The pitch was in pristine condition on a bright and breezy Autumn day for Pumas first home fixture in the Central Lancs League. The starting line up was Conor (1), Caleb (4), Callum (15), Sam (2), Matthew (5), Lewis (12), Ben (8), Robert (6), Dion (9), Jack (11) and Tyler (14). They lined up in a 4 - 2 - 4 formation with Ben and Lewis in mid-field.
After an untidy first few minutes Pumas settled down and started to string their passes together and Tyler looked especially dangerous with his strength, skill and speed down the left flank. He released a lovely pass for Dion who was narrowly offside. After 4 mins Dion ran onto another fine through ball but was injured in a clash with the defender as they both challenged for the ball which ricocheted to the keeper. Robert and Dion exchanged passes down the right wing before forcing a good save from the Brinscall keeper. A high clearance was headed cleverly by Ben to Jack who controlled the ball expertly before feeding a good pass to Dion whose shot skimmed over the bar.
It was all Pumas until suddenly Brinscall broke rapidly down the left in numbers forcing Conor to come quickly off his line and Caleb had to put the ball out for a corner to relieve the pressure with the defence spread-eagled. After 10 mins came the best move of the match so far with Pumas midfield and forwards combining well to put tremendous pressure on Brinscall but the ball came clear to set up another Brinscall counter attack which was brilliantly broken up by Sam who fed a perfectly weighted pass to Jack who in turn set up Dion for yet another goal attempt which went just over. A minute later Jack gained possession again to the left of midfield and played the most beautiful pass inside the defender to Dion threatening on the right flank. He cut inside and his shot gave the keeper no chance. 1 - 0.
Pumas were dominating possession with Brinscall restricted to the occasional breakaways which were comfortably dealt with by Caleb and Sam with Callum getting into the game more and more. Matthew was also prominently involved in supporting attacks down the left. Tyler and Dion both had near misses then Jack made a brilliant dribbling run through midfield before releasing a superb through ball which unfortunately caught three Pumas forwards off-side! After 17 mins Tyler found himself in possession on the edge of the penalty area with three defenders in attendance. He powerfully shrugged off several challenges before beating the keeper from short range. 2 - 0.
After 20 mins Eddie and Tom came on for Tyler and Robert. Another dangerous break from Brinscall was snuffed out by a perfectly timed tackle from Sam on the penalty spot. Top goal scorer Elliot was brought on for Dion who had been working very hard. Another good attack from Brinscall was broken up by Caleb who was looking in full control and distributing the ball intelligently. Matthew had a good run down the left and produced a great cross into the area which frustratingly was missed by everyone when a goal looked certain. Then it was Lewis' turn to impress with good work in midfield to set up a lovely passing move involving Matthew and Tom whose shot went narrowly wide of the target. Eddie also showed good dribbling skills down the right forcing a corner which Jack delivered into the danger area. Following another Brinscall break Pumas were awarded a free kick on the half way line which Sam took feeding Matthew on the left who delivered an inch perfect cross with Pumas forwards queuing up to score but the keeper managed to bravely claim the ball. The resultant clearance came straight to Jack whose quick-thinking shot forced a good save from the keeper. Half time 2 - 0.
On the resumption Pumas were quickly on the attack again with Caleb and Elliot linking well to force a corner which Jack again delivered perfectly into the danger zone. The high partial clearance came out to Sam pressing forward with great confidence but his header was well blocked. A scrappy period lasted for a few minutes with neither side able to string together a few passes but normal service was resumed when Jack broke down the left. Sam was also working hard and looked keen to get on the scoresheet with two shots in quick succession. After 8 mins the ref mysteriously stopped the game and called the managers and coaches onto the pitch for a meeting!! It turned out that someone was taking photographs and he was worried that his theatrical poses were going to appear on YouTube! (just kidding ref)
A better period for Brinscall then ensued with some good possession. First they had a free kick which was well intercepted by Callum then another free kick from 20 yards was headed out by Sam and then Callum was again involved in foiling another attack. The ball came loose in the Pumas penalty area and Conor had to be alert to kick it clear. Brinscall substituted their keeper which must be a rarity to have two keepers. He was quickly in action and was forced to make a good save. Dion was brought back on for Ben who had worked tirelessly in midfield linking the back four to the forwards with great presence. He received a well deserved ovation. Tyler and Lewis were combining cleverly down the left with two consecutive moves causing trouble for Brinscall defence. A counter attack by Brinscall broke down when one of their forwards was inches off-side when it looked like their best chance of the game. For all their dominance of possession Pumas were only winning by a narrow two goal margin but they set up another attack and overpowered Brinscall with their weight of numbers until the ball came to Elliot to tap home after 20 mins. 3 - 0.
A timely clearance by Sam gave Dion a long range chance which was well saved then Callum joined the attack causing Brinscall to concede a corner. Jack once again produced the goods and Eddie headed home accurately for what looked like a great goal. However the ref had seen some infringement which eluded everyone else and didn't allow the 'goal'. Lewis played skilfully before releasing Dion who forced another corner on the right again delivered accurately by Jack causing panic in the Brinscall defence before Elliot was again able to tap it home. 29 mins 4 - 0.
Another corner on the right was cleared out to Callum poaching on the edge of the penalty area and with his left foot he shot powerfully only to see his shot crash against the bar in what was virtually the last of the action.
Full time Ladybridge Pumas 4 Brinscall Village 0
Another very satisfying performance from Pumas with excellent contributions from every position. The defence is looking especially strong and in 120 mins of football so far they have restricted their opponents to just one meaningful attempt at goal!
After an untidy first few minutes Pumas settled down and started to string their passes together and Tyler looked especially dangerous with his strength, skill and speed down the left flank. He released a lovely pass for Dion who was narrowly offside. After 4 mins Dion ran onto another fine through ball but was injured in a clash with the defender as they both challenged for the ball which ricocheted to the keeper. Robert and Dion exchanged passes down the right wing before forcing a good save from the Brinscall keeper. A high clearance was headed cleverly by Ben to Jack who controlled the ball expertly before feeding a good pass to Dion whose shot skimmed over the bar.
It was all Pumas until suddenly Brinscall broke rapidly down the left in numbers forcing Conor to come quickly off his line and Caleb had to put the ball out for a corner to relieve the pressure with the defence spread-eagled. After 10 mins came the best move of the match so far with Pumas midfield and forwards combining well to put tremendous pressure on Brinscall but the ball came clear to set up another Brinscall counter attack which was brilliantly broken up by Sam who fed a perfectly weighted pass to Jack who in turn set up Dion for yet another goal attempt which went just over. A minute later Jack gained possession again to the left of midfield and played the most beautiful pass inside the defender to Dion threatening on the right flank. He cut inside and his shot gave the keeper no chance. 1 - 0.
Pumas were dominating possession with Brinscall restricted to the occasional breakaways which were comfortably dealt with by Caleb and Sam with Callum getting into the game more and more. Matthew was also prominently involved in supporting attacks down the left. Tyler and Dion both had near misses then Jack made a brilliant dribbling run through midfield before releasing a superb through ball which unfortunately caught three Pumas forwards off-side! After 17 mins Tyler found himself in possession on the edge of the penalty area with three defenders in attendance. He powerfully shrugged off several challenges before beating the keeper from short range. 2 - 0.
After 20 mins Eddie and Tom came on for Tyler and Robert. Another dangerous break from Brinscall was snuffed out by a perfectly timed tackle from Sam on the penalty spot. Top goal scorer Elliot was brought on for Dion who had been working very hard. Another good attack from Brinscall was broken up by Caleb who was looking in full control and distributing the ball intelligently. Matthew had a good run down the left and produced a great cross into the area which frustratingly was missed by everyone when a goal looked certain. Then it was Lewis' turn to impress with good work in midfield to set up a lovely passing move involving Matthew and Tom whose shot went narrowly wide of the target. Eddie also showed good dribbling skills down the right forcing a corner which Jack delivered into the danger area. Following another Brinscall break Pumas were awarded a free kick on the half way line which Sam took feeding Matthew on the left who delivered an inch perfect cross with Pumas forwards queuing up to score but the keeper managed to bravely claim the ball. The resultant clearance came straight to Jack whose quick-thinking shot forced a good save from the keeper. Half time 2 - 0.
On the resumption Pumas were quickly on the attack again with Caleb and Elliot linking well to force a corner which Jack again delivered perfectly into the danger zone. The high partial clearance came out to Sam pressing forward with great confidence but his header was well blocked. A scrappy period lasted for a few minutes with neither side able to string together a few passes but normal service was resumed when Jack broke down the left. Sam was also working hard and looked keen to get on the scoresheet with two shots in quick succession. After 8 mins the ref mysteriously stopped the game and called the managers and coaches onto the pitch for a meeting!! It turned out that someone was taking photographs and he was worried that his theatrical poses were going to appear on YouTube! (just kidding ref)
A better period for Brinscall then ensued with some good possession. First they had a free kick which was well intercepted by Callum then another free kick from 20 yards was headed out by Sam and then Callum was again involved in foiling another attack. The ball came loose in the Pumas penalty area and Conor had to be alert to kick it clear. Brinscall substituted their keeper which must be a rarity to have two keepers. He was quickly in action and was forced to make a good save. Dion was brought back on for Ben who had worked tirelessly in midfield linking the back four to the forwards with great presence. He received a well deserved ovation. Tyler and Lewis were combining cleverly down the left with two consecutive moves causing trouble for Brinscall defence. A counter attack by Brinscall broke down when one of their forwards was inches off-side when it looked like their best chance of the game. For all their dominance of possession Pumas were only winning by a narrow two goal margin but they set up another attack and overpowered Brinscall with their weight of numbers until the ball came to Elliot to tap home after 20 mins. 3 - 0.
A timely clearance by Sam gave Dion a long range chance which was well saved then Callum joined the attack causing Brinscall to concede a corner. Jack once again produced the goods and Eddie headed home accurately for what looked like a great goal. However the ref had seen some infringement which eluded everyone else and didn't allow the 'goal'. Lewis played skilfully before releasing Dion who forced another corner on the right again delivered accurately by Jack causing panic in the Brinscall defence before Elliot was again able to tap it home. 29 mins 4 - 0.
Another corner on the right was cleared out to Callum poaching on the edge of the penalty area and with his left foot he shot powerfully only to see his shot crash against the bar in what was virtually the last of the action.
Full time Ladybridge Pumas 4 Brinscall Village 0
Another very satisfying performance from Pumas with excellent contributions from every position. The defence is looking especially strong and in 120 mins of football so far they have restricted their opponents to just one meaningful attempt at goal!
