Wednesday 27 October 2010

Committees Shakes Up Management.

The Club has changed the way the playing side is run, as assistant and Treasurer Carlos Waterfield is promoted to Team Manager.  Marc Taylor-Penfold will Club Captain.

The decision has been made as Marc wishes to concentrate on on-pitch events.  Carlos has struggled to make in-roads into the first team and has increasingly been helping from the sidelines, thus it is an obvious situation.

Carlos' first official match in charge is this weekend's trip to Castle City.  The meeting time is 1PM, as the game is an afternoon kick off, with the Hop Poles Car Park (known as Mount Pleasant Car Park) as the venue.  Chawton's opponents have only conceded four goals in six games, so the team will have to take any chances that come their way.

Training is still being sorted by Marc, with Sunday's venue one possible place to train!

Div6 Cup 1st Rd: West Liss 4 Chawton Athletic 2.

Chawton Athletic travelled to Liss to take on West Liss for the second time in two weeks, with a place in the Division 6 Cup second round up for grabs.

A succession of injuries and unavailabilities robbed Chawton of a flurry of central defenders, so Skilts started at the back, with Martin Booth standing in for him in goal, after impressing in training.

Athletic once again got off to a good start, a real flyer in fact, and they duly took the lead inside five minutes.  A corner was was won and Nathan Ingram swung it in for Ben Hodkin to nod home.  With his shoulder!

And so the pressure continued to be exerted by the away side, with West Liss once again limited to counter attacking on the break.  However whenever they came forward, the back line with Skilts at it's heart, stopped them having any decent chances.

Liss did manage to force a couple of corners, but they were both well dealt with.  The second of them was cleared to Andy Vickers who had stayed on side.  One on one with the keeper, he chose to shot near post and the keeper saw it wide.

A rare attack by the home team saw the ball pinged about the Chawton box.  When the ball fell to a West Liss player on the penalty spot, he skewed his shot wide under pressure from right back, Karl Teague.

After twenty or so minutes, Liss began to get themselves in the game and started to look more threatening in attack.  Another shot went past Booth's post, although he had it covered.  The glovesman was quick off his line to claim the ball from West Liss' long balls forward.

A run from Nathan Ingram brought Chawton a free kick.  But the kick was overworked and the ball was cleared.  A run down the left soon after by Vickers produced another shot.  But it was well saved and the rebound narrowly evaded the other forwards following up.

A good run from the Liss right winger and shot was horribly deflected by Marc Taylor-Penfold towards goal.  But Booth produced a magnificent reaction save to turn it over the bar.  From the corner, there was a big shout for handball in the box, but the ref deemed it accidental.

Another five minute spell of attacking from the Yellows saw them win a corner.  The inswung corner was headed just wide by the defender, but it could so easily have been an own goal.  Moments later, a superb cross field ball from Paul Nicholson almost found Vickers, but it was inches too long.

Another long ball sets Nathan Ingram clean through on goal, as the nineteen other outfield players stood static.  But the Liss keeper was quickly out and Ingram could only hit the ball against the onrushing keeper's legs.

With the last kick of the first half, Liss completely fluked an equaliser.  The right winger was not closed down quick enough and was allowed to put a cross into the box.  However it was mis-hit and looped over Booth in goal, who could do nothing about it.  The score at half time was 1-1.

Liss started the better in the second half and took the lead, as a shot from the left squirmed past Booth in goal who got his left hand to it.

Hodkin then conjured up a long range equaliser that he dinked over the Liss keeper.

But the home side took control of the match and the last action for Booth in goal before he was forced off with injury, was to pick the ball out of his net once again.  A cross from the left was punched out by the Chawton stand-in keeper, but the ball wasn't dealt with.  A shot was pinged in but the striker deflected it away from Booth into the corner.  In truth, it probably should have been cleared.

Skilts moved back into his usual position in goal, with Pat Cross again taking up a berth in the centre of defence alongside Taylor-Penfold, who was having a good game.

Liss made the scoreline take a thoroughly undeserved look, not for the first time this season, when Paul Nicholson lost the ball in the box and the striker picked his spot to leave Skilts with no chance.

A further substitution was required as Carl Waterfield came on to cover an injury.  Unfortunately the game fizzled out into a succession of half chances for both sides, with another corner or two the best Chawton could force, along with a free kick in a promising position that was skied.

The match ended 2-4 in West Liss' favour, thus ending any cup interest for the Yellows this season.

Marc Taylor-Penfold got the man of the match honours this week with a commanding performance at the centre of defence.  There was also some fine play by Karl Teague at right back, who continues to grow in confidence and put in some good strong tackles.  Of course another two goals from leading striker Ben Hodkin helped massively too!


Next week's game is a trip to Long Sutton to visit Castle City, who have conceded only four goals in six games so far.

Friday 22 October 2010

Div6: Chawton Athletic 1 West Liss 4

Chawton Athletic welcomed ex-Farnham League rivals, West Liss (formerly Bluebell) to the Recreation Ground but allowed the visitors to take all three points away with them.


Athletic got off to a good start, setting about controlling the game.  West Liss were being limited to long shots and it was the home side that looked like they would take the lead.

James Russell, who's chundering
 was a particular highlight!
Indeed it was Chawton that took first blood.  From midfield, Paul Nicholson took the ball and went on a mazy run down the right.  He smashed a shot from fully twenty five yards which pinged over the away side's keeper and into the top left corner.  It was a lead that Chawton fully deserved.

The Liss side did manage a few shots on target, but Skilts in goal was equal to them.  They nearly equalised when the Liss left winger broke free and pinged a dangerous ball across the box.  Skilts knocked the ball out to their striker, but he found his shot cleared off the line by an excellent block from Matt "Wonka" Stevens.

The away side did equalise mid way through the first half, when a pass into the centre of the box allowed the striker to pick his spot, despite Skilts best efforts at getting a hand to it.

Luke Ingram takes on West Liss' defence.
Athletic tried to force their way into the lead again, with Paul Nicholson dinking a lovely pass forward from Ben Hodkin to run onto, but Hodkin's shot was saved well by the Liss keeper.

West Liss took an undeserved 1-2 lead into half time, when they scored again five minutes before the break.  Completely against the run of play, they broke forward and the ring winger crossed for a completely unmarked man at the far post to tap home an easy second.

They were unlucky not to have gone 1-3 up too, when the referee deemed a heavy challenge in the box not to be a foul.  They did win the corner, but the home side's defence cleared.  The score remained 1-2 at half time.


James Harvey feels the burn!
The second half, against the wind, Chawton lost their way a little with West Liss adding two more goals.  The half was more even, but Liss looked dangerous going forward against a makeshift defensive line-up which had seen winger Pat Cross come on at centre back!

Chawton did have the ball in the net though, but it was correctly ruled offside, as Nathan Teague had allowed himself to get ahead of Hodkin's cross pass needlessly.

Ultimately it did not matter and the match ended 1-4.

A good first half performance was undone by two pieces of poor play allowing Liss to smash and grab their goals.  The wind with the away side evened the game up in the second, but a slightly lacklustre performance up front meant the ball kept coming back at the Athletic defence.

Paul Nicholson, man of the match.

James Harvey performed well in a defensive centre midfield role, giving the team some balance that had been missing and Luke Ingram on either wing put the effort in and never stopped running.  Man of the match though went to Paul Nicholson, with another superb effort in the middle of the park going forward.  Hopefully his effort will be rewarded with a win when these two sides meet this Sunday in the cup match!


Meet at Mark and Spencers' carpark at 09:25 on Sunday.  Fines are in operation!

Friday 15 October 2010

Fines...

They are now in force.

Fines will be dished out for:

Lateness to matches - £2  (this is usually 09:30 for home matches)
Refusal to run the line or help with nets etc. when asked by Manager or Assistant Manager - £2
Not turning up on match day, despite confirming you would - £5 (i.e. match fee is payable anyway)

All monies raised from fines will not be going into the Club coffers though.  They will be kept separate and used for team bonding etc... which means drinks at the end of the season or whatever else we decide as a team to do!

Tuesday 12 October 2010

Div6: New Inn 6 Chawton Athletic 2

A first trip of the season to Cove was in the offing on Sunday, as Chawton Athletic attempted to be only the second side this season to take points off high fliers New Inn.

Manager Taylor-Penfold decided to change the formation slightly to counteract New Inn's free scoring football, with a 4-3-2-1 look about the side.  In front of Skilts was a back line of Williams - D Nicholson - Stevens - Channon.  In front of the back line were the midfield trio of Taylor-Penfold with P Nicholson and L Ingram either side of him.  Behind the lone striker Hodkin were N Ingram and Booth.

A New Inn Player is watched all the way.
In took a few moments for Athletic to get in there stride and a few balls went loose.  The New Inn striker found himself free in the box in the first five minutes, but Skilts in goal was able to turn it over.  But for all the misplaced passes at the back, Chawton did look dangerous on the attack.

The game became more end to end but it was still New Inn posing the harder questions.  Skilts again having to be on his toes, making another save.

It took just over ten minutes for the home side to open the scoring.  A clearance found the New Inn winger on the right.  His outrageous lob left the defence and keeper with no chance as it dipped just under the bar, 0-1 to the Inn.

Hodkin gets a cross in.
New Inn were putting their foot in, and on one occasion from midfield they hit a ferocious shot against the right hand post with the keeper beaten.  From the rebound Chawton broke forward.  The ball found Nathan Ingram, but his shot flew high and wide.

At times Chawton rode their luck at the back.  A poor clearance again allowed the New Inn striker a shot on goal, but an alert Skilts was quickly down low at his near post to thwart his effort.  Unfortunately, the relief was short lived.  From the resulting corner, Skilts knocked the ball into his own net and New Inn found themselves 2-0 up.

Paul Nicholson tackles.
New Inn  should have had a third shortly after, but the striker put the ball against the far post when played through, the ball rebounding to a grateful Skilts.

The shots were coming one way, despite the possession Chawton was having at times, and from the previous kick, the ball once again found it's way back into the box and Skilts was once again on hand to claim it.

With challenges getting meaty, a free kick in the centre circle was flicked on by the advancing New Inn midfielder, but the ball went harmlessly over the bar.  From the goal kick however, a surging  run from N Ingram forces the Yellows' first corner of the match.  At the second attempt, the ball found it's way to the edge of the box but Marc Taylor-Penfold couldn't keep his shot down.

Skilts with a goal kick.
Athletic were in the ascendency by this point and another break forwards allowed Martin Booth (probably) to get a shot off.  It seemed to take a deflection, but the ref deemed it a goal kick.

Seconds later, Booth barged his way through the New Inn defence and this time managed to make the keeper save down low.  The pressure was building as Athletic really looked like they were going to find a way back into the match.  Another good through ball, this time from Taylor-Penfold, finds Ben Hodkin but the New Inn defender recovered with a good tackle just as he was shaping to shoot.

Wonka up for a header.
A run down the right hand side from Jake Channon forced the defender to foul him.  Nathan Ingram couldn't keep the free kick down though from twenty five yards out.  There was a suggestion of some shirt lifting in the box, but the referee did not see it... Moments later a run from Paul Nicholson was halted illegally and from the free kick another corner was won which comes to nothing.

Luke Ingram clears the danger.
A rare break forward from the home side sees an unchallenged cross headed against the bar.  The first rebound is well saved by Skilts and the second is put wide under pressure.  And completely against the run of play, some slack defending gifts New Inn a third before half time.

Chawton had a chance to pull one back before half time though.  Luke Ingram's thirty yard dipping shot was acrobatically saved by the home keeper.  But it was from this corner that Athletic did find a way back into the game.  The ball pinged around the box and Luke Ingram was brought down.  The task fell to designated penalty taker, Hodkin, to send the keeper the wrong way for 1-3.  This remained until half time.
Hodkin slots home the penalty.

A good start to the second half saw Booth through on goal, but he pulled his shot wide of the post.  At the other end, a long shot is saved by Skilts and from the resulting corner New Inn have the ball in the net, only to see it ruled out for a foul.

Channon is for the tackle.
Paul Nicholson had the bit between his teeth and several runs forward brought shots on goal, but none could find the net.  The game becoming more end to end again, and a poor ball by Olly Williams saw a New Inn shot go narrowly over the bar, with Skilts covering.

Taylor-Penfold runs.
First blood in the second half went to New Inn after ten minutes of the second half, with a drilled shot from the centre of the box making it 1-4.  This gave them the initiative once more, as they pulled the defenders out of position, but the Athletic defence managed to recover, time and again and then Paul Nicholson puts in the challenge when the defence are beaten.

New inn then made it 1-5, as the ball is pinballed around the box.  The final shot took a wicked deflection to leave Skilts with no chance at all.

Substitute Nathan Teague set about using his pace to put the New Inn defence under pressure.  One of his runs resulted in him being pulled back on the edge of the box and a free kick awarded.  Luke Ingram stepped up to hit it low into the bottom right corner for 2-5.  A goal Chawton easily deserved.

Luke Ingram pulls a goal back from a free kick.
A sumptuously dinked ball into the box finds Ingram but he was muscled out of the shot.  At the other end, Karl Teague shepherded the ball out for a goal kick after coming on.

Paul Nicholson's silky skills.
The game's scoreline took a further negative twist, as a corner was not marked up well enough.  The on-running midfielder free to pick his spot, although he was lucky to get it through the man on the post.

Chances continued to come the way of both sides way though, with Hodkin scuffing a shot at the keeper.  Skilts stopped the result taking a further unfair touch with a superb double saved after Paul Nicholson had lost the ball on the edge of the box.

Substitute Nathan Teague.
He almost redeemed himself straight away with the last shot of the game, but his thirty yard effort went over the bar.  The game ended 2-6.


Although the scoreline flattered the home side, as confirmed by their manager, it was the silly mistakes that again cost Chawton.  These will be eradicated with time on the pitch and further gelling of the new team.  The overall view was still a positive one, with highlights being our attacking play.  Paul Nicholson's running was a delight, as was his unflinching tackles.  Man of the match, however, went to the impressive 16-year-old Jake Channon at right back.  He was strong in the tackle, looked good when moving forward and again showed he is a force to be reckoned with in the air.


Next up, ex-Farnham League rivals West Liss at home in the league-cup double header first leg!  Meet at the ground no later than 09:30 on Sunday.  Fines are now in operation!!

Saturday 9 October 2010

Div6: Chawton Athletic 2 Imperial 2010 Reserves 4

Chawton Athletic threw away points against a pretty average Imperial 2010 Reserves side at home, who stupidly turned up in an equally yellow kit and refused to change shirts despite the home side providing them.

Typical of this season's play, the Yellows got off to a good start.  They passed the ball around, despite the wet pitch and blowing wind.  Nathan Teague up front was unlucky to latch on to a number a through balls in the first twenty minutes and the midfield did well in driving the team forward.

But Athletic were undone halfway through the half, when Imperial scored out of nothing to open the scoring.

This stirred Chawton in to life.  The equaliser came as a poor kick from the keeper went straight to  Ben Hodkin who returned the ball with interest... into the net.

But alas, the hard work in drawing back level was soon undone, when sloppy play at the back allowed Imperial to re-take the lead.

That was not the last action of the first half, as Nathan Ingram fed Hodkin, who made no mistake in front of goal.   The score remained at 2-2 until half time.

The team set about grabbing all three points were soon found themselves 2-4 down with twenty to play.  Injury and niggles had, by this point, meant Marc Taylor-Penfold and David Nicholson had been replaced at the back.

Gaps had started appearing in the middle of the park as Chawton attempted to get themselves back into the match.  Pressure was applied to the Imperial goal, but the away side's keeper had stepped up his game.  The home side were not being handed any favours from the referee either, who was consistently giving decisions Imperial's way whilst failing to get a grip on the increasingly aggressive tackles on show.

At the back, Chawton were remaining resolute.  Further forward, they had forced a number of corners.  One of these found it's way out to Carl Waterfield on the D, but his half volleyed shot was deflected over the bar by an approaching defender.

Time inevitably ran out and Imperial took all three points back with them, as Athletic went down 2-4.

Too many "switch-offs" meant Chawton paid a price their effort did not deserve against the twelve men of Imperial 2010 Reserves.  A highlight was the heading of Jake Channon, looking increasingly good in the air.  Man of the match honours though when to Paul Nicholson for a combative display in midfield.


Next up are league leaders New Inn, on their patch.  Meeting point is Anstey Park at 09:10 on Sunday morning.

As an aside, fines will be brought in for lateness, not showing up at all (when previously available - without good reason) and refusal to run the line when asked!  More details of these on Match Day 4...!