A highly competitive evening of football saw another double header deliver two very close fixtures. A win for Dadston Villa at home saw them leapfrog Papathinaikos and Oldman Athletic into 3rd, whilst Dadford City snatched victory away to Dadalona to get their first win of the season.
Dadston Villa 9 - 5 Oldman Athletic Cross (1), Tillett (2), Cott (2), Brock (4) Halford (1), Julian (1), Fermoy (1), Tooke (2) Two wins on the bounce see Dadston's good start to the season continue with a tight win over Oldman Athletic that lifts them above their opponents into 3rd. The opening half was not short of effort as both sides put their bodies on the line as neither team could break into a lead with the scores tied 4-4 approaching half time. Dadston were certainly boosted by the return of Stu Barker in goal to keep the scores down, whilst Loanee Godfrey in the Oldman net also made a number of smart stops. The second half saw little change as the first 20 minutes was dogged by stop/start football with breaks in play due to fouls that stopped either team finding any rhythm. Eventually the goals came as Dadston Villa edged into the lead with particularly good performances from Brock and Tillett as they started to boss play . Despite the best defensive efforts of Rowe and Fermoy, and a typically combative display by Tooke, after giving their all Oldman had nothing in the tank to pull the game back with the final score on Pitch 7 9-5 to the home side. Dad of the Match: TBC Dadalona 11 - 13 Dadford City Colin (1), Gillick (1), Rivett (1), Whiteside (1), Earley (1), Thurston (6) Fay (1), Brooks (1), Martin (3), Mace (8)
As a bottom of the table clash, both sides were eager to put in good performances knowing a chance to get a first win was on the cards. The expectation before the game was a high scoring, high tempo display and the game certainly did not disappoint with 10 first half goals as both sides kept each other honest with the scores 5-5 at the break. In truth, it was a game that could have gone either way but the focus was turned by two stunning reserve player performances as Thurston (6) and Mace (8) weighed in with plenty of goals and I'm sure coaches from all teams will be keeping an eye on their performances ahead of next season. The second half saw Dadford City edge into the lead, and several crucial saves by Dave Wynn in the Dadford goal helped City see out the game and take their first 3 points of the season as they took the game 13-11. Dadalona should certainly not be disheartened in what was their best display of the season, a win must surely be around the corner for Mark Marshall's men.
Dad of the Match: TBC
In the Golden Boot Mace (16) and Thurston (13) leap to 2nd and 3rd in the standings, but they are playing only for pride as the league rules state only players belonging to teams are eligible to win the awards so as it stands Brigham (18) Wiseman (12) and Julian (12) lead the way. Please note, if any reserve player joins a team during the season their existing stats will be reset. In the Golden Glove a welcome return to action for Stu Barker (-5) after recovering from his pre-season injury see's him leap into 1st in the golden glove after conceding just 5 goals in his first fixture. As with all awards, every player must have played at least 3 games to be eligible, so reigning Golden Glove holder Ant Ashton (-6.8) still leads the way at the moment but I'm sure Stu is relishing the chance to give him a run for him money.
We have another mid-season break for a weeks rest before we have another tasty evening of football on 08/10/2018 which see's another double header starting with the return fixture of Papathinaikos vs Real Ma-dad (Papa are the only side to take points off Real so far this season) and Oldman Athletic vs Dadford City with both teams looking to leap up the table with wins.