Old Owens 1 Old Meadonians 2

Meads win after conceding early goal

Amateur Football Alliance Senior Cup 3 rd Round

Old Meadonians have bagged the ‘Big One’, the A.F.A. Senior Cup, a record four times in their purple patch of the last twelve years and on Saturday set off after a fifth only to be woken up with a jolt by Southern Amateur League Old Owens who rushed in a fifteen second goal to give their guests a mini hill to climb on an otherwise billiard table surface at Owens School on Saturday.

In the recent past this sort of behaviour would have provoked a furious backlash from Meads, laced with goals but the visitors, although rapidly improving with every game, still need to put some finishing touches to a work in progress and care and caution were the order of the day.

Throughout the rest of the first half the hosts continued to try to turn Meads’ defence but this, superbly marshalled by Ali McCombe, had rapidly become case hardened and impervious and a determinedly pragmatic midfield was soon pushing Owens back.

It took the visitors twenty minutes to get on terms when in form Craig Jones found room in the area, nipped between two defenders and beat the keeper from close in. Ten minutes later Meads were ahead when Jones’ partner Ed Glover out jumped the defence to a Jack Costello long throw and headed in.

For the second half coach Rory Vermeulen went to four at the back, putting versatile Misha Mantel at left back, to prevent any Owens come-back. In the event all the hosts could muster was one solitary shot and that sailed harmlessly over from twenty five yards. Meads, on the other hand might have doubled their tally with more steadiness in front of goal. What came out of this game, besides the burgeoning talent of striker Craig Jones, was Meads’ increasing and ominous ability to campaign on several fronts by using rotation to keep a fair sized squad match fit. Misha Mantel was given the MoM award.

Team: Robinson, Palmer, (Tull), Pointer, McCombe, M. Swann, (N. Jones), Mantel, Costello, Shea, A. Swann, Glover, (Eguae), C. Jones.

December 8, 2011