25/11/2021
Date 20/11/21
Vs Bideford Blues (away)
League fixture
Last weekend saw the Shammy U14s resume their fixtures in the North Devon youth league. After enduring a difficult start to the season the lads found themselves sitting bottom of the table having lost their opening three fixtures to Holsworthy, Bude and Hatherleigh. The loss of 3 players to the Plymouth Argyle and Exeter City academies and a further 3 players joining rival teams has proved difficult for the boys to adapt, especially with 10 of the squad being in the under 13 age group.
However, the recruitment of new players Finn, Jaiden, Cosmo, Reece and Chase has bolstered the squad and the new lads have been welcomed into the Shammy family and integrated well into the team.
Saturday saw the first match of a double-header weekend which would see their best football of the campaign and some much needed points accumulated. The brisk winter morning got off to a disappointing start with the sad news that both Reece and Jake were unable to play in both games due to Covid reasons.
However, a boost for the lads saw the familiar face of Dean Moran return to the sidelines to assist our coaches Charlie and James for the first of the two matches.
The match got under way with Shammy opting for a 4-4-2 formation. The lads started well and were positive from the outset, not letting the previous results affect their confidence. It didn’t take long for the opening goal of the match to be scored with a trademark poacher’s finish from Josh Ernest who was first to react to a goalkeeper’s parry.
With confidence growing throughout the team they began to play some lovely football and were rewarded by an absolute rocket of a finish from Finn to make it 2-0. His first goal for the club.
One of the highlights of this season has been the emergence of Daniel as a key player for the team. His speed, crosses and thunderbolt shots have been commonplace in all of the fixtures so far, and Saturday was no exception. When Shammy were awarded a free-kick on the edge of the Blue’s area there was no other outcome than Dan smashing the ball into the bottom right corner, 3-0.
The boys continued playing some neat football and the best passing move of the game ended with a lovely finish from Henley, firing low into the bottom left corner to make it 4-0 after 30 minutes.
As the first half was coming to an end there was still time for a fifth Shammy goal. Some great passing through the midfield from Corey, Lewis and finally Roe saw Josh Ernest race through on goal and he ended the slick move with a lovely composed finish past the keeper. 5-0 at half-time.
The second half saw the introduction of Liam, Chase and Josh Braund. The lads began well but unfortunately the next goal came from the opposition to make it 5-1. This was a shame for the defence as Jaiden, Alfie, Finn, Adam and Cosmo had been faultless and really deserved a clean-sheet for their efforts.
Shammy played the second half in much the same way as they did the first, dominating possession and creating numerous chances. The goals soon began to flow with Finn and Dan each grabbing their second of the morning to stretch the lead to 7-1.
A couple of sublime strikes followed with both Roe and Lewis scoring superbly struck long range efforts to notch up Shammy’s eighth and ninth goals. In the dying minutes of the game Daniel whipped in a great cross from the left-hand side of the area and Liam was on hand to bundle the ball home to complete the scoring. Full time, Shammy won 10-1 and the boys were off the foot of the table.
Big thanks to Pete Evans and all at Bideford Blues for their hospitality. Also, a special mention to the referee who showed precisely how an under 14s game of football should be handled.
Date 21/11/21
Vs Morwenstow (home)
League fixture
Another day, another Shammy U14 league fixture.
The boys arrived at the Sham Siro with a spring in their step after the previous day’s away victory.
The coaches decided to keep the winning formula with the same starting XI in the 4-4-2 formation.
The game got underway and was a relatively even contest for a while. A Morwenstow attack down the left wing saw their speedy winger tripped inside the area and correctly given as a penalty by celebrity referee Charles Allman. Not much Jaiden could do about the well struck spot-kick as it nestled into the bottom right-hand corner. 1-0 Morwenstow.
The Shammy boys didn’t panic, they simply rolled up their sleeves and got stuck in knowing their football would win out in the end.
The lads took the game to Morwenstow and began to create chances, Daniel coming closest to equalising with a cracking long range effort which struck the crossbar.
5 minutes later Josh Ernest hit another great shot against the bar, the rebound caused a mix up in the Morwenstow defence and Josh reacted fastest to strike the ball home from a tight angle. A deserved equaliser.
A major blow to the team came soon after when stalwart centre-back Adam Stafford limped off the pitch and headed to hospital with what was later diagnosed as a slightly torn front ligament. We all wish him a speedy recovery.
The coaches readjusted the back-line with Alfie moving into centre-half alongside Finn and Liam coming on at right-back. The change didn’t affect the momentum of the side, Shammy were now on top and continued to press for a second goal. When it arrived it came in sublime fashion from the left-foot of Josh Ernest who smashed the ball high into the top left-hand corner after some good work by Cosmo and Henley on the left flank.
With their noses in front the lads moved up a gear and played some great football on a difficult pitch. The midfield were controlling the game with Corey and Lewis both winning their individual battles in the centre of the park. It wasn’t long before Shammy’s dominance resulted in a third goal with another clinical strike, this time from Roe.
With half-time approaching the boys effectively put the game to bed with a fourth goal, and a hat-trick for our fox in the box Josh Ernest. With his uncanny knack of being in the right place at the right time he was on hand to smash the ball home from close range with his trusty left peg. Half-time 4-1 Shammy.
Changes at half time were made, and both Josh Braund and Chase played well on the wings in the second half. Any sniff of a comeback from Morwenstow was swiftly dealt with by the defence, and on the rare occasions that the opposition got through they were faced with Jaiden coming off his line like prime Manuel Neuer.
Midway through the second half and Shammy notched a fifth goal, courtesy of Roe. His second of the game. Then to wrap-up the weekend nicely they added a sixth and final goal with a tidy finish from Liam after a lovely through ball from Lewis.
The two victories have lifted Shammy into mid-table and a victory in the final league match against Bideford Robins should see them finish fourth and hopefully grab the final spot into the ‘Champions League’ for the second half of the season. It’s all to play for.
