|
|
Hit the Bar Vs Millenium
Considering five players weren't really enough last week, Hit The Bar were well up the proverbial creek without a poodle this week, as they were down to just four to play against Millenium. Turkish had withdrawn with that all-too-common complaint - the gardening-related foot injury, and C0ck Boy was either not back from Mexico, or lying low with his phone switched off. Drastic measures were therefore taken, with Squirrel phoning up BG for some Powerleague replacements. Upon arrival, HTB were pleased to find a couple of Sunday night, division 1 ringers ready to play in the form of Richard Ashcroft's younger brother and his friend, who was sporting a 1990s curtains hairstyle. When HTB were asked by their new team-mates which league they were in, there was some embarrassed mumbling between G-Man and Dancing as to whether they were in division 3, or as low as division 4. Division 4 was settled on, with no-one mentioning the fact that they all knew - they were a division 5 outfit. Bypassing any form of warm-up, the game kicked off with HTB in some degree of disarray. A lack of touch, discipline and desire from HTB saw some scrappy play and a few early goals traded, with the non-descript half ending 4-3 to Millennium and it becoming apparent that the skill level on Sunday's in division 1 was around about that of division 5 on a Wednesday. The second half saw a now-warmed-up HTB show a bit more composure and the ability to put together some nice moves. The new boys settled down too and the result was HTB establishing a nice lead. As the game progressed, Millennium became visible annoyed with each other and allowed HTB to capitalise further, the result a reasonably comfortable 10-7 win.
Squirrel - seemed least affected by the lack of a warm-up, mainly because he usually spends them avoiding the ball. Had a pretty busy game and made some excellent saves. Good positioning meant he could keep most shots out, and he even treated the crowd to the rare sight of Squirrel diving as he stopped one low down to his left. - 8
Nez - was more provider than goal scorer this week, with some nice little flicks and nifty touches picking out the runners well in the second half. He let his team-mates know when they weren't pulling their weight, although he stills needs to realise possession can be lost simply because his team are sometimes a bit cack. Excessive whining about a couple of grazes on his arm was enough to earn him the FEEBLE FAGGOT award - 7
Dancing - dire start to the game saw him subbing himself off early on and didn't really get going until after half-time. Got better as the game went on and slotted a couple into the opponents net, with the second goal a clear advert for the advantages of using a well aimed toe-punt. - 7
G-Man - didn't start well either but gradually upped his tempo. By mid-way through the second half, the G-Man of old was back with some excellent tackling, determined running and a hat-trick to boot. Despite the shaky start he played well enough to earn SURERANDOMALITY STARMAN - 8
Curtains - his mate talked him up as being 'the good one' so there was a bit of disappointment as he started fairly averagely. Once he got into the game though it was clear he was a good organiser who liked to start moves from the back, and he made a fair few decent tackles as well - 7
Ashcroft - a good grafter who made some solid tackles. Was involved in several of the goal scoring moves of the second half. Gave the ball away occasionally but generally did a good job for HTB - 7