Cardiff and UWIC B won a scappy and ill disciplined match against Gloucester City 2:0  to go forth in the league and notch up the third win in a row.  

 

The match started well with both sides creating some half chances, but a combination of poor final balls and some suspect decisions conspired to end the half at 0:0.

 

 

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)!!! 

On a serious note, the next few weeks’ games are a step up in quality, starting with the away trip to Pembroke.  Let’s hope we can find the devastating form of two weeks ago against Cardiff Uni for what will be a much sterner test, though in some respects it’s nice to win a game 5-1 and walk off the pitch disappointed!

 

 

After three wins in the first three games, the fifths had their first set back of the season against a good Medics side. After a late start, due to the Medics's goalkeeper's car breaking down, the home side had the better of the early exchanges and took the lead midway through the first half with a flick from close range. Hard work and tenacious defending from the fifths kept them in the game at half time, and in the second half they start to craft some chances of their own, eventually equalising through Chris Beard at a penalty corner. However, Cardiff & UWIC's resistence wilted in the final ten minutes and two penalty corners converted by the Medics's best player (and comfortably the best player on the pitch), gave the hosts the win.