which is the way we are responding more and more often, is to continue to play our game, to keep possession, and to further frustrate our opponents whilst simultaneously carving out decent opportunities for ourselves.
Somehow we managed to shuffle our way through six different substitutes. I wouldn't have used them all without the full confidence I had in everybody present to continue to keep their focus, with our subs fitting seamlessly in to the game. And fit in they did, and with the fresh legs we brought on to the pitch during the final 20-25 minutes, we looked capable of going on to win the match, even more so when we changed formation for the final 10 minutes to a 4-4-2, deploying a partnership up front of Simon Mesner and Dean Marney, with Joe Bowkett and Perre Heath supporting from wide. With Sam Herbert always offering himself for a pass from centre-mid, and Greg Rainey making a storming appearance from the bench, a win may well have been justified if we could have found the back of the net.
There were great performances elsewhere on the pitch last night, with everyone playing their part. Luis Sandoval put in arguably his longest and best shift of the year, both Gardener brothers showed what a difference they can make, the excellent Lee Clifford getting a run out at centre-back for the second-half, switching with Neill Robertshaw at half-time, Phil Caldwell again motoring up and down the right-wing, Andy Dade again solid at right-back, Graeme Were always showing a composed touch at both left-back and as holding centre-mid. The MOTM award last night went to Steve Spurdens, but only just due to the excellent performances by everybody else.
Keep the faith!
Joe
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