Old Meads Rejoin League Struggle

Amateur Football Combination Premier Division - Old Parmiterians 1 Old Meadonians 1

Having made a meal of disposing of a very ordinary Old Parmiterians two weeks ago in the cup at Riverside Lands, Old Meadonians rejoined the struggle with Parms at BLA on Saturday, as the latter tried their luck again and gleefully held on to a fortuitous league point after being reduced to ten with twenty five minutes to go.

Meads, for a change, started the game as if they meant business, with flying striker Peter Eguae, by far the most dangerous player, spearheading attacks and only being stopped by some desperate last ditch interventions. They thought they had their just reward when, on twenty minutes, mid-fielder Will Gerrish scorched in a low free kick which rebounded to Alex Jones who fed Andy Thompson, only for Thompson’s finish to be ruled marginally off side.

Almost immediately the hosts, seemingly using this let-off as a springboard, broke on the right and the cross was headed in by a striker who nipped between hesitating defenders. Meads then had to survive a ten minute period up to half time when they were somewhat disorganised.

They came out for the `second half revived, put the visitors through the wringer and were so dominant that Gary Robinson in goal only had to make one intervention for the duration, coming smartly of his line to pick the ball up.

Their meagre reward came with barely ten minutes to go. Mid-fielder Jack Costello bent a corner round the Parms’ keeper and over the defence to the far post where centre-back Liam Palmer, coming off the line, contorted himself to put a bullet header under the bar.

Neither of Meads’ managers, Paul Rumley and Rory Vermeulen, were less than up-beat after the game, Rumley in particular pointing out that the team had carved out at least six chances of varying difficulty in a second half which saw the Meads camped in Parms territory. He was loathe to mention that the squad of sixteen had shrunk to thirteen late in the week or to use any phrase like ‘the rub of the green’, preferring the more phlegmatic, ‘It will come’.

Team: Robinson, Jordan, Palmer, Pointer, Rhone, (Watson), Thompson, Gerrish, Quinn, Thomas, A. Jones, (Costello), Eguae

www.omfc.co.uk

November 3, 2010