Brockham Badgers U16A provided a master class in possession and dominance in the first half of their Surrey Youth League match away to Epsom & Ewell Colts. Their possession and control of the game was such that Epsom were limited to just two chances for the entire first period. The second period was a lesson in complacency.
Jordan Martin got Brockham off the mark in the first three minutes when Oli Gout fed him a curved forward ball behind the Colts back line from an advanced left midfield position. Martin ran at the keeper and finished well with a nick of a stretching defenders leg.
Epsom & Ewell were playing a very high line and yet from the evidence of the first fifteen minutes were unlikely to match Brockham’s forward line for pace. This and the Badgers midfield dominance led the manager to take a luxurious risk and put pace into the left midfield position as well, at times playing a pacey forward line of three.
James Rabbetts had little to do in the game to this point and decided to test the Colts back line for pace following the change by launching a goal kick. It was route one, it was unsophisticated, but it worked. Epsom allowed the ball to bounce and before they had time to turn Michael Cheeseman had beat the offside and his marker for pace and buried the ball beyond the advancing keeper for Brockham’s second, and Rabbetts was pleased with his assist.
It had worked once so why not twice. Rabbetts launched another goal kick down the throats of the Colts centre backs ten minutes later. Remarkably the ball was allowed to bounce again and this time captain Sam Lloyd was one on one with the keeper and finished well to give the black and whites a three goal lead going into half time. Brockham’s goal keeper was now number one on the assist list.
The Badgers relaxed too much in the second half. Their over confidence got the better of them twice with poor midfield pressure and resulting loss of defensive shape which gave Epsom & Ewell two really soft goals that threatened to ruin Brockham’s day. If it had not been for a remarkable goal line clearance by Luke Brightman and some wasteful shooting from Epsom the match might have been thrown away.
Fortunately the Badgers woke up and their class came to the rescue. Alex Bevis received the ball deep on Brockham’s right and played a wonderful pass into the channel for Martin to run onto. Martin was never going to lose a race for the ball and drove into a dangerous advanced area, delivering a superb cross which Joe Silver finished expertly with an impressive stretched toe of the ball into the goal having advanced down the centre with incredible speed and timing.
Man of the Match: Luc Jhugroo
