Like our recent fixtures, our performances of late have been very stop-start and after a rather humiliating exit from the County Cup we really needed to lift ourselves this week against Mytchett, a team that seems to be a thorn in our side with their gritty and determined style. The build up to the game was far from ideal; for one reason or another, training was very poorly attended and in terms of Saturday’s squad it was looking very shaky, with a number of players unavailable. On the plus side Phil was available to come and manage the team. This was one of those fixtures which we had to pull together for.

On Saturday we were boosted by the news that a half dead Pete Butler would be available along with Tom Pryce, but both would only be available for the bench as Pete had been out celebrating his 19 th birthday throughout the previous evening. Another big plus was that Fraz was around this week. But we were rocked before the start when northern hard man, Furno, had to pull out prior to kick off as he was suffering with flu.

The team; Will, Baynezy, Moo, Fraz, Dom, Joe, Pod, Jim, Jordy, Jiz and Jamie. On the bench; Prycey, Butters and Simon.

Before kick off Phil addressed the lads and made it clear that he thought the opposition would probably be very determined, gritty and physical and that we would have to compete and pull together as a team. We also desperately needed the points to avoid our season coming to a complete halt after just 6 games.

We started positively and set about making sure that we all got the upper hand in our individual battles, something we would need throughout the game.

On the sideline Beater was showing Butters where the tea things were when there was a scream of agonizing pain on the pitch from club captain, Jim Beckram. With Jim now writhing on the side like a hooked maggot, it looked like Pete would need to wolf down his boiling hot tea and prepare for action as the medical team went into action.

It was in this period and while down to 10 men that we took the lead. The assist came from the most unlikely of sources, with Dom making a very positive clearance that turned in to the perfect through ball for Jamie B. It was a difficult chance as the ball was bouncing as he chased the loose ball down on the edge of the Mytchett box, but he took the chance first time and lobbed the on rushing keeper with a sweet finish. 1-0 OFC

It looked like Jim would be ok to carry on but he broke down again in the Mytchett box shortly after coming back on and it was clear that the injury was serious. A dazed and confused Pete Butler took his place in centre mid.

Having gone one up, we settled down and started playing some good football. At the back we were very solid. Not for the first time this season, Moo was forced to play at centre back and he was doing a superb job of organising the back line. It was also great to see Fraz back in the team and he won numerous headers and challenges and wooed the crowd with a few classic bursts in to the midfield area.

We looked most likely to open Mytchett up again down the right hand side. Baynezy and Jordy were combining superbly but the only thing missing was the final ball, which often ended up behind the goal, too far across or some other less than ideal place. The easy thing to do would be to blame the player for not carrying out the managers instructions about taking 2 touches, but it is clear that it could only be the fault of the leaves on the pitch because players of Mark Jordan’s quality don’t mis-kick the ball that often unless it’s a deliberate attempt to lull the opposition into a false sense of security.

As the first half progressed we did create several chances to double the lead, but our blunderous finishing was the main reason the score remained at 1-0. Fraser’s blast over the bar from 6 yards was probably the pick of the bunch.

For the first time in a while, we looked like a team that was enjoying their football, we passed it round nicely with most of the attractive stuff coming from the feet of Butters and Pod. Pete was also attracting a fairly high number of fouls from an increasingly frustrated Mytchett outfit and there was a fairly amusing moment when Pete had to try and wriggle free of a cluster of 4-5 Mytchett players who were swarming round him like a shoal of piranhas.

Near the end of the first half we really should have got a penalty. Jiz raced diagonally across the box and was quite clearly tripped; although he stumbled, he was probably able to stay on his feet but decided to go for dramatic effect a couple of paces later with horribly obvious dive which didn’t fool the wiley old ref. I am sure Phil will want Jiz to pay a midweek visit to the Jim Beckram school of diving.

Although we dominated possession and the play we did have one or two scares along the way and in a rare defensive lapse when we failed to close down an attacker, Mytchett rattled our bar with a thunderbolt of a shot that could have quickly deflated us.

At half time Phil was pleased with the performance. There were one or two things that we needed to tidy up like the fact that on a few occasions we were guilty of running away from the player on the ball.

We expected Mytchett to come at us hard in the second half but the threat never really materialised as we continued to find time and space to play good football. Our good football stemmed from a very solid looking defensive base. In the centre Fraz and Moo never looked in trouble and always seemed to be able to get their heads on the ball whenever it really counted. Out wide Baynezy was doing as much in an attacking capacity as he was in defence with several raids from the back. On the other side Dom was like wasp at a picnic and constantly snapping at the heels of the attackers whenever they got the ball. In central midfield Pete Butler looked to be back at his best and the only way Mytchett seemed to be able to stop him was by bringing him down. Pod was also having a great game, not doing anything spectacular, but almost always finding another OFC player with his passes. On the left Spoon was also beginning to creep into the game more after a quiet first half and out wide he was beginning to find space for Pod and Pete to pick him out on a regular basis. Up front Jiz and Jamie worked tirelessly to make good runs and put the Mytchett defenders under pressure.

Our dominance of the game and Jiz’s efforts up top soon reaped rewards. It was from a Mark Jordan cross that the second goal came and it was Jiz arriving at the back post to head it home from 3 yards. This goal killed Mytchett, particularly as they had a player sent off for kicking out a Jiz when he was reeling away to celebrate. 2-0 OFC

Our 2 goal lead was very quickly a 3 goal lead. Jiz was now buzzing with confidence and was all over the pitch trying to get the ball and give himself another opportunity to score. His enthusiasm was soon rewarded when his run to the back post was perfectly timed and this time it was a left foot volley into the back of the net to put the game beyond any doubt. 3-0

With Mytchett down to 10 men and OFC brimming with confidence it was all one-way traffic and further goals now seemed inevitable. Sadly for Oatlands, we were all now feeling a bit greedy and goals from open play were difficult as everyone seemed to want some glory and there were some pretty wild and poor attempts on goal that were more likely to trouble the OFC match ball budget than the keeper.

Our 4 th goal came from a set play and courtesy of the head of Fraz who rose like a Salmon in the box to meet a Mark Jordan corner and plant the ball high in the net. 4-0.

At 4-0 up the game was safe but we were still very keen to keep a clean sheet and needed to retain our concentration at the back. Mytchett were still creating sporadic attacks and did force Will to tip a close range shot on to the bar, but generally speaking, Baynezy, Moo and Fraz were extremely solid and never put themselves under any unnecessary pressure.

Pete Butler got our 5 th goal and it was in bizarre circumstances. The ball broke loose to Butler near the half way line and with time and space available, Pete took a couple of touches and sized up a shot halfway into the Mytchett half. In taking his shot, Pete lost his balance and slipped, this seemed to affect the flight of the ball as it looped over the helpless Mytchett keeper and dropped in just under the bar. 5-0 OFC.

The last 5 minutes of the game were just wave after wave of OFC attacks and chances came and went for Jamie, Jiz and Spooner who all failed to beat the keeper from close range. But before the game ended Jiz capped off a superb individual performance with another 2 goals. His hatrick goal came from a corner which evaded everyone except Jiz who was there at the back post again to poke it home on the volley from close range and his fourth was created by Jamie. This time Jiz was lurking around on the penalty spot and with time and space available, he was picked out by Jamie and drilled an unstoppable shot to the keepers right hand side. 7-0

Overall it was a vast improvement. We all pulled together superbly and defeated a team that we always struggle against. This week’s man of the match was a tough choice, firstly because everyone was superb but if you watched the game you would probably say that it was a tough choice between 2 players. Although the scoreline suggests that it was all one way traffic, Moo was outstanding at the back with his composure and leadership and was definitely a contender. But on account of an outstanding and tireless game up front, not to mention 4 goals, Phil chose Jiz as Saturday’s top man.

Next up we play Cobham United, we haven’t played them before but they have had some good results and will no doubt be a very stern test. If we are harbouring any sort of ambitions of being in and around the promotion spots at the end of April we need make sure that we approach every game with the sort of cup final attitude we had on Saturday.

Next week there will be beers after the game. All players and supporters are welcome