U13 Match Report - Tilbury 11 – 0 Sprint Youth - 7th March 2010

Tilbury’s match away to Sprint Youth earlier in the season was a tough game which Tilbury won 5-1 with a gritty performance. On this occasion, the Sprint team were well organised and physically strong. We therefore knew that the return fixture would be a good benchmark for how much the Tilbury side has improved during the season.

The match was played on a bright but bitterly cold afternoon at the Academy. The pitch was in very good condition apart from a small area in the corner of the pitch which was still waterlogged.

Several key players were unavailable for this fixture, most notably goalkeeper Liam Confrey, midfielder Sam White and forward Tyler White. Forward Paul Elliot started on the subs’ bench having sustained a nasty facial injury in a freak accident at school earlier in the week.

Centre-back Jake Prosser deputised in goal, Cameron Stansfield, Scott Thompson, Billy Dahl and Craig Josling made-up the defensive quartet, George Moore, Billy Smith, James Wade and Joe Carter were in midfield whilst up-front were Charlie Wilson and Ricky MacCabe.

The game was fairly evenly balanced for the first ten minutes as Tilbury settled into their usual passing game, sizing up their opposition. Tilbury began to stamp their mark on the game and their sustained pressure was eventually rewarded with a goal – a looping shot from the edge of the box by pocket-rocket Charlie Wilson. Soon after Billy Smith doubled the advantage with a long range left footed shot which dipped under the crossbar into the roof of the net. George Moore then added a well-deserved third with a clinical finish, dribbling round the keeper before slotting home. James Wade pitched-in with a trademark pile-driver drilled into the bottom corner follwed soon after with Tilbury’s fifth goal, scored by Charlie Wilson with a well taken shot from the edge of the box after slipping the ball round the last defender. Charlie then completed his first-half hat-trick with an opportunist strike from six-yards after the goalkeeper had fumbled a high shot into the path of our hat-trick hero. The first-half ended soon after with Tilbury cruising with a 6-0 lead.

In the second-half, Joe Carter took over from Jake Prosser in goal whilst Cameron Stansfield came off to enable top-scorer Paul Elliot to join the action. Tilbury continued where they’d left off and were soon 7-0 up – James Wade ran through midfield to the edge of the box before unleashing a great shot to beat the visiting keeper with just two minutes played in the second period.

Soon after, Billy Smith scored his second goal following a corner on the left side which bobbled about in the box before landing at Billy’s feet. He controlled the ball before rifling an unstoppable shot into the top corner. 8-0. Billy then completed his hat-trick with another long range shot from outside the box. The visiting side were completely demoralised by this stage.

Cameron Stansfield came back on (on the left side this time) whilst the excellent Scott Thompson had a well-earned rest. Jake moved into a more central holding role. The passing and movement from the Tilbury team was very impressive in all areas of the pitch. Many of their best moves started in defence with the ball being worked through the midfield with crisp accurate passes played along the ground. The Tilbury pressure was unrelenting as they went in search of more goals.

This pressure was soon rewarded as Tilbury’s tally moved into double figures. The tenth goal was scored by Ricky MacCabe following an in-swinging corner from James Wade, flicked on in the box to Ricky at the far post who tapped in unopposed.

The rout was completed by Billy Smith who rounded off another superb display with his fourth goal of the game – a mazy run through midfield followed by a well-placed finish to beat the keeper.

This was a comprehensive victory – Tilbury outmanoeuvred the visitors in all areas of the pitch, which is testament to the good work being done on the training pitch by coach Lewis and his team of assistants. The most impressive thing is that the whole team played their part. The defence was solid at all times and never looked like conceding. The midfield was dynamic with everyone working hard to retain possession and the strike-force up-front wasted few chances with decisive finishing.

All-in-all, a very satisfying performance and one that bodes well for next weeks top-of-the-table crunch game at home to Romford. Well done boys, keep up the good work!

great result lads keep up the good work and thanks for a good report hugh