The views expressed on this website are not those of the Northants Combination

After the disappearance of the posts at our fortress woods end we had to be moved to west glebe, lets hope that gets sorted out sooner rather than later. Clipston where the visitors and they would be looking to get there first points and goal against us after there defeat last week. Rooney returned from his international exploits to take back his number 1 spot, Jack was suffering a hamstring injury and was replaced by young doco who was surprisingly let loose up front with Gibby. We started very confidently looking for the spaces down the channels early on, I had a decent penalty shout after I touched the ball away from the left back before he caught my heal and brought me down but the whistler waved play on. Scott Mcblain was ambitious with a 30 yard pile driver that almost smashed the windows on the pavilion but hey you cant blame a guy for trying, just don’t do it again. Docs was like a man possessed and was having his best game for ages as he set about impressing the boss and showing the faithful what he can do, he was stalking and chasing down defenders and forcing them to make mistakes. The fisher took the lead around the 25minute when good play from Steve Sludden and Oags played Gibby in, his first effort looked to have hit the defenders back as It dropped down at his feet and gib lashed it home to put the good guys 1-0 up. We started carving them open and where beginning to step up a gear or so. We showed how quick we can catch teams on the counter attack, The Clipston winger sent in a ball to our back post as I stepped out and cut it out and sent the ball up the right wing to Gibby, he squared the ball to Oags in the middle of the park, the scholes look alike sent a perfectly weighted through ball between the two centre halves for doco to scamper on to he rounded the keeper and slotted the ball home from acute angle. We didn’t want the half to end as we threatened the Clipston goal tender again as Scott Davanagh let loose with a screwdriver of a shot. The half ended 2-0 to us.

Second half

Adie was forced to make a change and replace the injured piece with the younger Mcblain. Somehow we just didn’t get going through out this half as Clipston enjoyed a lot more possession but we where water tight and impregnable at the back as Scrivs and co soaked everything up. Even when we are not playing well we still get chances, I had a header cleared of the line from a corner and Gibby and docs both went close again. We did make it 3-0 with 15 minutes left after clever play and trickery from the superb docs saw his first time pass to gib deflected back to him, he then ran wide of the box and squared a nice ball to the back post for Oags to slide home number 3. To their credit Clipston never gave up and continued to pump balls into the box for a consolation, however, only to find a brutally efficient and dominant Rooney catching everything that came his way. It was a brilliant first half and as for the second half well we where on top all the time and controlled the game. Another clean sheet and more importantly another 3 points also not one bad performance again.

Ratings

Didn’t have much to do but his talk and catching was brilliant.

Excellent again and could have got motm if it wasn’t for doco.

In great form and his simple passing was a joy to watch. Even got forward to lash an effort horrendously wide

Another good performance but rarely in the game.

Up and down and had a hand in the second goal.

Bossed the middle of the park.

Doing a great job in the holding role to allow

The other two more freedom.

Super ball for docs goal and his passing was spot on all game, even chipped in with a goal

Only lasted the first half before being replaced with injury, Showed willingness to get up and down.

Great performance from start to finish and took his goal really well, There’s a real head ache for the manager

Next week

Another goal, another dollar and another day at the office. Full of energy, before being shot in the box

Good half and staked his claim for a place in the team shows our depth in the squad.

Steve Melvin and Chad 2

Not enough time to get into it.

and from tuesday....

Gretton 22/08/06

Fisher went in to the gretton game full of confidence after the 3 - 0 score line in blisworth country (apparently it doesn’t matter when blisworth get beat coz there only friendly‘s, I nearly fell of my chair when I heard that one.) This was our 2^nd away game on the trot and we may as well get used to it after Paul Daniels stole the goal posts from our beloved woods end, THAT’S MAGIC (is it heck I smell a Grampian rat). There was one change to the team that started the blisworth game, as Rooney was away with the unite Arab emirates squad for international duties and was replaced by Milne. The game started nervously as we sized each other up. We took the lead when I chased a seemingly lost cause that the defender tried to see out but I managed to get across him and square the ball back to Gibby, he shaped him self up and smashed his shot beyond the keeper and made it 1-0. Gretton where shaken and obviously lost there shape in the middle as Scott Davanagh completed a 5 minute salvo, he collected a ball from piece and cut in side and sent a rasping 35 yard shot into the bottom right hand corner for his third in two games. Gibby netted his second of the game with a clinical finish inside the box to make it 3-0 with 20 minutes of the first half to go. Gretton managed to regroup and put us under pressure and pulled one back. Then it just wouldn’t be the kingfisher if we didn’t make things hard for our self as a mix up between Milne and bash allowed Gretton to bring it back to 3-2 on the half time whistle. I am not even going to mention the ref because its just not worth it…………… BUT where do the league get these schleppers from, he quite obviously has never kicked a ball in his long and tired life. The second half was a lot better performance from us, as a seemingly harmless long ball over the gretton defence caused havoc as the defender didn’t hear his keepers call and headed the ball over him and Gibby raced onto it in true predator style to tap in his hatrick. We could have killed the game as our quality and fitness started to show, jack was guilty of missing a header from 6 yards out and he also managed to hit the post. I missed another header at the back post and the big man Scrivs could have had a couple of his own from corners. Adie made a couple of changes and we allowed them to pull another goal back with slack defending with a minute left. We will have to defend a lot better if we are to achieve our targets this year lads.

The views expressed on this website are not those of the Northants Combination.