Triumph and Disaster

Everyone has days in sport where things just do not quite go to plan. Just ask the England goalkeeper! Today we just couldn't get things going. They played half court and sat back and tried to hit us on the break. It was not pretty but it proved effective. I also understand the frustrations of playing some of these 2nd XIs where they swap players back and forth between their first team. This is not really what the starred player system is designed to do and it is not the way that we choose to do things as a college.

I am pleased that you played with good sportsmanship and did not let their on field comments get to you or retaliate to some of the aggressive behaviour with stick chopping and pushing that their referee let go. Hopefully we will get another crack at them later in the season.

We need to take our chances and to support the ball carrier better and to pass from front stick to front stick. We hit way too many passes into the area of a player rather than to them. We also need to keep improving our basic skills. We can't keep topping balls, miss traps and tackles and expect to win games. It comes down to inches and to us working hard to improve our skills, our concentration and our fitness.

They made more chances in the game and we badly missed Nick in the middle and at PCs attacking and defending. We battled well and 0-0 at half time was a fair reflection of the first half. Tom should probably have been penalised more harshly for his take out and Jamie should really have finished the break away into the circle. They tucked in a deflection on the post from a PC where we didn't defend that cleverly and their second goal near the end flattered them but we were as well pressing forward and trying to score.

Players of the day were Bunsi for some awesome cover tackling and Tom for some great saves.

Result Wellington College Under 15 A 0 Scots College 2nd XI 2


Despite the loss today and being knocked off the top of the table at the last minute I am really proud of what you have achieved in the first half of this season. It is no small thing to be competing in P3 let alone to be contending at the top of the table. You are developing and working hard and we can continue to improve. I know you were disappointed today but you have handled victory and defeat with maturity in the grading round and been excellent representatives for the school on and off the field. One of the reasons we play sport is that it builds character. Above the entrance to the centre court at Wimbledon is the inscription "If you can meet with triumph and disaster and treat those two imposters just the same" It is a line from the poem "If" by Rudyard Kipling.


If you can keep your head when all about you
Are losing theirs and blaming it on you,
If you can trust yourself when all men doubt you
But make allowance for their doubting too,
If you can wait and not be tired by waiting,
Or being lied about, don’t deal in lies,
Or being hated, don’t give way to hating,
And yet don’t look too good, nor talk too wise:

If you can dream–and not make dreams your master,
If you can think–and not make thoughts your aim;
If you can meet with Triumph and Disaster
And treat those two impostors just the same;
If you can bear to hear the truth you’ve spoken
Twisted by knaves to make a trap for fools,
Or watch the things you gave your life to, broken,
And stoop and build ‘em up with worn-out tools:

If you can make one heap of all your winnings
And risk it all on one turn of pitch-and-toss,
And lose, and start again at your beginnings
And never breath a word about your loss;
If you can force your heart and nerve and sinew
To serve your turn long after they are gone,
And so hold on when there is nothing in you
Except the Will which says to them: “Hold on!”

If you can talk with crowds and keep your virtue,
Or walk with kings–nor lose the common touch,
If neither foes nor loving friends can hurt you;
If all men count with you, but none too much,
If you can fill the unforgiving minute
With sixty seconds’ worth of distance run,
Yours is the Earth and everything that’s in it,
And–which is more–you’ll be a Man, my son!

The message is - we may not have won today but you have done your college, your families and yourselves proud this season and we are all proud of the young men you are becoming.


See you tomorrow for the game against the 2nd XI!!

Close

Jane did not have much to do on the field of play in todays fixture but there was a fair bit of work keeping the bench and the crowd in a state of harmony. The game against Hibs 2nd XI was packed with end to end excitement and considerable incident. Ravi became so exasperated at one point that he literally tore his hair out. One or two other parents, fans and supporters were hoarse from shouting or had fingernails that showed evidence of extreme biting. The result was never in doubt!!!!


We started really well and got our passing working well. We had good early possession and field position. We won a PC which just slid past the stick on the far post and were looking composed. Ed showed great control in front of goal and fully justified his start on the right wing with a really well finished goal getting his feet round and pushing the ball past the keeper. We then had a few more shots which their keeper saved well. After ten minutes we were looking good and then it all turned to custard.

They played an aerial ball in from the left. We panicked, wafted a stick in the air and then proceeded to get tangled up in the circle and failed to clear our lines. Time stood still as they scored the simplest goal we will ever concede. This gave them confidence and they started to play much better. Although we still got forward and made a few chances we spent the next 20 minutes on the back foot. Our marking was slack, we failed to attack the ball and we did not use our width well. We gave the ball away too often and our basic skills particularly our trapping let us down badly. Hibs scored again and deserved their 2-1 lead at half time.

At half time we spoke about using a high forward to disrupt their defence and about playing with more energy and passion. We started the second half well but their keeper made some good saves and they continued to get the ball into our circle. Tom made some excellent saves and we began to clear a bit better to the sides. Finn and Bunsi made a lot of important tackles. At the other end Nick and Shak began to get our attack working but we could not put the final pass in the right place. With ten minutes to go Riley was in the right place in front of the keeper and made the chance for Ethan to score. Both sides had chances to clinch a winner but with a few minutes to go we won our second PC. Nick found Jamie in space and Jamie picked his spot and slotted it past the keeper into the corner. We were all a little relieved when the final whistle went. How you finish the game is sometimes even more important than how you start it.


There were a number of things about this performance that were very pleasing. I liked the way that you kept fighting and there was a much stronger desire to win evident. I enjoyed the way that you kept trying to encourage each other and how you believed that you could win the game. It shows how far we have come from that first game against Raphael when we took the foot of the gas in the dying minutes. This was a gutsy performance guys. It was not always pretty but you persevered. You did Wellington College proud!

Result: Wellington College Under 15A 3 Hibs 2nd XI 2

Players of the day were Tom for some fine goalkeeping and Finn for working hard and playing through the pain.


This result puts us top of the table. This is just my home made version and I guess Aotea beat Wellington High today so should be on 12 points. It shows how tight this league is. There are only 2 points separating the top 5 teams and any of the top 5 can still qualify in the top 2. We are in the position that if we win our last match next week then we will win the grading round. That would be a fantastic achievement.

A much improved second half

At training on Monday we spoke about four things we are working on.

Strength on the ball and in the tackle.
Supporting the ball carrier.
Ball speed in possession.
Keeping our structure and using our width.

We went over these things before the game and then went out in the first half and did virtually none of them!

We allowed them to dictate the tempo of the first half and once again got caught too flat in a line across the back. We have got to improve our marking and our communication. We gave away possession and allowed them way too much space to play. The first half was end to end and Rongotai made more chances than we did. Probably our best chance was Jacob's shot from the top of the circle which beat their goalie in the corner and their full back cleared off the line. We need to keep working on our movement and our support play and pass the ball round, not through, the opposition. We should have had a number of PCs including the most blatant when their defender played the ball with his foot, knee and chest but I was pleased by the way you kept your heads on the pitch and didn't let the refereeing get to you. We had the poorer of the first half and were kept in the game with tackles from Rupert, Bunsi and Finn and some good saves from Tom. We were lucky to go in level with there being no score at half time.


We changed things a little at the start of the second half with Ed going off injured and pushing the forwards up. We finally began to get some control on mid field and put them under some sustained pressure. We had a couple of shots and a couple of times the ball just ran away from us in their circle. Jamie managed to collect a rebound off the pads and reverse it past the keeper. We kept fighting and near the end Ethan put pressure on their keeper who was caught in two minds and Ethan bundled it into the net to score our second. It was a great example of determination and perseverance. Shak, Jacob and Nick got some much better passing going in the second half. Jack and Riley created some good width and could both have scored and the defence really stepped up in the second half to close them down more effectively. This was a game we could easily have lost and it was great to see us getting stronger towards the end rather than conceding as we have done a couple of times.

We need to ensure that Finn, Nick and Bunsi are aware of what each other are doing and where each other is. We cannot afford to leave a big hole in the middle like a giant doughnut!


This was our famous option 1 at what turned out to be our only PC of the match. (you may remember that's the one where we miss the stick stop, have the first shot blocked top circle then track around the top of the circle chased by the defender feinting shots till we screw it past the near post from an impossible angle). Perfectly executed!



Jamie and Ethan both took their chances well but we need to be sharper in the circle and more aggressive in winning PCs. I would like to see the midfield shooting more on sight from the top of the circle. We are converting a good percentage of our shooting chances which is great to see.


Players of the day were Tom for some great saves and clears and Jayson who worked hard and made one epic chase covering 50 metres to make a tackle just outside the circle.

Well done on a much improved second half. If we can start to put it together for a whole game we can be really dangerous. We are still on track for a top two finish with our destiny in our own hands.

Match Result Wellington College U15A 2 Rongotai 2nd XI 0