thunder that eventuated was the thunder from the boots of the Asterix
Reds strikers. A Terry Harris hatrick and a strike by Anil Padmanabhan
were enough to give us a well earned 3 points.
We took an early lead by scoring in the first minute of the game.
The Liverpool players seemed to be still warming up while a foray
down the wing resulted in a cross onto the head of Terry Harris who
made no mistake powering the ball past the keeper and into the net.
We continued to dominate the game it wasn't long before we were two
goals up. We won the ball in midfield and a cross-field pass
released Anil in space behind their left back. The shout of 'Hit it'
was clearly heard and hit it he did, firing a low hard drive that was
too hot for the keeper to handle.
Liverpool then began a good spell of about 10 minutes when they held
possession in our half. But all they could fashion were some shots
from distance that didn't trouble Bala in goal. After about 25
minutes, we got our third. Bunmi Sodiya picked up the ball centrally
and began a mazy, jinking run at the heart of the Liverpool defence.
As he was about to unleash a left foot shot, he was brought down by
the last defender inside the box and ref didn't hesitate to award the
spot kick. Terry Harris stepped up and coolly slotted home for a 3-0
lead. We remained on top for the rest of the first half and came in
at half time with a comfortable 3 goal cushion.
We started well in the second half but it was Liverpool who were to
score first. In a rare foray into our half, their striker hit a
great volley into the corner to make it 3-1. We talked at half-time
about remaining calm if we were to concede and we did that.
Liverpool, feeling they had a sniff of a result, came back at us but
we weathered the storm with some committed defending and kept the
ball when we got it back. We continued to create chances at the
other end and after about 55 minutes restored our 3 goal lead after
Terry Harris netted for his hat trick. We then gave away a soft
penalty which made the score 4-2. Liverpool again had a spell where
they had a go at us, but our back four - led by Ghani Malik - was
rock solid. Bala also made a great stop from a long range curling
effort. We continued to create some good chances to score but 4
goals was enough for us to take the points.
Today was a very good performance. We were committed in our tackles,
played the game at a high tempo throughout and used the ball well
when we had it. All 13 players had very good games. It was very good to see Dave Agar and Anil Padmanabhan return after long spells out and acquit themselves very well. Young Davey Jones played a full game in centre midfield, showing us the vigour and exuberance of youth that he keeps talking about. And I would point to the spine of our team as the factor which won us this game. At the back, Ghani Malik was rock solid, winning everything that came to him - on the floor and in the air - and ensuring we kept a high defensive line to maintain our shape as a unit. Bunmi Sodiya dominated the middle of the park, winning us possession and using it well. His energy levels were immense and it was great to see a central midfielder frequently getting into the opponent's box, creating chances for himself and others. And up front, Terry Harris was too much to handle for their esteemed defenders. Clearly, scoring three goals was an invaluable contribution, but it was Terry's all round contribution which helped us to win. Terry won all the long balls in the air which allowed us to get up the field and play our football at their end of the field. And he was immense in keeping possession whilst holding off the physical challenge of their two big centre backs. Great stuff lads.
This win puts us into fourth place in the league just three points
behind the leaders, Mancis, who we play next Sunday. With just six
league games to play we've put ourselves in a great position to
challenge for the league.
We should go into the next game full of confidence; we've had a great
run of form since Christmas. In 2008, in league, cup and
friendlies, we've played a total of 12 games, winning 10, drawing 1
and losing only 1. We've scored an impressive 43 goals in the
process. Most important, we've won all of our 5 games in March and
scored 21 goals. I asked for 5 wins out of 5 in March and the team
has delivered. Winning is a habit and I'm delighted with the way
we're playing. Our tempo yesterday was high, we showed great energy
and commitment and knocked the ball about well. Let's keep our focus
and consistency in the coming weeks. If we keep churning out wins,
we'll be top of the league by the end of the April.
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