[DataKing]

Season 5 – Week 6 Training Match

Screamin’ Seamen vs. West Henrietta FC

Date: December 24th, 2003
Venue: The Docks (Chicago, IL)
Attendance: 689 (43,750)
Weather: Overcast

Today’s match comes as something of a welcome reprieve, as we have a nice, low-key training match against a fellow FOFCer, bigjdotcom and his West Henrietta FC club. Even though we’re playing at The Docks, the pressure from an irritated supporter club is off, at least for the time being, and we feel that we can truly concentrate on the match itself and the development of some of our younger talent. This is also a golden opportunity to get some of our reserves some valuable playing time, and hopefully help them to recover some of their slacking form, before the start of the FOFC Cup next week.

Our clubs have actually met once before, though it occurred in the ancient history of our first season of existence. West Henrietta won that match, 1-nil, and while we certainly aren’t petty enough to have revenge on the mind of anything of that sort, it would be nice to even things up against bigjdotcom and his club.

Formation: 3-5-2
Tactics: Attack on Wings

Starters (# appearances, *s last time out)

Keeper: #13 Darryl Read (32 career appearances, **)

Right Wingback: #3 Ben McMahon (46 career appearances, **~)
Central Defender: #24 Sven Svensson (109 career appearances, ***~)
Left Wingback: #17 Mattias Leier (12 career appearances, ***)

Right Winger: #23 Ivan Richardy (13 career appearances, **~)
Inner Midfielder: #6 Agustin Alustiza (5 career appearances, **~)
Inner Midfielder: #7 Rune Kolberg (5 career appearances, **)
Inner Midfielder: #8 Javier Tejeda (6 career appearances, ***)
Left Winger: #9 Ad Taxwell (5 career appearances, **~)

Forward: #11 Johannes Henriksson (77 career appearances, **~)
Forward: #15 Forrest “Gump” Tobias (35 career appearances, *~)

Team Captain: #24 Sven Svensson
Set Pieces: #11 Johannes Henriksson

Substitutes
-Keeper: #1 Cornelius “Corny” Jernigan (64 career appearances, ****)
-Defender: #22 Tyler Willard (45 career appearances, ***~)
-Midfielder: #4 Jaimy van de Kerkhof (14 career appearances, ***)
-Forward: #14 German Galvez (28 appearances w/SSFC, ***)
-Winger: #20 Walter Bosch (7 career appearances, ***)

Today mark’s the first opportunity for a number of our reserves to see the pitch, which will hopefully help them prepare for the upcoming cup play. We’ll be keeping a close eye on Darryl Read, Ben McMahon, and “Gump” Tobias today, to see how they respond to their first playing time in quite a while.

We’re expecting to see some weakness on the edges of the West Henrietta defense today, and have given Ivan Richardy and Ad Taxwell cart-blanche to push the ball up the sides, then left it into the middle towards Johannes and Gump. We’ll see how well this works.

Match Report

PRE-GAME

689 spectators had come to The Docks this cloudy day.

Screamin' started off with a 3-5-2 lineup. The following players had been chosen: Read - Mcmahon, Svensson, Leier - Richardy, Alustiza, Kolberg, Tejeda, Taxwell - Henriksson, Tobias.

Henrietta started off with a 3-5-2 lineup. The following players had been chosen: Eaton - Roy, Naja, Butts - Quigley, Ibarra, Tackett, Temple, Jones - Jolly, Jernigan.

FIRST HALF

It was an obvious ambition of Screamin' to attack on the flanks.

Henrietta seemed to prefer attacking in the middle.

In the 15:th minute cheers broke out as Forrest “Gump” Tobias found his way through the guests central defense line, clipping the 1 - 0 goal in for Screamin'.

Henrietta got a chance to level the score as Hector Jolly suddenly found himself free with the goaltender but the finishing shot hit the bar.

Ryan Jernigan of Henrietta received a yellow card in the 29:th minute for unsportsmanlike behaviour.

The visitors didn´t give in and after 37 minutes Hector Jolly got through the home sides central line of defense, rolling in the levelling goal to make it 1 - 1.

The referee showed Screamin's Sven Svensson the yellow card after a particularly nasty challenge.

Ivan Richardy gave his Screamin' the lead with 2 - 1, as he successfully challenged both the guests central defenders, then placed the ball unreachably at the goaltenders right post.

The teams went for a half-time break at 2 - 1. The fortyfive minutes were dominated by Screamin', with an impressive 54 percent possession of the ball.

SECOND HALF

In the 52nd minute Screamin'´s Forrest “Gump” Tobias tried to nail the coffin shut, but the shot rebounded off the bar to fall behind the net.

After an industrious effort down the middle Javier Tejeda could have closed the game off in the 70:th minute, but his finishing shot hit the post.

A speedy charge from the left side of the field put Screamin' lead up with 3 - 1. Forrest “Gump” Tobias finished that one off competently, firing from an acute angle.

Screamin' held the ball, with a clear 59 percent possession rate.

POST-GAME

Screamin'´s best player was Sven Svensson. Forrest “Gump” Tobias on the other hand, had a terrible day.

The most dominating Henrietta player was without a doubt Terry Jones. Ryan Jernigan on the other hand, had a terrible day.

Screamin’ Seamen 3, West Henrietta FC 1

Goals

Tobias – 2
Richardy – 1 (GWG)

Cards

Svensson – yellow

Player Ratings

Read: **~

McMahon: **
Svensson: ****
Leier: ***~

Richardy: ***
Alustiza: **~
Kolberg: **
Tejeda: ***~
Taxwell: **~

Henriksson: **~
Tobias: **

Team Match MVP: #24 Sven Svensson

Team Ratings

Screamin’ Seamen
-Midfield: Passable (6)
-Right Defense: Excellent (8)
-Central Defense: Solid (7)
-Left Defense: Solid (7)
-Right Attack: Passable (6)
-Central Attack: Inadequate (5)
-Left Attack: Solid (7)
-Experience: Poor (3)
-NSI: 58

West Henrietta FC
-Midfield: Inadequate (5)
-Right Defense: Weak (4)
-Central Defense: Inadequate (5)
-Left Defense: Poor (3)
-Right Attack: Passable (6)
-Central Attack: Weak (4)
-Left Attack: Solid (7)
-Experience: Disastrous (1)
-NSI: 44

Comments

For the first time in what seems like ages, we actually feel good about what we did on the pitch, even if it was only a training match. Our tactics were sound given the situation, as we actually faced an asymmetrical 3-5-2 formation from West Henrietta, so attacking on the wings was a good way to exploit the hole in the defense of the opposition. Our defense was a bit soft for my liking, but McMahon and Read performed well enough, given how little they’ve played lately.

Up front, Forrest “Gump” Tobias was busy, if nothing else. It was obvious that he has a good deal of rust to shake off, but you cannot argue with two goals from one of your strikers, no matter what the situation. Ivan Richardy and Javier Tejeda also had very nice matches for themselves in the middle of the field, with Ivan earning himself the game winner.

Overall, we can be nothing but pleased with today’s result, and hopefully this small victory will help to gain us some momentum for next week’s league match and the FOFC Cup beyond that.

Up Next: The weekly training results. Stay tuned!