Croeso to all from hot and sunny Wales El Presidente (star reporter, editor and propagandist) remains in temporary exile still basking in the reflective glory of SHWFC first European foray
In case anyone might doubt these facts a reminder that our hosts on Wednesday were Europa League qualifiers in 2016-17 season when they played previous winners IFK Goteborg
So this week’s Walking Football midweek extravaganza was the real deal The Old Saints (TOS) not be confused with TNS (the very thought) brought a decent squad of 17 players to join with 7 players of mixed ages and ability to enjoy a two hour marathon of Walking Football in near 30 degree heat The Lady Mayoress of Llandudno Cllr. Carol Marubbi was present to meet all the players and was mightily impressed with the entertainment
TOS we’re given the Home dressing room in honour of their visit, a facility so elegant that even the coat hangers were Llandudno FC branded! The access included the use of two tactics board The Cockney Rebel wasted little time in depicting Joe the Ghost’s imaginative positioning on the board adjacent to the main pitch Some things never change The provision of a handy guide of the First Team’s Fines Regime was food for thought Lord Rainford was mighty close on two occasions to being fined for clearing the ball outside the ground to the car park incurring a £2 fine for each slice Happily he did not quite find the car park so the Lordly purse was untouched
And so to the action With 24 players available El Presidente introduced all to the rules and vagaries of the game and deployed a selection method to enable play to get underway
The teams were;
Pink - Tony K, Jonathon Davies (no relation either) Connor Murphy, Welsh Paul, Sheila & Mika
Red - Peter Critchley (St Helens emigree) Andy Capt., Cockney Rebel, Ceiran Williams, Joe the Ghost and Martin Mc
Yellow - Dave Guinn, Jamie Wardle, Chris 4 G, Tom Derby, Les and Coach Davies
Blue - Haggis, Kirsty, Bally, Welsh Darren, Clint and Tom Guinn
The first round of games got off to a spectacular start with Reds and Pink providing a slightly one sided display The more experienced Red controlled the ball and we’re always too organised for their opponents Reds included 16year old Academy player Ceiran Williams in their ranks and he slotted in alongside much older team mates with ease Goals by Andy Capt, a bizarre deflected effort that glanced off Connor’s head to beat the keeper plus goals by Ceiran and Joe handed Reds a 5-0 win
There were goals galore on the adjoining pitch with Yellow romping to a 5-2 win over Blue who featured Llandudno Chairman Dave Guinn and Development Head Jamie Wardle alongside TOS stalwarts Les, Tom D, Chris 4G and Coach Davies The ferocious shooting from distance by Jamie was a feature of all Blues matches, but this became less effective in the other games as well organised defences crowded the area in front of goal to nullify the threat
Yellow managed to get the upper hand in their next match beating Red 3-1 in an entertaining battle 2 goals by Wardle sealed the win Joe ghosting onto register his side's consolation
Pink beat Blue by the odd goal in a five goal thriller At the break all players met the Mayor who posed for photos that will hopefully be used in the local press to boost local awareness of the Wednesday sessions
The last games featured the return match up of arguably the two best sides Red v Yellow The game ended as a remarkably one-sided rout with Red much too organised this time Keepers Martin Mc and Peter Critchley produced some great stops to deny Yellow Whilst a brace each by Joe the Ghost and young Ceiran plus a solo effort by Martin Mc sealed a 5-0 win that was a major shock The other match was much closer with affine hat trick by Jonathon Davies (Jiffy? but No Relation) and sealer by Sheila tipped the balance to Pink a narrow 4-3 win
As the sun hid behind the Clubhouse (mercifully) players devoured the pasta meal provided by our gracious hosts All seemed to agree the day was a huge success Those who had never played Walking Football were pleasantly surprised at the technical and tactical complexity It was above all great fun with terrific sportsmanship all round
The Rump of TOS who had stayed home to mind fortress Sutton enjoyed a close game
Teams were;
Red - Eamon O’Donnell (debut), Tom Stretch, Phil the Power, Nigel the even more Power, Grav, Paul Porter and Dave Bates
Blue - Disco Deggs, Citeh Geoff, Steve Honeyman, Kev Perrett (another new boy) Little John, Chris Willo and Lee Thomo
Goals by Deggs in the opening segment and a leveller from Grav delivered a 1-1 draw Honours even then even though there were no words from anyone to describe the night
Ruskin on Monday anyone? Im in a Different World* _ Four Tops in honour of Lamont Dozier who passed this week (and in honour of our International orbit)
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