Ian In Bruges?

Another decent turn out this week as the New Year exercise regimes continue apace. Once again Simon Gas had a veritable smorgasbord of players to choose from. The main man went for the following sides - 

Yellows: Alex, Ian Gooner, Paul, Bristol Paul, Mick, Patrick, Ross, Tony, Mark

Blues: Simon Gas, Yev, Spizz, me, Kiwi Nick, Simon Ink, Khalid, Daniel, Danny

As you can see, nine plays nine there and with Yev just about on time only the Kavanaghs were slightly late. I thought that the Blue team looked marginally stronger on paper, but performances on the pitch soon belied that notion, with Alex in imperious form in the middle of the park and Mick and Patrick enjoying a filial telepathy which proved difficult to curb, despite the attentions of the Blues.

The Yellows took the lead from the penalty spot after Kiwi Nick unceremoniously upended Alex inside the box; Patrick coolly despatched the penalty low into the bottom left hand corner, leaving Danny with no chance. As alluded to previously, Alex was proving a real handful in the middle of the park and with Ross and Patrick making runs on either side – into what football punditry fashion somewhat behoves me to label the ‘pockets’ – aided and abetted by both Alex and Tony, the Blues soon extended their lead. (Incidentally, Mick keeps talking of paying Patrick “pocket money”, so presumably Kavanagh Junior is taking up these positions on a pay-per-play basis). 

Kiwi Nick soon put the disappointment of the penalty behind him and put in a sterling shift at the back, as the Blues tried to stem the inexorable tide of Yellow attacks. However, the Yellows’ superior movement in the middle eventually saw them stretch their lead to 4-0, the final score of the four coming after Ross had drilled a shot at me in goal which I could only parry onto the bar whereupon it bounced down for Alex to snaffle up from all of around two feet. 

At this point I opined that Danny should move into a more central position as the Blues were finding it very difficult to get hold of the ball so that they could pass it forward to the potent looking attacking force of Yev and Spizz. Whether or not anyone was listening is a moot point, as Danny’s midfield tenacity soon saw a loose ball come free for Spizz – who had earlier eschewed the opportunity to shoot from a distance of around 8 yards and instead elected to pass sideways to Yev, who was not quite ready (where is the real Spizz and what have you done with him?) – who made no mistake and made up for his earlier uncharacteristic selflessness by steering the ball past Ian Gooner in nets. Danny himself got another one back following some pleasant interplay on the left, but despite a myriad of chances to get closer to the Yellows’ tally of four goals (Simon Ink had a great chance to score, but went for a Di Canioesque mid-air bicycle kick with predictable results), the scores remained at 4-2 to the Yellows.

Other notable moments included a one handed save by myself from a header from Patrick which was reminiscent of David Seaman’s save against Paul Peschisolido in an FA Cup Semi Final against Sheffield United and a couple of disputed handball calls that managed to stoke Tony’s not inconsiderable ire. 

All in all a very good game. 

And thus to the pub, where Spizz enjoyed some birthday drinks – San Miguel in a Heineken glass, an order that managed to bamboozle the Polish barmaid nearly as much as his lateral pass in front of goal had done to his team-mates during the game – and Ian Gooner essayed his travel plans to Bruges the following morning. Whether or not he got there is open for debate, as his train was scheduled to leave St Pancras as 7.00 am the following morning, which may mean he got through the tunnel before it closed, or else it may mean he and his wife are still enjoying super strength beer in Belgium’s medieval masterpiece. 

Did Ian get to Belgium? And if so, did he get back? Did Spizz reach the fabled 5,000 followers on Facebook mark? Did Mick increase his son’s pocket money? Find out the answers to these and other questions this Friday at 7.00pm in Coram Fields, near London's Russell Square.