Colchester Athletic v Stanway Rovers Blues

Prior to kick-off, expectations were high that the Athletic would step up their game and meet Stanway Rovers Blues head on.  Last season’s results, and the first few games of this season, clearly show that Rovers Blues are a good team – there’s no denying that – but Athletic have the ability to beat anyone on the day, and we hoped this was one of those days.

It was October, but the ground was as hard as iron and as dry as a Scotsman’s bath towel.  Clouds of dust puffed up from the ground as the ball hit the rock hard surface.  Choice of footwear was going to be crucial.  Studs?  Blades?  Moulded soles?  Slippers might have been best.

The game kicked off in the warm sun.  The two sides tried to play football, but the ball was spending most of the time in the air and periods of head tennis ensued.  After 10 minutes, the game settled down and Rovers won a corner on the left.  It came to nothing, but the pressure was maintained on the Athletic defence as Rovers pushed down the flanks: Adam and Brad were being tested constantly. 

After 15 minutes, the resistance broke.  Following an attack down the left, a low cross came into the penalty area.  A few bobbles on the hard ground caused Jordan to fumble the ball and it rolled straight to a yellow shirt, who shot high into the empty net. 

Despite their efforts, the Athletic were struggling to break through the well-organised Rovers defence and midfield.   On 20 minutes, repeated forays into the Rovers half were rewarded with a free-kick on the left.  James Axcell floated the ball into the penalty area, but it was cleared.  A minute later, Athletic won a corner on the left.  Craig and Rhys got into the danger zone as the ball came into the box and under this pressure the ball bounced off a Rovers player into the net.  1-1.

The advantage now swung back to Rovers and most of the rest of the first half was played in Colchester’s half of the pitch.  Jordan thwarted one chance by smartly diving to his left to push away a powerful shot from outside the box, and the rest of the team stepped back to help the defence keep out the marauding yellow shirts. 

Half-time beckoned and the Athletic supporters were willing the half-time whistle to sound.  Again from the left, a Rovers player found himself in some space and lobbed a high ball into the box.  Whether it was a cross or a shot was irrelevant as it sailed over Jordan and into the goal.  2-1, and only enough time for the game to restart before the ref blew for half-time.

It was an entertaining half.  The boys in red and black were putting in a lot of effort, and matching Rovers in most departments.  Perhaps with a little more luck, and the wind at their backs in the second half, they could turn around the scoreline.

The first 10 minutes of the second half were tight, with each team struggling to string together some passes and control the game.  James A and James R both had chances – James R’s attempt being a direct free kick – and Ben and Craig were trying to link together on the right wing, but the whole game was more reminiscent of pinball machine than a football match.  The only question: could the Athletic’s flippers smash the ball past the bumpers and posts to hit the jackpot….

Erm, no they couldn’t…

On 47 minutes, the referee thought that the Athletic’s defensive tactics had crossed the line of what was allowed and blew for a penalty after some pushing in the penalty area.  Apparently, it was a fair decision, but disappointing all the same given the amount of things that referees usually turn a blind eye to.  The penalty was smashed into the net, giving Jordan no chance and now at 3-1 it had got a whole lot harder for the Athletic. 

Two minutes later, Craig and Jordan collided as they tried to close down a Rovers attack.  Jordan was obviously hurt, and after racing onto the pitch with the magic sponge, Shane waived to the touchline for Sam to come on to replace Jordan. 

Unfortunately, the first touch that Sam had of the ball was to pick it out of the net.  After winning the ball just inside the Athletic half, a Rovers forward burst through the Athletic defence and shot high over Sam as he rushed out to narrow the angle.  The scoreboard said 4-1, but that was somewhat unfair on the Athletic.

The last 10 minutes continued at the same frantic pace as the rest of the match.  Neither side could get a grip of the game to create some sustained pressure and so relied on occasional breaks towards the goal to try to score.  The Athletic’s best effort came from Joe, who collected the ball from a throw-in and curled in a shot towards the Rovers’ goal.  It dropped agonisingly wide, but the whistle blew immediately afterwards to end the game.

This was a tight game, far tighter than the scoreline suggested, and the Athletic almost did enough in all areas of the pitch to hold Rovers.  A few errors or unlucky bounces gave Rovers the goals to keep ahead of the Athletic, but the lads never gave up, even at 4-1 down. 

Despite winning just one of the first three matches this season, the performances and attitude have been good.  The wins will come if that continues.

MOM was awarded to Adam and Rhys