Asterix Reds F.C. 5 - 3 Red Star (Expat Cup)

We beat Red Star 5-3 in an eagerly contested encounter, our third game
in the Expat Cup. Even though we led from the start, Red Star had
plenty of the ball and, at times, put us under some pressure. Some
good work in front of goal by our strikers ensured we snapped up all 3
points to make it three wins out of three in the Expat Cup. Stevie
Whitson bagged a brace, Terry got one from the penalty spot with the
others coming from Andy and Bunmi.

Red Star started the stronger team, dominating the midfield. And,
whilst they didn't create any clear cut chances, our back four had to
work hard to keep it that way. We held firm and our break came after
around 20 minutes when we got the opener against the run of play.
Terry Harris did well down the left and floated a delightful ball into
the box. Stevie Whitson, our Georgie Best look-a-like and play-a-
like, guided the ball into the corner for a one nil lead. Our second
came shortly after.

A quickly taken free kick allowed Andy to pick out Bunmi on the back
stick. The leggy Nigerian tucked it away nicely to give us a 2-goal
cushion. We had a chance for a third shortly after. After some great
interchange from the middle to the left, Stevie Whitson's cross picked
out Andy Johnston about 10 yards out. Andy rose like the proverbial
salmon but his powerful header struck the bar and bounced to safety.

We then let Red Star back in the game with a soft goal before half-
time. Both our central defenders failed to connect with a routine
cross which their striker slotted home unmarked at the back post. 2-1
at half time.

We made some changes to strengthen the midfield in the second half and
immediately got a stronger grip on the game. We were fortunate to get
our third after the ref gave us a soft pen, Terry Harris making no
mistake from the spot.

We added a fourth after Paul Williams made a good run down the right
and put a ball into the corridor of uncertainty. The 'keeper could
only parry the ball on to the right breast of Andy Johnson which made
no mistake.

The ref then evened out the soft pen score by giving Red Star one of
their own. 4-2. This was followed by a minor altercation that had
threatened throughout the game. One of their strikers had barged Mark
Williams into the drain behind the goal line as he shepherded the ball
out for a goal kick. It was a gutless act that only a complete coward
would do and a shame to see such behavior between two SSLKL teams. Later, one of the Red Star players took exception to a
hard challenge and threatened to hit one of our players. Fortunately,
we all kept our cool and avoided any problems. I would have liked to
have seen the ref take some firmer action, but it was not to be.

Good football soon prevailed as Stevie Whitson, got his second with
some silky skill. He was released down the inside left channel from
the midfield. He ran at the defender, and as he stepped inside the
box, faked one way dragged the ball behind his other foot.
This gave him the space he needed to fashion a curling right foot shot
which found its way neatly into the bottom of the far corner. A
lovely bit of skill and a great way to complete our scoring.

Red Star got one back after our defence went to sleep. We missed a
few very good chances to add to account later in the game and 5-3 is
how it ended.

Red Star gave us the best game we've had for a few weeks and credit
for the team for getting the three points. The strikers did well
throughout, taking the chances that mattered. Terry Harris helped to
provide some steel in the midfield in the second half which allowed us
to play some better football. Commitment was high throughout the team
and Red Star made us work hard for the win.  We were not as solid at
the back as we have been in recent weeks. Albeit we were missing a few
of our regular defenders but we did give them two soft goals and a
pen. Let's get our defence back to higher standards we've played at for the next game. Again,
credit to the strikers for getting 5 at the other end which provided
us with the cushion we needed.

My picks for Man of the Match were Stevie Whitson - who was a handful
throughout and scored a cracking second goal - and Terry Harris for
doing a great job in shoring up the centre of midfield in the second half. I
can't separate them so this week it goes to them both. Mug of the
Day? Well, I'll leave that to the readers comment!

That gives us three wins out of three out of three in the Expat Cup.
One more versus Vikings will see us bag the Expat Cup. Let's make
sure we're up for it.

Asterix Reds 2 - 1 Wednesday (Friendly)

After being a goal down at the break, second half goals from Stevie
Whitson and Terry Harris gave us this win over a useful Wednesday FC.

We started well and had the bulk of possession and chances in the
first 20 minutes. We didn't take the chances we created however and
were punished when Wednesday hit us on the break after 30 minutes.

In the second half we settled ourselves down and played some better
football. Terry Harris proved to be a focal point up front and helped
link the forwards and midfielders. We used the space created well and
had a fair few chances to score. A few too many went begging but
credit to Stevie and Tel for getting the goals that mattered.

Next week, we're back in action in the Expat Cup where we take on Red
Star. We're currently top of the Expat Cup league with two wins out
of two. A win versus Red Star would put us in good shape.

Asterix Reds F.C. 3 - 0 BMFC (Expat Cup)

We maintained our 100% record in the pre-season Expat Cup tournament with a comfortable win over BM.  A goal in the first half from Bunmi Sodiya and 2 in the second from Andy Johnston and Adam Scott were enough to secure the win.

We started at a high tempo and created chances from the get-go.  We pinned BM into their own half and put loads of balls into the box but didn't get the goal we were looking for.  And, it wasn't until mid-way through the first half that our breakthrough came.  Bunmi was put clean through by Steve and outstripped the defenders to get one on one with the 'keeper.  He needed a second bite of the cherry but ultimately rolled the ball into the back of the net.  BM sat deep for the rest of the half and although the game was played in their half of the pitch we didn't create any more clear cut chances.  Adam Scott went close with a couple of headers, but 1-0 at half time it was.

We started the second half on top but BM clawed their way back into the game securing themselves more of the ball than in the opening 40 minutes.  We continued to pass and move well but only created half chances.   As the game wore on, space opened up and we scored 2 more to settle it.  1 each from Andy Johnston and Adam Scott.  We played out the game comfortably and recorded our second win and clean sheet in two weeks.  

This was a good performance.  The movement up top, passing and running off the ball by the attacking players was superb.  It was great to see Stevie and Adam linking well as they begin to form an understanding.  The wide players - Ian Quirk and Bunmi - got forward and interchanged passes with the strikers which helped us get behind the defence regularly.  Mark Williams made his customary marauding runs up the right wing and was a constant problem for their defenders.  Andy Johnston put his usual long shift in the middle and was tireless in winning possession.  The back four was solid throughout.  Mark Jones won everything in the air and Bala made won every challenge he made.  Keith Stewart made his debut in goal and didn't have a lot to do, but dealt very comfortably with everything that came his way.  Most important he kept a clean sheet.  Despite some strong performances all round, Bala wins my vote for Man of the Match.  His winning of possession stifled any chances BM had of getting into our box and created a solid platform from which we could attack.  Well done, Bala. 

Overall, we dominated possession but did struggle to create chances when BM sat deep.  We move forward very well at a high tempo but we also need to learn to be able to change our game so that we can play at a slower speed when teams sit deep.  When teams are sitting deep, we need to be a little more patient and pass the ball across the middle and between the midfielders and defenders to encourage their defending players to move up the park.  This will create space for our strikers.  Then we turn up the gas and go a them at full pace.   Something to work on in our next game.  

BM were missing a few players and should be stronger when the league season starts.    Nonetheless, it was an encouraging and comfortable win.  We also have several people to come back in to the team which bodes well for us this season.  

We're now top of the Expat Cup table, having played two, won two, scored 8 and conceded 0.  Let's take that form forward into our next game which is a friendly versus Mancis, the team that has won our league for the past 4 or 5 seasons.  This should be a good test.  

Asterix Reds F.C. 5 - 0 Expat Lions (Expat Cup)

We won our first game of the pre-season 'Expat Cup' tournament, with a
comfortable 5-0 victory over Expat Lions.

We started the game well and worked hard to keep possession of the
ball. This paid dividends as we created a hatful of chances
throughout the first half. Goals from Adam Scott and and Stevie
Whitson saw us go into half-time 2 goals to the good.

We slowed a bit in the second half and didn't keep the ball as well.
To their credit Expat Lions came out with a bit of fight and made us
work harder. Our lack of match fitness showed and we struggled to
maintain the high tempo of the first half. Nonetheless, we scored 3
goals from Adam Scott, Stevie Whitson and Paul Williams.

All in all this was a better performance than our previous ones in the
pre-season. Our passing, movement, work rate and decision making were
much improved, particularly in the first half. Had we finished more
of the chances we created we could have easily doubled our goal
tally. Our lack of fitness showed in the second half. Use that as a
reason to get yourselves down to training this Thursday.