122 SPORT - FOOTBALL
2nd XI Football
This success was built on strength and commitment throughout the team. Szelong, our Keeper, won us points in many games, most notably against Monmouth and Sherborne – where we recorded hard-fought 2-1 victories. In defence we had the ever dependable, no nonsense hard tackler, Bilal Akram, playing alongside George Bamber, who was a rock at the back all season, while managing to rile even the most placid of strikers. They were flanked by Jack Calway and Chris Toole, whose long throws were a constant threat.
The defence were covered well by Shiv Jethwa and Gus Mclaren, who both played a crunching game. Indeed they were the rocks in midfield, providing grit and determination that teams like Arsenal can only dream of.
However, our success was not built on defence alone: our attack was equally important. Goals win games and we
P17 / W12 / D0 / L5 / F51 / A33
Finishing the season with a win percentage of 71% would have given us a third place finish in the Premier League last year. However, we were not playing top tier football but were instead in the Mercian Combination League, where we finished a respectable fifth, again winning a record breaking number of League games.
never seemed to be short of them, as we recorded impressive 6-0, 4-0 and 5-0 victories against Wycliffe, Sidcot 1st XI and Downside respectively. Our midfield was tenacious, with Johnny ‘Ginge’ Stubbs, and Dave Barnsley, who literally ‘took one for the team’ against Wycliffe, playing with ability and determination on the wings. We had other impressive performers in both midfield and attack - George Dilloway scored an outstanding five goals and Ben ‘Borris’ Morris scored four. He deserves huge credit, not only for his cart-horsesque performances, but also for deflecting the banter he received all season.
Finally, a special mention must go to Tom Pearce. Playing in a similar way to Van Nistelrooy, he could never be relied on to chase down the opposition’s defence – we had Borris for that – but instead he provided a very real goal threat, scoring an impressive 21 goals, winning him the golden boot. He now goes down in history as QEH’s most prolific striker.
The entire team played with determination, and there was a real team spirit amongst ‘the lads.’ Those who joined mid-season - Sam Taylor, Mike Ware, and James Parsonage - were all excellent, while Ed Blancke was an inspirational mascot all year, contributing enthusiastically to a well oiled winning machine.
However, we could not have achieved what we did had it not been for the people around us. Many thanks must go to our fans (all five of them!), Wayne, Pete and Mr Pandya, with his minibus raving. But a very, very special thank you goes to Mr Ryan, who provided us with sublime tactics and a raw passion for the game. It has been a true honour to captain the most successful 2nd XI team Mr Ryan has ever seen at QEH - and, given his years, that’s saying something.
Jack Calway
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