As the first Saturday of 2025 dawns without a 2:30 pushback at the Stopford Sandpit, the time seemed ripe (and some might say overdue) to tell the tale of our match against Potatoborough 3s, a fixture delayed by a week due to stormy conditions.
The delay only heightened the buzz around a match that, on paper, was already poised for fireworks. It is a local(ish) derby; it has torn loyalties for several members of both clubs; it has a long and bloody past. Playing - or, more accurately, beating - Potatoborough in a delayed fixture around Christmastime has, moreover, actually become a festive tradition for us, and our final match of 2024 was no different.
We squandered an opportunity to get ahead early, as Grant missed a penalty. Someone scored eventually though - I honestly can't recall who - and we ended the half 1-0. This low score disappointed us: we'd dominated much of the half, even without Ross, but we had succumbed to our perennial problem of translating dominance into goals.
The second-half was much the same, but it showed a new appreciation for game management that bodes well for the future. Millsy, sick of watching the forwards waste chances, won a free-hit, took it past a few defenders, and smashed a reverse-stick shot past the keeper. If the camera was recording, it is definitely a 'Goal of the Season' contender, even if his celebration lost him some style points. Peterborough pressed forward, and were eventually rewarded with a goal from a short-corner. 2-1. We were quite happy with that score, so we spent the remaining minutes taking things slow. Piers, receiving tongue-lashings from one Potatoborough's more violent players in the dying moments, realised that his socks weren't adequately covering his shinpads; naturally, he put his stick on the ground and made this much-needed adjustment. This instance perhaps illustrates the difference in this match: nous played chat, and nous won. (That isn't to say we were spotless - we had a couple of cards here and there to match the opposition's). Nonetheless, we gained another 3 points in our bid for promotion, and look forward to remedying our errors of the first-half of the season in the games to come!
MoM: Piers Fairston (unbelievable game management and fantastic game all round)
DoD: Grant Carlin (missed a flick and probably got carded)
#IceLollies #SockItToThem #SmashedPotatoes