Beaten in bandit territory

West Lynn 3 - 1 Norwich Hotspur
(Death (pen))
11/10/2009

West Lynn away was never going to be an easy place to go. New to the league, they had won both their games by eight clear goals, however I thought with a little bit of luck we might get a result.

Tiny changing rooms, not designed for 15 big lads, we had to change in shifts.

Big pitch, nice and flat, a bit windy but no excuses with the conditions.

Daryl 'Shut Out' Arnold making his debut at left back, in the absence of the toy throwing L P Kitson.

First Half

Deathy was skipper this week, and duly won the toss, giving us the first half advantage of wind at our backs.

We were under pressure for most of the first half, they were a good side with some very mobile players up front, however the Hotspur defence of Arnold, Tink, Walters, Culling and Doy stood firm.

Couple of breaks by us could have seen us going into the lead, but alas our shooting boots were not with us.

Like the great Arsenal defences of old we all stepped up with our hands in the air and shouted "he's off" in perfect unison - only problem is, he wasn't and duly nipped in and scored with a good finish, 1-0 down.

Second Half

Culling, Jennings & Death make way for Oakley, Cox & Miles.

Didn't start well for us and we could have been a couple more behind, but West Lynn wasted their chances.

Then we had a spell. Following a whipped in corner, Walters & Guzewich challenging, panic in the West Lynn defence - handball, penalty - slotted home cooly by Death, 1-1.

Ding dong merrily on high for a while and both slides slugged it out.

West Lynn go 2-1 ahead after some good play.

Blazer on for Baylis.

Corner from the left, flicked on, ball drops to Blazer, who smelts one on the volley, it must be the equaliser, a strike of purest footballing technique rarely seen outside of the Premiership, balance, grace, power, precision - bugger it hit the post and bar and flew across the face of goal to safety.

Baylis back for Bird.

More Hotspur pressure.

More chances.

More misses.

Baylis & Guzewich hang your heads in shame, Baylis your head should be a little more hung than Guzzys to be fair - and yes it was an open goal!

10 minutes to go, 3-1 to West Lynn after they floated one on the wind over Doy while he back peddled.

Final score, West Lynn 3 -1 Norwich Hotspur.

Ratings

Doy* (8) - excellent kicking, and one 'match of the day credits' save to note
Culling (7) - much improved, his best half of the season by far, some excellent covering across
Walters (6) - good positional play, a threat in the opposition box, showed good pace at times
Tink (6) - very solid performance, stood up to the physical challenge well, good covering
Arnold (7) - very good debut, looks like a great addition to the team
Baylis (6) - lacked the finishing touch, otherwise good
Bird (6) - harried the WL midfield superbly, great energy, passing let him down at times
Death (6) - worked hard, marshalled the midfield, good pen
Miller (7) - Mr consistency, very solid defencively and good going forward
Miles (6) - great distribution when in possession, needs to get on the ball more
Guzewich (6) - slightly off sorts, really needs a goal
Jennings (6) - worked hard, unlucky with some of his touches
Oakley (5) - one great touch - literally one touch
Cox (6) - filled in well at fullback following Oakleys early withdrawal
Blazer (6) - that volley could have made him a legend

Overall Team Rating (7)

I think we would have been delighted with a draw, we battled well against a quality side and with a bit of luck and ruthlessness in front of goal we might have got a result. However, lots of positives to take from the game and I look forward to the return fixture.

Next up is Aylsham away in the County Cup - we owe them one.

Jem
Head Coach Director of Football Manager
Norwich Hotspur