TWFC

We welcomed Jorge back from paternity leave and Dave from grueling fund raising for the children’s charity Action Medical Research. This fixture we had even numbers and picked the teams purely based on science of weeks of player analysis. The logic was based upon the principles of players who would have to be on opposite sides in order to get balanced teams.

Jorge and Jon exponents of holding up the ball and the clinical power strike

Koonal and Arik determined wingers blessed with box to box pace

Milo and Dave creative goal scoring midfielders

Niyi and Steve keepers/first line of attack

We learned this week in the media that the role of the captain is to '...show enormous enthusiasm and responsibility.' (Hodgson, 2014). So in deference to professional football our teams were picked with little or no input from the captains Jon and Milo.

The Muftis took the lead and raced to 4 - 2 before Milo enthusiastically advised his team to hold a firm last line of defence and stand goal side of their man. To help clarify his philosophy he quoted the mantra "They don't like it up 'em!". And in truth it seemed Jon's men did not particularly flourish under the close marking attentions of the Bibs who were able to draw level and then pull ahead to lead 8 - 5.

In response a deftly floated ball across the area was thrust in to the net by the Mufti's captain using his groin area. When incredulous colleagues queried what he had done, someone delicately confirmed it was ok as he had used 'his head'. This will surely go down as one of the more creative goals ever seen and takes scoring to a new level.

Great goals, and double entendre, aside the Muftis may have seen the writing on the wall as they consoled themselves at around 9pm that there was only three goals in it. During this passage of play Jorge interspersed his finer goals with an entry that takes him into the mid table of the ' Ave League of Prodigious Shots. It was characterised by a single bounce on the gym roof before the ball fell back into the car park.

This seemed to spur a late Mufti onslaught, the like of which has not been seen for a while from a team who were supposed to have been beaten. Steve went in goal for the Muftis and it was one of those nights were you just knew that if he had a released a gangsta rap it would have been titled something like 'Aint no Mutha Gonna Get Past Me!'. At the other end Koonal narrowed the angles for all he was worth to try to stem the Muftis' goals. Arik got in on the act and took one for the team by bravely putting his body in front of a Bibs' shot.

By sheer force of will the Muftis brought the game level and moved ahead again. The period of play turned on a superb reaction save from Dave during his stint in goal; ball leathered to his left with force from just outside the area, without a moment to consciously think what to do he instinctively shot out his left hand to palm the ball to safety.

At 9:22 with the Muftis comfortably ahead there was talk of the match being over and an agreement that the last goal would end the evening. The goal was crafted by the Bibs' midfield and converted by Koonal giving the Bibs the satisfaction of knowing that they might have lost but they had not been defeated.

Whilst it actually felt like a wider margin players unanimously agreed there had only been one goal in it at the end so the final score was recorded as 14 - 13.

Match awarded to the Muftis 14 - 13

Things to Note

The fixture bids a fond farewell to Nick Cooksey who has moved to Reading.
After the match Jorge invited players to wet baby Carmen's head. Picture attached.

(There should have been a Greene King IPA as well but it just wouldn't get in the shot. For image rights reasons players could not be shown and other beers are available etc)