Junior Results - 4 March 2007

[Grog]

Ossett Town Juniors Under Sevens Match Reports

Ossett Town versus Rothwell 4/3/07

The Lions

Why we all love Rothwell - part 1

Lions 4 Rothwell 3

This was as exciting as it gets in football. If you looked away you missed something. Two teams at the same levels of skill, commitment and determination excited the spectators at Highfield. It must have had something to do with last night’s moon. I kept checking if both teams were “changing” into something homo – lupine. There was also a touch of Italia 90, England versus Germany in this match.

The first half saw Ossett dominate. Thomas Coe, touched by last night’s moon, did a deja-vu Trinatarians cross to let Liam Finney finish with style. Geraint Evans followed two minutes later to claim Lions second. The Lions were cruising and Elliot Hewitt put in another fine performance with two excellent goals. The Lions tight hold of the match was made through passing, quick movement and solid tackling.

At 4-0 down Rothwell pressed the warp button to come out of the asteroid belt and start to threaten the Lions.

The second half saw the effects of the moon wax and wane in favour of Rothwell, who put together some brilliant passing moves. The threat was immense and Ella Walker in goals and Liam Taylor took it in turns to be the generals and majors in the defence of Highfield. (If this had been Rourke’s Drift, you would have lost count of the number of spears sunk into the mealy bags). Both players excelled in these testing times. Desperate stuff saw Sam Allen and Liam Hitchthingy playing their part to cling on in the whirlwind of a game. This was definitely Rothwell’s half.

Having said that, the Lions did not just fizzle out, there were Lions attacks that menaced the Rothwell goal. Thomas Coe, Elliot Hewitt and Geraint Evans looked dangerous in the Rothwell half but more often than not they had to backtrack as Rothwell clawed themselves back into the match scoring three terrific goals and leaving the last five minutes all to play for.

People were agog as the tension mounted in this match of matches. Parents could feel the hairs on the back of their neck standing up and I am sure I saw some looking at the palms of their hands, to see how hairy they were getting, such was the culmination of the play. It’s a fact Rothwell / Ossett Town matches can make you feel homo-lupine.

Goal Scorers
Liam Finney
Geraint Evans
Elliot Hewitt
Elliot Hewitt

Player of the Match
Ella Walker



Ossett Town Juniors Under Sevens Match Reports

Ossett Town versus Rothwell 4/3/07

The Tigers

Why we all love Rothwell - part 2
Tigers 7 Rothwell 10

How many goals do you want in a match? Free flowing, end to end football with passion and go faster stripes. An exciting and thrilling match, which warmed your thingyles, if not your digits, was the result of a well matched pair of teams playing their hearts out. This is where pay per view could have come in. There must be contenders from both teams in any goal of the month competition.

There were hat tricks for Ossett players Finlay Townend and Thomas McGee. Thomas McGee was like an express train as he cut through the Rothwell defence time after time all the way through the match. His first was from one such bullocking run to put the Tigers 1-0 up.

Rothwell went 2-1 up but Oliver Spencer equalised to bring the Tigers level. At 4-2 down the Tigers battled themselves up the pitch only to face the Rothwell keeper who came out of the goal faster than a South American tree frog’s tongue catching a fly. Such assurance meant that Rothwell could afford to throw all their team forward and pin the Tigers in their own half. Rothwell started to pull away as the Tigers went into their den for a spell turning round 5-2 down.

There was still life in the Tigers despite the scoreline and quickly the Tigers scored two from Thomas McGee and Finlay Townend. Thomas’s goal came from an excellent Oliver Spencer pass. TJ, back as Peter Lorimer for the day, hit the post and broke it into as many pieces as St Catherine’s Wheel, and followed up the rebound.

The Ossett new dawn faded as Rothwell hit back with their own two goals. The Tigers start to the half was like seeing the first new daffodils in February. But the Rothwell frost was out to put an end to the blooms. However, Finlay Townend was a stronger type of bloom and replied on the rebound to take another characteristic goal.

As all this end to end stuff was going on, the Tigers defence and midfield of Benjamin Cartwright, Ryan Turfrey, Jacob Merrick, Lloyd Rogers and Sean Owram did sterling work to provide the forwards with ball and protect Oliver Spencer, in goals for the first time. He managed to pull off two excellent diving saves, which with his first half performance outside the goal, earned him man of the match.

All played their part in this highly entertaining spectacle but the Tigers had one more goal of the season shot up their sleeve and Finlay Townend delivered that with aplomb.

10-7, a fair result, you do not often hear that. Every player who shrugged off the aching and wet in their feet and their core, and carried on regardless in the dreadful elements should be proud of providing such an exposition of excitement.



Goalscorers
Thomas McGee
Oliver Spencer
Thomas McGee
Finlay Townend
Finlay Townend
Thomas McGee
Finlay Townend

Man of the Match
Oliver Spencer

[Grog]

Ossett Town Juniors – Under 11’s - Huddersfield League

Ossett Town 3 v 1 Scissett

Scorers: Rogers (2), Potter

Player of the Match: Lonsdale

“Rogers’ Brace Leads the Way”

Scissett made the visit to Ossett Town on a cold Sunday afternoon and just as they arrived the heavens opened and for the next sixty minutes two teams were forced to battle for supremacy in difficult cold and windy conditions.

Town started the brightest with a good goal within three minutes of the kick off. Striker Preston, supported by Scott, had battled well on the left to win the ball and despite several attempts to wrestle the ball from him he managed to get it to the bye-line at which time he knocked a fine ball in for poacher Rogers to knock into the back of the net. One, nil.

Hobson, at right back, was having a good game but had to be replaced by Hartshone after ten minutes due to knock on the knee.

Shortly after his first, Rogers was on the end of another fine cross from Preston and after the Scissett keeper palmed it away Rogers was on hand to knock the ball home with his head. The referee, however, adjudged Rogers to have been offside and therefore ruled it out to the disappointment of the Town’s players and fans.

For the rest of the half it was a midfield battle with Horsfall, White, Potter and Awad all on a crusade to keep Town’s lead. Scissett did break through Town’s midfield ranks on a couple of occasions, but whenever they did the defence of Hall, Sheen and Hartshone held the back line firm to limit Scissett’s attempts on goal to just one in the first half. The only Scissett chance of note was when the opposition attacker was one-on-one with the keeper but fortunately for Town, goalkeeper Dann came out and did enough to force the Scissett player to hit the ball wide.

In the first half Town won a couple of corners and with Potter’s magical right foot knocking the ball in, Town looked to stretch their lead further, but unfortunately for Town, Scissett defended well to keep Town at bay.

In the second half, and with the wind against them, Town had to work hard. With the tenacity of Lonsdale in the central midfield berth supported by White just behind him, Town were never in a mood to surrender, despite the pressure being heaped on them in the opening ten minutes of the second half.

Town were able to relax after ten minutes when Rogers got his brace. White had won the ball deep on the left, ran 10 yards and then hit the ball into the box. Rogers was in the right place again and with fine control and then a neat knock in, the keeper was beaten again – two nil.

Scissett though were not going to lie down and started to pile more pressure onto the Town defence who, for the first time in the game, started to struggle with what Scissett were throwing at them. Whilst Town were getting themselves organised, Scissett grabbed an easy goal back to put the pressure back on Town. Two, one.

With Potter now back on in midfield, for the diminutive Ahmed, and Scott now at left-back covering for the injured Hall, this gave Town some confidence and shape again and, ably assisted by the formidable Lonsdale who was tackling superbly in typical terrier fashion, Town once again looked in control.

Town sealed the game with five minutes to go when captain White knocked a fine ball through the midfield for Potter to chase. Chase he did from the half way line and with only the keeper to beat he slotted the ball home to make it three v one to Town.

Shortly after the referee signalled the end of what had been another tremendous performance in difficult conditions, Town headed home to the warmth of the fire to de-freeze and dry-out.

A superb battling performance from Town, ably commanded in the centre of the park by player of the match Jack Lonsdale.

[Grog]

Ossett Town U11’s – Garforth League
Ossett Town 4(2) – Wortley Juniors 1(0), 4th March 2007. KO 10.30.
Ossett Scorers: Spurr, Turfrey(2), Taylor
Ossett MoM: Mountain

Town Too Strong for Wortley

If there were any concerns around the lack of match practice for Ossett over recent weeks, they were soon laid to rest as the “home” side put on a solid and convincing display. The normal home pitch at Gawthorpe was again unplayable so to avoid adding to the mounting backlog of re-arranged fixtures the game was played on the “Chick Tip” - classy venue if ever there was one, illustrated no clearer than seeing Steve roaming the pitch before the start with a spade in one hand and a bin-liner in the other!

From the off Ossett were on top, despite seeming to have wandered into Land of the Giants. Wortley have some big lads playing for them and with that came a physical edge to the game, but nothing that Ossett couldn’t handle. Town’s defence worked hard to quickly snuff out any Wortley ambition and did so brilliantly all game.

Ossett were first to score. Daniel threaded and eye-of-the needle pass from his own half into the path of the flying Turfrey, who forced a corner. It was from this and the resulting scramble that the ball fell to Spurr at the edge of the area and he produced a delightful chip over the Wortley keeper, instinctively and with his left foot.

The Town attack kept the pressure up and with the defence playing so well behind them a second goal was never going to be too long in coming. Walsh and Turfrey came close but when it did come it came from an unexpected source. The Wortley keeper was judged to have stepped out of his area with the ball in his hands and free-kick was duly awarded. Walsh, obviously aware of the kick being indirect, chose to hit a shot straight at the keeper, banking on him not being able to hold it! This tactic paid off and Turfrey blasted home from short range when the parry fell to his feet. 2-0.

Wortley raised their game a little towards the end of the first half and seriously tested the Ossett defence for the first time and their best chance was scuppered by a brilliant last ditch goal saving tackle by Stead, ensuring the half finished 2-0 to Ossett.

The second half could not have started better for Ossett, as they scored straight from the kick off, as Taylor stroked one in from the edge of the area – slow motion shot, relying more on accuracy than speed! 3-0.

There followed a long period without significant events as both teams battled for midfield supremacy and were effective in cancelling each others efforts out. Wortley broke this deadlock in a way which Ossett have conceded many goals this season - one on one with the keeper. Campbell tried to come out and block the advancing Goliath but could only watch the ball whiz past his outstretched leg. 3-1.

Conceding that goal had absolutely no impact on Ossett’s approach to the game and they simply picked up where they had left off. Cundall nearly scored with a spectacular overhead kick which hit the bar and Sykes also came close with an intelligent chip across the goal from left to right which fell just inches wide, and just beyond the run of Wright on the far post.

Town’s fourth goal was a good one and deservedly secured the result; created by Ruane and finished by Turfrey. Ruane was outstanding alongside man-of-the-match Mountain in the heart of the Ossett defence all through the game but this time he also showed his striker’s evolutionary roots by playing an exquisite through ball to Turfrey on the left. Turfrey controlled, composed him self and cracked one into the top left hand corner from the edge of the area.
Another good performance by Ossett; the unsung stars of the show being the defence and midfield who worked tirelessly to keep Wortley at bay and deal with robust (but fair) physical play from a big Wortley side, but at the same time also produced some proficient passing and creative moves.

[Grog]

Ossett Town Under 8’s

“Ghomi and Watson grab hat-tricks as Town U8’s march on”


Ossett Town U8’s 6 v 1 Kellingley

After a slow start and going down to an early goal the Tigers soon settled and dominated much of the game. Dominic Kellet levelled for the Tigers and it seemed rally the rest of the team. Sam Ghomi smashed in a superb hat-trick with Tyler Khan and Ryan Strafford also netting for the hosts to keep an impressive 24 unbeaten run going. Sam Ghomi was awarded player of the match with an outstanding display.

Ossett Town U8’s Terriers 4 v 0 Kellingley

Lewis Watson grabbed a dynamic hat-trick with some great finishing in this very entertaining encounter. Ossett repeatedly laid siege to the Kellingley goal and were unlucky not to add to their tally with James Arnold and Oliver Pescod going close. The impressive Adam Finney netted for a fourth to put the game out of reach for Kellingley. Lewis Watson was awarded the player of the match in a good all-round team performance.