To continue my pre-season training I might sneak another game.

This Friday to continue my pre-season training I might sneak another game with
the 7.45pmers organised by Cliff and Kevin. This is despite the fact that Cliff warned some players would come back. However, I know Mick K. and Geoff are away for the weekend, which would leave space for me and for Spizz.Last week the indie star was unavailable for selection after a series of injuries incurred during his Tuesday game. This included a hamstring strain, which might take time to heal. These are really annoying injuries when you get older.

We don't help ourselves with few players doing a proper work-out before the game. I just run around a bit and kick the ball hopefully. I get a feeling that this Friday will not repeat the previous week's solid performance, which included a goal from a
single shot at goal.

I have talked to Gashead Simon this afternoon and he was a bit gloomy about his beloved Bristol Rovers. The young man was on altitude training in Austria to prepare for the new season and also made a visit to Trieste, which is now in Italy but was part of the Austro-Hungarian empire
and a city I would love to visit. I hope Gashead Simon has not picked up the dark arts of Italian defending as performed by Big Dave A.

Pre-season training with Cliff's game was a great success!!

Dear Reader, I joined the 7.45 game last night to get some important pre-season training. This game is organised by the brothers Cliff and Kevin, although last night Kev was not there. They support West Ham and Arsenal
respectively so they both have a cross to bear. Cliff picked the sides, which were quite well balanced, and did a long stint in goal. He was a cut above some of the players with his ball skills.

During our summer break, Spizz, Geoff, Big Dave.A and Mick K. have been keeping their football skills honed by playing the 7.45pm game. Spizz could not make it last night
but Dave and Mick warned me that the guys played a higher standard than the 7pm organised by Gashead Simon, which can be, I regret to say, a bit of a shambles.

Dave and Mick were right on the money!! Both line-ups played one-touch football at a fast and furious pace. There was tracking back and marking, which are virtually absent in the 7pm game. It is often true that you play better when you have better-quality players around you. Geoff was a lot more effective last night while yours truly ploughed a channel down the right as usual. What was most unusual was that I got on the score sheet when I passed the ball into the net with my left foot from a quickly taken free kick. I did not got much of a celebration from my team so I gave Mick K. a hug to express my emotion. This was even though he was on the opposite
side and it was possibly his mistake in not picking me up. Mick K. looked pretty perplexed.

The 7pmers did perform well last night. The four of us contributed four goals to a 5-3 thriller in a game, which was eight-a-side and which had limited space. Dave A. got a sweet goal to wrap up the match for them while Mick A. scored two goals, one a "David Villa" effort, which hits both posts and then goes in.
I was the goalie and I could not get near the shot, which was slightly deflected.
In the changing rooms afterwards, Mick K. said he remembered the assists more rather than the goals!! Mick K. was man of the match.

Dave A. was playing through the pain barrier but still managed to hit the steelwork twice before scoring his neat goal. In football terms his first love is Scottish club
Ayr United www.ayrunitedfc.co.uk Dave's English Club is Man Utd.

I am missing the Friday night fix of seven-a-side football!!

With the mid-summer break because we can't really get the numbers, I am still missing the Friday night fix of seven-a-side football. Truth to be told I am also missing the dulcet tones of Spizz and his incisive running off the ball. At the moment (touch wood) Spizz has not been running off to the puffer behind the goal after the first sprint of the match. His overall fitness has come a long way. Spizz often makes these diagonal runs from the wing so as to shake off (if he has one) his marker. These diagnoal runs can be quite effective.
I have just sent off a missive to Mick K. for ideas to put in the blog during the mid-summer break since he is in the creating writing game (he is a journo). So watch this space.
During August, I might gatecrash Cliff and Kevin's game, which comes on after us on Friday nights. They play through the summer. It is a mixed ability game ranging from Umma's step-overs to some pretty agricultural passes by other players. However, both Cliff and Kevin are quite decent players. Spizz and Big Dave sometimes
play and I am not (currently) high up on the waiting list.
As an addition to British cultural life Spizz and his combo are playing the 100 Club in London on September 4th, which should be a gas.

Last week was the last match before the summer break.

Last Friday was the last game before our summer break. We reconvene in September.
I will be at a bit of a loss on Friday nights. Spizz told me off for putting down
three rather than four goals for his haul the previous week. I promised to correct this oversight.
Quite a bit of effort was taken in picking the sides so that they would not be too unbalanced. However, Big Sam was nursing a hamstring injury and had to go in goal for them. Despite this the game was
evenly matched for a long time. Spizz's side took the lead with a longish range shot
from Alan. Then, we got back into it with a great shot from Mick K., which went in
off the post to square it at one all. Alan, Tone and Big Dave were keeping them in it while we benefitted from the defensive organisation of Mick K.
I was playing very defensively keeping an eye on Sheffield Andy, then somehow I got away on the right wing. The play had opened up. If I could cross the ball to Ross past Tone then he could score. Amazingly, this happened but for an agonising moment I thought Ross had not got control of the ball. This gave us a merited 2-1 win and for the first time in many weeks Spizz had not scored a goal.
Afterwards, I asked Cliff about playing in their game over the summer and I got some waffle about numbers, so I think that was a no. I will be looking to build up my fitness over the summer and looking forward to Spizz's concert in September.
In the pub afterwards we named Ross as the most improved player, although he did come up with the controversial proposal to ban penalties, so as to avoid the petty arguments. I told him I liked the petty arguments!!
Arsenal Simon treated us to a short to celebrate his forthcoming nuptials. The proceedings were livened up when a shapely blonde identified herself to Tone and Gasman as a fellow Bristol Rovers following their earlier Gashead chants in the pub.