A Very Strong Start

Team Sheet : EthanR, EthanT, Isaac, James, Lewis, Oliver, Rokas, Rui, Stanley, Thomas, Travis

With last week’s match being cancelled this was the start of the Iguanas’ 21/22 season, and what a start.

At home to kick things off, with nice weather and a team with over 60% new players, but who have had some good practice sessions, and who have a few friendly and tournament matches under their belts already.

The game kicked off (Oliver, EthanR, Rui, Travis, EthanT, Thomas and Lewis getting us under way) with an early break by Valley Green which led to a corner. The Iguanas were well drilled, dealt with it easily and then broke themselves with a strong press forwards pushing Valley Green back into their own half.

The Iguanas were showing some excellent passing and awareness of where team mates were, building patiently from midfield with Travis, EthanT and Thomas all winning the ball and releasing it well to maintain the attack.

A corner at the other end showed intent from Lewis’ ball, bringing out a decent save from the Valley Green keeper. But the Iguanas continued to apply a lot of pressure and Valley Green were finding it difficult getting out of their own half.

A great cross by Thomas was almost connected with to keep the opposition keeper on his toes. EthanT then released Lewis through the centre, and he hit a nice shot which was just played wide by Valley Green. The resulting corner was again taken beautifully, creating opportunity and very nearly a goal.

The signs were looking good, and Valley Green were left to play long balls out from their keeper’s kicks, the majority of which went harmlessly out of play, allowing the Iguanas to regroup and steadily build pressure again, the two Ethans combining really well to play the ball neatly up the field.

A rare Valley Green break through the pitch brought out a strong save from Oliver, but that was all the Iguanas’ keeper was really called upon to do in the first 15 minutes of the game.

James, Isaac, Stanley and Rokas came on to give the two Ethans, Rui and Thomas a well-earned rest.

Valley Green managed another break shortly after our substitutions, which Oliver intercepted well. Battling for the ball in midfield, Travis then took a hefty shot with the ball to the stomach and needed to come off for a while, EthanT taking his place after not much of a rest.

A little spell of pressure from Valley Green saw some straightforward saves made, and Isaac showing his customary strength in the tackle and great clearances down the pitch to release his team.

One such clearance led to a throw in for the Iguanas in the Valley Green half. Stanley was alert and took the throw in quickly to release Lewis. This caught Valley Green off guard and Lewis showed great composure as he slotted the ball past the Valley Green keeper.

The pressure that the Iguanas were making continued for a few minutes after the restart, but a Valley Green break saw their strongest player released onto goal. The Iguanas were tracking back quickly, but unfortunately a sliding tackle brought their player down just outside the box for a free kick. A wall was set, but the free kick was very, very well taken leaving Oliver no real chance in goal. A salutary lesson for us to stay on our feet in the tackle as despite us being by far the stronger team to now, the scores were now level.

The Iguanas did not let their heads go down however, and started to build pressure once more from the kick off. Valley Green’s goal had given them some renewed energy though and James and Oliver were called on to snuff out another attack. But it was from this that Oliver released the ball neatly to Isaac, who travelled with the ball and passed well to Lewis who in turn gained more ground on Valley Green, taking on their midfielders. A well-timed pass saw Thomas on the ball and with an excellent take the Iguanas were once more in the lead.

As half time approached the Iguanas continued to exert control with great strength and awareness throughout the team, Rokas and Stanley battling well to disrupt the Valley Green players whenever they tried to build a move.

Half Time.

The restart saw Oliver, Rui, the two Ethans, Travis, Lewis and Thomas take to the pitch and they started where we’d left off. A strong break, with Travis showing great determination as he passed the ball to EthanT, saw Ethan run at the Valley Green defence and able to get a shot away on goal within just a couple of minutes of the game restarting. The Valley Green keeper made a decent save but couldn’t hold the ball, and Thomas was straight onto the rebound and put the ball in the back of the net!

The Iguanas weren’t content with this and continued to apply a lot of pressure, again pinning Valley Green back into their own half consistently.

Both Lewis and Thomas were now causing the Valley Green defence real issues, with Lewis in particular close to adding to the goals on a couple more occasions. These breaks were well assisted by lovely passing from midfield by Travis and EthanT, and on the rare occasions they were beaten by Valley Green, Rui and EthanR were there to mop up, and Oliver remained alert with some pretty straightforward collects.

Just short of the halfway point in the second half, another Iguanas’ break led to a corner which Lewis readied to take. With the game nicely in control Rui pushed up into the Valley Green area with EthanR pushing up but ensuring we had cover. The corner was well taken (Lewis causing the Valley Green team trouble with his corner kicks the whole match) and Rui was on hand in the centre of the goal to see the ball in and join in on the goal action.

Rokas, Stanley, Isaac and James came on to relieve Travis, the two Ethans and Rui. The switch demonstrated that the Iguanas have strength in depth and the whole team continued to apply a lot of pressure and push into the Valley Green half. Rokas was particularly strong in the tackle, with Valley Green rarely able to get past and him showing good strength in retaining the ball and releasing team mates.

Valley Green were once more pegged back into their own half and having to resort to long balls, while the Iguanas were passing the ball around well, creating space, gaining distance and tracking back really nicely on the occasions it looked like danger might build, James and Isaac showing we have plenty of defensive ability through the team.

Despite plenty of pressure, and some nice control by Stanley down the left wing, the Iguanas couldn’t add to their tally though. Valley Green had gone very defensive, understandably given the pressure, which made further goal scoring opportunities difficult. But the Iguanas always looked under control.

Then, immediately before full time, the Iguanas switched off momentarily to the danger of the long balls that Valley Green had had to play for much of the match. A long ball from their keeper went beyond the Iguanas and released several Valley Green players. Oliver came out for the interception and met the first Valley Green players hard, winning the ball. But unfortunately it ricocheted off and into the path of another Valley Green player who managed to put the ball into the Iguanas net. This was totally against the run of play for the whole game, but a further lesson for the Iguanas to keep alert throughout the whole game.

The full-time whistle blew almost immediately after. A fantastic result for the Iguanas and an incredibly strong performance with every single player doing their bit. The team looked in control throughout the game leaving their opponents with few opportunities to attack. The whole team showed fantastic awareness and the passing was very, very good. With the majority of the team only having been together for a short period, they should be on course to do well this season.

Iguana of the Match : Thomas – pulsating runs down the wings, excellent tracking back to win and re-win the ball and two brilliantly taken goals. Fantastic performance.