Boodle and Dunthorne ISFA Cup: Round Two

Date: Thursday 8 October 2009

After the 4 - 0 away win to Dover College in the first round, and a series of excellent results in our inter-school fixtues so far this term, the SES 1st XI went into today's match against the Licensed Victuallers' School from Ascot with some real expectation of progress one stage further on the road to Wembley. Sadly it was not to be as the LV boys snatched a 6 - 3 win in what was a most exciting, and, for the home fans, frustrating afternoon.

Up to today, the SES defence had proved solid and dependable under all sorts of pressure, but today, the inability to clear the ball out of our own penalty area, and on occasions six-yard box - from set pieces - cost us dear. We let in one good goal - a cracking right foot drive into the far corner of the net, but the others came from situations which would normally be bread and butter to goalie Marsh, and his back four.

In many respects we were the better side, but it is impossible to argue with the scoreline. We played catch-up all afternoon after they scored two in a crazy first half minute - the first when the referee ignored an offside flag in the build-up, the second from a pinball scene in the six yard box. Attwood pulled one back after Connor got to the byline and pulled back a decent cross, but his miss on the stroke of half time left us 1 - 3 down at the interval.

A second Attwood strike pulled us back to 2 - 3 early in the second period, but the LV boys pulled away to 3 - 5 despite Attwood completing his hat-trick. Then came a decisive moment: Substitute Keliris struck the bar with a screaming volley, and Sekiguchi dived to head in the rebound. 4 - 5 we thought, and a game back on. Sadly, the linesman had flagged for an incomprehensible offside, the goal was disallowed, and almost immediately a breakaway, a missed clearance, and a tap-in left it at 3 - 6 at the final whistle.

This was a match gone begging - possibly - with unanticipated defensive frailty in the face of some pacily aggressive strikers costing us goals at key moments. All credit though to Attwood, who caused real problems all afternoon, to the midfield workers who kept winning and using the ball, and to Robbie Vile who did his best to shore up his defence, and made half a mistake in eighty minutes!

So no cup glory in 2009 - but a chance to play good football again against our Antipodean visitors from St Paul's School, Manly, on Saturday afternoon. And many thanks to those families who will be entertaining our Australian friends over the weekend, as they start and continue their tour of the UK.