September 15 2007

Good afternoon everyone and welcome to Catons Lane for today’s eagerly awaited FA Cup tie against Maldon town.  In the previous rounds we have been paired with teams who play in higher divisions than ourselves and have produced two quality performances.  After thumping Wotton Blue Cross 6-1 in  a replay, and defeating Stanway Rovers 3-0 away from home in a game we completely controlled, we shall be taking a lot of confidence into the Maldon game.

Despite facing two tough opponents so far Maldon Town promise to be  a lot sterner test but it gives us the opportunity once again to pit our wits against a team operating in a higher division than ourselves.

In the competition last season we defeated Cogenhoe united 6-2 and Harlow Town 1-0 in the last competitive fixture to be played at the Sports Centre Ground, before we were eliminated in the cruellest possible way against Htchin Town.  After a thrilling nights event and a game in which we should have won, we were defeated in a dramatic penalty shoot out.  After having played and competed well against teams in higher divisions previously, we shall be looking to add Maldon's name to our already impressive list of teams we have defeated in the Cups.

Last Saturday proved to be a very frustrating afternoon as we were held to a 0-0 draw with high fliers Debenham LC.  Throughout the game we seemed to control the long periods of possession and created numerous chances and openings but the break through eluded us.  Debenham were obviously the happier of the two teams after the game but we must give them credit.  They set their stall out early and were well organised even if they did seem happy to play for the draw.

Fielding two of the Divisions top scorers I felt our defence kept them extremely quiet and they offered little if any real threat to us.  A series of good saves and the crossbar prevented us from obtaining the three points.

Tuesday evening saw us lose our first competitive match against Ely City.  We got off to the worst possible start conceding inside the first minute and later on in the half to trail 2-0 at the interval.  losing a game at any time is always disappointing but it is the manner in which you lose and the way you react which is important.  Pulling no  punches, quite simply we were not good enough in the first half of the game.

Following a stern talking to and a regroup we reappeared for the second half with renewed vigour and took the game to our hosts.  After reducing the deficit we spurned a few good chances which would have seen us snatch a point, but in reflection the result was probably fair and we have only ourselves to blame for a poor first half showing.  Each and every player there on the night will be looking to improve this afternoon.

It is always a bonus to have a good cup run so lets hope to continue our impressive displays in the competition so far.

 Thank you, for your continued support.

 All the best. Tommy

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18 August 2007

11 August 2007

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