Thumped

Saturday 10th March

CML North Division

Easington United 1 Thoresby Colliery Welfare 5

Coming into this game, I was thinking what better pick-me-up for me and my sore knadgers than a Saturday that would see us beat the in-form team in the CML North, City breeze past Ipswich to reignite their play-off challenge and Rovers complete a second successive home win in Super League.

Suffice to say, the old plums didn't feel any better afterwards.
  

We’re currently going through what could possibly be termed a “consultation period” in the club at the moment.  This concerns the topic of where the club sees itself in 2012/13. 

More specifically, the question is over whether the First Team should continue to play in the Central Midlands League next season or do we as a club confirm our provisional resignation from the competition which was delivered in December? 

Anybody seeing our whipping by in-form Thoresby would no doubt believe the sooner we get back to the Humber Premier League the better.  You won’t be surprised to learn I don’t subscribe to this view.

"Oi! Get off the bloody pitch!"

True, Saturday’s reverse was chastening but despite the margin of defeat, I actually enjoyed the game in a perverse sort of way.  This was mainly due to the quality of some of Thoresby’s football, which again illustrated all that is good about the standing of the CML since regional reorganisation.

I know the formation of North and South divisions has had its critics but speaking from what I’ve seen, every club that accompanied us from the Premier has upped its game; and I include Welbeck in this.

Unfortunately, for us to be able to compete in this company we require a fully fit squad with every member approaching the game in the right manner.  Sadly, it would appear from the various social networking sites – not to mention the eyes on some of those involved at kick-off time – that currently we have players for whom Friday night is more important than Saturday afternoon.

Thoresby's suspect defence concedes its 10th league goal of the season!

This proved doubly frustrating against opponents who prior to the trip had lost just once in the league and conceded only 9 goals in 19 games. Indeed, when AG headed home his second goal in as many matches – to briefly raise hopes of a fightback at 1-3 – it was the first goal Thoresby had shipped in almost 600 minutes of league football. 

Given we conceded two sloppy goals first half, another poor one straight after the interval and two late on when we were chasing matters, it leads me to believe that with a fully ‘fit and proper’ squad we could have secured a better outcome.  We’ll never know now.

Cometh the hour...

There were moments to cheer me and the other members of the Farm Faithful "crammed" into the North West Ryvita Stand (helping take the total gross weight to a new match day record of 201 stone!).  News of a long-overdue first win in eight for the Stiffs probably being the most valuable.
However, the day's highlight would almost certainly have to be the sight of vice chairman Mickey Bo' manfully stepping into the breach following the eleventh hour withdrawal of a referee's assistant.  "Who's the lino in the pink?" no less! 
Of course at the lower level of football in this country, referees and their assistants still wear black and white.  It's classy.  Like the lovely Tracy Tracy.  God, this blog's links are seamless...