A delayed kick-off and a short game (30 minutes each way) – because of Queens not turning up until 12.45 – meant that Emma had lost their match mentality by the time the game started. What was supposed to be a rollover, and looked like being a walkover, suddenly looked a lot harder when a half-asleep defence failed to clear a simple through ball and let in the Queens forward for the opener.
Emma’s equaliser had more than a touch of luck about it, Alan charging down the keeper’s attempted clearance – with a hint of handball – and tapping the ball into the unguarded net. When you’re at the bottom, as Queens are, everything seems to run against you.
For the remaining time in the shortened first half, Emma had a lot of good runs from midfield which could have created chances, but too often the final ball was lacking. In fact neither keeper was really tested in the half at all, both goals leaving them with no chance.
Because of the number of players who had turned up, half time saw a number of changes, and the second half started very slowly as the Emma players got to grips with each other. It was beginning to look like two points might slip away as the lack of football for 6 weeks was showing, when Alan took a shot from distance – from the same blade of grass as Gus had last term – do devastating effect. 2-1, and with his return from injury (he last played against Trinity) complete Alan immediately substituted himself.
A Queens team which had hardly seen the Emmanuel goal began to press forward in the face of some suddenly lax Emma tracking back, and although they failed to make a lot of chances they saw the ball ricochet off the crossbar from a cross, and missed by inches from a last minute corner. Emma were once again hanging on, and never looked like scoring again, the finishing summed up by Ian’s shot which missed by 10 yards.
Emma managed to hold out for the win, but it should have been much easier than it was considering Queens’ record.
Team: Hans Sutton
Richard Smith (Richard Gould, h-t), Adam Stevens, Ben ?, Gaz Sumner (Bobby, 40)
James ?, Kavin Wadhar, Gus O'Brien (Ian Lloyd, 45), Tom Richardson (Chris Jones, h-t)
Alan Elder (James, 45), Rob ?
Goals: Elder 15, 45
League table:
Team |
PL |
W |
D |
L |
GF |
GA |
GD |
PTS |
APU II |
5 |
4 |
1 |
0 |
21 |
7 |
14 |
13 |
Emmanuel II |
5 |
4 |
0 |
1 |
13 |
8 |
5 |
12 |
Long Road III |
3 |
3 |
0 |
0 |
13 |
5 |
8 |
9 |
Corpus |
4 |
2 |
0 |
2 |
18 |
10 |
8 |
6 |
Caius II |
3 |
2 |
0 |
1 |
6 |
4 |
2 |
6 |
Jesus II |
4 |
1 |
1 |
2 |
9 |
8 |
1 |
4 |
St. Catz II |
4 |
1 |
1 |
2 |
4 |
9 |
-5 |
4 |
Churchill II |
5 |
1 |
0 |
4 |
9 |
18 |
-9 |
3 |
Trinity II |
4 |
0 |
1 |
3 |
4 |
13 |
-9 |
1 |
*Queens II |
3 |
0 |
0 |
3 |
3 |
18 |
-15 |
-1 |