The first game of the new 08/09 season saw ASB venture outwith the M25 - but only just - to Wycombe. A threadbare squad arrived at the pitches down to ten men, luckily Graham had turned up with the water bottles he'd been lovingly caring for for the last 12 months and was enlisted to the cause once again!

Tina was making his first foray into management, and to be honest he got an easy ride when it came to picking the team. He only had 11 of us! So no-one was disappointed by spending too long on the bench. We lined up with 10 (with Graham off home to collect his boots):

Rob in goal, Orv - RB, Frangi - LB, Peewee and new boy Jim (Sonny) in the Centre.

Slouch - LM, Keir - RM, Brian and Tina in the middle

Sharkey - CF

Not content with being manager, Tina elected to keep a hold of the captains armband as memories of Hitler's "I'm in charge" rule echoed in the mind, we presumably lost the toss as Wycombe kicked off.

Very quickly ASB were bearing down on the Wycombe goals, and with a couple of attacks under our belt took the lead when Tina swung in an inch perfect cross for Keir to "nose" into the goal from 6 yards.

At this point we took our foot off the pedal, as with only 5 minutes on the clock it looked like we might be able to get more goals without working too hard. Of course this is a typical reaction and always comes back to haunt you. With the game drifting along, ASB continued to press but without any killer edge. Keir, Sharkey and Brian all having shots from distance and Orv seeing a top corner bound shot tipped around the post by a keeper who had shown little of that promise earlier when he was bringing up his breakfast by the changing rooms!

Midway into the half Peewee took a nasty one on the ankle, and with Graham still looking out his boots in Uxbridge, we were down to 9 men as he was helped off the park in obvious pain. With a bit of re-arranging to compensate ASB saw the balance of play swing against them being 2 men down. And eventually the numerical advantage gifted Wycombe an opening (with a bit of help from an over excited Rob) to lob it in from 25 yards. 1-1 at half time.

Graham arrived back with his footwear shortly before the end of the first half and after helping out Sharkey up front swapped the gloves with Rob at the interval. Peewee also felt up to rejoining the action and so ASB started with a full 11 for the second half.

The second half swung back in ASB's favour following the return to a full 11, and it wasn't long before several last ditch lunges saved Wycombe from going two down. Brian had a shot tipped onto the bar - which Keir will still claim went over the line but which wasn't given, Sharkey saw a shot go over by inches, Tina had one stopped on the line and it looked like only a matter of time before we went back in front. But then this is ASB.

With the pressure mounting on Wycombe's goal, and bodies committed forward, Wycombe broke in numbers on more than one occassion. With the defence stretched and yelling at it's non-present midfield, Wycombe snatched the lead with a sweeping move on the break, Graham getting finger tips to a well placed shot. 2-1 down!

This seemed to be the kick up the R's we needed and minutes later another goal mouth scramble in Wycombes 6 yard box saw a wicked slice from one of their CB's loop up over the keep and into the net. 2-2. It was scrappy but they all count.

Back in the ascendancy ASB continued to work the flanks well, with Frange and Orv backing up the attacks with good wing support. Keir began to tire, and after a switch with Rob (who was up front with Sharkey till then) any weaknesses on the break halted and it was all ASB. It was only a matter of time before we too the lead, and with 20 or so minutes left Tina latched onto the ball on the edge of the box and whipped in a low shot across the keeper and into th bottom left corner to make it 3-2.

With Wycombe tiring, Brian picked up on the edge of the box and slipped a shot past the keeper into the bottom right to give a cushion to the score line with 10 minutes left. But ASB weren't done there, and a deep cross from Orv was picked up by Brian at the back post, who stepped inside his man and shot low into the middle of the goal to make it 5-2. The remaining minutes saw a few more attempts goalward but no more breaches of the Wycombe goal saw the clock run out before Brian could get his hat-trick. Ah well...there's another 19 games to go this season for one of them! ;-)

Well done to all who played, with only minor mistakes made the team picked up where we left off at worldnet, by winning!

'Mon u R's