Depleted Ducks Maintain Good Form

The illness jinx that has bugged the squad in recent times continued with 5 absentees this morning meaning that we only travelled with 13 players which forced us to field one team of 7 players and one team of 6.

The team of 7 was managed by Helder and consisted of Toby C (GK), Igor C, Harry G, Kaelin S, Aqib Z, Charlie D and Jack R whilst the team of 6 was managed by Lee and consisted of Oliver F (GK), Josh H, Andrew C, Elliott B, Ben P and Josh C.

In all truthfulness the two squads were evenly matched throughout and all four games could have gone either way. Helder's team's first game saw the visitors record a narrow victory whilst their second game saw both teams score a goal a piece and share the spoils with the young ducks having the lead until the very last knockings of the game. Kaelin S continued his fine recent goal scoring form in this match.

Lee's team narrowly edged their first game by the odd goal in 5 thanks to goals from Josh H, Andrew C and Josh C and more excellent goalkeeping from Oliver F whilst their second game saw us defeated by the only goal of the game although we did rattle the crossbar through Andrew C in the second half as lady luck decided not to be on our side for possibly the first time this season.

Manager Lee's thoughts on the game were as follows "I think the demands of the first half of the season are starting to catch up with us and we are all in need of the forthcoming Christmas break. In the second game my team played the boys seemed tired and whilst they seemed alert mentally they were suffering from heavy legs which is understandable given we have had a game a week since the middle of September (apart from half term) which when also taking into account the boys' commitments to both their schooling and other extra curricular activities means they have been very busy. I don't want to be seen to be making excuses but it is easy to forget we are only dealing with 9/10 year old players here.

That having been I remain impressed by the progress made across the squad, especially in the team managed by Helder today where I have tried to give greater responsibility to players like Kaelin S, Charlie D, Harry G and Igor C as I know they are capable of taking this responsibility on and they are all well on the way to becoming fantastic footballers. Aqib Z has been the find of the season so far for me, his man of the match performance today shows how quickly he has adapted to the holding midfield role he has played since joining us in the summer.

My two goalkeepers - Oliver F and Toby C are improving week on week and are gaining more and more confidence as a result and we all know that if you are playing in a position that involves throwing yourselves at people's feet the one thing you need is confidence. To have the luxury of two players so keen to take on the role of goalkeeper and learn the trade of a goalkeeper is something I have not previously experienced in my time with the club.

We have players experiencing their first season of regular football like Ben P and Jack R who are both learning more about the art of defending as each week passes. Jack has drawn praise for his continued improvement over recent weeks whilst Ben is without doubt one of the toughest tacklers in the squad and a real asset to us as a result.

Players like Andrew C, Josh H and Elliott B bring so much creativity to our squad and may grab the headlines with their goal scoring exploits but such players are always reliant on having a strong team behind them as this enables them to express themselves. Josh C has already matched his best goal scoring season for the club (8 goals) with still over half a season to play and being his Dad I am his harshest critic as he learns to play as a forward rather than a striker.

This is not to mention of the 5 players we were missing today - Edward K, George R, Jacob O (who came to watch us despite being under Drs orders not to play - outstanding commitment), Nathan B and Nelson who all bring their own qualities to the squad and I hope will be available for selection again in the coming weeks.

I find myself almost wishing the second half of the season away as I am really looking forward to taking this squad onto nine a side football next season as after two years of hard work, commitment and quite a few ups and downs we have the makings of a special squad - there is however only so much I can do to make this happen, the majority of it will be down to the boys and I know the achievements of the last 12 months are only the beginning'.

The U10s round off 2014 with home games against Risborough Rangers Blue (this coming Sunday) and Chalfont St Peter (Sunday 15th December).