I was always told that you should never start with an apology but I think in this instance I think it is rather apt as regrettably this match report is not being written by the usual author. Instead this is written by someone who is no where near the wordsmith that Samuel C Ball is but I’ll give it a go anyway.

Wanderers made the journey up to South London to face yet another team called Wanderers in the County Cup; having disposed of Waddon Wanderers in the first round we now faced Wallington Wanderers in round two and unfortunately we were turning up a man light due to injuries/birthdays and any other excuses that players could come up with (I will try and let that be the only ‘bitter manager’ part). We tried and tried to get a team of 11 together but it was to no avail, we were starting with 10, albeit a strong side which always seems to be the case with the current squad of Wanderers.
We were greeted by a thick fog which engulfed the Joseph Hood recreation grounds with doubts that the game may even be on. Surely for all the effort to get there we weren’t going to be turned away because it was a bit pea soup (this is a new phrase to me so feel free to correct me if it has not been used in the correct context)!

The team lined up with a new keeper, Wayne who was guarded by a back four of The Bear at right back, Jay and Ben Coughlan the partnership at centre back, the former having been dragged out of bed with a rather sore head following his birthday celebrations and the latter having had an hour of sleep due to working late/early and apparently suffering from blood clots caused by all the recent jet setting! The defence was completed by Jack who would play at left back. Tommo and Allen played a holding midfield role to try and secure the defence whilst Pernas, Yaya and Oli were charged with trying to cause as much havoc as possible if and when we managed to get the ball against our numerically advantaged opposition.

In truth we were the better team for the first 10 to 15 minutes keeping their attackers at bay and then keeping the ball nicely to give the defence a bit of a breather. Other than a horrific dive on the edge of the box by their rather annoying number 6 with pearly white teeth which conned the referee in to giving a free kick we were relatively untroubled, a few crosses being confidently collected by our new number one.

We then got our rewards for all of our hard work and effort when Tim ‘Cafu/The Bear’ Harrison charged down the right and won the ball from what seemed like a lost cause, the ball was put out for a throw by the Wallington defender and from the resulting throw the ball found its way to Oli who finished well from a tight angle. 1-0 to Wanderers and nothing more than we deserved.

We continued to press and created a few more chances most notably Oli being put through by Tommo, he closed in on the keeper and opted for the shot which agonisingly went wide, with Yaya bursting in to the box perhaps the better option.

Allen was doing a sterling job in front of the back four closing down and pressing the ball where he could with Tommo helping out the defence as much as possible. As the half drew to a close and legs tiring Wallington managed to fashion their only real chance of the half. The centre midfielder picked up the ball on the edge of the box, weaved through a few legs and got a powerful shot away with Wayne only able to get fingers to it but not enough to divert it away from goal. One a piece at half time and all still to play for.

The message at half time was a simple one, let’s take our time, get our energy back and have one more half like the previous 45 minutes. The effort could not be faulted from anyone but if we were to get anything out of the game we would need to make sure we stayed disciplined and made the most of any opportunities that came our way.

We walked out on to the pitch for the second half full of confidence in our ability with the defence proving stubborn and the front five doing their best to stay in the shape and trying to create as much as possible.

The second period started much the same as the first with Wanderers giving everything and able to get the ball forward but the numerical advantage was starting to show; Wallington clearly being told during the interval that they should remain patient and their goal quickly came. A cross was swung in to the box from the left and the Wallington player rising just above Jack headed the ball in to the goal. Again, not a lot of fault on our part, it was inevitable that they would create chances but we needed to show the same character we had shown the whole game.

Wallington were beginning to create a lot more chances and Wayne was called in to action when their midfielder was put through on goal but the stopper managed to get a solid hand to the ball which seemed destined for the bottom corner. A top, top save which drew congratulations from both sets of Wanderers! It wasn't long before the newest addition to the squad was in the thick of the action once more pushing away a fierce strike, another great save to keep us in it and yet more confidence from the rest of the team that we have (hopefully) found a real gem.

The rest of the game was a war of attrition from both sets of players, a few words were spoken in the heat of the battle but it was to be expected given how competitive the game was. Ben, Jay, Tim and Jack all worked tirelessly to thwart the attackers with Allen and Tommo trying their best to help them out. Pernas, Yaya and Oli were all exceptional in making sure they defended from the front but also caused problems for the Wallington defence who probably thought they were in for an easy game given we only had 10 men.

We pushed and pushed for the last 10 minutes trying to find an equaliser but it wasn't to be, with nothing to lose Jay pushed forward and forced a few corners but the full time whistle blew on what I will certainly remember as one of the proudest games I have had the privilege of managing.

It goes without saying that when you are a man short you will have to work harder than the opposition to get anything out of the game but I don’t think anyone really expected that performance from the ten that took to the fog ridden field. Really well played to all of you, it just goes to show what great players we have in our squad where a team of 10 can feel slightly aggrieved that they haven’t come off the pitch as victors.

Having said that it is not something I really want to make a habit out of, I’m sure we would much rather be able to win games with our effort and ability so lets make sure that was a one off for this season and that my job as manager is a tough one because of the selection headaches!

We are back to Holloway Hill and to the league next week against the Woodham Victoria who we played on the first weekend of the season, let’s see if we can match the result and the performance shown against them this time round.