History
Start and First season.
West Ewell Athletic was formed in 1977 by Trevor Shearly and Martin Knight. The original players were a mix of boys who used to go to Bakersfield on Chessington road in the evenings for a kick around and boys who went to Ruxley lane school and to Ewell technical college . The actual formation meeting was held in the Stoneleigh Public House in March 1977. The club purchased some odd yellow shirts from a shop in the City that were on sale. Some were long sleeve and some were short . The first game was a friendly against Athelstan FC at Meadowbank in Dorking in April 1977. The result of the game was a 5-1 win for West Ewell. The first goal for the club was scored by Michael Bialakowski. This game was followed by friendly games against Running Horse FC loss 2-5 and Goblin drew 3-3 and the Manor Hospital lost 2-1. The club needed to play these games to create a record that could be evaluated by the Leatherhead league to which the club applied for membership for the 1977/78 season. The club was successful in its application and was placed in Div. 5 which was the second bottom division. By this time the club had made its headquarters the Plough public house in West Ewell and had started to meet for away games at the “ away car park” on Chessington road . A new kit was purchased which was Green shirts , Green shorts and white socks.
Trevor Shearly was manager and secretary of the team and Alan Neilson was the Chairman. The home ground was at Hook road arena in West Ewell. West Ewell Played 6 pre-season friendlies – 5 of which were against Manor Rovers , winning 3 and losing 3.The first league game was on Sunday September 25th 1977 at Hook Road Arena against CSD Chessington with West Ewell going down by 8-1. The team that day was 1. Clive Kelly , 2. MARK Pounds, 3. Mark Hampson , 4. Roy Browes , 5 Alan Neilson , 6. George Sell ( CAPT) 7. Mike Bialkowski, 8. Donald Cran , 9. Kevan Mcilroy , 10. Jeff White , 11. Nigel Stratton, sub Martin Knight ( USED 45TH MIN FOR Jeff White ) The scorer for West Ewell was Nigel Stratton. There was no referee and Trevor Shearly had to ref. The match fee for that first season was 50p per game. The second game and the first cup game was on Sunday October 2nd at Auriol park in the Surrey junior cup against of all teams Manor Rovers , the game ended in a 2-2 draw after extra time with the goal scorers Clive Kelly and Trevor Shearly with a penalty , having been tied at 1-1 after 90 minutes. The replay a week later saw Manor run out 4-1 winners with the only goal for West Ewell coming from Mark Pounds.
This first season turned out to be a tough one for the new club, a season which included heavy losses to Kings Head 13-1 ,Prism 12-0 , Ace Athletic 7-0 and eventual champions North Sutton Athletic by 6-1 away and 7-1 at home and North Holmwood in the cup 11-0 although this was with only 9 players and the game had to be replayed as North Holmwood played an ineligible player . West Ewell gave a better showing in the return but lost 3-6. The team did improve dramatically in the second half of the season with the addition of new players Steve Walters in Goal , Barry and Peter Merchant, Brien Probert and Dave Spratt and were able to turn around some of the previous results in the return matches – Drawing with CSD 1-1 in November , drawing 2-2 with Prism in February and 1-1 with Kings Head in March add to that 2 wins against Normansfield 3-9 and 3-2 and a win over Goblin 4-1 proved enough to steer the club to third bottom and avoid relegation . The final record for the 1977-78 league season was played 20 won 5 drew 4 lost 13 goals for 45 against 96 points 14. In this season West Ewell suffered their worst defeat 13-1 and their best win 14-2 in a friendly against CSD CHESSINGTON RESERVES AT Hook road arena.
The team for the last game of the season was 1. Steve Waters, 2. MARK HAMPSON , 3. BARRY MERCHANT , 4. GEORGE SELL 5. NIGEL STRATTON, 6. CLIVE KELLY , 7. DAVE SPRATT, 8. DONALD CRAN ( CAPT) 9 ROY BROWES , 10.MARK POUNDS , 11 PETER MERCHANT – SUBS BRIEN PROBERT, ALLAN NEILSON. So 5 new players from the team at the start of the season.
The end of season saw the first End of season disco which was held at the Ewell scouts hut on West street in Ewell. The drink was bought rom Frank the off license guy in west Ewell and because there was no license we had to sell raffle tickets for 10 each which were then exchanged for a drink. This disco was very successful and awards were given out to Roy Browes – top goal scorer, Clive Kelly – players player of the year and Donald Cran – Player of the year. The Disco and the awards were to become an annual event for the club.
Season 1978-79 – Saw West Ewell move to play Sunday afternoon football in the South Thameside League. Following four pre-season friendly matches , West Ewell opened their season with a home 3-2 win over Monument Rangers with goals from Roy Browes, Brien Probert and Brian Crowley who had now joined the club and was to go onto be the clubs top goal scorer. Other players making their competitive debuts for the club were Dave Callaghan, Chris Healey and Steve Philpot in goal. This team only contained 6 players who had started in the opening game the season before. The season turned out to be a much better one for the club and they won the league division 4 title on goal difference from close rivals Thames Park. They also got to the final of the league cup only to be thrown out for playing an ineligible player despite the fact that their opponents did the same. The club also reached the fourth round of the County cup before losing 4-3 away to STM 1968 after extra time. The league record was Played 20 won 13 drew 4 and lost 3. Soring 75 goals and conceding 29. The league was won by 6 goals. Top goal scorer this season was Roy Browes with 30 goals in league and cup. Two players Mark Pounds and Nigel Stratton were ever present and appearing in all 28 games.
Season 1979-80- Was a season of consolidation for the club having been promoted to South Thameside league Div 3. New faces arrived in Kevin Merchant and Steve Hulbert and the club finished in a mid table 6th position in the league with a record of 6 wins, three draws and 7 defeats for 15 points.The club reached the 3rd round of the county cup losing 2-1 AET to Morden FC and the same round of the league cup losing 4-1 AET to Boxgrove FC. February of 1980 saw the first game between West Ewell Ath and Ewell Casuals who were later to merge to form Ewell FC . This initial meeting was won 3-2 by West Ewell with 2 goals from Brian Crowley and one from Kevin Merchant. Also in April of 1980 West Ewell and Kingsway FC met for the first time with West Ewell again triumphing but only by 1-0, a goal inevitably scored by Brian Crowley who ended the season as top scorer with an all time low of 10 league and cup goals.
SEASON 2012-13
DATE OPPOSITION H/A VENUE/RESULT
SCORERS
23 Sept 2012 Cavalier H Won 2 - 1 Perrott 2
30 Sept 2012 Malden Manor A Won 3 - 0 Perrott 2, Laurenco
7 Oct 2012 Sutton High A Drew 2 - 2 Perrott 2
14 Oct 2012 Witan A Lost 0 - 3
21 Oct 2012 North Star H Drew 1 - 1 Perrott
28 Oct 2012 Cavalier H Won 2 - 1 Perrott (pen) , Novosielski
11 Nov 2012 Albion A Lost 2 - 6 Novosielski 2
18 Nov 2012 Dinton Casuals A Won 4 2 Perrott 2, Novosielski, Laurenco
25 Nov 2012 Virtual Goldfish A Won 3 - 2 Novosielski, B Ellis, Laurenco
2 Dec 2012 North Star H Lost 2 - 3 Novosielski 2
6 Jan 2013 Dinton Casuals H Drew 0 - 0
13 Jan 2013 Malden Manor H 2 - 2 Perrott, Gilligan
20 Jan 2013 Witan H
CANCELLED
27 Jan 2013 Cavalier
A 4 -2 Perrott 2, James,
Summersby
3 Feb 2013 Ancients H
3 - 0 Novosielski, Laurenco,
Razey
10 Feb 2013 Southside A 2 -
7 Perrott, Novosielski
17 Feb 2013
Sutton High H 2 - 1
Perrott 2
24 Feb 2013 Virtual Goldfish A
CANCELLED
3 Mar 2013 North Star Rangers H
1-0 Perrott
10 Mar 2013
NO FIXTURE MOTHER'S DAY
17 Mar 2013
Tolworth United H 1 - 4
Perrott
24 Mar 2013 Albion H
1-3 Perrott
31 Mar 2013
NO FIXTURE EASTER SUNDAY
7 Apr 2013
Southside H 1-3
Pattinson
14 Apr 2013 Spectra H
1-3 Coleman
21 Apr 2013
Tolwort United H 1-5 Perrott
REPORTS
2 - 1 win versus
Cavalier
We started the season with a solid
win
Cavalier could only muster 10 players, so we had to lend
them a player.
We went behind when Cavalier scored direct from a
corner. At this time we looked decidedly out of sorts
but
gradually got our defensive shape and passing going and it was no real surprise
when Steve Perrot equalised.
We turned around at one each and
there only looked one winner in the second half.
Without a
linesman, the referee disallowed Brian Dorey's (welcome back Brian)goal that
looked a tight call, but Steve Perrot decided the match in our favour when he
sprang the offside trap and coolly finished a one on one with the keeper. Adam's
yellow card for a couple of dangerous challenge's was one damp spot on the
morning.
3-0 win versus Malden
Manor
As always against this opposition, it was a
well balanced contest, played in the
right spirit. While Manor's crisp
passing game was pleasing to the eye, they lacked penetration in
the final
third, in no small part however due to a solid defensive display from
Ewell. Derek deserves a mention for keeping Algerian star & former jester
Ahmed quiet throughout. But it was three excellent strikes - one from
Portugese
talisman Domingos, and two from crack striker Steve Perrot, the
second a
wonder-strike from fully 30 yards out , that ultimately were the
difference
between the two teams.
All in all a fine performance and
a good win against decent
opposition.
2-2 draw versus Sutton
High
A fair result overall although the two goals we
conceded were pretty disappointing.
We went behind when Dave
Summersby put through his own goal at a corner.
We eventually
equalised when Steve Perrot scored direct from a corner, but went into half time
2-1
behind when a long clearance from the Sutton keeper found
their striker clear on goal with a simple finish.
They say
there's no substitute for class, but we had a substitute who was
class.
Sam Ruddle collected the ball, turned and released Steve
Perrot who sprnted clear clear
and finished
coolly.
Sutton disappontlingly fieled three under age players,
something that will be raised with their
secretary.
0-3 loss versus
Witan
A disappointing performance saw us slip to our
first defeat of the season.
Witan played pretty well with the
help of Jon Levy and Dave 'Masher' Fettes, but we made it easy
for them with some sloppy passing and lack of
movement.
Probably best to leave it there and hope we've all
saved our worst performance of the season for
one
game.
1 - 1 draw with North Star
Rangers
A 100% improvement on last week saw us secure a highly
creditable draw with a very good side.
A real team effort from
all 15 players, defending as a time and hard work rate in midfield and up
front.
We turned round scoreless having conceded most of the
possession while creating the better chances and hitting the post from Steve
Perrot's standing foot. A slow start to the second half saw us under pressure
and we inevitably cracked when Dave Corr unluckily headed past Adam into his own
net. Instead of cracking we turned the tide and seized the initiative,
theatening the North Star goal. On 70 minutes the game swung dramatically, Adam
made a fantastic double save and we went up the other end, Steve Perrot beat the
full back beat the keeper at his near post for a well deseved equaliser. We
played most of the remainder of the game on the back foot, but defended
heroically and could have nicked it at the
death.
2 - 1 win versus
Cavalier - report coutesy of Jamesy
In honour of
Halloween the game started with a
spookily eerie setting, that being an
empty car park and no other matches being
on at the fire brigade ground.
Even more spookily no body failed to adjust
their clocks and everyone was
there at the right time. This eerie and unusual
sense was to continue
for the first 20 minutes of the game where Ewell Vets
contrived to play
the best football certainly this season and perhaps for longer
and were
tearing the opponents apart. The confidence was up and the passing
was
crisp and more importantly short There is no suggestion that this was
because the manager was out in the US for hurricane season…… Within this time
Ewell had a breakthrough where the ball was in the box and the keeper
caught
Tony who went down in stages, this was not a malicious tackle but it
was a foul
and the referee duly gave a penalty which Steve Perrott stepped
up and slotted
away quite comfortably. I’m not saying its been a slow
season for Tony however
he was claiming an assist before the ball hit the
back of the net! Not that
long later and after another nice passage of
play Wayne was picked out on a
marauding run inside the box and managed to
place the ball directly at the
keeper, fortunately it ricocheted to Tony
who made no mistake and now has a
goal (and an assist) for his
efforts.
Unfortunately the football was not too last and the
opposition fought their way back into the game and the game took on a more
scrappy performance and following a failed clearance their striker had a bit of
a run and shaped to cross the ball before beating Bruce (the cat) at his
near
post, a deflection was called but only Bruce spotted it so perhaps a
further
haunting.
The first half ground to a close with Ewell
edging
the half in terms of shots and possession, even to the extent that
Del tried to
become a ball playing libero, a lot funnier than it sounds.
The second half had Ewell defending up the hill and
Cavalier were
a lot brighter although they struggled to turn the dominance into
shots on
target. Although if games were decided on corners won they would have
had
the match sewn up in a 5 minute period with 7 or 8 successive corners,
however Ewell dug in and defended resolutely. The second half again probably
saw Ewell edge the quality chances with their keeper saving some fairly
tame
efforts and on another day we would have scored more. However that
would not
have been fair on Cavalier who had the best of the half in terms
of possession
and territorial advantage. The game finished 2-1 which was
probably a fair
result, the ref said it was the best game of vets football
he had seen this
year (must have ref’fed all our others) but then
quantified it with “well there
was less mistakes than usual!” .
The general consensus was that was a game we would
have lost two years
ago, so a hearty pat on the back for all that played their
part, it was a
good battling team performance and if we can keep the passing
going for 30
minutes next week it will be a step inn the right direction.
Special thanks
to Bruce who despite feeling ill played the full match in goal
and was
barely troubled, well done to Tony who has got off the mark now with a
goal (and an assist!) and if proof was needed even when he’s not playing Greg
is still the noisiest person there!
Wayne said he wanted to retire
from management at
this stage with a 100% record, there were no
complaints!
4-2 win versus Dinton Casuals - report courtesy
of Jamesy
After my last report was labelled as too long I have
tried to shorten it.
A great team result against a good
football playing side....
The game got off to a jovial start when a
fat alcoholic (allegedly) was
seen in a football kit and for once it wasn’t
one of ours …. Arsenal Legend Paul
Merson was playing in goal on the pitch
next to us and Peter Reid was scouting
us out!
We started
brightly and were disappointed to go one nil
down having not really been
under the cosh. However following some good football
Tony put Steve Perrott
through for his goal (he never scores just one) which he
slotted away
nicely. The stand out player (in the writers eyes) for the
first half was
not Wayne for his dying swan impersonation in the box, although
very funny
especially the appeal, but our very own Ronaldo – Dom who won tackles
against giants of men and then had the audacity to actually get away with his
dribbles in our box and was very effective. The first half was a battling
performance with a lot of effort but not too much to show for
it.
Second half saw a tactical change with a clearly tiring Mark James
switched back to centre half to swap with Brian marshalling a back 4 who
otherwise were all called Dave, very easy to yell instructions too! We got
our just desserts for the second half, they made a couple of changes and
their
nice football disappeared and we harried and chased and forced them
into errors.
Tony added a second goal before Steve Perrot (always scores
twice) scored his
second. Our goals were finished off with Dom getting his
recognition with
a goal. This was shortly after taking the wing mirror off
a parked van.
They scored with the last move with an offside goal which
the ref rightly
stated that "it probably was but goal difference hardly
matters" I could hardly
argue.
Not too many individual
mentions this week as it was a great team
performance and yet again a great
shouting performance from the touchline from
Greg!
3 - 2 win versus Virtual
Goldfish
The facts of the game were “Real Ewell
Vets” took the
lead through Tony unpronounceable as his strike partner had
an off day and
concentrated on his corner kicking. This was followed by a
couple of
(un)characteristic (?!) mistakes with a throw in gifted to Steve
Patterson who
rounded Adam (who didn’t kill him as it was a practice
match) and finished
neatly to level. This was added to within two
minutes, following some
confusion in the keepers mind who picked up a back
pass and saw Brendan Ruddle
score for “Goldfish Vets” with a well worked
free kick straight from Court Rec
and that was how the half ended with
“Real Ewell Vets” losing a one sided half
in their favour 2-1. It is fair
to say that a number of chances were
squandered by Ewell in the first half
with the worst and lead contender for
“worst miss of all time” falling to
Wayne who failed to even get the ball out of
play from the centre of the
goal and 3 yards out with nobody to beat, even he
didn’t claim a
bobble!
If the first half had been dominated by Ewell then
there
are no better words to describe the second half other than “encamped in
Goldfish Vets” half. However for all the pressure including at least 20
corners the score was still 2-1 for much of the second half with their keeper
pulling off some “worldies” and some resolute defending from all the
Goldfish
players who battled tirelessly on a heavy pitch. Some smart
attempts lead to
nothing until Bruce finally got his head on a cross from
Tony who is now
claiming assists as he thinks the leading goals scorer
trophy has slipped from
his grasp. As often happens within a couple of
minutes of getting the equaliser
Dom picked up a sublime pass played
behind his defender to slot home coolly and
put “Real Ewell” back in
front.
Things I learned from this game:
don’t bemoan a fellow players passing choices otherwise you will not be
able to play a simple ball 5 yards for the next 10 minutes
Adam doesn’t kill his own players, in practice games
Steve Perrott can’t always hit a barn door
Richard E is unconvinced with 3-5-2
We have a great team spirit and all battled gamely on without a ref and
there were no gripes about playing for the oppo
Just because a keeper can’t kick, it doesn’t mean he can’t save!
Sadly one of our players
retired after the after the game in
the pub but I am hoping this will be a
“Steve Small” retirement which I
have witnessed on at least 7
occasions.
Lost 2 - 3 versus North
Star
A
game of two halves….
The
game didn’t start well when our recognised striker Tony unpronounceable
suggested we didn’t have a striker around, with him now seeming to be focused on
the “golden assist” for this season….
This
turned out to be a tough game against North Star which saw the game go with the
slope for both halves. Ewell started down the hill with the sun at our backs
and a bright start was rewarded with Tony notching his first of the match with a
good strike across the keeper into the far corner. The half continued with
North Star not creating much albeit probably having more of the ball but we
pressurised them well into making some sloppy mistakes and we had the better of
the chances with Tony not quite getting onto Dom’s through ball at the far post.
When North star did get into our box and create scoring opportunities they came
across an inspired Andy Keefe making his annual appearance with the pick being a
diving one handed save from a header that he then took 5 minutes to get up from
to collect the ball.
We
conceded a weak penalty when Nick was judged to have bundled over their striker,
a claim which a number of people felt was harsh although not the writer it has
to be said, North Star coolly converted the penalty to leave the game level for
about a minute until a speculative ball over the top saw Gary (Graham?!) pick
out Tony who finished again, so much for no recognised
striker!
The
half ran out with a Ewell free kick coming back off the crossbar (will I ever
score again?) and Del putting in one off the best defensive tackles of the
season to leave us 2-1 up at half time.
The
second half started with whinges about the game only being 80 minutes long and a
glut of chances for North Star who contrived to miss a variety of opportunities,
our game was scrappier and we defended too deeply leaving too many gaps between
the strikers, midfield and the back four allowing them to pass the ball through
us and hold on to the ball. Despite this we battled gamely on and with 10
minutes to go we were still leading 2-1, however with 5 minutes to go the
inevitable happened and they equalised. We actually looked tighter defensively
after this and thought we may have held on but into the last minute of the game
Andy Keefe again pulled off a fine double save, however their midfielder managed
to put the ball away at the third attempt and we were finally beaten. A
battling performance by a much changed side but we were not really on our
game.
The
record for the furthest travelled for a game has now been set by Bruce who
arrived from Australia at 5:30am and was then made to run the
line!
Merry
Christmas.
Drew
0 - 0 v Dinton Casuals
Christmas takes its
toll.
The match was a good hard fought result
that in the end we nearly nicked with Steve Perrott hitting the post after a
good pass from Tony late on in the second half. However the match was one where
no one player was really on their game from either side. To a man we looked off
the pace and just lacking that yard of pace and touch and the match was fairly
scrappy. What we lacked in finesse we made up for in bluster, sometimes
incorrectly directed, but we harried and chased and gave it our all which is the
standard we have maintained all season. The writer is unsure if it is down to
this harassing and chasing that disrupted the usual slick passing of Dinton or
that they had eaten as much Turkey as we had but they were limited to long shots
for most of the first half.
The second half saw
the match continue in much the same vein with lots of effort but not too much
creativity with passes just going slightly astray when team mates had made good
runs. The second half also saw a new addition to the side getting a run out in
Nathan whose first two challenges earned two free kicks and a talking to,
welcome to Vets football! He certainly injected some youthful exuberance. With
only minutes to go Tony was bearing down on goal and had the goal at his mercy
and decided to pass to Steve Perrott who was surrounded by players, he managed
to control the ball and bent a shot, which I certainly thought was in, only for
it to rebound off the post. In truth it was probably a fair result in what is
usually a tricky match.
Special mention goes to
Adam who unlike the rest of the team who put their feet up over Christmas has
clearly been out in the “gate field” practising his throw outs as an alternative
to his kicks and used these to good effect in what was a good performance from
him. Gary showed great pace to get on the end of two of
them!
Drew 2 - 2 v Malden
Manor
Two heads are better than one (Copyright
Greg White)
A very cold fire brigade ground saw
the manager trying to warm up the team with an inspiring team talk explaining
that we haven’t been beaten by this team for several years, however as Tony
pointed out we actually lost last season….
A
change to the line up saw Bruce “the Fish” Ellis in goal who had an accomplished
game to throw down the gauntlet to Adam! The first half was disorganised with
the back 4 being pulled all over the place and the midfield being asked to cover
an inordinate amount of ground which then left them stretched and allowed the
opposition to have a lot of the ball. An injury to Johnno occurred early on and
we were forced into a reshuffle. We rode our luck for much of the first 20
minutes but I thought we had started to tighten up when a good cross was
delivered and we conceded a fairly straightforward goal. In a continuing vein
from last week we struggled to find the form that we showed prior to Christmas
and there was little in the way of clear cut chances in the first half and the
keeper remained pretty much untested.
The
second half saw some changes and probably as importantly, playing with the
slope! The back 4 played a higher line and also saw some strong tackles being
won and we started to play a bit more football and got Tony and Steve more into
the game. Brian showed plenty of running as did Wayne (back with the arm band)
and we hassled and chased. Still the play was more with Malden with Ahmed
playing some neat trickery down the wing and it appears that during the second
half the quality of the match ball improved (despite nothing being done to it)
as he stopped moaning about it being flat, frankly I thought it was his
inability to cross the ball that was the issue…. However we defended resolutely
as a team and whilst there were one or two close moments where Greg pulled off
one of the tackles of the season their forwards were definitely not having it
their way. If anything the game had swung back in our direction and we were
attacking more when we conceded a soft penalty when a ball into the box was
accidentally handled as it bounced up and there was a feeling that our hard work
had been undone. Bruce breathed in and made himself look big and then dived for
cover as they finished the penalty, 2 - 0.
We
dug in and showed why we are a stronger proposition than in previous years and
when more good work into the box saw Steve Perrot in front of goal he made no
mistake and coolly finished with a powerful strike. The game was not over and
it was there for the taking with Ewell having more of the play and possession. A
slack tackle on the edge of our box allowed them a free kick which Bruce watched
go miles over… until it bounced off the crossbar and Greg over head kicked it
away, I’m not sure what surprised Bruce more! As we pushed on there were more
balls into the danger areas and with only a minute or so to go a ball was
crossed in from the left (was it Tony, my memory is going?) and with both Brian
and Nathan going to head the same ball a firm shove from Brian ensured that
Nathan headed the ball in slow motion across the goal, enabling their keeper to
scramble across (equally slowly) to see the ball hit the post and cross the line
and give us a deserved equaliser.
The game
finished shortly after and was probably deserved on the second half performance
if not on the first. Well done to Bruce in goal and also to Sam who refereed
the game well albeit there are still complaints about a penalty that wasn’t
given when Steve Perrott went down in stages, it never was!
Won 4 - 2
versus Cavalier
The game was a much altered fixture in terms of we were
now playing at Home and not Away, they didn’t have a ref so could we do it and
they were also short of players so we leant them one whom they later decided
they didn’t need, this disrupted our pre match flow so much that within the
first few minutes we found ourselves one up with an audacious flick at the ball
with the outside of the boot in the style of Beckham v Simeone which saw him
vilified, Steve Perrot was lauded for his!
We
then settled back into a rhythm and continued to play good football and create
opportunities which we proceeded to waste with a number of our players having
off days in front of goal (they know who they are…) the lead was doubled 15
minutes later with a corner into the box from Steve Perrott that was met with a
thumping header from Jamesy which finally ended a drought that rivalled many a
3rd world countries.
The first half saw us
making more chances and not capitalising on them, with some well struck attempts
but nothing to show for it. The team defended well and we played more cohesively
than in recent weeks.
Following a rousing team
talk we started the second half a little slow and allowed Cavalier back into the
game. However we were still managing to get the ball down and Steve Patterson
was making some good inroads down the left and battled hard, this led to our 3rd
goal with a good run and a ball into the box which Steve Perrott finished coolly
past the keeper. This was followed by some neat passing and a ball into Dave S
who also added his first goal of the season.
At
this stage and 4-0 up we decided to have a mini melt down and allowed them to
come at us, I think this was partially due to a change of goal keeper meaning
they had two young veterans (mid twenties?) on the pitch and they had a bit more
composure on show. A ball that was going no where then led to Adam going through
the back of their player on the goal line and resulted in a yellow card and an
immediate substitution of our keeper to be replaced by Bruce “the cat”.
We conceded two but the result was never in
doubt despite being outplayed for most of the second half. I must write these
reports in a more timely manner as my recollection of the game has
deteriorated!
Won 3 - 0 Versus
Ancients
The first Sunday in February and we found the holy grail….. The
changing room inside the main building, plenty of room, a treatment table and
HOT SHOWERS with the added bonus there was no tactics board so the team talk
could wait till just before kick off!
As for
lesser matters of the game we had 16 players turn up so a much changed side, but
we finally seemed to have found our mojo with the malaise of the first few games
of the new year and the second half of last week blown
away.
The first 20 minutes saw some good
passing and movement and some great football and we created some good chances
which we failed to capitalise on with Dom then scoring a great goal from outside
the box with an exquisite chip over the keeper (normal service was resumed when
he tried to do it 10 minutes later and failed to clear the first player). At
this stage we were looking good with the midfield getting stuck in and dictating
play, the oppo still passed the ball around and looked dangerous on the counter
but we were reasonably comfortable.
Nathan
then picked up an ankle injury and was taken off and this disrupted our play
some what with the link between the midfield and the strikers looking strained
and they came to the fore and bossed the remainder of the first half. Adam did
his customary run off the line despite having a couple of players to defend and
then proceeded to go straight through the back of the man on the goal line, I
think as a team we need to learn “adam wrócić do celu przed druga drużyna
zostaje ranny” in order to stop him from doing it
again!
The second half started and we resumed
the dominance that we had enjoyed in the first half and defended strongly
through the middle of the park, including Nick and their number 9 doing their
own “come dancing” routine in our box fortunately the 9 retained the ball
otherwise we could have conceded a penalty. We created some more opportunities
which were not paying dividends with the highlight being Tony’s run through on
goal and was only let down as he kicked the ground and not the ball! He made
amends shortly after with a through ball that he ran onto and then cut into the
box, with Steve Perrot being the only option in the box he lashed it home from
an acute angle! This was to be his last involvement in the game as his leg was
still hurting from his earlier attempt to (actually) bury
it.
They made a substitution in the second half
and bought on one of two very underage players (agreed before KO) one of whom
was a little daunted being in his mid teens playing against what was later
termed an oak tree...
During the second half
there was a nasty clash of heads where Brian keen to build on his two heads
principal of a couple of weeks ago went up with two others of our team (3 heads)
and one of theirs, we won the header but unfortunately there was a clash of
heads and their player wound up with a nasty gash (insert your own jokes – Greg)
above his eye and we wish him a swift recovery. During this it became apparent
why none of us are doctors and why Dave F is in business.
After this Richard soon had a break on goal
and managed to sting the goal keeper with a shot straight at him which
ricocheted back to him and he took a leaf out of Steve Perrot’s usual corner
skills and put it out for a goal kick. Adam also pulled off some very good
saves in the second half to protect the lead including one at the death that he
just pushed wide to maintain his clean
sheet.
This only leaves the “Nick show” to
discuss where for 3 corners from our right hand side, where Steve Perrott took a
number of quality corners and Nick “10 bob piece” head managed to clear them all
from various distances. He did however make up for this when Brian was curling
the ball from his corner into the goal and Nick managed to deflect it in from a
full 3.5 inches to claim his deserved goal.
All in all for ¾
of the game we deserved it and we remain undefeated in
2013…..
Lost 2 - 7 v
Southside
The team turned up to a very wet and
soggy Chiswick to the news that the groundsman
wanted to call the game off.
The home team managed to convince him this
wasn't a good idea and with the
allure of the baguettes and the distance
traveled we concurred. Whilst we
had mentally agreed to this our bodies
didn't seem to be as committed….
We conceeded 7 goals which was far from our greatest showing we scored two
(Or they
did for us a feat which our strikers disagreed netting one each).
In
fairness to us I don't think they had more than 11 shots in total so the
scoreline flattered them with corners being picked out and volleys into the
roof
the net at full stretch.
However the stark truth was whilst they
bought it down and passed the ball, even in the
quagmire which contributed
to a game of now you see it, now you don't in the
second half, we failed to
really get the ball down and this led to us being
stretched all over the
park.
In truth looking at the pitch the game shouldn't have gone ahead but
that is no
excuse for the performance as they played the conditions very
well.
Last season after our first match against them on an equally wet day
they said "we
look forward to playing you again and giving you a game" now
it's our
turn.
Final thoughts, I am glad to not be the groundsman and
they were good
baguettes.
Won 2 - 1 v
Sutton Hjgh (Courtesy of Tony Novosielski)
With an ever-evolving
fixture list, looking to provide us with games against suitably matched
opposition, this was a match against one of our oldest foes. As always, it was
an even contest, which both sides were capable of winning.
We looked
solid enough
across the whole team in the early stages and created a number
of half chances,
before taking the lead through a Steve Perrot header, from
a great cross from Wayne Needhan
(apparently a shortish Latino geezer),
following a fine move. After scoring however, we allowed Sutton to
take
control of the game, and it was no surprise when they equalized after Adam
had little choice but to give away a penalty after a mix-up in the box. (gate
field)
The second half provided
more of the same, as we gave away
the initiative. Sutton passed the ball around
nicely, and made &
squandered several chances. As so often happens, they
were made to pay for
their profligacy, as Tony, showing good awareness in the
box (for once)
crossed for Perrot ('he always scores twice') to score with
another header.
That was about all we created in the second half, apart from a
poor offside
decision given against us when our no 9 was through on goal. Still,
a good
'3 points'.
Thanks to Sutton for a good
game; always a pleasure to play
against, whatever the result.
SEASON 2013/14
22 Sept 2013 Dinton Casuals 0 - 2
29 Sept 2013 Malden Manor 0 - 3
6 Oct 2013 Sutton High 1 - 1 James
13 Oct 2013 Witan 1 - 2 Novosielski
20 Oct 2013 North Star 2 - 4 Burrows 2
27 Oct 2013 Cavalier 3 - 1 Novosielski 2, Needham
3 Nov 2013 Tolworth Utd 1 - 3 Novosielski
10 Nov 2013 Albion CANCELLED
17 Nov 2013 Glendale 4 - 3 Novosielski, Williams, Bargery, Laurenco
24 Nov 2013 Ancients 2 - 2 Novosielski. Perrot
1 Dec 2013 Wilf Kroucher 4 - 1 Novosielski, Perrot 2, Williams
8 Dec 2013 Spectra 0 - 3
15 Dec 2013 Albion 3 - 3 Perrot 3
29 Dec 2013
5 Jan 2014 Dinton Casuals 2 - 3 Summersby, James
12 Jan 2014 Malden Manor 0 - 1
19 Jan 2014 Witan 1 - 0 Perrot
26 Jan 2014 Cavalier CANCELLED
2 Feb 2014 Ancients 2 - 0 Summersby 2
9 Feb 2014 Southside CANCELLED
16 Feb 2014 Sutton High CANCELLED
23 Feb 2014 Wilf Kroucher CANCELLED
2 Mar 2014 North Star 1 - 1 Perrot
9 Mar 2014
16 Mar 2014 Tolworth United 0 - 3
23 Mar 2014 Albion 1 - 3 Novosielski ?
30 Mar 2014 MOTHER'S DAY
6 Apr 2014 Southside CANCELLED
13 Apr 2014 Spectra HOME
20 Apr 2014 EASTER SUNDAY
27 Apr 2014
Dinton 2 - Ewell 0
The first match of the season ended in defeat, but the after conceding twice in the first ten minutes we dug in and gave as good as we got in a really spirited display. We were severely depleted by injury and holiday. Special mention goes to Greg and Dave Corr who were playing against medical advice. Dinton's first goal came from long range and was helped by a crazy bounce on a pitch that looked like it hadn't seen a groundsman's fork since February. Dinton scred from a corner after Adam made a great save and the writing was on the wall, but with Wayne showing a captain's example ably assisted by Gary in the middle of midfield, we shored things up. Derek and Dave Summersby looked in control at the back, ably assisted by Dave Fettes and Steve Small and Tony woked tirelessly up front while Dom was a constant threat with his trademark dribbles. All in all a decent start to the season which can only improve with the return of our absent stars.
Malden Manor 3 - Ewell 0
A disappointing performance although perhaps a three goal win slightly flattered our opposition. Adam's late drop out meant we again had a bare elleven and Bruce had to fill in between the sticks. Jamesy turned up unexpectedly to give us an option off the bench and while we defended well a few moments of indecision cost us dearly. The first and second goals were down to letting the ball bounce, when a simple clearance would have sufficed. at the other end we hardly tested their keeper, alt
FIXTURES SEASON 2014/15
21 Sept 2014 Dinton Casuals 2- 0 Laurenco, White
28 Sept 2014 Old Malden Manor 0 - 5
5 Oct 2014 Sutton High 0 - 5
12 Oct 2014 Tolworth United 0 - 4
19 Oct 2014 North Star 1 - 1 Laurenco
26 Oct 2014 Old Harrodian Cavaliers 3 - 0 Perrot 2, Williams
9 Nov 2014 Albion 4 - 1 Novolsielski, Needham, Perrot 2
16 Nov 2014 Glendale 1 - 4 Perrot
23 Nov 2014 Wilf Kroucher 2 - 1 Laurenco, Perrot
30 Nov 2014
7 Dec 2014 Spectra 0 - 4
14 Dec 2014 North Star 1 -3 Summersby
28 Dec 2014
4 Jan 2015 Dinton Casuals 1-3 Summersby
11 Jan 2015 Old Malden Manor 1-6 Novosielski
18 Jan 2015
25 Jan 2015 Old Harrodian Cavaliers 4 - 2 Perrot 3, Novosielski
1 Feb 2015 Wilf Kroucher 1 - 0 Novosielski
8 Feb 2015 Southside 1 - 3 Perrot
15 Feb 2015 Sutton High 0 - 4
22 Feb 2015
1 Mar 2015 North Star 0 - 3
8 Mar 2015 Southside 1-4 Gregory
15 Mar 2015 MOTHER'S DAY
22 Mar 2015 Albion 3 - 1 Novosielski, James, Gregory
29 Mar 2015 Tolworth United 7 - 2 Gregory 3, Novosielski 2, James, Williams
5 Apr 2015 EASTER SUNDAY
12 Apr 2015 Wilf Kroucher 1 - 2 Novosielski
19 Apr 2015 Spectra 0 - 3
Dinton 0 Ewell Vets 2 (by The Skipper)
First game of the season saw us meet against tough opponents full of hope and expectation for the coming season.
Pleasing after the comments of last year we had some new (albeit old looking)faces which bodes well for the coming season.
There was a special presentation before the match with Wayne aka Asbo making up for his despicable behaviour at the awards presenting Jono with a replacement clubman trophy, congratulatons.
Richard's team talk focused on the team set up with our plan for this year aiming to confuse the opposition (and ourselves) with multiple formation changes dependent on personnel.
The game started brightly for us with Craig looking bright and not giving the opposition any time on the ball, upsetting their rhythm.
A strong first 20 minutes with a loose ball that Dom picked up 25 yards our and rifled the ball past a defender and ultimately their keeper into the right hand side of the goal, he didn't even move, worldy's all the way this year!
We had another couple of chances in the half but couldn't take them and the game became a bit scrappier as they came back into it, although as became the shape of the game both teams cancelled each other out.
Second half started with Dinton starting the stronger but with resolute defending with Lawry excelling at the back and Bruce dealing with all that came his way.
We fought our way back into the game with Steve P. coming close at the far post after our best move of the match.
However the game looked to be petering out with both sides nullifying each other out until (and you don't know how much this hurts to write) after a smorgasborg of terrible goal and free-kicks where the ball where the ball was played out for throw-ins, straight to (their) centre forwards and generally into the space you were in 10 mins earlier, a free-kick was awarded just in their half. Greg snatched the ball, enquired if the kick was direct, waited for me to run 50 yards and then smashed it into the net with the keeper advancing out in case it droped out. What a cracking goal for his debut goal (after 3 years), worldy's all the way.
Finally special mention to the debutants who didn't play as much as they would have liked but showed some good touches and a willingness to get the ball down and play football, whatever next !
Formation stats
3-5-2 2-0
4-4-2 0-0
Old Malden Manor 5 Ewell 0
A very different game from the previous week on what was probably one of the hottest days we will play on.
We retained 3-5-2 throughout and there were mumurings after the game of 4-4-2, who would be a manager !
We didn't start well anf failed to close the oppo down, a big mistake as they had come to play and counter-attacked with speed leaving us exposed, the goals came thick and fast and I think I remember the order...
1. A low free-kick whose bounce tricked our new triallist Paul and went over his body.
2. A cross met with an acrobatic finish.
3. A cross that found men men over with a neat finish.
We made it to the second hal with a few long range efforts our only contribution. The big issues with the first half were not being close enough to the opponents, struggling to play simple balls and therefore recycling the ball too easily.
In the second half we started with more commitment and more effort but still we were chasing the ball, second half goals:-
4. A long punt forward from our corner, knocked on and finished well.
5. Neat play on the right with a decent finish high into the top right corner.
However we did play better in the second half and didn't deserve to lose 2-0.
So in summary, we started slowly and gave them too much space but they played the best football I remember of them and the finishing was as clinical as we will play against. Our efforts second half were better, so something to build on.
Seven of us went for a curry after the game with the oppositionwhich was good fun. We were made very welcome, easy after 5-0 I suppose!
Sutton High 5 Ewell 0
A promising start with a good turn out but a second disappointing result in a row.
The oppo who had struggled in previous matches had a number of new players (borrowed for the game I believe) who made a difference. The match was littered with individual mistakes and lapses of concentration and to compound it we started slowly which meant we were on the back foot. Positives to be taken from the game are when we get the ball down and pass it we look better and the last 20 minutes we competed better. The hotdogs and chips provided for those who stayed after were very nice!
Negatives - I lost my first coin toss, amongst others !
We need to take this on to next week now.
Ewell 0 Tolworth United 4
This match can be summarised as another slow start, soft goals and a more annoying noise than Greg.
Our first home game of the season on the recently turned pitches, by getting more pitches in, the parking is even tighter now, so something to consider in future.
For the first time this season we were short on numbers, so thanks to Pete having a run on pitch and Chris making his debut (and hopefully not his last appearance).
Unfortunately despite having time to warm up we didn't seem to take advantage of it as we started slowly. The initial signs seemed positive as we tried to play but soon found ourselves three goals down. The individual mistakes that seem to have blighted the start of the season but let's not forget it's a collective responsibility and there's only a fine line between the next one being you! We quickly found ourselves on the wrong side of a 0 - 3 position after 15-20 minutes, with Pete netting his first OG (a proper Ewell player now).
The scoreline flattered them and we managed to gain some composure and started to play some passing football and carved ourselves some half chances but we were lacking some good fortune, the first half if not in the scoreline was pretty closely contested.
The second half was more of the same and we controlled the first 10 minutes and when we got the ball it was almost pretty, just a shame we didn't do it a bit more.
Tony had some more chances and at least the keeper had to make some saves. Chris was denied a debut goal late on with the ball coming off the post with the keeper well beaten.
The game opened up late on with them having counter attacks and being the more attacking, the benefit of having a 21 year old engine in the the middle of the park, it made me a bit sad thinking how fat and old I have become!
The best finish by far was fro our ref/wide midfielder Richard who got his head on a late cross who by his own admission 'Knew what he was trying to do'. I know what he actually did, a beautifully lofted header over Adam into the goal. One of the best OGs you will see and with that full time.
A better performance if only a modest score improvement, take credit for the effort and workrate, let's all show some more composure on the ball, the signs of improvement are there.
And the annoying noise.....The fire alarm going off in the changing room at the end capping off a perfect morning.
Ewell 1 North Star Rangers 1
From the kick-off this was a much improved performance on the previous few weeks, players settling on the ball and some good passing moves rather than the kick and hope of old. The game was a real end to end battle with Adam pulling off more good saves than marauding runs out of the penalty area. Deadlock was broken after about 40 minutes with Dom pulling the ball onto his left foot just on the edge of the area before firing home for his second of the season. North Star took the game to us in the second half and we found ourselves camped deeper while continuing to hit them on the break, it always looked like a second goal was coming, the only question was to to which team. The answer was to North Star, 15 seconds (according to the ref) before the end of the game when Gary went down under a challenge and the defence seemed to stop for a second allowing them to fire in a good shot from about 20 yards.
Very close to victory but probably a fair result in the end.
Ewell 3 Old Harrodian Cavaliers 0
The opposition turned up short of players and we provided a couple of ours so thanks to Pete and his son for playing (always an underage player on the oppo!). We started the livelier of the two teams although we lacked composure in the last 30 yards, either snatching at shots or failing to coose the right option. Pleasingly we tried to play football, although not always in the right places. We scored a goal when Steve Perrot picked out Gary who finished with a smart header to deservedly take the lead. Richard was very unlucky with a volley that came off the far post with the keeper well beaten. The opposition had chances but these were more down to us misplacing passes or bad control (especially the writer).
At half time they had a couple of injuries which meant Richard did the honourable thing and changed sides which gave us 10 a side. The second half started with Steve Perrot firing blanks (had to get it in) (Is that two puns ? -Sam) and their keeper pulling off three unbelievable saves. How Tony finished this game without a goal I don't know, his endeavour was the best I have seen from him this season and he hit the post and had a couple of good shots saved. Steve Perrot scored two but could have had five on another day. The other incident of notewas Del failing to control a long range volley (Centre circle) that cannoned off his nose (3 yards away) and left him a bit dazed and confused on the floor, on the plus side I think it straightened his nose a bit!
The second half score line flattered them, but up until 60 minutes they were still in the game and made a real match of it, not bad considering they were short of players and suffered injuries, even Pete went off injured leaving them with nine at the end.
Albion 1 Ewell 4
'A game of two halves'
The game started poorly with our errant goalkeeper giving away a penalty following a sterling attempt at a 'hulk slam' after a spectacular punt forward from the opposition. The stand-in ref did his best not to give a contentious decision that early on, but it was so blatant he had to, if anything we were lucky to continue with 11 (the benefit of only being a stand-in was no cards!), not the start we wanted.
After this we started to play with a bit of composure and despite our assurance to Richard that we would ignore his request before the game, we got the ball down and were playing football, not always in the right areas (a re-occurring theme) but play we did. This led via a nice passage of passing football to Tony scoring his first of the season (although he has been unlucky) with a beautiful finish over the top of the keeper. The second was open to subjecture with the assist either being nicely played back (the passer) or bobbled off the defender into the path of Wayne for a neat finish beating the keeper at the near post (the scorer) either way 2 1 Ewell. In reality we played some of our best football of the season and could have been further ahead, the defence looked strong and limited them to very little opportunity, the midfield worked hard and were often at the heart of our better passing moves (special mention of Jonno) and the strikers were at their most industrious and were working as a partnership,
Half time came and we reverted to the 3-5-2 formation and despite lacking some shape, we scored another two goals from Steve Perrot, the first a good striker's goal when through on the keeper, the second finally finishing what Tony had three attempts at! As the fourth went in they were warming up reinforcements...three players were introduced who had struggled to find their home ground (a team in transition...) One could only be described as a man mountain, great tackle from Wayne (our very own David) who was lacking a sling so wound up rolling on the ground in agony ! The other two were 'youthful' and the three were all good players and changed the dynamic of the game we were up against it and resorted to clearing our lines more, however we stayed resolute and had two good counter attacks where we missed one on ones. They had two goals ruled out (correctly) for offside and they made more opportunities, however some good saves from Adam and some timely interceptions meant we saw the game out.
FIXTURES SEASON 2015/16
20 Sept 2015 Dinton Casuals Away 1 - 5 Novosielski
27 Sept 2015 Old Malden Manor Away 0 - 2
4 Oct 2015 Sutton High Away 1 - 3 Gregory
11 Oct 2015 Witan Away 0-4
18 Oct 2015 North Star Away 1 - 1 Laurenco
25 Oct 2015 Old Harrodian Cavaliers Home 1 - 1 Gregory
8 Nov 2015 Albion Away 4 - 4 Gregory, Perrot 2, Novosielski
15 Nov 2015 Glendale Home 1 - 3 Laurenco
29 Nov 2015 Wilf Kroucher Away 5 - 1 Novosielski 4 , Gregory
6 Dec 2015 Spectra Away 3 - 7 Perrot 3
13 Dec 2015 North Star Home 2 - 7 Gregory 2
10 Jan 2016 Old Malden Manor Home 0 - 7
17 Jan 2016 Witan Home CANCELLED
24 Jan 2016 Old Harrodian Cavaliers Away 0 - 4
31 Jan 2016 Dinton Casuals Home 1 - 4 Laurenco
7 Feb 2016 Southside Home 0 - 7
14 Feb 2016 Sutton High Home CANCELLED
28 Feb 2016 North Star Away 1 - 3 Gregory
6 Mar 2016 MOTHER'S DAY
13 March 2016 Wilf Kroucher Away 1-2 Gregory
20 Mar 263 Albion Home 1-1 Perrot
27 Mar 2016 EASTER SUNDAY
3 Apr 2016 Wilf Kroucher home 3-4 Perrot 2, Williams
17 Apr 2015 Spectra Home Cancelled
8 May 2015 Wilf Kroucher 1 - 3 R Ellis
Season 16/17
5 MoM Holt
9 April 2017
16 Apr 2017 EASTER SUNDAY
23 April 2017
This season we are asking the opposition to nominate our Man of the Match
DATE OPPOSITION VENUE/RESULT SCORERS
18 Sept 2016 Dinton Casuals Away 3-3 Gregory 2, Casey MoM Gregory
25 Sept 2016 Old Malden Manor Away 2-4 Gregory 2 MoM Gregory
2 Oct 2016 Sutton High Away 1 - 3 Casey (pen) MoM Williams
9 Oct 2016 Witan Away 0 - 1 MoM Casey
16 Oct 2016 North Star Home 5 - 0 Gregory 3 , Steele MoM Gregory
Novosielski
23 Oct 2016 Old Harrodian Cavaliers Home 1 - 3 Novosielski MoM Williams
30 Oct 2016 Sutton Knights Away 0 - 3 MoM Williams
6 Nov 2016 Albion Away 1 - 5 Gregory MoM Williams
13 Nov 2016 Glendale Home 0 - 0 MoM Vearncombe
20 Nov 2016 Wilf Kroucher Away 1 - 3 James MoM Gregory
27 Nov 2016 Cheam Rangers Away 2 - 4 Perrot 2 MoM Perrot
4 Dec 2016 Spectra Away 1 - 3 Hughes MoM Casey
11 Dec 2016 North Star Away CANCELLED
18 Dec 2016
8 Jan 2017 Old Malden Manor Home 1 - 2 Coleman MoM Needham
15 Jan 2017 Spectra Home 0 - 6 MoM Casey
22 Jan 2017 Old Harrodian Cavaliers Away CANCELLED
29 Jan 2017 Dinton Casuals Home 2 - 10 Summersby,Levy MoM Steele
5 Feb 2017 Cheam Rangers Home 1 - 4 Gregory MoM Casey
12 Feb 2017 Sutton High Home 4 - 4 Gregory 2, Perrot, Dave ?
MoM Gregory
19 Feb 2017 Wilf Kroucher Home 2 - 1 Levy , Gregory MoM Williams
26 Feb 2017 North Star Away 1 - 3 Perrot MoM Casey
5 Mar 2017 Old Malden Manor Away 2 - 1 Perrot, Gregory MoM Perrot
12 March 2017
19 March 2017 Albion Home 2 - 3 Casey, Perrot (pen) MoM Casey
26 March 2017 MOTHER'S DAY
2 April Cheam Rangers Home 0 - 5 MoM Holt
FIXTURES SEASON 2017/18 NOTE VENUES MAY CHANGE - REFER TO WEEKLY E-MAILS
This season we are asking the opposition to nominate our Man of the Match
DATE OPPOSITION VENUE/RESULT SCORERS
Sept 17 2017 Dinton Away 1-4 Lourenco (mom Casey)
A solid first half against a very good team with us taking the lead but going in 1-1 at
half time. Carried on where we left off at the start of the second and had a gilt edged chance to go ahead via the penalty spot but their goalkeeper pulled off a miraculous save to deny us. We eventually went down to 3 late goals to make a very flattering scoreline for Dinton. Overall it was a brilliant performance by Ewell Vets from which we take a lot a confidence into our next game.
Sept 24 2017 Old Morden Manor Away 2-4 Coleman,Perrott (mom Coleman)
Again a hard fought game in which we competed all the way until the end when a couple of late goals gave our opponents a flattering scoreline. We were 1-1 and 2-2 creating more chances and seeing more of the ball but just could not make it count. Surely our first win is only a week away.
Oct 1 2017 Sutton Vets Away 2-4 C.Vearncombe,Casey (mom Casey)
We flew out of the traps to take a 1-0 lead with some good work from Lourenco and Perrott out on the left resulting in an easy tap in for Vearncombe, then fate conspired against us as without being under much pressure we conceded an unlucky own goal (del), an indirect free kick which touched no one on its way in and a worldy from 35 yards (the like of which that guy will never score again). Half time 1-3. We played well in the second half, piling on pressure and creating good chances. On another day we would have made a comeback but a very dubious penalty was given against us and 1-4 was too steep a mountain to climb.
Oct 8 2017 Witan Away 2-5 Casey, Gregory (mom James)
Again we went 1-0 up (30 yard screamer) and again the scoreline suggests we got spanked. We had chances and prolonged periods of pressure but could not make it count and got punished each time we made a mistake. On a more positive note Stevie G finally remembered where the goal is and Del was imperious at the back along side Jamesy but on the negative side Del's scoring streak has come to an end.
Oct 15 2017 North Star Home 0-4 (mom Casey)
The first goal was a mishit shot from the edge of the box, we didn't track the runner for the second, the ball bobbled through the entire defense for the third and I didn't see the forth. They were the only chances i remember them having. We on the other hand were causing problems all over pitch especially down our right in the first half with Gary H, Rob and Stevie G tearing them apart. Gary W went close with a nice volley (but if he had squared it to either Stevie G Rob Paul Dom or any of the other 7 players we had waiting in the box we would have scored but yeh great shot Gazza). Second half was again full of good chances for us but we could not buy a goal. Even though the results haven't gone our way this season our performances have been pretty good, we have been better on the ball and far more creative with it so all we need is a bit of luck in front goal.
Oct 22 2017 O H C Home 3-3 Perrott (2) Gregory (mom Casey)
A stunning comeback from 2-0 down at half time to go 3-2 up with 10 mins to go, only to be robbed by a dubious penalty decision given by a ref who had the opposition logo on his jacket. In truth we did not deserve to be losing anyway as we played far better football throughout the game and if we took just a fraction of our chances the penalty would not have saved them. Inclusive of Gary W's red mist/tsunami moment which was clearly a premeditated attempt to give everyone a small breather in this fast paced end to end classic, there were too many great performances to single anyone out, but what I will say is that if their manager had been privy to Wayne's rousing half time team talk or noticed the impact Steve Perrott made in the second half on top of his goals, the man of the match award may have gone elsewhere. Well done boys lets take this into next week and get a win.
Oct 29 2017 Sutton Knights Home 7-2 Gregory(4) Wiliams(2) Casey
(mom Gregory)
A managerial masterstroke from Wayne not to turn up for this one (maybe Wenger should take note), 4 classy finishes by Stevie G and a header from Gary W (that was so downward it grazed his nose and chin on its way in) gave us a 5-2 lead at half time. We added another 2 without answer in the second half courtesy of another one of Casey's 30 yard screamers and a wonderfully disguised cross/shot from Gary W that left the keeper in no man's land as it sailed into the net. We have been playing good football this season and this game was a demonstration of what can happen when take our chances and cut down the mistakes at the back. Also Darren was excellent this week as he commanded the box and pulled off 2 great saves at points when a goal for them could have made things less comfortable for us. Looking forward to a slightly tougher next game against Albion.
Nov 5 2017 Albion Away 2-6 Gregory (2) (mom Vearncombe)
The first half was a battle against the sun and a very dodgy ref who reacted to who shouted the loudest, which was mainly them. Our first goal came via a perfectly weighted defence splitting pass by Wayne into Stevie G who put it away like a striker full of confidence. He also slotted away our penalty. In the second half we still had the ref to deal with but not the sun which went in so unfortunately our opposition didn't have to deal with it either. So with conditions the same for both teams the game became more even and the half time score became the full time score.
Nov 12 2017 Glendale Away 3-7 Williams Gregory (pen) Ellis (mom) Mumford
We were 5-0 down within the first 30 mins as they just seemed to cut through our defence at will. We got one back before half time thanks to a cross that was whipped in with laser guided accuracy using Gary W's good knee to deflect the ball into the back of the net before he knew anything about it, therefore leaving nothing to chance. The second half was a bit better with Stevie G getting another from the spot and Richie trying a new shooting tactic of aiming for the goal as opposed to trying to wear out the opposition goal keeper by giving him long and arduous journeys retrieving the ball from other close by fields. Overall this was a poor performance by us and hopefully we can put it behind us this weekend against Wilf Croucher with a win.
Nov 19 2017 Wilf Croucher Away 1-3 Casey (mom Casey)
A better performance this week and overall we were a bit unlucky, their first goal was route one and their second was an own goal (Pete unchallenged leaped like a salmon to head the ball clear but unfortunately all it cleared was Darren on its way into our goal) to go in 2-0 down at half time. The second half was all about the chances we missed and another gift of a goal to give them a third. After that we mounted a bit of a comeback and scored with a cute lob disguised as a cross from the tightest of angles and we had the ball in the net again only for it to be ruled marginally offside. A special thanks goes to Gary W for his commitment turning up and running the line while injured but showed worrying positional sense yet again as halfway through the second half it was noticed that he was doing it from the wrong side of the pitch.
Nov 26 2017 Cheam Rangers Away 2-4 Coleman, OG, (mom Nienaltowskii)
2-0 down at half time and could have been closer as we missed a penalty to go 1-0 up! (Stevie G), but the only difference between us and them was their number 7 who is their best player by a mile and scored all four of their goals. On the whole we played well and showed plenty of spirit as we got it back to 2-2, Steve Perrott putting in the crosses in for both the goals. Del met one with a bullet header and their defender met the other ( sorry steve but this was too much of an own goal for even the most generous dubious goals panel to credit you with it). Now on another day Perrott probably would have at least been awarded mom for his assists and all round contribution but he was out done by Adam saving not one but two penalties and neither of them were bad penalties, just 2 awesome saves ( cant remember the last time a saw some knob head miss 2 penalties in the same game - oh yeh it was me). Gary W was not about this week so no brawls, flukey goals or poor linesmanship to report on.
Dec 3 2017 Spectra Away 1-6 Gregory (mom Casey)
We frustrated them a bit for the first 15 mins but other than that we were never in it. It was 2-0 at half time which was testament to how hard we worked to keep them at bay, but as the second half went on the scoreline became more reflective of their dominance. Perrott's cultured left foot found Stevie G's equally as cultured left head for our goal and that was probably the only chance we created. Oh other than the penalty we missed (Perrott). Didn't see much of Gary W this week ( we were supposed to be in mid field together) but Wayne told me that he began the game with his knee strap off but started the second half with a strap on, which probably explains why I kept my distance.
Dec 10 2017 North Star Away Match Cancelled (mom Gary W)
Dec 17 2017 No Game
Dec 24 2017 Xmas Eve
Dec 31 2017 New Years Eve
Jan 7 2018 Old Morden Manor Home 6-1 Gregory 4, Mumford 2 (mom Mumford)
Someone will correct me if I am wrong about this but in the short space of time I have been at Ewell Vets I had come to the conclusion that Old Morden Manor are one of the teams we would like to beat more than most and some may even say our main rivals. So it was a big surprise to me that when they turned up with only eight players one of our players actually put his hand up to eagerly volunteer to play for them (Gary "Judas" Howells) while a couple of others only reluctantly obliged. Suffice it to say "Judas" did not get his wish and ended up on the winning team so maybe a lesson was learnt. On the other hand Gary W didn't put is hand up or seem to reluctantly oblige but by the end of the game it was still impossible to tell which team he had opted to play for. On a positive note we bossed the game all over the pitch with four classy goals from loyal servant Stevie G, the pick of the bunch was a long mazey run in which he beat all of their defenders at least twice and eventually got one of them to put the ball in the net for him. Another of our loyal servants Sean Mumford also pitched in with a couple of decent finishes. Unbeaten in 2018!
Jan 14 2018 Spectra Home 2-2 Gregory, Casey (mom Casey)
Spectra went 2-0 up inside the first 15 mins and baring in mind they've thumped us the last few times we have played them we could have folded, but not this time! We are now back at fortress Nescot and we never roll over in front of our home fan. We got ourselves back into the game straight away, creating a string of good chances, namely a scramble from a corner (god knows how we didn't score) and Dom hitting the post but we were still 2-0 down at halftime. After some inspirational words from our management during the break we went out and got ourselves level! Our first was almost Man City like except I am not sure that either Gary W's pass or my dummy were fully intentional but Stevie G finished well and I am certain the move looked flawless from the touchline. Nothing accidental about the equaliser, just a nice flick on under pressure by Andy and a cool finish from me and it was game on. We had our chances and they had theirs but neither team could find a winner in what was probably one of the best battling displays we have put on for a long time. We had Wayne coaching from the sideline, Dave "Makelele" Summersby protecting the back four, Darren "De Gea" pulling off good saves, Del "Kompany" Coleman making a game saving tackle right at the death and everyone basically just sweating blood for the cause. The fact that towards the end the Spectra players were arguing with each other and the ref was evidence on how much we frustrated them in a truly gritty performance that we should all be proud of.
Jan 21 2018 O H C Away 4-6 Summersby, James (pen),Perrott(2)
(mom Steele)
The Pitch was a bog which did not help our usual slick passing game but it did help the oppositions crude long ball approach and by the time we worked that out we were 6-1 down. We were always in the game and if we had taken our early chances we may not have had such a mountain to climb when we eventually did get our game faces on. The only goal I saw was Dave's bullet header from my corner but I am reliably informed that Jamsey's pen was unstoppable, Perrott's goals were world class and Gary W wasn't involved in any of them.
Jan 28 2018 Dinton Home 3-3 Mumford, Gregory, Perrott (pen)
(mom Casey)
A new management team was brought in for this game with no transfer budget from the board and just was told to work with and get more out of the existing squad. And it worked!!
Richie played in 3 different positions and was faultless in each, Sean roughed them up in mid field and Stevie G chased everything. Bruce took charge in the centre of defence clearing up Gary W's mistakes as well helping him positionally. We went 1-0 up thanks to a sweet curler from the edge of the box by Sean but Dinton scored either side of half time to get them selves 2-1 up, we kept on fighting though and got our reward when goal machine Stevie G equalised. We went behind again thanks to another scrappy goal from Dinton but on the stroke of full time Stevie G was brutally hacked down in the box and Perrott calmly slotted home the penalty.
Feb 4 2018 Cheam Rangers Home 0-1 (mom Casey)
Inexplicably the board reinstated the previous management team but in fairness the performance was unaffected. Darren and Chris were brilliant in goal and Gary W is clearly benefiting from the guidance of Bruce in the centre of defence, Dave was again solid in the midfield holding role, but as we all know they have a player who is a danger whenever he gets the ball and for the most part we kept him quiet but inevitably he got his goal. This again was an incredible battling display from us as we were under pressure for most of the game in which everyone gave it their all for the full 90 mins and we deserved a draw. Was also good to see Wayne back on the pitch after a long injury lay off.
Feb 11 2018 Sutton Vets Home 1-3 Steele (mom Casey)
Baring in mind our recent performances against the some of the better teams we could have been forgiven for going into this match thinking that it was winnable. We started well, kept it tight, created a few chances but we got punished the first time we switched off at the back and not long after that we conceded softly from a free kick to go in 2-0 down at half time. We started the second half well and Rob got us back to 2-1 with a superb curling effort from the left wing that the goalie had no chance of stopping (it was a bit similar to one of Gary W's goals earlier in the season but Rob meant his). Unfortunately we did not build on that piece of brilliance and they brought on an underage player who scored and put the game beyond us. Overall though it was another good solid display by us and we deserved more.
Feb 18 2018 Wilf Croucher Home 7-2 Casey(3) Gregory(3) Perrott(1)
(mom Casey)
If anyone had any concerns that Wayne's unavailability this week might in some way have been an issue for us they won't have have any such concerns next time he his not about. We have played so well this year with some hard fought draws and narrow defeats it was only a matter of time before we handed out another spanking. A first half hat trick by Casey was only good enough for a slender 3-2 lead at half time, but with the introduction of Perrott and a smart tactical reshuffle by Dave to put Stevie G out on the wing we were out of sight in no time courtesy of a Stevie G hat trick and smart finish from just outside the box by Perrott. On a different note I thought Gary H had learned his lesson the last time he begged to play for the opposition but obviously not (aggregate score when Gary H has defected is 13-3 to us). Nothing to say about Gary W this week as even he draws the line when it comes to treason.
Feb 25 2018 North Star Away 0-4 (mom Hughes)
Unfortunately our match reporter was off sick this week so I've had to do a post match interview with Ewell Vets FC manager Dave summersby, these were his words " Errrrm well Steve P tried a new trick from kick off that went wrong, errrrm Gary H was like bambi on ice and let them score the first, 3-0 down at half time, errrrm then they scored again! We had chances in the game but never took them, Stevie G x3, Steve P x2 and Dom x2. Steve P slipped over taking a corner which was quite amusing, errrrm Wayne played the whole game but looked like he had been the sangria for a week and Gary W took the kit the bottles and the balls" Inciteful stuff there from our leader and just to be clear Gary W did wait until the end of the game this time before taking the kit, ladders etc.
Mar 4 2018 Old Morden Manor Away Match Cancelled (mom Gary W)
Mar 11 2018 Mother's Day
Mar 18 2018 Albion Home Match Cancelled (mom Gary W)
Mar 25 2018 Cheam Rangers Away 0-6 (mom Nowosielski)
First game for 3 weeks and it showed. Tony ran his socks off and deserved his man off the match, Wayne did a good job man marking their best player limiting him to just one goal which is pretty impressive considering he usually fills his boots against us. Unfortunately they have had new player up front and he scored all the other goals instead and as for the rest of us I think it was a game best forgotten other than Gary W who was certain he played well.
Apr 1 2018 Easter Sunday
Apr 8 2018 Cheam Rangers Home 1-9 Casey (mom Casey)
Another Week off and another spanking at the hands of Cheam Rangers (we will not be playing them 4 times again next season). Personally I don't think is was as bad a performance as the previous week, they are just a very good team with some very young (relatively Speaking) and quick forward players and they used their strengths with ruthless efficiency. The main positive we can take from this game is as a team we kept on going where a lot of other teams would have not, Cheam Rangers said this themselves and it is testament too our team spirit which is a credit to everyone involved, even Gary W. I would like to add that even tho they scored 9 Darren was brilliant in goal pulling off some very good saves, never gave up and without his performance the score would have easily got into double figures.
Apr 15 2018 Knollmead Vets Home 1-4 Casey (mom Casey)
Thankfully it was a bit more of contest this week. We went 2-0 down early but when we found our feet we started to put them under a bit of pressure and it almost paid off as we given a chance to pull it back to 2-1 via the penalty spot (a vicious push on Steve Perrott that was so violent it had like a delayed reaction effect as his legs gave way from underneath him 10 or 15 seconds after the push was administered, creating him a whole world of pain). Mark "Benteke" James stood on the penalty spot demanded to take it and missed. In fairness it was a decent penalty and a good save by the goalie. We created more chances in the second half, the pick of them was a 25 yard strike from Stevie G which shaved the bar but as we were pushing they exploited gaps at the back and scored 2 more goals, so our goal (as good as it was) was no more than a consolation. There were solid performances all over the pitch, namely Andy H who set up our goal, John B who put his head where it hurts and got hurt showing the same sort of bravery Perrott did in winning the penalty and Gary W doing his usual in match entertainment arguing his way all the way thru an uncontested drop ball.
Apr 22 2018 Burlington Vets Away 1-2 Gregory (Mom Gary W)
A good game in which we had enough chances to win, our passing was crisp and accurate for the most part and both Adam and Darren were solid in goal. Jamesy was immense in the centre of mid field winning every header and distributing the ball well and if i had not chosen a blind man to award mom he would surely have got it (not taking anything away from Gary W who actually did play ok), Wayne as ever was a bundle of energy and Stevie G was there to take his total goal haul for the season to 20. Other notable performances were Gary H who had a tough job to do on their winger but coped admirably and Del who in the absence of Bruce guided Gary W well and was probably the main contributor to his mom award. Roll on next week, its almost over.
Apr 29 2018 Molesey Vets Away 3-8 Ringers (2) Andy H (1)
(mom Needham)
There wasn't a reporter at the game this week but I heard that we were 2-1 up at one point and only 4-2 down at half time so the scoreline doesn't seem to tell the whole story. Looks like either Wayne played well or the same guy as last week chose MOM. Apparently Adam gave away a penalty and celebrated like he had saved it as the ball went flying past the goal.