Saturday 10th March

Our last match of the season we faced Caversham Argyl who were fifth position in the table. We kicked off downhill & started the brightest. Freddy cleared his lines superbly, one with his left foot was awesome. On the attack Robbie’s dipping volley drew the goalkeeper into a smart save. Then Brandon followed up a shot from Robbie & fired the ball home to give us the lead.   Harry made a great save from a shot only for the striker to follow the rebound & replicate what Brandon did for their equaliser. 

In the second half Freddy was pushed into midfield & he wasted no time in bombing forward as he busted a gut to smash a close range shot in to give us the lead. Shortly afterwards it was Robbie’s turn to get on the scoresheet as he also followed a shot that was saved from the left…although what was that celebration Robbie??  The defence duo of Joel & Arya worked really hard, I lost count of how many last ditch tackles Arya made & Joel really nailed those goal kicks especially up-hill setting up attacks. Likewise Harry was finding good distance with his kicks. Brandon defended from the front really well, on one occasion he must of headed away 5 throw-ons to help his team mates.

Joel was his usual attacking self & played a lovely through ball to AP who we all know can finish, he didn’t disappoint by leathering the ball into the roof of the net to make it 4-1 to the Cougars. Thankfully AP has better control than his dad showed on the side of the pitch….!!

The boys played well today which is great but also frustrating that we don’t perform like that all the time. Perhaps their motivation was the chocs Leena brought for Arya’s birthday!

Once aspect I was really pleased about was our tactics for the defenders playing deeper this week to reduce the space behind them giving Harry extra protection. This worked really well which may persuade me to repeat next week. Freddy had a storming match in all areas of the pitch to collect the MOM award – well done Freddy!

So we finish the season in seventh position, just 4 points behind fourth place. Ironically we finished last season with 2 wins & a drawer. Also our last match of the season gave me my first hat-trick of wins which I have been waiting for all season…..Cougars, Reading & my Sunday Team Barton Rovers all winning – RESULT!!!!

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Saturday 3rd March 

As the boys huddled together for the pre-match team talk there were some interesting conversations about their social lives;   ……Arya partying until 1am… Joel having a girlfriend…Robbie dumping his girlfriend… AP getting his Orange belt in Judo……anyway back to football please boys!

Full credit to Harry for getting out of his sick-bed today to play the first half.  Kieran helped out by offering to wear the gloves in the second half. HR kept a clean sheet in the first half & his kicks really stretched up the pitch for Brandon to chase.  We had most of the early pressure with Kieran almost connecting with Joel’s free-kick & Joel also went close with a good shot. Brandon & Robbie again combined brilliantly with their short corner routine, Brandon’s shot had ‘goal’ written all over it only for a fantastic goal line clearance to deny him.

In the second half AP came on up tops & Joel pushed forward into an attacking midfield role. It was Joel who did really well on a skilful run & found AP who’s first time effort was a rocket into the roof of the net. Shortly afterwards AP became the provider as his neat pass into Chris which Chris controlled nicely & put his shot into the bottom corner to double our lead. Lovely goal Chris. 

Reeves were now launching attack after attack & Kieran made one diving save, 3 or 4 shots he caught & another couple he blocked in what was an excellent display inbetween the sticks considering he had not played in goal this season.

Joel was MOM mainly for his second half performance which was skilful & he showed good awareness with his passing as he drove his team mates onto victory.

So we are still 7^th but always good to win!

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Saturday 25th February

Maidenhead Santos results had improved lately & they were ahead deservedly in the first half. Harry had to make a couple of great diving saves to keep the score down to 1 nil. In attack Robbie & Brandon combined brilliantly from a short corner with Robbie connecting well with a decent shot just drifting wide. Brandon was alert & latched onto a loose ball but the goaly scrambled back in time to save on the goal line. Joel won a great header from Robbie’s free-kick as we pushed for an equaliser. Kieran used his strength to get a good shot in that just drifted wide.

The first half was quite slow in the sunshine so Arya & Chris came on in the second half giving us more energy as our constant pressure finally gave us a goal. Brandon played a nice ball back to Robbie who’s trusty left foot shot did the rest. Santos were then unlucky to give away an own goal but we deserved the lead. Joel pushed up in Centre-Midfield & did brilliantly with several passes & dribbles. AP went close with a good shot & was a real box of tricks with his dribbles. Then the ref awarded a penalty for handball which was harsh & Harry made a brilliant save only for the ball to be tapped in on the goal line.

So the points were shared which was probably a fair result. AP had a creative game & tried really hard especially in the second half with his skills, was strong in his tackling to collect the MOM award….in fact he was like John Cena..!

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Saturday February 18th

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Saturday 28th January 2012

Wokingham & Emmbrook put us under some early pressure & took the lead, it was a bit unfortunate for Harry as the ball rebounded in. We came back equal terms before half-time following a nice 1-2 from Brandon’s throw-on when AP passed the ball back, Brandon’s cross was too hard for the goaly to stop. The boys have worked on playing 1-2s from throw-ons with mixed success so this was a good reward for their training. We broke forward a few times, Freddy & Brandon passed to each other well & AP was a twisting & turning on the right wing.

In the second half Robbie raced away & one excellent long range shot flew over the bar then soon after another cross-shot towards Brandon just that rolled wide. Joel took an accurate free-kick after he was fouled right in the danger area which almost found a way through to the goal.

It’s fair to say the defenders & Harry were the busiest on the pitch, all of them worked really hard with their tackling. Harry, especially in the second half made a string of successful saves to keep us in the match, and it wasn’t until the last minute when their third goal went in – this was only after a fantastic effort by AP who nearly saved the goal by a brave tackle on the goal line getting injured in the process.

Reflecting on the match we passed the ball in stages & put the effort in, but not winning any corners or creating any clear-cut chances reflects the result of a 3-1 defeat.. Let’s hope we can improve for next week.

Harry was diving everywhere making saves and deserved his man-of-the-match award.  He told me before the match he wanted to be Hulk Hogan & the way he threw himself around he was right.................!!

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Saturday 21st January 2012

 Cougars continued their unbeaten run in 2012 with a 3-1 victory against Whiteknights.  Chris Harding produced a smart finish firing the ball in the top corner.  AP playing as striker in the first half tested the goaly with a couple of hard & low shots, then his reward for his efforts arrived when he got his name on the scoreesheet with a fine instinctive finish.  Robbie was busy down the left wing with some nice skills & put in loads of crosses to feed our attacks.

A pleasing aspect was our passing, Joel did a great 1-2 with Robbie before a good left foot shot that drifted narrowly wide, and generally all the players showed good awareness to pass - pass - pass....

The strong wind was against us in the second half & Whiteknights really pushed us, they deservedly pulled a goalback & would of had an equaliser if Harry had not a saved a 1-1 superbly.   Then late in the game Brandon "Le Fondre" latched on to the ball following a storming run & dribble from Kieran, Brandon struck a sweet volley that hit the top corner.  Kieran had a great game, worked hard & listened as made more completed passes than ever before.

So 3 different scorers, 3 points, move up to 6th position in the league & passed better than we ever had so the boys deserve loads of praise for a sound team performance.                                                            

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Saturday 7th January 2012

Playing 11 league matches & 3 cup matches make it around half-time in our season….. 

When we lost 5-1 to Westwood in our first match we were unlucky playing a top team first up and the new goal-kick rule caught us out. I briefed the boys what to expect for goal kicks, ie stand nearer the goal, mark their men, I was naïve to expect the boys to pick this up immediately. I cringe now when I remember shaking my head as we let in some goals. In retrospect I shouldn’t of overloaded the boys with too much info - not my finest hour!

Recently we rely on Joel to ‘boot’ the goalkicks up the pitch which everyone has gradually adapted to find space & mark their men. Now Harry has showed what practicing has achieved as he is now capable of taking decent goal kicks when called upon which is an option to give us an extra outfield player.

Reaching third place, winning 4 league matches, playing as a team & winning our first cup game are of course highlights. Losing our last 4 matches has of course been disappointing. At least we’ve played the top 2 teams twice, the rest of the division is competitive so I’m confident we can get some wins when we resume. Like everyone I wish we were flying high at the top of the league and playing champagne football but we are where we are. Most teams have players of different abilities similar to ourselves which certainly isn’t wrong as football is for everyone, what is challenging is balancing our squad on matchdays. I wish every boy could play the full game every week but that just isn’t possible, we all want to win so I appreciate how you must feel when your son is sub or subbed when I rotate the side.

I have deliberately stayed ‘under the radar by having 9 boys in our squad compared to some u9 teams of 12/14, which means the boys get more football than other teams.

Other points:- 

• The boys who start matches have the stability of playing the whole of the first half which seems to work.
• Developing the boys weaknesses like using their weaker foot or controlling the ball properly is coming through.
• Listening to the boys at half-time sticking up for each other, “xxx has played really well” or “xxx was brave” is great & makes me laugh!
• Hearing the boys communicate with each other is excellent, whether it be screaming for the ball or telling each other to mark-up.
• Having a structured warm-up before matches at 11am really helps – have you seen the 3 other teams who now copy us?

I was really impressed when the season started with the boys maturity when getting knocked over or being hit by the ball etc they just seemed to get on with it. A disappointment if I’m pressed, has been that tears that have started to creep recently. I’m guessing it must be the colder weather or bad results?! I’m not a parent & conscious I have limitations with dealing with children but am learning all the time!

When we resume next year I will step training up a bit to encourage the boys to pass a bit more. Our build up play is generally quite good, it’s the composure in front of goal we need to improve on. I’m sure we all agree how frustrating it is when the boys shoot instead of passing to a team-mate. I always try to praise the player who set the goal up as much as the goalscorer to encourage more setting up.

When I play & we let in a goal I’m the first to get the ball to take centre trying to get a goal back so at least I’m doing something, the frustration of coaching is when we let in a goal it just feels so helpless stood on the sidelines!!

It’s great having Barney around to support me & bounce ideas off, the time Barney has spent developing Harry has really benefitted the team.

When I started coaching kids aged 5, I was always looking forward to them reaching age 8 – 10 (the golden age of learning I’m told!) as more information is absorbed which is great for me to see the results. As the boys learn football they will find their own level whether it be up or down, that’s something for us all to assess next season I guess. I am as passionate as ever about giving the boys the best football education, I have an idea of the boys best positions & strengths/weaknesses so if any of you want my view on your boy’s development then feel free to ask.

Thanks