Notre Dame SA 8 vs 2 Jim Baxter Memorial 2004 F

This game had been forced to be moved to our opponents ground in Coatbridge due to NL Leisure calling all games off at Ravenswood due to waterlogged pitches at Ravenswood. If we had knew the grass hadnt been cut for over a month then we would have postponed the game. We were also a man down today, so we are still looking for a settled starting 11, as the starting 11 is continuously changing due to availability of players.

The game didnt start to plan and you could see the boys were struggling with the long grass, however it was the same for both teams, but all the same it was a surface that was a complete joke. The boys went behind in the early stages due to some great movement from their opponents and the boys tried their best to get back on level terms. However we gave them too much respect in the first half and were a yard too short at every ball. It didnt help when Ben Brown was challenged with studs showing which resulted in him being substituted and spent the rest of the game nursing a knee injury. Yet again the team was rearranged which resulted in Kenny Gemmell scoring on the 20 minutes, great goal!!!! The boys looked more up for it after the goal but the opposition punished the boys with a further 2 goals going into the break.

HT 5-1

At the half time chat all I wanted the boys to do was fight back and play more as a team. However it was very difficult on todays surface. The boys played much better in the second half and had a few chances to score which unsettled Notre Dame. It was the best spell of the game for the boys, and for the second time in the game Kenny Gemmell smashed the ball into the back of the net. The boys went on to create more chances however we just couldnt finish them off! The last 5 minutes of the game saw Notre Dame score a fruther 3 goals, down to some tired legs.

FT 8-2

Another lesson learned for the boys today, however every week there is some improvement. Much better than last week, but this was due to a couple of key players returning from holiday. The boys know what they need to do, work hard, train hard and play hard. Roll on Tuesday boys!!!!!!