MR Munchkins versus SJMSC Joeys

Round 8: Busselton 26 June 2010
By James Clark
Round 8 was the first rematch of season with the Munchkins and Joeys going head to head to settle some old scores.

The first half was hard fought in trying conditions with just a few golden goals.

Casey Castle threaded one through a sea of legs brilliantly. Jaxon Deighton was an absolute trooper giving it his all for the Munchkins when they needed him most.

Bandits Jasper Hillman and Huon House had a great run, always amongst the action.

Gratefully the sun shone in the second half as did Munchettes Ashley Jarvis and Lily Mondy who dazzled the Joeys.

Well done Munchkins.
Click images below for bigger pictures. They are: Munchkins Jaxon, Ashley and Lily.

MR United 2 def McKillop Marauders 1

Patrick Marzohl
For the last fixture before the holiday break Margaret River United travelled to Busselton to play McKillop. The team rested fast forwards Mehdi Balkhi and Scott Guthrie-Phelps, as well as seasoned campaigners Oscar Howse and Lewis Hayes for this encounter. For most of the game, it bucketed down with players on both sides suffering from the cold and wet conditions.

The slippery but hard ground made ball control difficult and both teams struggled with passing early on.

Margaret River played a three-two-three-two position that initially gave McKillop some space in front of Margaret River’s goal.

Centre back Mat Kevill however held firmly with effective support from right back Kane Duggan and left back Mitchell Winstanley.

After eight minutes, the midfield found into the game. Benjamin Smith fired a warning shot in the 8th minute.
The ball was deflected by McKillop’s keeper and hit the upright.

In the 12th minute, speedy winger Aaron Locke received a clever through ball from Sam Connell. He outran his marker and the intended loop ball to the goal mouth from the right flank resulted in United taking the lead. The ball sailed over all defenders including the keeper to descend into the back of the net.

The lead settled down Margaret River’s nerves. Jake Graebner-Bond played well on the left, trying to find the ever present Benjamin Smith (at left with Jacob Connell).

In the 19th minute, McKillop was awarded a free kick just outside Margaret River’s penalty area. The team built a wall, but the well-struck free-kick was directed towards the far post. Alex Williams in United’s goal stepped up and fisted the spinning ball away from danger.

A powerful run by substitute Harry Hick in the 29th minute resulted in Margaret River’s second goal. Dylan Johnson-Swainston won possession on the left flank and passed on to Harry who turned and passed in towards the goal. Henry Rogers beat his marker to the ball at the near post and booted it into the lower right-hand corner.

The players huddled closely at half time, dripping wet and with numb limbs. With a comfortable two-nil lead, the formation changed to a four-four-two for the second half to contain the result and control the game.

McKillop put increasing pressure on Margaret River’s backline, but the team responded well to the pressure. The visitors from down south controlled the midfield, but in these dreadful conditions, the game became erratic.

It took a superb distance shot from McKillop in the 65th minute to flare up the encounter. Alex Williams misjudged the slippery ball and it slipped through his hands to give McKillop a goal. Margaret River replacement players on key positions to bring home the three points.

The player-of-the-match award went to Henry Rogers for a committed performance and the encouragement award went to Aaron Locke.

All players were congratulated for their commitment in these wintry conditions. The team also celebrated their competition leadership at the winter break. The players then tipped the World Cup knock-out games before they were farewelled for the holidays.

Mackillop 0 v MR United 5

By Paul Brown
The United team travelled to Busselton on Saturday , with the challenge of not to concede a goal , as the defence had been leaking goals at a considerable rate in recent weeks.

In wet and cold conditions the skill level was quite high and the United team took an early lead, Zac Harney was doing some great work down the left hand side, and captain for the day Jesse Martin was leading by example in winning every loose ball.

Pierce Symons in goal showed great hands in dealing with any Mackillop attack. The half time score was 3-0 and we saw a goal keeper change which saw Kia Bako swap with Pierce Symons.

The second half was more of the same, and some near misses by the United attack and some good goal keeping from Mackillop, kept the score line to some respectability.

This was a great way to end the first half of the season and the players earned a rest for thge school holidays.

Eagle Boys Players of the day was Zac Harney for scoring a great goal and Pierce Symons for a superb all round game.

Undermanned Stingers Overpower Warriors

An undermanned U8 Margaret River Stingers squad of 6 players took on the Dunsborough Warriors in Busselton.

Within the first 60 seconds, Quinn ‘steam train’ Cargill Fletcher exploded past the Wolves surprised defence to slam home the Stingers’ opening goal. This set the tone for the match with the Stingers’ ever developing passing skills and effective use of space keeping the Warriors on the back foot for most of the game.

The midfield defensive pressure of Taj ‘the rock’ Spencer, Bryce ‘jetsetter’ Bennett and Noah ‘x-files’ Mulder enabled Quinn and Oscar ‘stretch’ Armstrong to threatened to score repeatedly – Quinn finishing with 4 searing goals and Oscar 1.

Anj ‘kung fu’ Kupfer-Hollis donned the keepers top and gloves, executing some great saves and setting the Stingers up offensively with the ensuing lengthy, pin point goal kicks.

There were no players of the match as with only 6 players everybody had an integral part to play and did so with admirable proficiency.

Final Score – Stingers 5 goals to the Warriors 2.

MR United 2 def Vasse United 1

Youth League Boys
By Patrick Marzohl
After their emphatic win against Bunbury last week, the hosts welcomed Vasse for a clash of the top two teams.

Margaret River’s 21 players’ squad was complete again however Alex Williams was unable to participate due to injury. The game on this beautiful Saturday morning was opened to the sound of vuvuzelas, the irritating sound of the 2010 World Cup, busily played by the substitute Margaret River players.

The game started as a very tight affair in midfield. Both teams recorded few shots on goals. The best opportunities came from Margaret River’s forward Mehdi Balkhi in the 27th and 30th minutes when he just missed the goals and hit the upright. Otherwise, Vasse’s defence was solid. Margaret River played Benjamin Smith and Mat Kevill through the whole game to give the backline stability, a strategy that payed off. The rest of the squad was frequently substituted to keep fresh legs on the pitch at all times.

Vasse came out all guns blazing after the break. They hit the crossbar in the 36th minute and a corner kick tested Jake Graebner-Bond.

[Right: Jake Graebner-Bond shows good hands with Jacob Connell & Ben Smith in support.]

In the 46th minute however, Mehdi Balkhi played a superb through pass to Scott Guthrie-Phelps who outran Vasse’s defence to put the ball into the back of the net. What a cheer from the considerable home crowd!

Margaret River had its strongest formation on the park and kept pushing. A great shot from Henry Rogers in the 49th minute was deflected, but two minutes later Mehdi Balkhi outplayed Vasse’s central defender to score a second goal. Changes were made to allow all players participation in this tight match.

Vasse took the opportunity and pressed forwards, however it was great to see that even the less experienced players holding this well-drilled visitors in midfield. In the 56th minute, Vasse broke through the defence.

Jake was already beaten when Mitchell Winstanley stepped up, clearing the ball on the line. What a fantastic defensive moment! Unfortunately, the home side could do little in the 62nd minute when a Vasse forward kicked in totally unmarked.

At this stage, Margaret River was all defence in true Swiss style. Changes needed to be made but the remaining eight minutes became World Cup drama. At the end, Margaret River United held on to the result and took the top spot in the league table.

Congratulations to the squad. The player of the match award went to Harry Hick for his invigorating play in midfield. The encouragement award went to Mitchell Winstanley for a solid play as right back. Mishka Marzohl took the lead in the team’s World Cup tipping competition. There is so much football going on, the whole squad is in seventh heaven!

MR Munchkins v GMAS Grasshoppers

Round 7
Match Report and Photos by Simon Jeffs
Saturday the 19th of June 2010 at Margaret River

It would appear that the Margaret River Munchkins have been staying up late for the last week watching the World Cup and gaining inspiration.

Team work is the new black, and the mid week training sessions are paying off with great displays of backing up and passing on display in this game against the Grasshoppers.

Despite a wet start to the first match, the Munchkins showed some great form with Danny Benedetti scoring a handful of goals with support from his other team mates Mikey Jeffs, Jack Holzer, Max Douglas and Jasper Hillman.

Jaxon Deighton and Casey Castle both pushed forward strongly with a number of scoring attempts while Munchettes Lily Mondy, Lizy Wilkie and Ashley Jarvis were an ever present defence capable of muscling out any Grasshopper attack.

Game two and the sun came out much to the delight of players and spectators alike. The Munchkins continued to play well, defending ferociously in wet boots and clearing the ball on most occasions as the Grasshoppers began to find form.

MR United 2 v Dunsborough 7

By Paul Brown
The United team took to the field on Saturday for their first game in three weeks and were chomping at the bit to play, as world cup fever was running high.

The first ten minutes were completely dominated by United as they played at a very high standard, and the Dunsborough team were pinned in their own half.

But as in most sports if you don’t take your chances you let the opposition in and in their first attacking move they broke through as they exposed the fragile defence.

This goal completely changed the pattern of the game and Dunsborough took control of the game as the United team started to panic and it wasn’t long before they broke through again.

With a half time break and a fresh positive attitude, United took it up to the opposition and got a goal back through a great strike by Kia Bako.

Unfortunately as the United team pressed up the field for the equaliser, they were once again exposed at the back and the more experienced team of Dunsborough took full advantage and scored two quick goals, which really took the wind out of United’s sails.

To their credit they never stopped trying and can be very proud of their efforts , as the score line does not indicate how well they played.

Eagle Boys player of the day was Jesse Martin.

U8’s Dynamic Derby

By Stuart Kupfer-Hollis
The much anticipated derby between the U8 Margaret River Stingers and Mambos left no players or spectators disappointed.

These teams play regular scratch matches at training and a healthy but friendly rivalry has developed over the weeks. The game ebbed and flowed throughout the match with the Mambos holding ascendancy in the first half and the Stingers fighting back strongly in the second.

Stingers’ players of the day were Quinn ‘steam train’ Cargill Fletcher for his scintillating second half showing skills well beyond his age, Taj ‘the rock’ Spencer for his presence all over the field and Hugo ‘boss’ Smith for keeping a clean sheet in goals in the second half.

For the Mambos, James Richards’ ball control and constant goal pressure and Luca North’s solid defensive play took out their awards.

However all players must be congratulated for the high standard game that ensures there will be no shortage of quality players coming up the ranks in the years to come.

Final score line, Stingers 2 goals to Mambos 1. Congratulations to both teams.

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MR Munchkins vs Duns Dolphins

Round 6: , Busselton 12 June 2010
By James Clark
On Saturday our Munchkins showed they’re made of the good stuff.

Make no mistake the Dunsborough Dolphins are awesome. But it takes real courage and strength of character to face off against such a strong team.

It was great to have Jaxon Deighton and Casey Castle back on the field, both clearly enjoyed themselves.

While Jasper ‘The Rock’ Hillman is a very welcome pair of feet to the tribe. Ashley Jarvis was fantastic, making desperate saves and impressive attacks on goal for the duration of the match.

Regrettably we only get to play the Dunsborough Dolphins once in the competition. Brilliant effort and determination Munchkins.

Captions:
Top: Munchkins on the rampage! (left to right) Danny Benedetti, Jack Holzer, Ashley Jarvis, Huon House and Jasper Hillman.

Below left: Jaxon Deighton and Casey Castle carving it up.