On a bright and shinny December afternoon an off colour Gower team saw off the physical if not disorganised Camden 11.
The team lined up:
Rod-Dens,Wall,Treen,Sam Miles,De’ath,Mitch,Thompo-Fleshie,Muffdog.
Perhaps unsurprisingly in the heart of the holiday season some of the team were feeling a tad rough, this showed in a very slow opening period of the game. Gower were simply not quick enough into challenges across the park and combined that with a rashness in possession unbecoming of the teams recent form. It was if the team was waiting to concede in order to wake up. Camden duly obliged. They pressed high up the pitch, by-passing an errant midfield to force defensive mis-tackles allowing one of their strikers to skip into the box and finish well in the bottom left, 1-0.
Things got worse for the team as Thompo took a knock to the knee with less than fifteen minutes played, cue Toby Denselow coming on, De’ath moving from the left to the right flanks and Miles pushing into the middle.
Such a change meant that a very unfamiliar midfield four were playing together on a sticky pitch against a determined opposition. However the team began to stand up and be counted. Direct play along the left flank resulted in a good ball in from Muffdog to Fleshie who shot straight at the keeper who spilled it allowing De’ath to pounce and score his first goal in a Gower shirt. De’ath, playing his second full 90mins, is a committed and hard working playing whose flexibility allows him to play on either flank or at right full back.. a useful player indeed. 1-1.
Camden began to loose positional discipline as Gower began to switch the play elegantly. Eventually Dens nicked possession in the midfield and knocked the ball through to Toby who toe-pocked home from an angle under pressure. A goal made and finished by the Denselow family. The Gower family went 2-1 up.
Such a turnaround heaped the pressure on the average Camden defence. More hard work from Muffdog, who has to cover the most ground of all the players on the pitch, led to Fleshie breaking through to finish and put Gower 3-1 up and add to his top scorer tally of 6.
The second half saw Gower playing up hill and into the piercing sunshine of the Acton afternoon. Camden placed massive pressure on the Gower defence who were still sluggish in getting decent clearances out and not assisted by the midfields inability to win headers in the centre of the park. In this time Rod made save after save, his ability as a top shot stopper proved by the technique of not only stopping but keeping a tight clutch on the ball to deny to sweeping attackers following up. However he was to be beaten by a corner that was headed in the Camden’s best player, 3-2 and Gower were under pressure.
Cue the goal of the game and just what Gower needed. Hill played in Muffdog who beat his man and made his way to the left touchline before crossing to Toby’s feet. Toby controlled and under huge amounts of pressure from the onrushing goalkeeper, chipped in midair into the back of the net, a fine technical goal and just what the team needed. 4-2 Gower.
This lifted the teams spirit and we began to look better across the pitch, Mitch was breaking down play well and Miles’ attacking passing combined with Muffdog’s running was stretching the play. Another Muffdog pass put Toby in from the halfway line he ran and coolly slotted in the bottom right, 5-2 and game over.
So a hard game, a by no means polished performance but a victory and an unbeaten record for the team in 2006. The team can enjoy the holidays knowing that once again we have come from behind and won, and winning is addictive.
MOTM: Toby Denselow – Despite a tendency to drift when out of position his goals were evidence of a predatory instinct that was at another level. Camden’s defence simply could not handle his direct running and well placed finishes.
