Match Report
As I sat in my wife’s Mini broken down on the side of the A50 having foolishly run out of petrol on route to Repton, I thought to myself… today is going to be a bad day. But like the Ringo Star of the Ramblers, I get by with a little help from my friends. And when I’m in need, Dave Birrell is a friend indeed. Within 10 minutes he swooped in and saved my ass with a full cannister of petrol and a cheeky smile. Playing Centre Back for the Ramblers he’s used to being an unsung hero with several last ditch efforts narrowly averting disaster.
I sputtered on to Repton and my innate pessimism was further peaked when I saw that they were just putting the finishing touches on the largest sporting complex I have ever seen. I can only assume it is part of a late bid to host the 2020 Olympics. My fears were further compounded when the Repton 3XI team took the field and I also realised that their Olympics eugenics programme was also well under development with a team of 16-17 year old giants. With that many players over 6 foot there must be something in the water in Derbyshire.
Meanwhile, this week, the plucky Ramblers 3rds XI were a mish-mash of regulars, young recruits from the development squad and a few Vets sprinkled on top. A veritable salad of starch, green bananas and soggy strawberries. Repton soon set upon us like their Olympic dreams depended upon it. With some crisp passing straight out of their training ground(s) they quickly scored a goal. I know it was supposed to be a game of Men v Boys but it was hard to figure out which was which. 0-1
We steadied the ship and soon got back into the game. On what may have been our first expedition up field Jon equalised with an exquisite lobbed finish from outside the box taken with his first touch… it was so good, I almost suspected it wasn’t deliberate. I would have asked but I know a gentleman never tells. Thankfully, they all count. 1-1. I don’t know what we would have done if we didn’t have Mr Minchin.
Shortly thereafter, inspired by Jon’s example, Ollie also chipped in with his own sublime lobbed pass up field (if you excuse the awkward double pun deliberately intended and still not removed despite requiring this lengthy explanation). Ant pounced on the end of it with a dangerous diagonal darting run. His first touch ruled out the defender, his second touch opened up the angle and his third touch completed the equation. One more mark added to his season’s tally. 2-1
I wish I could just end the match report there but, sadly, time waits for no man: for we do not inherit the earth from our ancestors, we borrow it from our children. And the Repton schoolboys were demanding their inheritance early. They started the second half strongly and bombarded our goal from all angles. Eventually our defence was breached when a bullet of a shot rocketed into the bottom corner after a cruel deflection against out our former President, Tony Warren. Having played a great half, he was genuinely crest fallen. Somehow the shot managed to go through his legs and pierce his heart at the same time. 2-2.
To their credit Repton continued to pile on the pressure and put everything on the line. Sadly, one of their players even had to be taken off the field of play after sustaining a bad ankle injury as he fired off another strong shot only to have the ball blocked by the last man. An unfortunate incident in an otherwise unblemished game. As I am currently relegated to the sidelines through injury myself, I understand his frustration and I know every Rambler wishes him a speedy recovery. Every setback only makes the comeback all the sweeter.
You see, you can’t keep a good man down; you can’t beat a team that refuses to be beaten and you can’t keep a clean sheet when Mikey is in nets. Repton pressed on for an unashamedly deserved goal with a great through ball and tidy finish to see off the match. 3-2
We may have lost the match but I am pleased to say that we won the day. After the game I received a message from the coach of the Repton 3XI that included the following comments:
“… I just wanted to write to express my admiration for the sportsmanship and good spirit with which your players approached the game yesterday. It really was an unalloyed joy to watch a game being played competitively and attractively but with a true Corinthian ethos. On a number of occasions I found myself smiling spontaneously and wishing that every match could be conducted in this manner.
…There cannot be many clubs in the country that deport themselves with such a fair and generous spirit, nor with such enviable human decency.”
Regardless of the score, I now count this match as one of my proudest moments as captain of the Ramblers 3XI. A salutary reminder that every time we step foot on the pitch we play not just for ourselves and our friends, but we play for something much more importantly than that. We play for the pride and reputation of every Rambler.
Ramble on…
MotM: Ant, Ben, Dave, Jon, Josh, Ollie, Mikey, Roger, Ste, Tim, Tom, and Tony. Well done for making the Ramblers proud.