Whitchurch High School, 10/11/2007. 
 

Whitchurch started brightly and had Cardiff on the back foot for the first 15 minutes.  Once Cardiff found their feet though, this match soon turned into a turkey shoot.  This was a game that could easily have ended up 10 – 0 but with Whitchurch happy to put 8 men behind the ball at all times and Cardiff being wasteful in front of goal, fingernails were well chewed by full time.  Although a challenge in it’s own right (and a great test of heart) games like this are a bit like playing Bolton under Big Sam; everyone behind the ball, camp in your own half and hope for a long ball goal on the break………..yawn!!! 

Trying to understand the umpires explanations for decisions that went against us was akin to reading Lewis Carroll’s Jabberwocky; complete nonsense and the badgering from Mark Shelton only left the Cardiff skipper even more discombobulated.  Still, today was a perfect example of perseverance and determination. 

As an aside, a bill will shortly be sent to Whitchurch HC for 11 new sticks as ours now seem to have massive chunks missing from them.  Not since the bygone days of the WWF’s infamous Canadian cerebral heavyweight Hacksaw Jim Duggan ™ have I seen sticks wielded with such careless abandon.  On a serious note though, you can have a brilliant youth set up but you need to teach kids the right and wrong way to do things (and reign in the arrogance too!!!).  Other less charitable clubs in the South Wales leagues may respond in a more inappropriate manner. 

I’m now off to chateau Riddle tonight with Shelt’s and the wives for a homemade Mexican.  I’m particularly looking forward to the salsa and guacamole.  Report to follow.

 

3rd November 2007 Sophia Gardens, 11.30am.

Cardiff continued their season of early morning starts on a sunny day at Sophia.  This was a game that encapsulated every aspect of the Cardiff team; lots of goals, great passing coupled with poor passing, thunderous tackling coupled on occasion with a certain keystone cop-esque quality about defending and the frustrating ability to only find fifth gear when necessary.

After dominating the first 10 minutes Cardiff found themselves surprisingly 1-0 down by a well worked break away goal by an experienced Whitchurch team.  There is an old adage that says the best thing to do after conceding a goal is to score one straight away which is what Cardiff did on two occasions to find themselves 2-2 (total time elapsed for both goals from pushback to whistle was about 40 seconds!!!!)

At times Cardiff played some fantastic hockey with seven goals being scored by Matt Millard (2), Sy Dovey (2), Steve Sparkes, Jamie Smith and Mark Shelton (with his weekly short corner; if you’re interested I’m sure he’ll tell you all about it in the bar).  Whitchurch did however score a consolation goal from a well taken drag flicked short corner deep in the second half.  Praise must go to Jamie Smith who had a very good game.

Not to be confused with the other Whitchurch team in the same division, Whitchurch E are a very experienced team with several players that like a bit of argy bargy.  Unfortunately for them, this Cardiff team is made of sterner stuff than most and with the likes of skipper Mark Shelton and defender Steve Way leading from the front (both too long in the tooth to be beaten at that type of game), a very physical encounter ensued culminating in Nick Jones and a Whitchurch player getting a yellow for a bit of rough and tumble.  Don’t get me wrong, this wasn’t as bad as Sharpe and the South Essex’s attack on the walled city of Badajoz in 1812, but if Danny Dyer (of International Football Factory fame) was watching, he’d have called a few of the challenges flying in as ‘very naughty’.

Never have I played in a game where there were so many umpires on the pitch, and the away side enthusiastically ‘voiced’ their opinions throughout the match.  Nearly 40 years ago Corporal Jones famously coined the phrase ‘they don’t like it up ‘em Mr Mainwaring’. 

 

Venue – Sophia Gardens 
 

In 1907 Mark Twain popularised a phrase which he attributed to Benjamin Disraeli; there are lies, damn lies and statistics.   

In today’s game Cardiff scored 5 goals and conceded 1.  The goal scorers were Jamie Smith (2), Matt Millard (2) and Sy Dovey.  Cardiff continue their 100% start to the league having scored more and conceded fewer than any other team.  Neil Evans played his first game of the season and Joe continued his quest to play every position in the team at least once this season (today’s efforts resulted in right back and centre mid). Those are the statistics, which make for good reading at face value. 

What they hide though is a very poor performance for the second week in a row.  Collectively today was a day where we started at 60% and possibly finished at 59%! Profligacy in front of goal, poor tackling, lacklustre passing and a general inability to make the right decision when on the ball made this a rather un-enjoyable game for everyone involved.  A win is a win though and I am beginning to wonder if Cardiff can only bring their A-game against the top teams.  Time will tell! 

Credit must go to Swansea for their youth development policy (a mixture of vets and youth), especially the young left back who had a particularly good game. 

On a lighter note, it was asked by senior members of the team if Neil Evans’ constant one kneed protestations at left back when tackling were the result of a pre match bribe from the lad who kept goosing him all game or a misplaced idea that he was about to be knighted!!!   

Credit must go to skipper Mark Shelton whose journey to the game started several time zones away in Canada and ended with a chauffer driven ride from Heathrow to sunny Sophia (though if he was hoping for sympathy with claims of jet lag, he was in for a rude shock; I mean does he realise that some of the team had to drive all the way from Splott, THROUGH TOWN in all that traffic at 11am on a Saturday morning!!!) 

Special mention though must go to Ian Riddle whose 30 yard exocet missile of a pass off the pitch, through several Swansea players with the nearest Cardiff player 25 yards away looking on in amazement, which led to the comment ‘that’s where you’re supposed to be’ (something only Howie Williams could have got away with)!!! 

 

Cardiff won 7-0 

Japan’s bombing of Pearl Harbour 07/12/1941. Germany’s defeat at Stalingrad 02/02/1943.  Sting’s return to WCW with corpse paint, long hair, black clothes and baseball bat to wage war on the NWO in late 1996.  All remembered as key turning points in history.   

Cardiff’s victory over Cardiff Uni is also worthy of a place in history alongside such illustrious company.  For it was here on this bright sunny day that the pieces of the jigsaw fell into place.  It was here that everyone raised their intensity to new levels sadly missing all season.  It was here that we were finally able to look each and every one of our team mates in the eye and say, ‘well done my friend, you played really well’.  Today’s performance had the passion, commitment, skill, intensity and camaraderie that had been missing all season.  

Cardiff started with a physicality and high tempo from the off that Cardiff Uni were unable to deal with all game.  Cardiff were comfortable on the ball, aggressive in the tackle and attacked and defended in numbers.  In fact at one point, the Cardiff Goalie asked if he could play as a kicking back because he was so bored!!  After good work down the right by Matt Millard, Jamie Smith found Owen Davies to score the first goal in what proved to be a very one sided affair.  Further goals from Matt Millard (a well taken trap and shot on the turn) and Sanjay Thurpin left Cardiff 3-0 up at half time having had a short corner saved off the line and numerous other chances saved by a busy Uni goalie. 

With returning skipper Mark Shelton (a somewhat surprising starter having missed last weeks game) calling for an even bigger effort in the second half, Cardiff pressed home their superiority with a goal by Matt Millard within the first five minutes.  A superb goal from the top of the D by Nick Jones was complimented by a well struck short corner from Mark Shelton. Sy Dovey finished the scoring with a tap in in the last few minutes. 

The game ended in controversial fashion, when Matt Millard was cruelly denied a perfectly good hat trick with a drag flick from a short corner in stoppage time.  Club newbie Ashley, umpiring at the other end, called it a slap from 50 yrds away whilst the umpire in the D was perfectly happy with it.  Probably having not played at this level, Ashley clearly doesn’t understand the term ‘home umpires’; something we must work on over the next few weeks. 

Special mention must go the Cardiff back four of Glenn Little, Ian Riddle, Steve Way (who in case you didn’t know played for Welsh Vets this summer) and Joe who were rock solid at the back.  If Cardiff can add another 5% to this performance and cut out 1 or 2 silly mistakes, there will be no team in the league that can live with us. 

 

Cardiff, with a number of players making their league debuts, began their second game of the season brightly.  Some swift passing movements resulted in a number of half chances which they failed to convert with the Penarth goalkeeper making some fine early saves. Penarth slowly got into the game and threatened the Cardiff goal with some break away attacks, but the Cardiff defence, in particular the sliding debutant Josh Rees and Simon Comfort in goal, held firm.  

Cardiff eventually took the lead with Glenn Little finding Steve Way on the top of the D who dispatched his shot into the bottom corner leaving the goalie with no chance. Cardiff continued to press home their superior passing game with Jamie Smith foraging well down the right hand side. Their second goal arrived courtesy of a great tackle by the impressive Joe Richards, feeding stand in Captain Matt Millard, who had taken up a great position, to fire home. The game opened up after this with both teams creating chances and Penarth closed the gap to one with a quick breakaway goal before half time. 

The second half began as the first had ended with Cardiff pressing forward in waves.  However, Simon Comfort had to make a made a number of important saves from breakaway chances as Penarth countered. The game turned when Owen Davies fired and unstoppable shot into the bottom corner to make it 3-1. Some slack defending after the restart then allowed Penarth to score from close range to take the score to 3-2.  Cardiff pulled further in front as evergreen marksman Steve Sparks converted a quickly taken free hit as he chases an incredible 1000 goals for the club in a career spanning over thirty years.  Cardiff finished the game with a well taken goal from Nick Jones with what was almost the last action of the game. 

After such an impressive all round team display, Cardiff’s absentee captain Mark Shelton will find it difficult to regain his position in the team.  The King is dead, long live the king!