Bow Badgers 1 Wojak Sunday 2

Post date: Sep 10, 2013 1:49:0 PM

The Bow Badgers kicked off the 2013/2014 season on a bright September morning at Victoria Park. Their opponents were Wojak Sunday, a well established outfit that finished 4^th in the league last year and have their sights set on automatic qualification for the Champions League this year. The only thing standing between the Badgers and 3 points were 90 minutes of football, and the drunk that had fallen asleep on the pitch. After the unfortunate chap was carried under a tree to sleep off the rest of his night the game could kick off.

It was a new look Badgers side with gaffer Jay having been busy in the transfer market bringing in Byron, Tim and Gary and securing the return of a reinvigorated Simon (ten minutes late) after his very public come and get me plea to rival clubs in the summer.

The first half began with the Badgers absorbing a great deal of pressure as Wojak made better use of the ball and stretched the new look Badgers midfield. It looked for all the world that Bow may start the season on a deflating note as Wojak continued to pile on the pressure. Crucially however, they failed to take advantage of the early possession and the black and white’s defence held firm. After 15 minutes the momentum began to shift and it was Bow creating the chances and dominating the possession. Some neat play through midfield from Nate, Byron and Gary saw the Badgers put pressure on a shaky looking Wojak back 4 and the fans (2) that had paid the entry fee began to believe that Bow could get something from the game. Highlights came when Gary worked himself some space and tested the keeper with a sweet curling strike that was well saved and Cam hit the post with a towering header from a corner.

Such was the quality of play displayed by Bow that it seemed inevitable that they would open the scoring with Wojak having to satisfy themselves with an occasional counter attack. After half an hour one such counter attack saw a corner controversially given despite the ball clearly hitting the leg of a Wojak player last after good work from the fullback Liam. The resulting corner saw confusion in the box as the ball made its way to the far corner via 2 deflections. The grateful Wojak midfielder stuck out a hopeful leg and saw the ball nestle into the back of the net. 1-0 Wojak.

The Badgers were not willing to go down without a fight, and it was only a few minutes later when makeshift right-winger Adam pounced on a loose ball in the box and found the foot of Nate who flicked the ball neatly over his marker. Unable to legally halt the progress of the Badgers forward the defender stretched out an arm and a penalty for handball was rightly awarded. Wojak tried every trick in the book to put off the designated taker, Gavin, including several unnecessary visits to the penalty spot by their keeper. It was all to no avail as Gav sent the keeper the wrong way and calmly slotted the penalty away to make it a deserved 1-1 for Bow.

Disaster struck only moments after the restart as an innocuous looking floated pass towards the goal found its way into the net after rookie keeper Jay misread the trajectory of the bouncing ball. At halftime the score was 2-1.

The second half saw an excellent display from a spirited Badgers side with the back four marshaling the Wojak forwards well and Jay making up for his earlier error with a series of excellent saves. Simon and Cam organised the line well and Wojak were restricted to half chances. One change was made after 15 minutes with Oli coming off his sickbed to enter the game for Liam who had put in an excellent shift at fullback. Adam returned to his more natural right back and Oli was deployed on the right wing. Chances came from all areas of the pitch and good work down the flanks from Keith and Tim as well as Oli on the other side created space for the attacking players to operate in. As the game entered the last 15 minutes it was the Badgers that looked the most likely to score and take a deserved point from the tie. Wojak dropped off markedly and were struggling to keep tight to a more mobile Bow midfield. Ultimately, whilst the Badgers did well to create space and opportunity, tired legs meant that the side was unable to make the most of the openings.

The game ended with the Bow Badgers suffering a 2-1 reverse although they arguably did enough to make a draw a reasonable result. Despite dropping the points the performance was one that the team should draw encouragement from. They performed well and despite fatigue (not to mention Wojak having the luxury of 3 subs) it was Bow that finished the game stronger, demonstrating the resolve of the side. Special mention should be made of the 3 new signings who each put in a fantastic performance covering several kilometres apiece over the 90 minutes.

Keep on Badgering, the next game is only a week away.