U15 EJA Match reports

Under 15 EJA (Eastern Junior Alliance) ___________________________________________________

24/2/2008: Chelmsford City 2 - 0 Witham Town

A rather subdued perfomance by the Clarets today, typified by the opening exchanges where the passing and movement was not happening . Players were failing to support each other and the silence on the pitch was deafening!. The pattern of the first 15 minutes saw City on the back foot against hard-working opposition and a nervous-looking back four managed to hold them at bay - only for possession to continually be lost by careless distribution which invited more pressure - - players need to remember the importance of running off the ball to give team-mates
passing options.
Sam Fairhall was one of the few bright sparks in the 1st half , ploughing a lone furrow up front, feeding off scraps and generally making a nuisance of himself . It was Fairhall who opened the scoring when he latched onto a long clearance , realising he had no support, he took it into the box and scored with a rasping drive from the angle of the box. City had a brief purple patch after this and almost extended their lead, firstly with a good near post header by Mike Anderson and then with a peach of a long-range free kick by Jack Sterland which clipped
the bar. This level of play could not be sustained, however , and Witham continued to press for an equalizer, and just when it looked like City could preserve the clean sheet until half-time, Will Baxter suffered a rush of blood to the head to concede a penalty with a rash tackle from behind which earned him a yellow card .
Penalty converted well - 1-1 at half-time.
The second half saw City start to get the passing going for a while and the shift to 4-4-2 gave a bit of support for Fairhall. However, it was Witham who went ahead when defensive uncertainty let the Town striker clean through and he hammered home from 15 yards. Things went from bad-to-worse soon after when City were the victims of a most eccentric piece of refereeing when Baxter was clearly upended from behind in the box - but the decision was to give him a 2nd Yellow for diving! -Hmmmmmm!
As often is the case in such situations, with 10 men City roused themselves and produced a stirring effort in the last 15 minutes , equalising when Benjie Bailey smashed home a half-volley from 18 yards and coming close to getting a winner - particular through Collier in the dying minutes. On balance, a draw was a fair result - City are still well short of their early season best , but there were encouraging signs in the last 15 minutes when the lads' fighting spirit clawed them back into the
game.
Man-of-match - Sam Fairhall - worked his socks off as a lone striker in the 1st half and took his goal brilliantly.

10/2/2008: Chelmsford City 4 - 0 Westward Boys (Essex County Cup)

City progressed into the semi finals of the county cup in impressive fashion with a good solid display against the Echo premier league team.

Following on from some poor recent displays, City entered the field with a slightly different formation. McArdle and Norris both coming in for their first start of the season.

Chelmsford started the game with good intentions. McArdle started the game with some good strong running. Baxter, as usual was there to break up play whenever called upon. Chelmsford looked good going forward and were unlucky on a number of occasions not to break the deadlock.

With about 15 mins of the half left, Monk managed just that with an opportunist goal to add to his seasons tally.

Westward could consider themselves lucky to go in at half time only down by the one goal.

City upped the ante in the second half, and scored at regular intervals. Rampling finished well for the second. Bailey capped off a fine display with the third, and Sammy Mead wrapped things up with a well deserved fourth and final goal.

This was the type of football that City play well and always looked a threat with their ability to break and attack at every opportunity.

Lewis Lockyer was impressive today, Joe McArdle played his best game for a long time, but star of the show was Will Baxter. His strength and commitment were a lesson for all.

3/2/2008: Chelmsford City 2 - 3 North Greenford

On a bitterly cold morning at Melbourne Park , City got what has been threatening for the past few weeks. They got beat by a team who were prepared for a battle.

North Greenford , after a long journey settled into the game well, and were rewarded with a very early goal. A gift from the city defence which has become far too common this season.

City pressed but were not in top form and all the attacks were dealt with by a very well disciplined Greenford defence.

Against the run of play City got back on level terms via a cross / shot from Monk which took a wicked deflection and beat the Greenford keeper.

The joy was short lived as Greenford simply waltzed through the City defence once more to make it to half time 2-1 up.

A mistake by Lockyer in the city goal let Greenford in for their third goal in the first two minutes of the second half. Cities continued to try to reduce the arrears but were stopped at every opportunity by a well organized Greenford side.

Anderson pulled a goal back in the last 10 minutes but in fairness City never either looked, or deserved to get back on level terms.

Whether the problems are tactical, technical or mental, they have to be sorted out, and quickly. It would be a shame to see all the hard work in the early part of the season go to waste because of a few poor performances.

MOM- I don’t think so……..

20/1/2008: Chelmsford City 2 - 0 Broomfield (Essex County Cup)

A full-blooded cup tie between two longstanding rivals saw the hosts off to a quick start with some good early pressure as Jack Sterland and Will baxter controlled the initial

exchanges, winning midfield possession and passing well to create some promising openings. City forced several corners and a good shot from bailey forced a fine save from the Broomfield keeper , the resulting corner found Michael Anderson at the near post and his acrobatic volley scraped the crossbar.

As the half wore on Broomfield started to settle and the game became more even, the rest of the half saw the action compressed into the midfield with a few chances being created by either side and just as it looked likely to be a half-time stalemate, city got the vital breakthrough. It was always going to take something special to breach the disciplined Broomfield defence and Joe Rampling provided it . A good long pass out of defence by Anderson found him on the right hand angle of the box and showing instant control to create a yard of space, Rampling turned to hammer home a peach of a 20-yarder into the top left corner. 1-0 at half time.

The second half saw City on the back foot for a while as broomfield pressed hard for the equaliser, but the home defence held firm, although some desperate goal line clearances and a couple of good saves by Lockyer were needed. But City upped the work rate and got back into their stride, Collier came close from a Mead cross and from a bailey corner. Anderson hit the bar again with a near post header before Charlie Tiplady put the result in the bag when he scored a Ronaldinho style shot / cross from long distance ( he claims he mean't it ! we'll give him the benefit of the doubt)

As Broomfield pushed up, gaps started to appear at the back and City had chances to score again. Bailey and Mcardell both coming close with good efforts, but 2-0 was a fair result and a good reflection of the game. City did not play their best football on the day and the passing was'nt as sharp as usual, but the shape, discipline and work ethic was good enough to achieve this win.

MAN-OF-MATCH - Michael Andeson - In commanding form at the back and a threat going forward.

6/1/2008: Chelmsford City 5 - 3 Woodbridge Town

City started 2008 with a rather disjointed performance against spirited opposition, the early stages in particular saw the home back
four under pressure as the ball was being given away far too cheaply throughout the team . It was therefore no surprise when Town opened the
scoring after 11 minutes when poor marking left their striker unmarked in the 6-yard box and his header was dispatched well. This seemed to act as a wake-up
call to the City lads who responded immediately when Benjy Bailey made an excellent run down the left before setting up Joe Rampling for a
clinical 12-yard low shot for the equaliser. Five minutes later Bailey was again the provider when his fine floated corner found Lee Monk on
the back post and he volleyed home from 15 yards to give City the lead, albeit a brief one as Town produced a goal on the break which caught the
home side pressing up too far to allow their striker to get behind a rather square back four. 2-2 After 20 minutes and while the crowd may have been entertained
- it did not make comfortable viewing for the Management. The team was not playing as a unit and there was too much reliance on long hopeful
passes and hanging on to the ball. Things slowly started to improve from this point as the back four regrouped and started to get their shape and communication sorted out Nat Collier began to sweep diligently behind Mike Anderson who was starting to dominate with some good interceptions and headers. The
full-backs, Charlie Tiplady and Lee Monk were also settling into their roles and from this solid foundation City were able to build some decent
attacks. Bailey was a constant threat down the left and Will Baxter was leading by example with a dynamic midfield display. The lead was
restored on 26 minutes when a fine cross by Mead was headed home well by the predatory Rampling who went on to complete his hat-trick with a fine
solo effort on the half-hour mark. 4-2 at Half-Time - Summed up by Manager Glen Wilkinson when interviewed briefly by this reporter as ' The chaps are not quite
playing up to the level I expect ' - Or words to that effect !!!
The second- half was less eventful and there was a better discipline to the football , the passing game was not quite there , but it was evident in patches and the lads looked reasonably comfortable . Both sides had a couple of half-chances and both Collier and Anderson were called upon to make some timely blocks at the centre of defence , but City put the game away with 15 minutes left when Bailey capped an excellent display with a mazy run and shot to make it 5-2 . Town managed a consolation goal with 5 minutes left when poor marking let their wide midfielder in for a simple finish but the game finished with a home win
- room for improvement but a decent result nonetheless. MAN-OF-MATCH - Joe Rampling - A long spell out injured has clearly not dulled his goalscoring instincts.

16/12/2007: Grays Athletic 3 - 4 Chelmsford City

City got off to a fantastic start scoring within two minutes from the kick off. An excellent through ball from Boxter split the Grays defence and Fairhall run on to beat the keeper with ease and slot the ball into the corner of the net. City came under pressure as Grays pushed for the equaliser and a fierce mid-field tussle ensued with some fierce tackling from both sides. Baxter and Sterland in mid-field were more than a match for the opposition and Grays rarely worried the City goal. City increased their lead midway through the first half following a goal mouth scramble.Fairhall managed to slot the ball home through a packed goal mouth from within the six yard box.

Grays again increased the pressure and the game became physical and with the referee stopping the game at every challenge the yellow card was getting an airing.

Mead was causing trouble for Grays on the right hand flank until a ‘Red Card’ tackle took him out of the game, although the ref only saw got out the yellow card.

Five minutes later Dix at left back went into a challenge fell awkward on his shoulder and had to be carried off the field. Rogers replaced Mead and slotted in well on the right hand side and Tiplady took over from Dix at left back. City conceded a sloppy goal from a Grays corner by not clearing their lines and City went into half time 2-1 up.

In the second half City took control of the game and started dominating. A sleek move starting from defence gave City their third goal. A diagonal ball from deep in side the City half found Rogers on the right flank who controlled it well took it inside on the edge of the box and passed to Fairhall who rode the full backs challenge and hammered the ball just in side the left hand post to give him his hat-trick. City started to press home their advantage and from a free kick on the left hand side Sterland whipped in the perfect ball for Anderson to rise above the Grays defence and head home in the top corner to make it 4-1 and City were now cruising.

With fifteen minutes to go the referee felt the game was getting boring and decided to spice it up with some strange decisions. Grays broke through and from a 50/50 challenge on the edge of the area the Grays forward shot wide. There were no appeals from the Grays players and as City prepared for a goal kick the referee pointed to the penalty spot. 4-2 city. This gave Grays some impetus and they threw men forward. From a right wing cross Lockyer caught the cross ran to the edge of the area, checked to avoid a Grays player in front of him and the Referee blew the whistle with both City and Grays players scratching their heads.

The resulting free kick was dispatched by Grays at the second attempt. 4-3 City .

City survived a frenzied last couple of minutes as Grays threw everything at them with Lockyer pulling off some great saves. City kept their cool under the pressure although their composure was tested every time the referee blew his whistle. An excellent al round performance by City with the solid defence of Lockyer, Monk, Collier, Anderson and Tiplady holding out well, the midfield of Baxter , Sterland, Bailey and Rogers battling against physical opposition and an excellent performance up front by Rampling and Fairhall allowing Fairhall to take the match ball for a well deserved hat-trick.

9/12/2007: Royal Falcons 2 - 12 Chelmsford City (Essex County Cup)

A typical slow start for City saw them struggle in the first half against inferior opposition.

Despite having numerous opportunities in front of goal and hitting the post four times, poor finishing let them down and it was the opposition who opened the scoring with a sloppy goal against the run of play. City as usual gave the opposition far too much respect in the first half and despite pulling a goal back through Collier they went behind again mid-way through the first half to another goal given away cheaply. City replied with goals from Sterland and Bailey just before the half time whistle to go into the break with a 3-2 lead which was barely deserved.

The second half was a totally different story. City decided to play the passing football that is becoming their trademark.

The commitment, running and distribution in the second half was in total contrast to the poor display in the first half and this change resulted in city running in nine goals: Sterland x 2, Monk x 2, Rogers x 2, Bailey, Mead and Fairhill all found the net. Excellent performances from Rogers who came on at half time created and scored two very well taken goals and Tiplady who slotted well into the centre of defence with a solid performance. Despite numerous substitutions and position changes in the second half this did not affect the free flowing football that City played and the final score capped a well rounded performance by the whole team.

City must be committed from the kick-off otherwise conceding sloppy early goals and missing scoring opportunities against much stronger opposition in the later rounds of the cup could be their downfall.

Narrow, bumpy pitch - windy day - City had a few out with injuries but job done in an efficient manner.
15 min - 1-0 - Nice turn by Bailey on edge of box and low shot under keeper.
27 min - 2-0 - Fairhall first to ball in scramble from corner
28 min - 3-0 - Bailey pullback to Meany - good finish
29 min- 4-0 - Bailey dispossesses defender and slots home
35 min - 5-0- Sterland chip to Mead who scores with a well-executed volley
55 min - 6-0 - Horsnel intercepted pass and hit a 20 yard screamer into top-right.
60 min - 7-0 - GOAL OF GAME BY CAPTAIN CLARKE WHO BEAT 7 MEN IN A SCINTILLATING DRIBBLE BEFORE FLICKING THE BALL UP AND HAMMERING HOME AN UNSTOPPABLE 40-YARDER INTO THE ROOF OF THE NET !
65 min - 8-0 - Mead thru' ball to Caleno - rounded keeper and rolled it home.
70 min - 9-0 - Meaney low 20-yarder.
Great performance by Lockyer as a makeshift striker in last 15 minutes - looks a real find and could challenge for a regular place if he ever
gets bored in goal - great pace and sublime 1st touch - very elegant player and must ignore the general abuse aimed at him by the coaches and
subs, they obviously don't recognise quality when they see it - pure class!
Man - of - match : Mike Anderson - despite carrying a horrendous injury, managed to run the line and carry the very heavy flag with 1 hand and
actually managed to give ZERO offside decisions. His reading of the half-time coffee situation was particularly sharp - I am indeed a proud father

City managed a victory today despite never really hitting top form, the win being earned on the back of hard disciplined defence. The early exchanges were scrappy but City always posed a threat from set pieces and it was from this source that the home side nearly scored twice in 10 minutes , Mike Anderson hitting the post with a fine header and Jack Sterland's shot coming back off the crossbar. The 20 minutes before half-time was Chelmsford's purple patch with the midfield finding their passing rhythm to create some promising openings. On 25 minutes, Lee Monk surged into the box and was bought down from behind for a penalty , Collierhit the spot kick low and left but the keeper produced a good save to keep the scores level. On 32 minutes, the breakthrough came with the best move of the match, Sam Fairhall displayed a classic example of 'Target Man' play as he chased a long pass and held the ball up superbly under pressure until he saw support arriving in the shape of Monk , the cross was a peach and Monk powered home a bullet header from 12 yards out. The 2nd goal came soon after as Collier ran onto a good through ball from Sam Mead and calmly lifted the ball over the advancing keeper to atone for his earlier penalty miss. 2-0 at half-time and a great opportunity to build on it in the 2nd half. The second half saw City unable to maintain their rhythm under constant pressure from a committed East Thurrock side. The introduction of Benjy Bailey did add some pace and skill to the attack but this aside, the attacks were uninspired and too reliant on long, hopeful punts to nobody in particular. Anderson did come close with a couple of headers, and Baxter continued to drive the team forward with a typically combative display - but it was the defence that shone in the last half-hour, keeping their shape well and winning all the key tackles and headers to stifle any chance of a Thurrock comeback. Man-of-the-match. Robbie Clarke - Marshalled the back four superbly and made some crucial headers and interceptions.

This was a dominant display by City against physical , hard-working opposition. The wind and rain were a factor but it was the home side who adapted better,the early exchanges set the pattern for the whole game as City used the ball well, keeping it on the deck, building some good passing moves and creating space down the flanks. The Stotfold keeper thwarted Sam Mead early on when he tipped his shot onto the bar and made a couple more sharp stops to keep the home side at bay. However, the deadlock was broken on 22 minutes when Will Baxter swept an excellent ball out to the left wing for Mead to run onto and play a pinpoint ball across for Lee Monk to sidefoot home calmly from 10 yards. Shortly afterwards, Mead was again the provider as his low corner found Centre-Back Michael Anderson on the back-post and he beat the Stotfold defenders to the ball to smash home a close-range half volley. - 2-0 at the half-way mark.The second half continued in a similar vein and and Chelmsford showed some admirable composure in the face of some overly-physical tackling from the away team. The lads let their football do the talking and were soon to add a well-crafted third when Buster Meaney, overlapping well from right-back, floated in a fine cross and Nat Collier rose well to head home from 10 yards out. Collier turned provider for the fourth goal, beating 2 men down the right channel and playing in Sam Fairhall, who finished well. Stotfold were still persevering and almost pulled one back when they hit the post with a long-range effort but the game was over as a contest when a defensive error let in Collier,who finished at the 2nd attempt. 5-0 and another well-deserved league win , the City lads continue to make progress and played with discipline,skill and intelligence today. The lads kept their shape well and their team-spirit and work-rate were also excellent. Man-of-Match - Will Baxter for a dynamic midfield display which set the tone for the whole team.

City carried their good League form into the Cup and continue to show that they are developing well as a team. The early exchanges were scrappy and City were taking time to find their passing game, despite this they took an early lead on 7 minutes with a ' Route 1 ' goal coming when a huge drop kick from keeper Lewis Lockyer was flicked on by Nat Collier for Sam Fairhall to run onto and finish smoothly. Collier soon added a second when he picked up the ball in midfield, saw the keeper of his line and hit a lofted 25-yarder into the top corner. Michael Anderson went close soon afterwards with a flicked header which almost crept in but chances were few and far between for the rest of the half with the action being predominantly in midfield, as Grays stuck to the task well and continued to work hard to get back into the game. The game remained finely poised at 2-0 at the half-time mark. The second half saw Chelmsford looking sharp straight from the off and good early pressure resulted in a Grays defensive error which was pounced on by the ever-alert Fairhall, who headed over the keeper for his 2nd and City's 3rd. Soon after this Fairhall completed his hat-trick with another sharp finish after Collier's long shot was blocked. City were starting to impose themselves at this point and using the wings to good effect, Sam Mead was having a particularly productive afternoon and putting in some fine runs and accurate crosses. Baxter and Collier were also excellent in midfield, working hard to earn the majority of possession and using the ball well to prevent Grays from getting back into the game. Gaps were starting to appear in the Grays defence as the game became more stretched, and Baxter pounced on a loose ball on the edge of the box to fire home a fierce half-volley to make it 5-0. Two minutes later Buster Meaney sprinted through from right-back to score from a similar range and wrap up the City scoring. Grays managed a last-minute consolation but that shouldn't take the shine off a fine City performance-Their work-rate was excellent today and, once they got into their stride, the passing and movement looked very effective. This was above all a team performance.

City started slowly in this game and were under pressure in the early stages, some defensive uncertainty almost being punished in the first minute but for a great saving tackle from Sam Mead,tracking back well from midfield. The first half hour was reasonably equal in a high-tempo match with the bulk of the action being in midfield where Will Baxter and Jack Sterland put in some excellent work to match the committed Grays lads. As the half wore on, city started to use the wings to greater effect and Benji Bailey was starting to look a threat with some pacey and skillful work. The breakthrough came from this source on 30 minutes when Bailey attacked the left channel with a surging run, beating a couple of defenders and hitting a good low shot which the keeper turned away only for Sam Fairhall to follow up and score with the rebound. Jack Sterland almost added a second on the stroke of half-time when his sharp shot from a fine Mead cross was brilliantly saved by the Grays keeper. The 2nd half saw Grays working hard for an equaliser and City were on the back foot for a while, it was an excellent save by keeper Lewis Lockyer that proved to be the turning point as shortly afterwards City introduced two ' Super-subs ' who were to change the momentum of the match. On 60 minutes, sub Nat Collier sprinted onto a through-ball and slotted home well to make it 2-0 and on 67 minutes a great run down the left by Jamie Dix saw him break through 2 tackles and beat a 3rd defender for pace before crossing accurately for the second sub Buster Meaney to finish well from 10 yards. Within 5 minutes, Collier wrapped things up with a brave diving header and the game was effectively over, although Grays kept plugging away and notched a consolation with a good headed goal in the last minute. All-in-all, a committed performance by City which saw them gain an important win against strong opposition. Some notable performances from Robbie Clarke and Lee Monk in defence and Sam Mead and Benji Bailey on the flanks.