Lane Cove West v Kissing Point

 

It’s with the passage of time (or a serious drinking binge) that one is given the opportunity to perhaps see the positive in an otherwise unpleasant situation…or so I have been told.  But now some 10 days following the Kissing Point (KP) match (a 7 nil result), and a stolen opportunity to improve our position on the ladder at the demise of Northbridge last week, this reporter remains in a quandary regarding how to report on what can only be described as a flury of brilliantly struck goals by KP in the second half.  In fact, for those who keep statistics, be it a leaping header or a hard hit ball in the top corner from well outside the box, the goals poured in every 5-7 minutes from game minute 42 to 75….and then there was silence…and of course, beer…and the inevitable well selected choice words!

 

Had you not been in attendance, the score would leave you to believe that we had been utterly thrashed.  Of course this is true!  But to use a well coined cliché, it was indeed a match of two completely different halves.

 

With all of our strikers lost to injury or sipping “red” on vacation in Tuscany, the wise choice was to open with a defensive posture (5 across the middle and a strong back four) and push forward as appropriate.  For thirty strong minutes we held the balance of play and at least from this reporter’s perspective, a little frustration was showing on the faces of the KP side.  MOTM Bobby “who stole my turban” Armstrong was nothing short of brilliant in middle defence and was well supported by the usual suspects, including Eric who deserved the nod (3rd) in the MOTM voting.  It was this type of play that allowed the mid-field to push forward, with Peter leading the charge (2nd in MOTM) and Charlie (Mr. Versatility) and James pressing the KP defence.

 

Which brings us to the question on the day...Would it have been a different outcome if James “marathon man” Kissell had slotted in a good feed to make it 1 nil Lane Cove West?  It’s a tough call to make…but for the record, positive remembrance could be heavily influenced by gifts…say, a really nice HP warm-up team jacket for instance!

 

Of course, as has been the case this year, we didn’t convert, and they did, on only one of two real chances in the first half…1 nil KP after 30 minutes. For the 10 minutes that followed our defence continued to hold its shape and neither side had a real good chance to convert…and then, what has of late become our greatest nemesis…half time.

 

Spirits remained high.  Vital fluids were replaced.  Our attitude was positive….at least for the next two minutes that followed. 

 

Then, the dreaded number 29…speeding down the sideline, passing LCW players (who will go nameless) as if they were standing still…a beautiful goal…2 nil KP.  If Mark B were here to tell of the tail he might remind us of the average age of our team (over 50 if this reporter recalls correctly) versus those who perennially reside at the top of the table…but I will simply quote Martin “where did that bullet train come from” Poolan…he’s bloody fast!   We would later discover that the infamous #29 was actually a recently retired Olympic sprinter who had “chosen” to play for the B’s.  Okay, maybe I’m taking some poetic license, but he was very fast.  Egomaniac I say….wait until you are forty (or fifty) something I say…but food for thought for those of us who may be pondering a life after division 2B.

 

That brings us to where we began…at minute 42.  As they say, the rest is history.

 

A special thanks to Ivan and Paul for officiating the game…clearly not an easy or rewarding task.  And to Tim and Bill…well, your invaluable contribution never goes unnoticed…especially after a 7 nil defeat.

 

Signing off.

 

Mark S.