Lemons 2-1 Paralytic

Good work lads, as we came away with the win after really dominating this match. We showed good spirit to come back from a goal down and turn our superior performance into a win.

The match started off a little weirdly, with the venue being inexplicably shifted back to James Oval from Riley Oval – with a corresponding increase in the dimensions of the pitch. The larger pitch allowed us more room and time on the ball – and we certainly showed that to good effect.

Chong made another appearance in goal, and Gauci, Jakub, Duy and Cheng started. It was a fairly strong attacking team, and we soon broke forward in numbers, only to have our shot go wide.

Duy, however, had ambitions of suicide and so managed to lose the ball to an opposing attacker, who took the ball up the right wing and promptly scored. 1-0. We were behind and we were by far the better team at that point.

The rest of the half continued in much the same vein – with our attacking moves linking together well, and shots on and off target from Jinn, Jakub, Adam and Maurice. By contrast, Paralytic were seeing little of the ball and we were having no trouble in taking it off them.

We pressed forward in waves of ceaseless attacks, to no avail. It was 1-0 at half time.

Best quote of the match: “We’ll score now. We’re heading towards the goalscoring end.”

In any case, we soon did score. Gauci got the ball deep in our defensive half and ran with it through into our half. Unfortunately, he was tackled just as he was lining up a shot – but luckily for us, the ball spilled to Jakub who steered it home.

1-1. We were finally getting rewards for our dominance of the game.

What followed was a spell of focussed pressure on their goal. We had corner’s, shots on target, shots off target. Dino even managed to have a volley from far out on his left foot! Shots from Maurice came close, as did Jakub, when trying to connect with a good pass from Gauci. Duy’s shots were fluffed as well.

Dino was really having a good game – elbowing his opponent off the ball deep in our half. It was an impressive show of upper body strength.

We eventually did make it 2-1, as a through ball (one of a number of such wicked passes) found its way to Maurice. With Jinn providing support on the left, he slid the ball nonchalantly into the net past the keeper. 2-1 to the Lemons! And we had gotten what we deserved from a match, finally.

There were a few nervous moments at the end, but the defence held up well and Chong imposed himself well. It ended 2-1 to the Lemons.
A good performance. Revenge, of sorts.

Team: Adam, Jinn, Duy, Dino, Jakub, Cheng, Maurice, Rob, Chong, Gauci
Goals: Jakub, Maurice.

Lemons 1-0 The Coerver Institute of Flair (What a shit name)

We dominated this game from start to finish, but don’t come away with the points because of Cheng’s lateness with the receipt. F#cking hell.

We played a very high level of football, passing the ball around, keeping possession, opening up chances – but we were very unlucky with our finishing.

The game started pretty evenly, with Jinn having a few chances early on, which he put wide, and Jakub being threatening as he normally is. Dino and Cheng in defence were rock solid without being overly spectacular, getting the ball out well and distributing it to the forward players.

Jinn hit the post on numerous occasions; in the first half, he wriggled free by turning Jen onto his left side and unleashing a shot which smacked off the post. Maurice also had a few good chances go to waste.

To tell the truth, we blitzed them. If this was a boxing match, it would have been a clear victory to us on points. Anyway. Who cares. Did you hear about Fifa president Sepp Blatter trying to do away with draws in soccer matches? What a dickhead.

At the start of the second half, we came out with renwed confidence. Maurice did that cute turn of his where he looks back towards our goal, and then rolls it backward with his foot and then chases the ball down the line. He crossed it, and it was badly cleared – the ball falling to Cheng, who made amends for his lateness. He slammed the ball home, through the goal, and even beyond that (as there was no netting there).

Jakub had a chance to ‘draw level’ (my arse) when he was played through by a crappy defensive header from the idiots in the opposition. Unfortunately he couldn’t keep his shot down.

Nothing else much came from the game, with wave and wave of attack from us amounting to nothing. Stupid. We won the game, but we lost it. Since when have they become so strict with the receipt? F*cking bastards.

Special mention to Chong, who made his first appearance of the season and commanded the sticks well. Another clean sheet for the man with the surname for a first name.

Oh well.

Adam – the game’s at Riley Oval, what remains of it. 6pm.

Next week’s game is at 8.15.

Lemons V Paralytic. Should be good.

Team: Cheng, Chong, Jinn, Dino, Duy, Jakub, Maurice, Rob
Goals: Cheng 1, -2. = -1.

But where was everyone else? (Lemons 2-5 Oddodd)

A poor turnout with no subs saw us go down in this game, a valiant effort in the circumstances – but thus endeth the winning streak. Dino, Rob, Jinn, Jakub and Cheng were the sole participants in this match, on a wet-soaked ground on the old Riley Oval (what was left of it).

The match started well enough – some cross-field balls for Jinn and Rob to waste… and waste them they did. There were shots into the fence behind the goal, and shots into the crates. Everything was off target.

Soon enough though, Oddo began to impose themselves onto the game. We defended poorly with no subs, and we tired a little more quickly than we would have liked or expected. Eventually, they capitalised. Passing the ball with accuracy and speed through our defence, they opened up the loose man to have simple finshes. 1-0 became 2-0, and when one of their attackers slalomed his way past Dino and Jinn, it was 3-0.

Jinn and Rob toiled hard to bring one back, but it was all to no avail. Their keeper was also having a good game, saving everything that Jinn had on offer.

We were down 3-0 at half time, and a tactical change was in order. Jakub out of goals, Cheng into goals.

We began to play a bit better. Jakub provided a legitimate target up front, with Jinn and Rob playing off him. Dino sat back in defence. Their constant long balls over the top were a bit challenging though, and Cheng had a few nervous moments in goal.

We pulled one back soon enough. A throw-in from Jakub was headed on by Jinn, onto the hand of a defender. Jinn appealed for hand-ball, and the ref was duly convinced. Up stepped Jakub – in went the shot! 3-1, pulled one back!

It was to-and-fro for much of the match thereafter. Jinn looked tired up front, and the lack of Gauci’s yelling at the back saw us defend like madmen. They again found the open man far too easily, and soon enough it was 4-1 to them.

4-1 became 5-1 in due time, again due to shoddy defending. We really could have done with some subs. We were tired! Then, some good play from Jakub and Rob on the left flank saw the latter cross in. It seemed like a simple tap-in for Jinn, but Jakub managed to help Jinn put the ball wide, by tackling his knee.

Aaaannnyway. Jakub soon made up for it with a typical stumbling solo effort that was initially blocked from his right foot, onto his left. You know what comes next if I say that the angle was tight. Yep, he smashed it in from the tight angle using his left foot. Trademark Jakub finish.

5-2 – and on another day we might have won that. Also, subs would have helped!

Team: Rob, Cheng, Jakub, Jinn, Dino
Goals: Jakub (2)

Lemons win by forfeit

A very strange set of circumstances leaves the Lemons with a paid receipt for next week, a 3-0 win, a free night to study for the summative, and no injury worries!

Following a hard day's work at the hospital, Dino, Jinn and Duy decided to hang out in the QEII gat room to study for the summative.

5.45: Jinn, Duy and Sarah leave, to move their cars to the Library in readiness for a game that was supposed to be at 8.30pm.

5.55: Adam, (who was also in the gat room) receives a phone call from Gauci. "Where are you guys?"
Simultaneously, Duy leaves Sarah's.

6.05: A frantic Dino calls Duy and Jinn after being told by Adam that the game is on at 6pm!

6.10: Jinn changes quickly into soccer gear and drives to the game. Dino and Duy have met up, and pay for the game.

6.17: Jinn meets Dino and Duy, who by this time had found their way to the game, shirts, trousers and all. Gauci isn't in sight. Neither is the ref.

6.20: Jinn calls Gauci - Gauci comes out from the UWA gat room. "The ref's gone to get some food."

6.25: Still waiting. Gauci: "Well the ref said that we could get the receipt before 6.15 and we'd have the win by forfeit."

6.27: Ref turns up. "Here's the receipt mate."
Ref-'Play-Play': "Okay guys. Thanks, I'll put down you as winning the game. Just fill in this sheet.
"You were all here at 6pm, right"
We all nod, except Dino.

Ref-'Play-Play': "I think you better let your friend know what the situation is."

6.35: We all head home ready to study, having won the game 3-0 without a ball being kicked!

Easy!

Oh, and a clean sheet for Dino.

"Team": Jinn, Duy, Gauci, Dino
Goals: I think I'll claim them.

Lemons 2-1 Quarantine

A good solid win for the Lemons, although the margin should probably have been larger than it was. We had a myriad of chances to bury the game off, and only our lack of finishing prevented this game from being a blow-out. We could well feel aggrieved with the scoreline, as 2-1 would actually tend to flatter "Quarantine"’s performance.

The game started with a few attacking forays, with Dino in particular having some pot shots on goal which were unsuccessful. Gauci was also looking to score some goals, with some good turns and shots. We were dominating play, with the opposition giving the ball away as soon as they got it.. They were unable to construct any meaningful attacks, and seemed to lack any defensive cohesion – the result being a lot of possession for the Lemons.

True to name and form, we seemed to lack that final ball, that final touch that would slam the ball into the back of the net. Jinn, Dino and Duy were combing well to create chances – our passing was much improved and crisp. Rob shot wide We were in fact carving Quarantine apart, with almost the entire team having a shot on goal.

We didn’t lack any passion in defence either, although our domination caused us to be a little lax in tracking back. Our tackling was hard and solid, and one such tackle allowed Jinn a on-on-one with the keeper that he put wide with his right foot.

We eventually capitalised on our pressure close to half time, when Gauci’s back-heal from the halfway line with two defenders pressing managing to find its way to Adam. He still had a lot to do when he was forced wide on his right foot, but smashed the ball home to give us the lead. It was no more than we deserved.

We came out after half time with Maurice playing. Quarantine also came out with a renewed sense of purpose – and began to give us more of a hard time. Their lack of cohesion and inability to find the right pass was good for us though!

Again, we weren’t able to capitalise on possession with many shots from Adam, Maurice and Duy lacking power or accuracy. A throw-in from Jakub was flicked on by Maurice’s head into the back of the net! 2-0 to the Lemons – and again the scoreline was probably less than we deserved.

Soon after, another throw-in found its way into the back of the net – however this time the ball wasn’t touched by anybody in the field of play. The goal didn’t stand.

Soon after Dino made his way onto the field, the opposition pulled one back (through no fault of his). The Lemons were streaming forward in an attack, but we managed to lose possession. Dino was the last defender back, and was unable to provide enough pressure on the attacking two players to prevent the goal. The ball rolled between Rob’s legs into the back of the net – 2-1.

It was an undeserved goal.

We pulled together in the end, and defended tightly to maintain our lead – and our winning streak. We’ve equalled our longest streak of 3 now. Well done Lemons!

Team: Jakub, Jinn, Rob, Duy, Cheng, Maurice, Adam, Gauci, Dino
Goals: Adam, Maurice.
Sorry for lateness

Lemons 2-0 Varsity Blues 'n' Whites

A solid performance from the team - getting us the result without being tested. Good running and dedication saw us through this match and gave us the result.

From the outset, we seemed to have the upper hand, dominating play without ever really threatening goal. There seemed to be a lack of a creative threat, with Maurice in goals and Adam on the bench to start off with.

However as time progressed, we gradually gained control of the match – with some good moves between Gauci and Jakub almost resulting in a goal for the former. We were attacking without reward for our efforts. It was a familiar theme – good possession without much end product.

It always looked like we could get hit on the counter, and so it was important that we were solid defensively as well as being adventurous in attack. Gauci was a constant vocal presence, yelling at people to mark tighter. Cheng was playing well as a last line of defence, heading the ball clear as it came in from the air.

When Adam came on, the game swung even more in our favour. Dino picked his game up. Duy went close from Adam’s pass – and then Adam himself had a shot nearly go in. We seemed to be really turning on the pressure, yet the score remained 0-0.

All that changed however, when a typical attack of ours was partially cleared by the goalkeeper, who tried to dribble it past Jakub. Jakub seized the ball and deftly struck it into the net with aplomb. 1-0 to the Lemons, and we had finally gotten reward for our efforts.

More pressure from Jinn saw him turn away from the defender on the right side of the goal. But his shot went wide, with Gauci in space on the left.

We continued to press without reward though, and half time came with the score 1-0 to us. It was a decent half.

We came out after the break full of steam. As did the other team, but our steam had 9 players behind it to their 6 with girls. All things being equal – we should have been able to hold on from this position.

With Jakub in goals, we seemed to lack a bit of a threat going forward, and Gauci was being isolated by himself with his back toward goal. Adam seemed to be having trouble linking up with Maurice and Dino – and again a lot of our attacking play was wasted.

We were even more vulnerable on the counter, and the amount of saves that Jakub and Rob made in goals probably won us the match. On one occasion, a strong shot from distance had Rob catching the ball, and then dropping it. A big hoof out of the area cleared the ball from the stray forward who was looking for crumbs.

Adam looked dangerous on the right, and Jinn was looking to play the ball in from the left. If we had attacked the ball a little harder, we might have been able to pick up a few more goals, with Jakub guilty of not adding to his total. Cheng and Gauci went close with headed efforts.

The most gilt-edged chance of the game though, fell to Dino, who tackled the ball off a defender. With the goalkeeper far behing him, he managed to miss everything with an open goal at his mercy. Bad luck Dino.

The match was made safe though, when Maurice dispossessed one of their defenders and tried to slot the ball home, in a chance similar to Dino’s. The goalkeeper half-saved it, and Maurice followed it up by hitting the ball home for 2-0, and Game Over.

More chances fell our way later on with a pass from Jinn over the head of a defender picked up by Jakub, who hit the bar with his effort. But no more goals were scored, and we maintained our tight defensive record.

Another win for the Lemons!

Team: Jakub, Jinn, Rob, Duy, Cheng, Maurice, Adam, Gauci, Dino
Goals: Jakub, Maurice.

Lemons 4-2 Other Team

I don't even know what the other team was called.

Anyway - it was a good win for the yellow boys, and the team has definitely been strengthened with the addition of the Mustard cast-offs. By the time I arrived for the game, we were already winning 2-1.

When I arrived, we added a further 2 goals, and they added another 1. Symmetry is beautiful, isn't it.

We played quite well for the most part, marking up and passing the ball around to feet well. Seemed to lack a bit when chasing the ball, but when you're 4-1 up, winning a match comfortably for the first time in a long time, its easy to be complacent.

Maurice tells me that they scored the first goal, and then we scored two quick goals. Gauci then scored two, one from a brilliant, Bergkampesque pass up through the middle by Adam, and the other from something I can't remember. Since they scored the last goal as well, you could say that they were the bread, and we were the meat.

The overall performance was pleasing though, and it's good to see that this division/league/whatever is much easier to play in than last season.

Team: Jinn, Rob, Maurice, Dino, Gauci, Duy, Adam, Jakub, Cheng
Goals: Gauci (2), Maurice, Duy

Lemons 2-3 Razorbacks - "They couldn't even get into a f*king Primary school team"

New match report style - I'm going to just paste them here one after the other. You can leave your comments after each report.

10/03/04: It was a close game, but we ended up on the wrong side of the ledger again. Full debuts for Maurice and Gauci – the signs are that we’ve made some shrewd purchases.

As the game got underway, Sarah was a surprise spectator, taking a break from Quiz night organisation to come and cheer the boys in yellow. It was a fairly skill-less opening, with the Lemons mainly on the back foot; struggling to push forward.

Our defending was dodgy at times, with Jinn and Dino making errors in defence. However, they weren’t to be punished at this stage. You got the feeling that a goal was coming, though.

And indeed it was the case. In a flash of stupid defending, we were 1-0 down and we had started the season again by letting in goals.

Maurice came on the pitch and immediately we started showing a little more flair. He made several runs down the flanks and was rewarded with fouls for his efforts. However, one run turned into gold for us, as he released Gauci with miles of space. His shot was true and good – 1-1; game on!

Jinn sprung to life, chasing down a loose ball and striking against the post. Duy was also starting to play well too – with some good runs down the left. Gauci’s play on the left was also great to watch.

The match swung against us again however, as more poor defending allowed them to score again. 1-2 it was as we went into half time, with lots of work ahead.

So we started again in the second half – with Maurice playing with a semi-broken pair of boots that seemed just about right to fall apart. He was wearing the brunt of many poor challenges, and was being clattered around like a nine-pin. Duy was also being clattered around – with his immense bulk working against him as he was constantly strafed over and sat on.

Our equalising goal was a beautiful piece of work orchestrated by Rob from the goal kick. It was well controlled by Gauci, who rolled the ball to the overlapping Jinn. Jinn’s cross was able to pinpoint Duy, who had the easy job of bundling it over the line. 2-2, and Maurice was wearing Jinn’s pair of spare shoes.

We pressed hard for much of the second half with Maurice going close from an early effort. He cut the ball back from the left onto his right boot and lashed the ball in – only to be denied by the strong hands of the keeper.

More poor defending and a lack of marking allowed the Razorbacks to score the winning goal however. An attacking throw-in from Jinn was defended by the Razorbacks – who managed to get the ball down to our end, past Dino and past our keeper into the back of the net.

This signalled Duy to be put into goals and for us to stream forward. More close shots from Maurice followed with none being successful. Our best opportunity came when the Razorbacks’ keeper took too long to throw the ball, leading to an indirect freekick. The ball was slammed hard into the wall – and the score ended 2-3, with Maurice being clattered again at the end for his troubles.

The attitude of the Razorbacks was best summed up by the ref: “Those guys think they’re in the f***ing FA cup or something. If they were that good, they would be in First Division!”

“They couldn’t even get into a f***ing Primary school team.”

Mr Gauci

Team: Jinn, Rob, Maurice, Dino, Gauci, Duy
Goals: Gauci, Duy

Support: Sarah

I can't seem to find the links to the past photos. That'll have to wait until after quiz night etc.

New Captain too!

As of the new season (Semester 1), Rob is the captain. In the afterglow of our final win, it seems that everyone is hungry to start playing again.

Hopefully, with Rob as captain, a new energy will be injected into the team, and along with our Mustard recruits, we should perform better.

Or it'll be just the same.

Recent match reports

It's been a while since thses reports have been updated. So I've uploaded the last three matches in one big mother of an upload.

Finals: Lemon Mustard 2-0 A-Team

Lemons 0-8 Psychos

Lemons 0-2 Razorbacks

Remember to leave your comments on the guestbook.

Payments

Ok, I don't want to be a dictator or anything, but before the season starts I just want to let everyone know the protocol regarding payments.

One simple rule: If you play most of the games, you need to pay for a match. That means $30.

It's not a great sum of money for the amount of matches we play, so please don't be a tight-arse about this. Obviously if you only play one game, then this doesn't apply to you. I'm not being a dickhead, I just want to ensure equity.

Ladder