Captain Nick Hodder brought his team back to the Soccer 6's at Richard Aldworth looking for more goals and points than 12 months earlier.
But The Sporting Red Stripes neither improved on last years efforts nore sported red stripes. The squad was made bigger in an attempt to improve on last years near miss to the semi finals, but it was not to be. With Dave Williams failing a late fitness test back in Bath it left just The Ginge and Scissors to represent The Williams family, Toks was drafted in to add another over 35/ female player to the squad. Messers Dave and Iain Cameroon were also added to the team to bring more Gingerness.
Captain Nick, Clare and Ray Hodder all returning for a second year.
Madge returned in goal dispite a very unproffessional hangover.
The Basingstoke kit was put on and it was ready for action (dispite being f***ing hot).
The first game was to be a false dawn. A 1-0 win. The winner coming in the last minute of the game. Gooner Dave scoring in the last minute. He had promised 5 goals at the start. Little did we know that it was to be his last.
The second game was much harder and more physical (just how we like it). The Red Stripes had to convert to their away colours of Red Gooner shirts. It didn't inspire and the game ended 0-1, although 0-0 would have been a fairer result.
The third game will cost you big money to find out what really happened. But the Red Stripes ended drawing 1-1 with a last minute leveller coming from The Ginge.
Going on the other results it was now clear that the Semi's were not to be, it was about pride in the final two games, which is possibly why we lost them both 1-0. Scissors was injured in the forth game turning his ankle in what we were told was a towering header. No evidence on video or photo has been found of this event and we are left to believe that he possibly turned it trying to dummy the grass.
The final match almost turned sour when The Red Stripes came across a team who decided that Charity should stay at home. Fielding three 6 footers they thought that The Red Stripes were a team to kick about. Naughty Naughty, someone should have told them that this team can bite back harder if needed. So we did. Only to find that their opposite numbers were in fact just a bunch of whining old women who liked to give it but couldn't take it. The Ginge was almost sent off and had to be spoken to three times by the Ref after looking to wind up a player after a rather pointless attack on Gooner Dave in the fist two minutes. Imagine the heart dropping moment when Dave simply stands over you after you have just kicked him as hard as you can and simply tells you to "Calm Down", better kick harder next time lads. Ray also saw this as a chance to roll back the years and got more than stuck in. The Red Stripes lost the game 1-0 after conceeding a goal in the first 10 seconds, but thanks to the opposition the game wasn't about that in the end.
So no semi final, one less goal than last year and the same amount of points collected. Again no team scored more than one against us but points win prizes.
The Red Stripes I am sure will be back next year.
Third Time Lucky. |
