Bridgend 0-1 Gloucester by Wetty McWetterson
Gloucester travelled to the Welshlands for the second time this season in the hope of continuing their perfect record this side of the new year.
With passports checked at the Bridge and Whales [apparently] seen in the Severn, Coach Wixey continues to regale the triumphs and tribulations of the previous week when Coach Harris was MIA. The whole experience is made worse by the chanting riff-raff in the rear seats warbling, "We want Tony back, we want Tony back!"
Laverton and Hayes are two of the worst passengers, continuing to take far too much notice of Harris's expanding waistline along with Randall.....well, just being Randall.
Coach Harris has just about wiped away the tears from his cheeks when he arrives in Bridgend - only to find his cheeks soaking again, thanks to the miserable down-pouring of the Welsh weather...again.
As the boys are given their starting positions and kit to wear, it is apparent that a lot of the players have put on weight all of a sudden. Covered in skins and undergarments of various descriptions, Ansermoz leads the desire to stay warm by putting on his 14th t-shirt beneath his Gloucester jersey.
With the parents hiding away under the shelter in the distance (including Leo's mum this time) and the rain continuing to persist, the boys kick off the first of the four quarters. Both teams take a while to create an opportunity and the quarter becomes a very scrappy affair, with Limbrick, Thomas and Ansermoz managing to keep the Blues at bay for the large part - leaving only Gloucester to find a way forwards.
Chances are few and far between until Taylor manages to find his way through the Bridgend defence with some tidy footwork. A look up towards goal sees him try to pass the ball into the near post, only to see the chance hit the side-netting. However, this is quickly followed by a Randall corner into the middle of the area where Taylor again has a great opportunity to give the visitors the lead. The floated in ball is met by Taylor’s head, only to see a clearance from the line thwart any chance of an opening goal.
Bridgend have a couple of long range efforts that are dealt with by the ever-convincing Sargeant, while Gloucester continue to try and fashion chances for themselves. Harris, hoping to continue his rich recent vein of form has a few good opportunities, but just can't connect with the ball sweetly enough to cause the Bridgend goalkeeper any undue concern.
A great managerial decision (to remind Wixey that Harris is still around) changes the corner taker to Fortey. With his first flag kick, Fortey curls the ball towards the near post - only to see his cross-cum-shot fly under the keeper to give the away team the lead (a goal which is again missed by Leo's mum). Two minutes later, however, Fortey tries the same thing again and puts his corner into the side-netting.
The final two quarters see Gloucester struggling to create much in front of goal, but having to react quickly to defend theirs. Bridgend start to see the better of the ball and manage to find their way into the Gloucester box on several occasions, Sargeant saving a number of one-on-ones and pushing a couple of shots around or over his word work to continue his dominance of one and all.
The Yellows continue to defend, with Hayes getting in some crucial blocks and Thomas making some brilliant tackles before leading the team forward with his persistent runs. Williamson, also having a solid game at the back and creating some simple passages of play down the left, helps the boys attack whenever possible.
The final chances fall to Taylor who again has a similar run through at goal only to miss the target and Harris getting past the defenders in the box to create a one-on-one of his own making, only to see the goalkeeper equal to his previous good work and knock the ball away for a corner.
Overall, probably due to the wet and freezing conditions, it was a very scrappy game with little quality in it. However, even in their lack of quality with the ball, the Gloucester boys can be proud of the battle that they put up. Sometimes you have to grind out a result and that's exactly what they did to keep their good run of form going. Well done, Gents.
Gloucester: Sargeant; Ansermoz, Hayes, Limbrick; Randall, Fortey, Thomas, Taylor, Harris; Laverton, Williamson.
With passports checked at the Bridge and Whales [apparently] seen in the Severn, Coach Wixey continues to regale the triumphs and tribulations of the previous week when Coach Harris was MIA. The whole experience is made worse by the chanting riff-raff in the rear seats warbling, "We want Tony back, we want Tony back!"
Laverton and Hayes are two of the worst passengers, continuing to take far too much notice of Harris's expanding waistline along with Randall.....well, just being Randall.
Coach Harris has just about wiped away the tears from his cheeks when he arrives in Bridgend - only to find his cheeks soaking again, thanks to the miserable down-pouring of the Welsh weather...again.
As the boys are given their starting positions and kit to wear, it is apparent that a lot of the players have put on weight all of a sudden. Covered in skins and undergarments of various descriptions, Ansermoz leads the desire to stay warm by putting on his 14th t-shirt beneath his Gloucester jersey.
With the parents hiding away under the shelter in the distance (including Leo's mum this time) and the rain continuing to persist, the boys kick off the first of the four quarters. Both teams take a while to create an opportunity and the quarter becomes a very scrappy affair, with Limbrick, Thomas and Ansermoz managing to keep the Blues at bay for the large part - leaving only Gloucester to find a way forwards.
Chances are few and far between until Taylor manages to find his way through the Bridgend defence with some tidy footwork. A look up towards goal sees him try to pass the ball into the near post, only to see the chance hit the side-netting. However, this is quickly followed by a Randall corner into the middle of the area where Taylor again has a great opportunity to give the visitors the lead. The floated in ball is met by Taylor’s head, only to see a clearance from the line thwart any chance of an opening goal.
Bridgend have a couple of long range efforts that are dealt with by the ever-convincing Sargeant, while Gloucester continue to try and fashion chances for themselves. Harris, hoping to continue his rich recent vein of form has a few good opportunities, but just can't connect with the ball sweetly enough to cause the Bridgend goalkeeper any undue concern.
A great managerial decision (to remind Wixey that Harris is still around) changes the corner taker to Fortey. With his first flag kick, Fortey curls the ball towards the near post - only to see his cross-cum-shot fly under the keeper to give the away team the lead (a goal which is again missed by Leo's mum). Two minutes later, however, Fortey tries the same thing again and puts his corner into the side-netting.
The final two quarters see Gloucester struggling to create much in front of goal, but having to react quickly to defend theirs. Bridgend start to see the better of the ball and manage to find their way into the Gloucester box on several occasions, Sargeant saving a number of one-on-ones and pushing a couple of shots around or over his word work to continue his dominance of one and all.
The Yellows continue to defend, with Hayes getting in some crucial blocks and Thomas making some brilliant tackles before leading the team forward with his persistent runs. Williamson, also having a solid game at the back and creating some simple passages of play down the left, helps the boys attack whenever possible.
The final chances fall to Taylor who again has a similar run through at goal only to miss the target and Harris getting past the defenders in the box to create a one-on-one of his own making, only to see the goalkeeper equal to his previous good work and knock the ball away for a corner.
Overall, probably due to the wet and freezing conditions, it was a very scrappy game with little quality in it. However, even in their lack of quality with the ball, the Gloucester boys can be proud of the battle that they put up. Sometimes you have to grind out a result and that's exactly what they did to keep their good run of form going. Well done, Gents.
Gloucester: Sargeant; Ansermoz, Hayes, Limbrick; Randall, Fortey, Thomas, Taylor, Harris; Laverton, Williamson.
