Luck of the Irish

Ok - luck had nothing to do with it - Cumnor was comprehensively outplayed by a sharper, more dynamic and stronger team.  That said, we had patches in the game where we more than held our own, however it was a tough challenge and we just couldn't match Irish on the day.

The first 15 minutes were not Cumnor's finest.  We conceded a soft goal due to some poor tackling, then were somewhat unlucky with the linesman's call, before contributing to a third goal through a couple of mistakes.   The next 20 mins were much better, the defence of Harry D, Tom, Rory, Harry S and Kyle held firm and continued to play good football under intense pressure.  The midfield duo of Joseph and Alex worked tirelessly against a very strong pairing from Irish and we gradually managed to get moving forward.  Adam had a couple of long range free kicks and Nathan harried and chased the Irish defence.  Finally a chance game, and Doddy hit a great first time shot which was well saved by the Irish keeper.  HT came, and given our start 3-0 was a good effort.

Cumnor made a number of changes at HT, with Michael, Charlie, and Finlay all joining the fray, whilst Kyle was moved to centre back to cover for the injured Tom.  Within 5 mins a slick Cumnor move saw Alex put in a great cross, only to see Nathan's header hit the crossbar.  However things had certainly picked up, and the boys were playing with greater desire.  Joseph led from the front and tackled anything that moved, but Irish maintained a threat and the more Cumnor pushed forward the more we were left open to counter attack and balls over the top.  This vulnerability led to another 15 minute spell of conceding 3 goals, and we were 6-0 down.

Given the scoreline, the boys continued to battle hard.  Charlie worked the right flank well with either Harry or Adam, and this helped create a great chance for Adam which was saved by the keeper.  Tom came back on up front and his speed started to open things up and Doddy did well with two free kicks - one a delightful cross that should have been headed in, the second a good shot that the keeper saved.  Close to the end Irish made an mistake and Ben hit a swerving shot that somehow the Irish keeper managed to turn over the bar.  Cumnor were then undone by some tired defending and we conceded 2 more.  8-0 and a chastening experience.

Whilst the result was tough to take, there were some positives.  Rory was his usual solid self, winning many headers and tackling hard.  Joseph and Alex worked very hard against an extremely mobile midfield, Alex having run himself into the ground and being replaced 15 mins from the end. The three HT subs all had an impact, Charlie and Michael defending well and supporting out wide, whilst Finlay is adding some serious endeavour to his undoubted ability.  Overall though, whilst technically the Irish players were a bit better, their desire to win the ball was stronger in spells and this proved costly.

 

Summertown Champions Again

A great day for Cumnor as all three teams all made it to the semi-finals. The truth is, any of the Cumnor teams could have won. We were unbeaten throughout the group stages conceding no more than about 4 goals thanks to the excellent defending and goalkeeping from Lucas, Matt and Harry. The Cumnor Whites v Cumnor Reds semi was a tense affair with both teams unable to create much. Inevitably it went to penalties and for once, Lucky Lay's team didn't win the day with Adam shooting agonisingly wild.

The other semi-final saw Cumnor Blues beat Marston Saints. The key to the win was exceptional closing down of Marston's key player. Cumnor created far more chances will Will coolly slotting the winner.

The final was incredibly close with the Blues eventually winning 2 - 0 after a lovely volley from Will from Ben's deft cross and a great bullish charge from Alex. So congratulations to Lucas, Rory, Charlie, Alex, Ben and Will and commiserations to Harry, Harry, Toby, Michael, Finlay and Tom.

Well done to all, let's go one better than we did last season and win Grove.

Big Day Out Blues

Eventually, the pain will subside a little and we'll recognise certain truths:

1. It was a superb achievement to reach the Oxford Mail Cup Final.
2. The boys adapted well to the different systems we applied on the day.
3. No-one lost heart.
4. Ducklington set the standard for our age group in Oxfordshire.
5. Our time will come.

It was a strange old final. The 4-0 win was deserved but Cumnor played well and created chances especially in the first-half. But Ducklington's discipline, intensity, power, organisation and speed of thought and execution won through. There was little point trying to contain the League champions, we had to attack and an attacking three of Tom, Will and Nathan certainly asked questions. But we just lacked… something. It wasn't heart or desire… it was an ability to match them in the maelstrom in all areas of the pitch. There were some stand out Cumnor cameos: Joseph threw himself into every tackle, Fyn and Tom added pace and power up front, Will produced the outstanding moment of skill to bamboozle two defenders and create a chance, and Harry D made a series of superb saves… including a finger-tipped worldy. But it just wasn't to be.

We left the field bitterly disappointed but with our heads held high. Our challenge next season is to improve on our Cup and League finishes, work hard, push on and fulfil the true potential we have as a squad.

Player of the Week: Will and Harry, great performance on the big stage. Well done.