We arrived looking to build on last week’s excellent win, although we were missing two players through injury yesterday in Henry (ribs) and Jett (foot). It was great, however, to welcome Emmanuel back to the squad after some time away due to holidays and injury.

Before kick-off, the boys were reminded of our non-negotiables:
1. Be positive
2. Give maximum effort
3. Don’t dwell on mistakes
4. Play as a team, not as individuals
5. Listen and learn
6. Play like we train, train like we play

And what a job they did delivering on every one of them.

The opening exchanges were a little nervy, with Underwood perhaps having the edge as they attacked downhill. Jesse had to stay alert early on, producing two excellent saves after long balls found their way through our defence. Gradually, though, we worked our way into the game with real determination, battling against both the slope and the wind and beginning to create chances of our own.

Underwood remained dangerous, especially from set pieces, coming very close during a goalmouth scramble from a corner. But the boys kept their composure and discipline.

At half-time, after holding firm and not conceding despite the difficult conditions, spirits were high and there was real belief that we could go on and win the game.

With the slope now in our favour and the wind at our backs, we pushed hard in the second half. Isaac, Joey, and Emmanuel all came close to breaking the deadlock, while Jesse had little to do other than sweep up the occasional long ball. The pressure continued to build as Sam and Noah tried their luck from long range, and Ernie produced a brilliant run, wriggling past three players into the box before seeing his shot blocked.

Despite dominating much of the second half, we just couldn’t find the breakthrough and the game ended goalless.

The effort from the boys today was immense. With a threadbare squad, they pulled together and produced a performance to be incredibly proud of, meeting all six of our non-negotiables for the second week in a row.

Manager’s Man of the Match: Sam – a disciplined and selfless performance that helped keep us solid at the back while allowing others to push forward in attack.

Parents’ Man of the Match: Oz – excellent defending combined with calm, composed passing to start attacks from the back.

Both selections were tough this week, with so many players putting in 9/10 performances.