The Wisdom of Solomon

An altogether less eventful match report to write up this week, (thank goodness), with a great game of football being won with the last kick of the ball by the odd goal in eleven. After last week’s team selection fandango Danny and Steve took turns to pick two sides and came up with the following:

Blues: Danny, Daniel, Mick, David, Ross, Paul, Bristol Paul, Yev: and a young ringer named Solomon

Yellows: Steve, Tony, Patrick, Mark, Nick, Ian Baggies, me, Phil, Simon Ink

The ranks of both sides swelled considerably within the first five minutes as Kavanagh Senior and Junior were joined by the similarly tardy arrivals from Yev and Phil. As you will have just read, a predictably skilful young ringer named Solomon was also permitted to play.

With the playing surface treacherously greasy there was ample scope for goalkeeping errors and Simon Ink, usually the very epitome of safe hands, and Ian Baggies both came a cropper early on as the Blues took advantage with some speculative long range efforts. How I didn’t manage to concede during my error-strewn stint in goal is quite the mystery. For the Yellows, Patrick and Phil were holding the ball up deftly and were aided by a characteristically energetic display from Nick who sought to burst through left midfield and link up with the front two. Mark and I took turns wide on the right to try, without huge success it must be said, to curtail the creative and energetic promptings of young Solomon, who proved a real handful all evening and probably the difference between the two sides. Mind you, he was slightly more subdued following a muscular ‘reducer’ from Steve, who was clearly fed up with his various step-overs and jinking runs. 

Meanwhile the Blues were lead up front by Yev and Ross, with Mick joining them from right midfield and duly bagging a brace, (in fact before I go any further I should record that the two Kavanagh men grabbed five of the evening’s eleven goals). Daniel was his usual tricksy self in the middle of the park and the game ebbed and flowed with almost no antagonism or controversy. I saw almost as Tony initially refused to go and retrieve the ball having skied it over the fence and trudged off most reluctantly, which temporarily side-lined Solomon as we sought to keep the numbers on the field reasonably even.

The Yellows were behind by the odd goal for the majority of the game but they eventually managed to get back to five each which set up a grandstand finale as both teams committed too many people forward. Having failed to score from a series of corners the Yellows watched forlornly as the ball broke to Solomon who skinned everyone remaining in a Yellow bib down the right and centred for Mick to steer home the winner from just inside the area. 

Final score: Blues 6 – Yellows 5

I eschewed the joys of the Skinners Arms for once this week as I had a very big night out planned on Saturday: Carter the Unstoppable SexMachine’s “Final Comedown” valedictory performance at Brixton Academy. Normal boozing service should be resumed on Friday.