Round 3 - 4 May 2024
Round 3 and Mother Nature sent us a reminder that soccer is a winter sport! How good was the rain though? Didn’t dampen any spirits on the pitch.
This week saw FMR hosting the Girls Only Jillaroos tournament on Friday night. Was a great thing to see all the regions young ladies out there playing with gusto, even if they did get a bit wet! With music pumping and the Canteen doing a roaring trade, it was a great night.
U6 Ninja’s
The clash between Margaret River and Busselton unfolded with excitement and vigor, akin to a fierce soccer match. Despite the anticipation of a long drive to Capel, the journey proved swifter than expected, setting the stage for an action-packed game. As the teams divided, the intensity escalated, with standout moments punctuating the field. Mo's altruism, raising his hand to bolster the opposition, epitomized sportsmanship. A breathtaking goal, soaring six meters high, ignited cheers from both sides, underscoring the electric atmosphere. At halftime, a strategic switch of fields invigorated the game. Noteworthy performances from Ashi, showcasing burgeoning confidence and agility, and Luke, masterfully orchestrating passes, earned them the accolade of players of the day. Gratitude extended to Charlie's mom for her refreshment provision, fostering camaraderie. As the teams prepare for their next home game, anticipation for another thrilling match brims with excitement, promising further displays of athletic prowess and teamwork.
U6 Warriors
It was another busy morning for the U6 Warriors who were up early as we ventured back up to Capel to verse the Cornerstone Cubs for Round 3. The Warriors experienced their first game with a little rain but this didn’t dampen their spirits. In fact, the rain injected excitement on the pitch, strengthening the team’s friendship as the players laughed and smiled together. Coach John’s goal for the day was for each player to pass the ball to a team mate, which the Warriors nailed! With lots of great passes to each other, there was plenty of action to be seen by the spectators. Highlights of the game included multiple long dribble runs by Georgia and Clayton and awesome power kicks by Oakley. After our important post-game opposition acknowledgements, the Warriors rejoiced in their efforts together and celebrated our two Players of the Day - Estelle Pates and Archie Bramich, for their amazing effort and persistence on the pitch. A big shout out to our Round 3 sponsor, Squid Lips, for donating vouchers to enjoy your delicious food! Congratulations Estelle and Archie! And well done to all our Warriors for another fun, successful and happy round!
U7 The Messi Kids
Today’s game was in Capel with the Messi Kids vs the Capel Wolves with a great turnout. The weather holding out for the teams today with not a single drop of rain, made excellent conditions for a game of soccer.
The Messi Kids showed great teamwork by calling for the ball and accurate passing to their teammates. Great sportsmanship demonstrated by 3 members of the team by putting their hand up to play for the Capel Wolves so everyone could play for the second half.
The two lucky Players of the Match, Max and Koby received a voucher to “Candy Cow” to collect a bag of tasty honey crunch. Shout out to Candy Cow for the generous voucher and well done boys for demonstrating kindness and volunteering to play for the Capel Wolves.
U8 Raptors
The boys played a great game today against Vasse Dugites in Capel. Coe and Nate did some fantastic work clearing the ball from defence. Arlo displayed some fast dribbling down the field and had some accurate strikes on goal. Cooper and Bodhi also had some quick strikes and keen attacking. Everyone played well as a team and were great sports. Well done Arlo and Cooper for POD supported by Squid Lips
U8 Rovers
The Rovers were back at home this week to take on the BCFC Raptors in a tough competition. The Raptors were by far the most challenging team the boys have taken on so far this season. The first half of the game saw the boys pushed defensively but they held strong only allowing the Raptors to get one ball past the keeper Matthew who put in a solid effort. Offensively the first half saw the boys more tentative than previous games but they still managed a few shots on goal and some solid passing.
After a team chat and some fruit the second half saw the boys start off with much more energy and drive lead brilliantly by Theo and Toby. There was a flurry of goals shared amongst the team with some great game play and passing. Defensively they were pushed again put held strong with an amazing effort from our defensive line Ithan, Sailor and Ari in goals, not allowing the Raptors to get the ball into the back of the net again.
Players of the Day went to Toby who was at his full potential in every position, showing off his amazing foot skills and powerful kicks to get us on the board and lift the teams energy early in the second half. And Ithan who put in an awesome effort in defence, stopping multiple shots on goals and clearing the ball perfectly from the backline to set up his teammates, solid as a rock. Well done boys
With thanks to Squid Lips
U9 Strikers
FMR Strikers v GMAS Braves
A great team effort saw a close game, with the teams going goal for goal for most of the first half before the Braves pulled ahead.
The Strikers came together well in the second half with excellent passing and communication, working well together to move the ball around the pitch.
Jahla and Jake dominated through the midfield, and Miles was strong in defence. Due to some excellent passing and goal scoring, Arlo D was player of the day. The Strikers were gracious in defeat and showed some great teamwork and communication.
U9 Dragons
On a rainy Saturday morning, the FMR Dragons hosted the BCFC Possums in Round 3 for another entertaining match. Showers before the game had kids slip sliding around the pitch, a taste of the winter sport season ahead!
The Dragons applied relentless pressure on their opponents, never giving them a moment’s rest for the duration of the match. The team were passing and moving with precision, creating openings in the opposing defence. As always, team work was at the forefront with the Dragons players working together to find the back of the net.
A highlight of the match, was seeing the players take a moment when they received the ball, to pause and consider their next technical manoeuvre. The team have also really improved on holding their positions during the game. This really improved the flow of play and worked in the Dragons favour to keep the ball in their possession for the majority of the game.
Players of the day today were Jedd and Jack, with gratitude to Squid Lips Margaret River and Eagles Heritage for the prizes!
U9 Serpents
The FMR Serpents took on the Vasse Adders at home on the weekend playing a fantastic game in the wet. Straight from the start the Vasse Adders began to strike quick scoring consecutive goals, but the FMR Serpents quickly found their feet and made some spectacular saves around the box.
The second half saw the Serpents come together as a team after guidance from their Coach, rise to the challenge and slither their way to a couple of goals, a great fair game was had by both teams in the rain, with smiling faces at the end. Our Players of the Day were Louis Grummit and Jayden Hangartner.
U9 Grizzlies
U9 FMR Grizzlies vs Vasse Taipans
The rain didn’t dampen the little Grizzlies spirits as they had another ripper home game against the Vasse Taipans. The Taipans came out strong and didn’t make it easy but the Grizzlies had some fantastic defensive play from Tyler, Elsie and Boston to keep the opposition in check. Our goalies this week, Osiris and Amelie were on fire, making some awesome saves. Our midfield and strikers, Archer, Zephyr, Dylan and Hugo had some great offensive passages of play and worked well together to put some amazing balls in the back of the net.
All round it was a great team effort from all the Grizzlies with Zephyr taking out Player of the Day this week.
U10 Roos
The Roos headed to Capel this week and finished with another exciting game with lots of defensive and offensive play and many goals scored at both ends of the pitch.
It’s fabulous to see the team improving their understanding of positions and communication on bigger pitches this year.
Our player of the day with many thanks to Candy Cow in Cowaramup went to Didier Dyer, who played only his third career game and has shown so much improvement in our defensive line, taking all the throw ins, and clearing the ball to his teammates up front.
U10 Storm
The clouds kept their rain as Storm took on the BCFC Falcons this week. It was a well played gritty game against a tough team.
Storm made an all-round comeback in the second half. The whole team improved, especially their passing and touch control skills. There was some great communication in the defence positions. Everyone giving all the positions a good go.
POD went to Kobby Seshie for some great runs on the field and some grand goals.
U11 Breakers
Under 11 Breakers Vs Dunsborough Titans
Sienna, Isla and Xavier showed determination in defense to hold out the aggressive Dunsborough Titans Forwards. Drayke found his niche in the goals to earn POD, outperforming all expectations to stop almost every ball, along with Fynn for his efforts on the wing. The Dunsborough Titans gained the upper hand even as the Breakers stepped up their passing and defense to prove they are gracious in defeat.
U11 Stars
This week's game against the Capel Wolves was an exciting one to watch. Full of energy and drama. Evenly matched teams with many attempts at both goals.
Lots of great passing by The Stars. Their confidence grows every week.
Focusing on taking a touch before passing and giving lots of energy to the game resulted in a win against the hosts.
Stand out players this week were Jaxx McCartney for his increased confidence and using his first touches and Hugo Christian for his determination at all times which led to a nail biter winning goal a few seconds before full time! What a goal!
U11 Jettz
We started our game off without a goalie, due to injury. So the team was a little shaken for a few minutes but then they were on fire, playing so well and working together as a team.
Tyla didn’t stop today. She was in there stopping so many balls doing big passes and getting the ball up to the goals. Flynn came out with such a determination and played with an amazing aggression to be an important part of the team with offensive pressure.
Thanks to Scoops and Burger Baby for our Player of the Day vouchers. How lucky are we !!!
U12 Legends
Great third game from the U12 Legends team, they were strong during the entire game and showed amazing commitment.
A positive attitude and consistent motivation have provided us with our first win for the season, great game from MUSC team, thank you for coming down.
Our goal scorers were from Densel and Cooper, with many attempts from strikers Ryder and Ashley without any luck, good game guys. Andi and Beau did a great job to keep our net safe.
Player of the game is Sangay for his amazing job in center back, thank you to Pies and Ale for your gift voucher. Great communication from the whole defense (Lokis, Caio,) and great support from the midfield Zed and Bella .
See you next week for more adventures of the legends
U12 Wyverns
An impressive team effort sawe the Wyverns play a cracking game against Busselton Bullets. Their improvement from the week before was really noticeable and it made Coach Gary proud. The team was really impressive all the way through with some good football played. The game consisted of some great runs, and impressive passing of the ball between team mates. As a brand new team in only their second game it is promising to see them learning and improving every time they touch the football. Next step is to score!
Coach Gary found it really hard to pick a Player of the Day with the great improvement from all however the 2 awards went to Banjo Clocherty-Coumbe for workmanship as a defender and midfielder and player of the match went to Sam O’Beirne who went in goal when asked and for his work rate upfront and shots taken.
U13 Rockets
The wet pitch and occasional rain didn’t stop the Rockets from pushing forward from the moment the whistle blew. During the first half, the Rockets worked hard to keep putting pressure and finding each other on the pitch, creating beautiful opportunities; pushing Cornerstone’s defence to their limits. And then it happened, a mistake from Cornerstone saw the Rockets take the opportunity and Hayden scored a beautiful out-of-the-box shot. Moments later another skilful pass saw Hayden taking an incredible shot, scoring another goal.
Pressure was real and the Rockets dominated the first part of the game. But on the second half, a mistake from Rocket’s defence saw Cornerstone run for the goal scoring a great goal. The players found a rhythm on the second part game, and Hayden scored yet another beautiful goal. Even with fatigue settling in, the team was attacking and defending with the same energy and determination we are so used to watch on a Rockets match. The game finished with a skilful kick from Darcy shaking the net one last time.
Incredible game from both the Rockets and Cornerstone, congratulations to the players of the day Hayden and Oli. Shout out to our POD sponsors this week, The Berry Farm and Amaze’n, we love you!
U14 Tigers
The game started strong with the Tigers kicking the first goal. This continued throughout the game, winning 8-2 against Vasse.
The player of the match was Fiona Heyink. Great job. Many thanks to Scoops Farm for voucher and supporting our club.
U14 Sharks
If there isn’t fierce competitive energy, controversial refereeing decisions, and beautiful moments of football, are you even playing soccer in Dunsborough?
The blues didn’t waste any time ‘wandering’, they meant business right from the whistle. The first half proved to be close, with possession equal, and chances for both teams. The Wanderers snuck ahead late in the second half, sliding a couple of goals in, despite an incredibly solid effort by the Sharks defenders; Kai Hillier, Max Prolongeau, and Benji Willing in goals.
In the second half, the Sharks came out swinging. The Wanderers hadn’t anticipated the nimble feet of Benji Willing, who had no trouble dancing around the defence. The Sharks found momentum, a beautiful shot from midfielder, Rainer de Vries found the back of the net, and put them on the score card, the score 2 goals to 1. Unfortunately for the Sharks, Dunsborough just seemed able to convert on every opportunity, and after some unlucky calls, the final score was 4 goals to 1, in favour of the Wanderers.
Stellar performances were seen by Ava Yee-Wilson, so consistent in her defence, but also shining in attack this week, with confident passing and dribbling down the line. Joint POD went to Kai Hillier for his hard work in the back line, and to Reid Kemp who played so well throughout the match, with solid tackles and passing. Thanks to Burger Baby for the POD vouchers!
U15 The Blaze
Competition was strong against FMR The Blaze and Dunsborough Jets. Both teams hit the ground running with 50/50 possession throughout the whole game. First goal was scored by Stirling with the second by Ethan as the GK had moved away from the goals. One goal then scored by Duns.
There was some strong defence by two of our defenders along the left side. The Coachs’ guidance on how to play that role helped the players stay strong but both were quite exhausted at the end! Some Duns players were strong and our defence was challenging which only frustrated them. Jarrah made a number of great saves in goal with his usual aplomb, and the work by the wings getting up and bay was fantastic, so was our midfield.
Duns Jets are a strong team but so is the newly combined The Blaze taking out the game 2-1 in our favour. It’s great to see players embracing the challenge and work of being in different positions
POD went to Lisa Botha.
YL Wanderers
After two losses to start the season, Margaret River travelled to Bovell Oval Busselton to take on Cornerstone in the Youth League. Looking for a win to keep their season on track Margaret River could not of asked for a better start, finding the back of the net within 45 seconds thanks to great team work with Taj weaving his way through the centre and passing to Ryder, with Lucas putting the finishing touches to a fine team goal. Another Ryder / Lucas combination almost resulted in another goal five minutes later, but unfortunately it wasn't to be. Cornerstone struck back with an equaliser not long after and another soft goal ten minutes later due to a lack of communication in defence from Margaret River.
The first half finished with Margaret River under pressure due to Remi being sidelined with a hip tweak and Ryder off, bleeding from the mouth. Cornerstone's long game was proving effective, constantly putting our defenders under pressure.
The second half began with Margaret River looking like the walking wounded as both Lucas and Zane injured their ankles. This building injury toll allowed other Margaret River players to step up and play some of their best football for the year. Jaiden positioned himself well up forward and and found himself having an influence. Caspian had another good game and Cohen always has a big influence week in and week out. The clear shining light for Margaret River this week was Player of the Day Xavier playing a very attacking roll from centre back. Great to see.
The game culminated in a 4 to 1 loss to Margaret River, but there was certainly plenty of pluses to take out of the game. The short game, possession style of play is starting to take shape with a few beautiful passages that could easily have resulted in goals. The team is beginning to gel and fitness levels are certainly up from week one.
This week we certainly proved that we don't need our strongest team on the pitch to be competitive. A couple of things to improve on are definitely communication between players and finishing off once the opportunity to score arises. All in all, not the result the players were looking for, but definitely a step in the right direction. Thanks to Pies and Ale for the voucher.