IN THE PINK?

BOEHC Vets 2 Old Bordenians Men's 6s 0

In the corresponding fixtures last year birthday boy David Maltman scored perhaps the goal of the season in the home match, whilst the away game featured one of the quickest "traffic light" awards in history - i.e. green card - yellow card - red card - against an Old Bordenians player. This season it was a little different, because the Club President's contributions were primarily defensive, as he and Ross Higginson alternately marshalled the centre of a defensive unit that kept a clean sheet for the very first time in over a year (there were none at all in 2014-2015). Phil Kinch excelled again on the right-hand side, clearly hoping to catch the photographer's eye as the only player on view sporting the new Akuma club kit. On the disciplinary side, however, the visitors from Sittingbourne found themselves wanting once again and at one point in the second half had only eight outfield players as a result of overlapping green cards issued by both umpires - plus ça change, as our friends across the Channel might comment. But both Seneka and the OB's umpire were absolutely excellent throughout and controlled the game superbly. In time-honoured tradition the Old Bord's team dons matching pink polo shirts after the game, at which point they become highly personable and pleasant, but it was the Club who were the ones really in the pink after this hard-fought win.

The home team should in truth have been out-of-sight by half-time after a dominant display, although with the collective talents of Richard Cleall, Ravi Wickramsuriya and the returning Lee Sandy in the middle of the park, this was perhaps not surprising. Simon McDonald again offered some good link-up play on the right, whilst Peter Dowse returned to action on the astroturf for possibly the first time since the demise of black and white photography. The physical battering meted out by the visiting defenders almost matched that to which their goal was continually subjected for the opening half-hour. Nevertheless, a combination of great goalkeeping, bad luck and a touch of profligacy all played a part in keeping the first 25 minutes goalless. The goal duly arrived via a penalty flick converted by the man with ice in his veins, Richard Cleall, and was awarded following a "challenge" in the D on Graham Green which would not have looked out of place in a David Attenborough documentary about rhinoceroses mating in the wild.

But the floodgates still would not open, as the game slowed in the second half whilst the temperatures rose, both climatic and metaphorical. It is hard to be critical after such a great display, but at times Graham Green was left as isolated as a Guantanamo inmate in the second half, and a 1-0 lead, however "comfortable", can disappear in a instant via a flukey deflection. Cometh the hour, cometh the man, and captain Stephen Gilbert was clearly not going to warm the bench any longer in the second half whilst waiting in vain for somebody else to oblige. With a nose for goal surpassed only by his nose for a decent Pinot Noir, he duly popped up at the left hand post for a trademark finish.

Having defended superbly across the pitch throughout the game, the home team's midfield then decided to drop back into the D to concede a penalty-corner and give the defence some practice for the first time in the whole game. No less than five of these were beaten away in the final five minutes of play - and on at least one occasion by a stick rather than a body part - as the back four held on stoically for a richly-deserved clean sheet.

The last words go to the two debutants, goalkeeper Victor Landrick and regular Heathen Fenno. The former oozed confidence, bossed the D and went full-length to beat out a dangerous cross-shot at the death, whilst the latter deservedly won the man-of-the-match plaudits, despite any number of other potential candidates on the day, for an all-action display in a team where he seems to fit in really well.

Team:
Victor Landrick (GK), Kinch, Higginson, Maltman, Walters, Cleall, Wickramsuriya, Sandy, Dowse, McDonald, Green, Fenno, Gilbert(C), D'Cruz.
Mon of the match:
Fenno
Umpire:
Seneka
Match report Tim Walters