ASB v Farnborough Town: Sat 18th November 2006

Everyone arrived pretty much on time, Orv's old man and dog exhaling visible breath in the beautiful autumn morning, complaining about the half-nine sharp meeting time - they had kept to their part of the bargain. As the numbers accumulated outside however, Scott opened the dressing room door laughing: bastards had been in there for twenty minutes! Everyone cursed and laughed, getting into the warm, still on a high from the R's miraculous Smash & Grab win at league leaders Baa-diff the night before. Once everyone was changed, Inga's friend very generously took some individual photographs and one team photograph for our new profile website, so thank you to her all her help.

After the warm up and confident of victory in this league and cup double header, ASB with a 100% record so far in the league, were ready to face Farnborough, themselves a tight unit with three wins on the bounce and a rival to ASB after a very important 1-0 defeat at their place in 2004. With a big squad, ASB looked to shatter their cup hoodoo of recent years, since winning the competition in 2002. The conditions – a clear day, a flat pitch, and a strong wind favouring the team shooting downhill – would make for an interesting game. The pitch resisted after ten minutes though, cutting up and making good passing difficult, due to the recent torrential rain.

ASB started as follows:
Rob
Orv Tina Donny Frange

Nick Riz Tim Slouch

Jools Jamie

Subs: Sharkey, Scott, Imi, Mungo, Ian, Juzza (Unused).

This fast, competitive game kicked off with tackles flying in, utilising the muddy surface to good effect. ASB played the first half against the wind and this was perfect, as 'Boro, who kept trying to hit the ball over the top, got repeatedly caught offside, Captain Tina and Donny marshalling the defence to great effect, until the latter's
unfortunate withdrawal after 20 minutes with a thigh injury. He was replaced by the no-nonsense Woody, Orv enjoying the conditions like a pig in shit, sliding in to the tackle with his normal ferocity, despite moderate weight gain.

ASB had a lot of initial play down the right hand side with Orv overlapping with Nick and ASB passed the ball effectively through the midfield with Tim and Riz keeping possession well and solid in front of the backline, Boro increasingly resorting to long ball. Unfortunately, and this would be the tale of the game, the final delivery wasn't there. With two defensive-minded centre midfield battlers, not enough support was given to the strikers, and thus, when they were able to battle the wind to hold the ball up, it often came to nothing, Boro's tight defence clearing their lines and occasionally
threatening through the right winger number 14, who Frange dealt with very well. On one such counter raid, the ball held up on its way through to Rob, who accidentally handled outside his area. Luckily for him no one, except their impressive Striker (number 33) appeared to notice either, or they kept very quiet if they did, as Tom the
linesman raised his eyes (not his flag) and started guiltily whistling.

ASB dominated the half, but never really tested the tall Boro keeper, despite a few dangerous hanging crosses from Nick and Slouch on the wings, although the latter was a little starved of the ball, but managed to beat his man the few times he was employed. Despite his one error, Rob coped well with anything that came his way. Up front Jamie held the ball up well and Jools tried to link the midfield and knock it wide, but the bogginess of the pitch and the wind proved too much of a hindrance to both, Sharkey replacing Jools on 22 minutes and Imi replacing Jamie at half time. Ian came on at right back to good effect, when Orv was forced off with a leg injury at the end of the first half, supporting Mungo and stopping the threat on the left wing. Such forced changes disrupted the shape a little, but a good half against the wind and a strong team.

At the start of the second half, Slouch moving to left back and Scott coming on to left midfield having replaced Frange, ASB struggled to maximize their wind advantage. But with the midfield pushing further up the field and more efforts on goal, ASB had enough pressure without testing really the keeper. Two mistakes cost us and gifted 'Boro with two goals - their only real efforts of the half, their striker 33, bagging both and proving a constant thorn in our side - as they tired and the solid no-nonsense defence looked to him and the wingers, often by-passing the midfield entirely.

The first, a mistake from our own corner on 55 minutes, had been cleared and fell to Imi on the half-way line, which then got robbed, trying to turn his man, and they broke with too many of our players committed forward. Playing it through to their striker who just touched it past a valiant Tina lunge and put it past an advancing Rob's left hand, not his faulty but perhaps a little slow to come off his line to close down once 33 had beaten the last line. One down the gaffers pulled Tim off. The exhausted Aussie, having given 100%, was replaced by Mungo who went right wing, tormenting their left back, Nick moving into the centre with Riz.

Boro's second goal ten minutes later came with Riz playing a ball across midfield, it getting intercepted and pumped forward. The ball looped over Tina's effort to clear and 33's scuffed shot hung in the wind, but it was enough to chip/place the ball past Rob's right hand into the corner, the resilient keeper not at fault this time. As soon as the second went in ASB's heads went down a bit and Riz had to rally the call, the formation changing to 4-3-3 immediately, Nick pushing upfront, Scott, Riz & Mungo in midfield. Ten minutes of this and plenty of corners later, the formation was changed to a 3-4-3 system, with Woody going off, and Orv returning to play centre midfield.

The last 15 minutes saw ASB playing an incredible 3-2-5 with Mungo and Scott joining the attack, but not enough, again, the delivery wasn't up to scratch to trouble them and starting to panic, too many shots were fired off too quickly and from too far out, when a pass was probably better option. Jinxy runs from Imi and Sharkey, slow to get
into the game, but threatening their weakening back line, almost saw both wriggle free but one went out for a corner, one into the keeper's arms from Sharkey, and another shot blazed wide.

ASB's goal came from a good move, as they passed the ball around. Slouch worked well with Scott, who cut the ball inside the midfielder and the defender. Sharkey collected and turned the last man brilliantly before being pulled back and tripped for a penalty. Mungo impatiently stood up and got his team back in the game, stroking the
ball into the bottom right corner and sending the keeper the wrong way.

ASB rallied in the final frantic ten minutes, but began to press the panic button and almost conceded a third at the other end. The away team time-wasted when possible at corners, free kicks, and some might say feigning injuries, although cramp at this point was common. One great move saw Ian overlap Nick and cross a ball in which Riz overhead kicked, but keeper well placed and caught it. ASB looked to follow John Gregory's QPR team, fancying themselves as the comeback king's but it didn't seem to be, even with the wind at their backs.

The changes in personnel and formation was an attempt by the joint management to try and change the game which almost paid off, but maybe this time having so many players was a disadvantage, as the game never really flowed in continuous patches, but instead passages of play resembled a patchwork quilt. It would be hard to pick a man of the match, but Tina for his passion, cool head, and team leadership
probably deserved it the most.

Another blasted effort over the bar from Mungo, when a cross into the box would have been better, ended the game and summed up the performance - A lot of hard graft in a game that we dominated certainly in possession and territory, but couldn't make count. We really didn't create enough clear cut chances or put the ball in the danger area enough and where no one was outstanding, no one shirked responsibility – it was just one of those days.

Another time Boro's two goals would have been mere consolation in a dominant win for ASB. Such is life, ASB will re-group and aim to focus on the league now, which is still very much a reality if we play as a team and keep believing. Cheers and Come on you R's!


Tom `Bog Roll' Dearden