Result: Loss 0-1 v Ryde Saints United

From the start the game was fairly well balanced and both defenses were busy fending off attacks coming from both ends.
Our defenders Nick,James,Jonathan and Adam did a superb job and worked well together in sometime, trying circumstances. STU scored half way in the first half and that was it as far as scoring was concerned.
I feel our attacking line made of Maddi, Megg and Samuel were not on the pace. They normally give a really hard time to any opponent’s defense but ,on the day the speed and combinations were not there. Trying hard they did but to no avail .Perhaps the fact they were all involved in the State Cross Country races the previous day might have something to do with it. on the other hand were having a very
All that being said the team performed quite well, the mids Jess, Duncan ,Josh Mc. Oscar,Calvin gave a good account of themselves and perform a great job,never giving much space to the STU mids.
There were several players whose influence was decisive in this match and it was a difficult task to pick the best one. I decided to give 2 players of the match awards .The first Player of the Match award went to our defensive mid, Josh Mc. who ran kilometers from defense to attack without stopping . The second award was given to our goal keeper Josh S whose positioning, authority and goals saving performance were excellent.
I thought before hand that it was going to be a tight and tough match and to beat STU would be a pretty hard job. Last year, the encounters we had, were usually in favour of STU in results but mostly in control of the game.
Although we lost this game, with a very contentious goal , which many said was off side,we did not lose the battle.The slightest thing could have tipped the balance to our benefit. We never were overwhelmed nor overrun by the opposition as it happened last year.
In fact we had a few good opportunities to score, which we did not transform in goals and to the very last minute the Pumas threatened to score.
Good performance from the team. We now know that next time we will have a fair and good chance to win. Better luck next time and well done all!

Result: Win 7-0 v Kenthurst

SCORERS: Samuel Dethan (5) , Maddison Hardy (2)

PHD controlled this match from the start. The Kenthurst defense was under pressure from the beginning and within a few minutes Maddison Hardy scored her first goal of the season and of the match. Our team played as one and did not slow down in their relentless attacks against the opposition’s midfield and back line. Our defense did not give an inch to the Kenthurst attacking players neither. Towards the end of the first half, the KEN backs, who defended gallantly so far, collapsed as Samuel Dethan scored 2 goals in quick succession. The last one was the result of a great kick from Maddison that hit the goal post and Samuel was there to slot it back in.
The second half was a reflection of the first ones but got worst for Kenthurst .
Their midfield and backline was obviously tiring but the PHD players were not, and continued with the same enthusiasm they had when they started the game.
15 minutes in the second half Samuel completed his hat trick with a well placed goal.
A few minutes later, Maddison had a good shot at the goal which the Kenthurst goalie fumbled and let in. That was number 2 for Maddie.
Samuel went on to score 2 more goals which made it 5 for him for the day.
There were quite a few candidates for the Player of the Match award, but I could not go past Samuel Dethan who scored 5 good goals in one match. Well done Samuel!
All that being said, the whole team played very well . They also kept cool heads as the game became a little bit more physical and did not retaliate to a few rough contacts.
Two players scored the goals but it was the result of a whole team working together. Megg at the front did not stop harassing the KEN backs. Jess did also have her part to play in one goal as an assist. The mids, Oskar, Blake, Calvin, Duncan, Samuel and the ever running Josh Mc., kept control of the midfield and were involved tirelessly in attack and defense. Our backs, Nick (1st match of the season), Jonathan, James and Adam (who had some pretty aggressive tackles directed to him) were excellent. Our goal keeper Josh S. was barely solicited and did well with his goal kicks, most of the time finding one of our players.
Now let us not get too carried away with this victory. Next week will be a different story when we play Ryde Saints United. We will have to pass the ball better and work a lot harder and smarter against a very good outfit that will make us pay for every little mistake we make. Our players will have to play their socks off and for each other. As ‘The 3 Musketeers would say ALL FOR ONE AND ONE FOR ALL!
Well done team. You played well and fair.
Patrick Dethan, coach 14/4

Result: Loss 1-2 v West Pennat Hills

SCORER: Duncan Reid

Our first defeat of the season. It could have easily be the reverse score but it was not to be.
We let another soft goal in, in the last 10 minutes and that was it.
It all started pretty well though. We had a few good opportunities and 15 minutes in the first half Duncan Reid scored a good goal that put us ahead. It was not going all our way WPH attacking players gave our kids a hard time and were forever creating problems to our backs.
The second half was a fairly balanced one and both teams had opportunities to score however, WPH was the team that scored 10 minutes in the half and it was everyone‘s game at 1-1.
The ball was continually travelling from one side of the field to the other one and back.No time to rest whatsoever for both teams. Josh Mcadam had a great game in is position of defensive midfielder and had a couple of long range powerful shots that were not far of the mark and could have made the difference.
WPH scored their second goal 10 minutes from the end and we could not score in return.
I felt the team as a whole did not play as well as in the previous 2 games. Too many passes went astray and this played into WPH hand or should I say feet. Our like of finishing was also a problem.
It was great to see Maddison playing again and I thought she did great considering she had not been able to train at all.
The player of the match was our winger Megg. She made life miserable for WPH back line and did also some good defending work. Well done Megg.
All in all it was not a bad match, I just think a draw would have been a better representation of what happened on the field. Not to worry we still have quite a few matches to get things right and I know that this team can bounce back to bigger and better things.
Signing off: Patrick Dethan, coach 14/4

Result: 3-2 Win v Carlingford Redbacks

SCORERS: Duncan Reid, Joel Behlevanas , Samuel Dethan

This was our second win in 2 matches. This was an easier game than last week as our team played better and was in control most of the match. On top of that we gave away 2 goals, missed a penalty and a couple of golden scoring opportunities.
It does not take away the gallant efforts of the Redbacks who were a permanent danger. We knew that there were not easy beat and should the Pumas had become complacent the Redbacks would have make us pay dearly.
We had only 10 regular players available and as for last week, Joel Behlevanas (from 13/3) played with us and again was great.
It all started very well for us as 5 minutes in the game, our guest player Joel had a great kick which bounced of the bar, Duncan was well placed and scored at the second attempt.
Five minutes later, the Redbacks scored a very soft goal and that was 1 – 1.
Joel Behlevanas gave us a 2-1 lead 5 minutes later with a great shot.
PHD finished the first half leading 3-1 after a superb solo effort from Samuel Dethan. Samuel received the ball on the left, dribbled pass one defender then a second one and placed a beautiful shot in the left hand corner of the Redbacks goals .leaving no chance to the keeper.
The second half started the way the first one finished with opportunities coming our way.Megg Gasser who gave troubles to the Redbacks’back line for the whole match, made a splendid run and with the goalie to bit miss one of those golden opportunities to put the game out of reach of RED. Don’t worry Megg, there will be more opportunities this season and I know you will put those ones away.
Straight after, 10 minutes in the second half, a penalty was given to us. Samuel took the shot and missed. Again, as for Megg, there will be other opportunities to succeed during the season.
5 minutes from the end the Redbacks came back again with a second goal and that is the way the game finished, PHD 3 – RED 2.
The player of the match was our attacking midfielder, Samuel Dethan. Beside the terrific goal he scored, his work rate in attack as well as in defense was great .He also provided other players with really good passes through the whole match.
That was a good game from our team and credit should be given to all. Many thanks to our goal keeper Joshua Staynes who has the most difficult job of all .Josh had a few good saves and his kicking from his area was excellent. Our midfield ,Jess, Duncan, Samuel and Josh Mc. worked their heart out .Our backs Blake and Oskar had a good game .Jonathan Lee whose timing on the ball is impeccable as well as the sheer speed he can bring out of his legs made life a misery for the REDs forwards. The other back that had an outstanding game, Adam Fawcett, had a job on his hands. I asked him the unenvied task of marking closely the big and fast striker from the opposing side and he did this really well, shutting him off every time. Our forward Joel and Megg did not stop harassing the REDs defense and were a continual pain in the neck to their backs.
Again well done to all, you are a great bunch to coach and you are fun as well.

Signing off: Patrick Dethan, coach 14/4

Result: 2-1 Win v Roselea

Scorers: Joel

That was a good win for our kids, but they certainly did it the hard way.
Roselea FC had 10 players on the field and although we had 10 of our regulars we got extra help from Joshua Pretorius (12/3) in the first half and Joel Behlevanas (13/3) in the second half. Joshua is not unknown to the team as he played 4 times for us last year and as usual was a live wire. He also had a chance or two to score
The first half was quite balanced between the 2 teams and I felt the Pumas were bit energy less and looked pretty flat. However they could have scored a couple of goals with a bit of luck and a bit more ……….
Roselea scored early in the first half with a penalty. Our team tried to respond but was not widening the game enough which allowed Roselea to contain us reasonably easily.
The second half was a different story. A couple of position changes and the introduction of Joel B replacing Josh P seemed to change the momentum.
Somehow our team looked more awake, put the pressure on the visitors, opportunities started to open and we looked the goods.
However a misunderstanding between our goalkeeper Josh S and Jonathan our sweeper gifted Roselea with a golden opportunity to score and they did.
So that was 2 for the visitors and 0 for the Pumas, 20 minutes from the end
My hair was getting greyer by the minute but I know our players well and I believed they had what it takes to come back and win.
The revival started with Adam Fawcett scoring his first goal of the game with a great shot. It was such an important goal as it gave our players a new lease of life and created the spark we needed.
Our team kept up the pressure and their resolve was rewarded with another goal. Joel, whose darting runs on the left wing were making life difficult for the tiring legs of the opposing backs, was recompensed when he scored a magnificent shot in the top right hand corner. What a goal!
The 3rd and last goal was scored by Adam with a few minutes to spares and although the keeper had a hand on it, he was unable to prevent the ball from going in.
The player of the match was Adam Fawcett as he played his heart out for the whole game and scored 2 goals. Awesome!
Thanks again to 2 our younger helpers Josh and Joel. They did great.
I was impressed again by our kids because lesser teams would have given up when they were 2 goals down. Instead they showed the drive, character, fighting and team spirit that they have shown many times last year. They never give up.
We still have a bit of work to do at training, but well done team, great start for this new season.
Signing off: Patrick Dethan, coach 14/4

Result: Win 1:0 v Redfield

Scorer: Megg Gasser

This was a very good start of the season as far as this trial match was concerned. We did not know what to expect, having to play against a 14/1 team, considering we are 3 divisions below.
But I believed that our kids could hold their ground. And hold their ground they did and more. Winning the game 1 – 0 was a great joy, but it was the way our players performed that was really the highlight of the game.
What I was delighted about is that they have not lost the qualities that made their strength last year. They showed courage, steadfastness, endurance and never give up attitude.
Redfield was never allowed to develop their game as our team was controlling the midfield for most of the game. Our forwards Megg, Duncan and Madison continually attacked their back lines. Our midfielders Jess, Samuel, Calvin, Oscar, Josh Mc , swamped Redfield and pressured them at all times. Our backs James, Jonathan, Adam and Blake did a great job at the back and Adam’s raids in midfield increased our domination of the game. Josh S. our goal keeper did not have much to do but when he was solicited, rarely, he did great. His kicking and positioning are also excellent.
The only goal of the game came as a result of a very good corner from Samuel. Both the goal keeper and Megg went for the ball. Megg put the keeper under pressure and her challenge resulted in the goal. Well done Megg! Thanks for the added bonus of the customary victory cartwheel !
Our 4 new players, Adam, Blake, Josh S and Oscar were terrific and are a great and valuable addition to last year team.
It was great to have Madison back from sickness and she did great.
Al that being said we still have a lot of work to do at training. I believe we can improve a lot more in our passing, finishing, ball control and movement off the ball.
Once again you guys were awesome and I just can’t wait for the next match

Patrick Dethan

2010 Under 14/4 Draw