SAL - 15th February 2003

So it goes a bit like this……..unavailable, injured or just absent :- A Cook, G Hobbs, S Clare, M Winyard, J Winyard, J Endersby, S Jefferys, S Dunne, P Pearce.  North London game, mid Feb., mid table.

To say things were stacked against us would be slightly understating the situation.  In fact @ 11.15 on Saturday morning we had 9 men, 45 minutes before we were due to meet.  We only travelled with 11 once I came out of retirement for the third time in three weeks, and the boss ‘Mr Gunter’ came out of retirement for the first time this century.

Without going into the details, it could have been a lot worse.  We started the game the stronger side playing the better football, but our confidence was rattled after a couple of decent attacks from Lyonians.  Probably due to the lack of a consistent side over the last few weeks. 

We stuck at it though and were only beaten by a fluky cross / shot that dipped and swerved severely, leaving our keeper floundering in the back of the net like an oversized tuna! ……………MATE !!

So 1-0 down at half time there was much discussion over formations, should it be 3-5-2, 4-4-2 or 5-0-5, as the players available would suggest.  However the general consensus was that we would stick as we were, loads of extra focus, concentrate on our jobs, lots of passion etc etc.

After 47 mins of the game we were 2-0 down.  I forget how!

What I do remember of the rest of the second half though was;-  I missed a penalty, Ryan Polley scored a cracking goal, with a superb little Dennis Bergkamp turn, Martin Vincent got knocked out in a clash of heads which amazingly also knocked the other bloke out, I then missed a free kick, Martin Vincent started to wander off into the bushes on the touch line ‘concussed’ and the boss ‘Mr Gunter’ kept going right to the end.

Find of the day P Gunter… the old fella has still got it.  Now we’ve just got to get Keithy Cave back out of retirement!!

Dave Leach