V St Aldhelms (A) 03/01/2021

03/01/2021

St Aldhelms 8-3 POB

GAME 1

Although there were great combinations in the low and mid block we never managed to convert this into the final third. At times today the centre midfielders kept hold of the ball for far to long, meaning a loss of possession as well as not being able to recover and support our defender as St Aldhelms counter attacked. For me this is a rooted problem for a team who was one of the best in the 5v5 format in Bristol, where running with the ball on a smaller pitch and being able to do recovery runs were possible, because it happens if we play a 1-4-1 or a 2-3-1 formation also. Only the players can resolve this through the conceeding of goals and learning.

Ironically, there is a massive positive from this loss of possession which is the players who have been playing defence are developing a great understanding of the position as there is a lot of repetition. Each player who has played there offers a different attribute to the team and Charlie Moore has really developed his body positioning over the last few months, showing this today in defence but also in the match in midfield against Banwell.

Game 1 (3-1 lost)

Eric Rodgers ⚽️
Louie Azcel ✔

POTW 🏆 Charlie Moore

GAME 2

A bit of adjustment needed from the intended plan as players were missing, leaving us short in numbers and Francis needing to warm up due to a prior engagement.

There was alot of energy shown by the boys throughout this game and it was one of those matches where the scoreline doesn't show a true reflection of what happened. The two inside forwards worked tirelessly out wide all game with Vinnie King creating problems on the right going forward and Jacob George defensively tracking the runs from the St Aldhelms players.

Hermon Zenawi was again consistent at the back, similar to Charlie is the first match and has become a very strong option in defence.

Again we created a lot of chances in this match, 21 in total, hitting the post and bar (Jacob George) as well as a number of chances from the centre midfielders, again meeting an opposition goalkeeper who had alot straight at him. The centre midfielders worked well and used the wide players but in the end tired in the latter part of the game and St Aldhelms scored a few goals.

Game 2 (5-2 lost)

Jacob George ⚽️⚽️
Jacob Baldwin ✔
Malachi Jenkins ✔

POTW 🏆 Vinnie King

Reflection...

OUT OF POSSESSION FOCUS
Marking At Corners - Central player worked well on this throughout the game and there was excellent communication between the group. We were able to gain possession quickly although not able to transfer this into opportunities where I will need to build this into their understanding that quicker distribution will allow a counter attack with both our goalkeepers and outfield players.

IN POSSESSION FOCUS
Creating Width/Getting The Ball Wide - Creating width down the left hand side in the 1st game was always available which is a great credit to Alfie Simmonds. He stuck to task and on the few occasions the ball was released to him behind the St Aldhelms defence he was a threat. Ideally we needed to get the ball to him more.

The 2nd game was much more productive with Vinnie King and Jacob George hugging the lines. Jacob scoring two by being at the back post coming off the far side to meet a cross field pass and Vinnie being a real danger throughout the game and unbelievable workrate.

OVERVIEW
With this new formation we are creating chances (45 chances over both games to score) something we were not doing at the start of the season and this has added another string to our bow. When this clicks (and it will happen soon) whether it is this formation or reverting back to another these chances will get converted and the confidence of the boys will sky rocket, they just have to realise they are a WE and not a ME team.

Another text tonight on how the boys played which is always great to hear as these are a regular occurrence. My philosophy over the last four years has always been to teach the team to play football the right way, allowing them to express themselves but also enable them to see that it is not about them as an individual. We have 8 years boys who need to build their confidence to try things, see things and learn from mistakes without a Playstation coach telling them whilst on the pitch... all this even more so given the upheaval they have/had socially over the past 12 months with Covid-19.

When they get older I will show them little tricks to grind a win, but winning really isn't important at this age but working as a team is.