U16s vs Old Rutlishians

The U16s hosted Old Ruts in the County Cup on Sunday with a number of players recovering from illness or trying to battle through it. However, that was no excuse for a poor first half.

A lack of energy in the press, slow passing, overplaying the ball and looking for 30-40 yard passes instead of keeping it simple, all contributed to a disappointing display against an Old Ruts team that we should be beating.

With 20 minutes gone and with nothing of note happening, Jack Harrington was forced to come off unwell which unsettled the Abbey back line. 3 minutes later and Old Ruts hit Abbey on the break, slotting the ball past Mikey Verga with a well taken goal that (on balance) Old Ruts deserved. Although we expected that to kick the boys into life, that didn't happen – heads dropped and we never really got going or found our rhythm. A poor first half finished 0-1 to Old Ruts.

At half time the boys were told to pick themselves up, to use the ball and to work it better. This definitely registered as they were much better from the kick off… Passing the ball around nicely, working it from front to back and left to right, and really imposing our game in their Old Ruts half. In truth, Old Ruts looked unable to cope with the energy and desire from the Abbey boys for long periods and surely it was only going to be a matter of time before we scored.

Ben Hall worked tirelessly to inspire to his team mates and showed some outstanding skill as he cut in from the left, beating the defender before seeing his shot crash back off the underside of the cross bar from 35 yards out. Their goalie had no chance and Ben was incredibly unlucky not to be wheeling away in celebration. On 67 minutes we did get out reward though and drew level with Alfie Bennet capitalising on some panic in the Old Ruts area, lifting a loose ball over the keeper and into the net. 1-1.

The Abbey lads knew that with little more than 10 minutes to go we could get a winner, so they threw everything at it... constantly getting the ball in and around the Old Ruts area and trying to create openings whenever possible. However the Old Ruts players dug in and were still a danger on the counter attack - Mikey Verga having to rush out and collect the ball a few times before an Old Ruts player could nip in for a 1 on 1.

Abbeys endevour was ultimately in vain and without being able to find the winner the match went to penalties. At first it looked like lady luck was smiling on us again as Mikey Verga saved the first 2 penalties to see us go 2-0 up, however that wasn’t the case and 3 missed penalties saw us eventually lose the shootout 3-4 in sudden death.

The boys will learn a lot from this defeat and we’re all looking for a reaction when we return to the league next week. The take away point for the boys has to be that you cant be slow to start games or rely on luck at this level – if you do, you’re going to get caught out.

MOTM: Mikey Verga – brilliant performance and unlucky not to be the hero in the penalty shootout again. Really shows up every week and has made a massive difference to the team. A key player and a great lad.

Ben Hall was also exceptional. Worked hard all game and looked to create opportunities through clever passes - whilst also being a direct goal threat.