| B Team | vs | Cotham Old Boys |
| All Saints Cup - Quarter Final | Saturday April 9 2022 | |
| The B team has surpassed expectation to qualify from a group stage that included three division 3 teams including their very own A’s team, therefore they were not strangers to teams of this level having drawn previously to DDAS and having beaten Torpedo A’s. It’s fair to say that pre match selection had YET AGAIN caused them headaches with regular players away on holidays and player/manager Stanleigh out with a positive Covid test. The show must go on as they say and so the B’s drafted in some old recruits in the form of Matt Proctor and Kevin Parsons, both looking to get back involved having both played for the club many moons ago. Jack Pearce was also back after a lengthy lay off, although hadn’t tested his injury out properly, but needs must! The match got underway and it’s fair to say the B’s were a little sleepy in the opening 2 minutes, which actually resulted in the worst kind of wake-up call in the form of a goal for Cotham. The initial strike was saved well by Cooper but the Cotham forward was sharpest to react to the rebound and slotted the ball home Clifton St Vincent’s 0-1 Cotham. To the B’s credit they really got going after this and started to play some very attractive football. The passing was slick, and they looked like the more comfortable team. It certainly did not look like two teams from two different divisions. The B’s dominated the next 20 mins but just couldn’t quite create that chance they desired. An unexpected poor clearance from the Cotham keeper saw Proctor with a presentable chance which wasn’t converted. A rough tackle saw Mansfield roll his ankle on the 25-minute mark and sadly for him it was an early bath, with Pearce having to enter the fray far sooner than he’d been banking on. Just as the B’s looked like they might soon get back into this , a long ball released the Cotham forward into the box who’s rasping shot struck Stock on the arm with the referee blowing up for a penalty to Cotham. It seemed very harsh on Stock who was very close to the striker and was more of a ball to arm moment than vice versa. The penalty was dispatched. Clifton St. Vincent’s 0-2 Cotham. Just as it seemed the game might be slipping away, a ball into Proctor from Kay, saw Proctor roll back the years with a delightful turn sending two Cotham players off running in the wrong direction, allowing him time to steady himself in the box and fire a shot across the goal and into the net to give the B’s a well-deserved goal just before the break. Clifton St. Vincent’s 1-2 Cotham The B’s rallied at the halftime team talk and came out determined to get back into this game. The second half turned quite physical and became a real battle. Downes, Stock, Pearce and Parsons were dealing nicely with the Cotham attacks now, and trying to feed the ball into Chailett, Kay and Finney. A flash point mid-way through the half saw a horror tackle on Kay from a Cotham player, which the referee reached straight for his red card and dismissed him. Some half chances fell to the B’s with Lopez-Bland, Chailett and Kay all seeing efforts from range stray off target. The all-important golden chance just wouldn’t come. With time running out the B’s pushed more players forward with a 3-4-3 going into the last 10 mins but frustratingly Cotham held on and the B’s cup journey for this season came to a close. It was a gutsy performance and the B team can all be very proud of their efforts given the pre match selection limitations. Their focus now turns to their last two league games which let’s face it are both as good as cup finals anyway! MoM – A few different names in the pot but for the second week on the spin, Sam Kay takes the majority votes for a devilish display in the middle, putting his foot in and riding the very heavy tackles of Cotham like water off a ducks back. Line up – A Cooper, J Stewart , T Downes, T Stock, K Parsons , L Finney, M Chailett, S Kay , P Mansfield, M Lopez-Bland, M Proctor, J Pearce MS | ||
| B Team | vs | Racing Mouse |
| Saturday April 2 2022 | ||
| With just three league games remaining for the B team, the players knew nothing but a victory would be acceptable if they wanted to push Saints and Phoenix all the way. Some very last minute jiggery pokery due to club availability issues saw the B’s lose their only sub and it was a bare 11. Thankfully the B’s weren’t alone and Racing Mouse also had the bare bones making both teams nervous around any potential injuries. The game started with the B’s dominating from the off. They seemed quicker to the ball and hungrier in the tackle. The first few attacks didn’t amount to much however, and Stanleigh should have done better in the box from a peach of a cross from Mansfield. Soon after the B’s saw the ball cleared off the line by the arm of a mouse defender but the referee saw nothing wrong and play continued much to the disbelief of the B’s players. The wry smile from the Mouse defender jogging out of the box said it all really! The B’s midfield of Kay, Chaillet, Stanleigh with Mansfield and McIntosh out wide was proving effective and Chaillet saw a fierce shot smash the bar and back out into play. Soon after the B’s had the ball in the net only for the ref to disallow for an alleged push from a B’s player just before the ball was struck home. It felt like just maybe it might be “one of those days”, that is until the B’s won a throw-in deep into Mouse territory. At this moment a mouse player went down holding his leg and not even a cold wet magic sponge could save him. He hobbled off and looked very uncomfortable and with no substitutes Mouse had to reshuffle their formation to cope with 10 men for the next 70 minutes. It went from bad to worse with the resulting throw in. Stevens launched a long one into the mixer and Stanleigh’s touch found Mansfield a few yards out and he made no mistake firing the ball into an unguarded net. Clifton St. Vincent’s Bs 1-0 Racing Mouse. From this moment on, it was utter domination from Vincent’s. Minutes later Chaillet was bundled over 25 yards out. Stanleigh whipped in a curler which alluded absolutely everyone and landed in the far corner. As the B’s jogged back for the restart Downes declared “it whisp’d my shorts “, whilst Mansfield argued “it brushed my hair”. With such weak & tenuous claims Stanleigh decided to claim it for himself Clifton St. Vincent’s Bs 2-0 Racing Mouse The B’s pressed for more and soon after another attack saw Stanleigh thread a lovely weighted pass for McIntosh to chase after. His pace was too much for the defender tracking him and McIntosh Coolly slotted the ball past the on rushing GK. Clifton St. Vincent’s Bs 3-0 Racing Mouse Mouse did offer the occasional counter and just before the break saw a decent chance which Ashley (yet again helping St Vincent’s in their hour of need) make a great save to ensure the three goal cushion remained intact. Half-time was positive with everyone happy with the current situation although there was clearly a sense of ‘smelling blood’ and a desire to go and get some more goals. The second half got underway and the backline of Finney , Lopez Bland, Downes and Stevens only had one forward now harassing them who didn’t really want to run too much so were knocking it about side to side in a manner Pep would have been proud of . This allowed the B’s to keep possession and build their attacks up with patience and purpose. A dink into Stanleigh saw him nod the ball into Chaillet who produced a moment of sheer brilliance knocking the ball up with his right and swinging a left foot volley sending the ball far into the corner of the Mouse net. Clifton St. Vincent’s Bs 4-0 Racing Mouse Mouse were really on the ropes now and their only choice was to send the ball high and long down the middle in the hope of getting some flick ons to chase . Another Vincent’s attack saw Carvell cut inside and poke the ball between two Mouse defenders and beyond the rushing GK, through to McIntosh who suddenly found himself with an empty net to simply side foot home. Clifton St. Vincent’s Bs 5-0 Racing Mouse If this game had been a boxing match the ref may have wanted to step in and call it a day at this point but there was still 20 odd minutes left. The B’s created more chances with Mansfield very unlucky not to connect with a theatrical diving header. Soon after though Chaillet was released in behind the mouse backline and as he surged into the area he was pulled to ground by the desperate Mouse defender. At this time, Stanleigh not realising McIntosh was on a hat trick ordered Chaillet to step up. He made no mistake and the B’s were now in cruise control at 6-0. Clifton St. Vincent’s Bs 6-0 Racing Mouse The B’s saw off a couple of late counters by Mouse and claimed another clean sheet and another big three points. Their title rivals playing nearby (Saints and Phoenix) both appeared to have won their respective games and so the tense nail-biting end to the season continues. Two more league games await the B team and they need to win them both and hope that Phoenix slip up just once in their final three games. MoM – A landslide victory this week for the defensive centre mid performance from Sam K. Covered every blade of glass, tackled just about every Mouse player, and drove the team up the pitch with his dominating surges forward. Line up – M Ashley, J Stevens, M Lopez-Bland, T Downes, L Finney, M Chailett, S Kay, P Mansfield, M Stanleigh, C McIntosh, M Carvell | ||
| B Team | vs | Torpedo B's |
| Saturday March 26 2022 | ||
| It was a hot day on the downs when the B’s returned to action against Torpedo. With the title race on a knife edge, the B’s couldn’t afford any mistakes, but the heat and pressure seemed to be affecting them in the early stages of the game. McIntosh was unfortunate not to score from an early chance, forcing a diving save from the Torpedo goalkeeper, but the B’s looked sluggish and were lacking their usual creativity in the final third. Absence and injury had forced the B’s into making a series of changes to their starting XI, and the team were clearly struggling to find their rhythm. Before long, Torpedo punished the B’s for their lack of energy and focus. When the referee blew for a dubious handball against Stock, Cooper made a strong save from the resulting free kick, but a Torpedo striker reacted first to the rebound, appearing unmarked in the 6-yard box to grab himself a tap in on the back post. Clifton St Vincent’s 0-1 Torpedo Whilst conceding the free kick may have been unlucky, the B’s only had themselves to blame for the defending that followed. But going a goal behind galvanised the B’s and they sprung to life after the restart, pinning Torpedo in their own half. Crutchlow and Mansfield were starting to pull the strings in midfield, and Danhawoor and McIntosh looked dangerous every time they got on the ball. Chances fell to Mansfield, Finney and McIntosh, but all were unable to convert. Just as the half looked to be petering out, another powerful run from Danhawoor, cutting in from the left wing, saw him brought down in the box at pace. Penalty to the B’s! Chailett stepped up and converted the spot kick with his usual nonchalance, giving the keeper the eyes and sending him the wrong way. Clifton St. Vincent’s 1-1 Torpedo At half-time the B’s made both of their changes, with Gadd coming on to replace the injured Stevens, and Scanlon in to replace the goal scorer Chailett, who had a plane to catch. Finney and Lopez did their best to rally the troops with their half-time team talk, and the lads responded well. Danhawoor continued to be a thorn in the side of Torpedo, forcing them into substitutions and tactical changes to try and live with his pace. The quick feet and mind of Crutchlow, in the middle of the park, saw the B’s maintain possession and offensive pressure. With the B’s on the front foot, the back five of Cooper, Lopez, Stock, Downes and Gadd looked solid. Benefitting from the hard work of the midfield in front of him, Lopez was even able to bomb on from right back and contribute in the final third, testing Torpedo with a series of accurate crosses into the box. Unfortunately, most of these crosses found Finney, who failed to convert any of them (rumour has it he misses on purpose when he knows it’s a Lopez assist). At this time the B’s were relentless, maintaining constant offensive momentum and, soon after another Finney miss, Mansfield rattled a vicious shot off the crossbar. The B’s were getting closer! Yet as the game drew on, it started to look like the B’s would never find their breakthrough, until an outrageous piece of skill from Scanlon unlocked the stubborn Torpedo defence. Taking the ball on the half volley, Scanlon lifted the ball over his opposite number’s head, reminding onlookers of a young Patrick Viera as he collected the ball on the other side, before slotting through an inch-perfect pass to find the darting run of McIntosh. Having snatched at a couple of chances early on, McIntosh wasn’t about to miss another, and he placed the ball into the bottom corner, just beyond the grasp of the onrushing Torpedo keeper. Clifton St. Vincent’s 2-1 Torpedo Torpedo tried to respond in the final minutes of the game, but they looked understandably gassed, having defended against an onslaught of B’s attacks for the best part of ninety minutes, beneath the hot sun. And despite Torpedo’s best efforts to unsettle them, the B’s defence looked composed and assured as they closed out the game. With only three matches left, this hard-fought win took the B’s to top of the league (although the team below have a game in hand). It really is all to play for in the coming weeks! MoM - Danhawoor and Crutchlow were the standout performers, having both brought drive and dynamism to the midfield, but Crutchlow eventually claimed the award thanks to his metronomic performance in the side’s engine room. M. L-B | ||
| B Team | vs | Clifton Vale |
| Saturday March 12 2022 | ||
| The B team were back in action after a week off and were up against a decent side in Clifton Vale. The first 10-15 mins saw Vincent’s dominate despite playing into the wind. Some neat passes saw some half chances created but nothing clear cut. Vale only had the bare 11 and appeared to be a little out of sorts with mismatching kit which included one lad in some beach style Bermuda shorts.
Vale to be fair, hit back at Vincent’s and were quick on the counter which resulted in some half chances of their own. On around 30 mins Wilson was bundled over inches outside the box and fell down inside the box, there were appeals for a penalty but the referee deemed this a free kick. Chailett stepped up as has been very successful of late in such positions, but his shot was saved well by the Vale GK. Stanleigh then found himself with a great chance inside the box but couldn’t get the ball out of his feet properly and poked it wide. Frustration was brewing as the first half clock was running out until some nice passes saw Finney collect the ball out wide and delivered a great cross which Sam Kay ran onto and missed by inches, however Danhawoor was lurking deeper and took the ball down well and drilled it from an angle past the Vale GK Clifton St. Vincent’s 1-0 Clifton Vale Halftime arrived and Stanleigh had a bit of rant at the B’s as this game was most certainly there for the taking and the B’s needed to up it a gear or two. Joe Stewart joined the fold pushing Finney up onto the wing from full back. With the wind now behind them, the B’s really started to dominate possession. The back line of Lopez-Bland, Stock, Stevens and Stewart were having an easier time of it now and the Vale long ball wasn’t as effective. The B’s were passing it around now with purpose and quality. 15 mins into the half a corner saw a lovely cross from Finney where Jon Stevens timed his run to perfection and met the ball with a powerful header from close range giving the GK no chance. Clifton St. Vincent’s 2-0 Clifton Vale Vincent’s were now in full control and the middle three of Chailett, Kay and McCollough were dictating the game well. Another nice move saw Stanleigh beat his man and loft a high cross to the back stick where Finney cushioned a header back across goal for Chailett to smash home from close range Clifton St. Vincent’s 3-0 Clifton Vale The chances kept coming and Lopez-Bland’s pass into the box for Finney saw a great shot but was greeted with an even better save from the Vale keeper who tipped it around the post. Stanleigh then weighted a through ball between two defenders for Chailett sprinting on the outside. He got to the ball before the keeper only to see his shot go agonisingly wide. Vale occasionally countered and managed a few times to get the ball into the Vincent’s area however the B’s cleared their lines well. Cooper for the most part was a spectator in the 2nd half. The game came to a close and the B’s secured a well-deserved victory. News filtered through that Saints OB on the pitch next door had only managed a draw, which has made the final few games of the season very interesting indeed! A huge thanks to ex-player and Clifton St Vincent’s legend Simon Devine who volunteered to referee the game. A very professional performance, with fair decisions and kept his cards in his pocket!!! MoM – Popular choices this week were for Stanleigh/Chailett/Stock/Finney with Luke Finney winning it for a superb display at LB and then RM, clocking all 3 assists. Line up – A Cooper, J Stevens, M Lopez-Bland, T Stock, L Finney, J McCollough, M Chailett, K Danhawoor, S Kay, M Stanleigh, M Wilson, J Stewart | ||
| B Team | vs | Portland OB A’s |
| Saturday February 26 2022 | ||
| With just 6 league games remaining for the B’s, all involved were keen to keep the chase on for top spot. The B’s had brushed Portland aside with ease earlier in the season although there was caution coming into this game with Portland’s first team not in action. The opening 10 mins was an even contest with both teams testing each other’s backline. It was only 15 mins in when Ellet sent a searching long ball towards the Portland area, only for some dreadful communication between the GK & CB, with the latter heading the ball towards his own goal bypassing the on rushing keeper. Stanleigh pounced and was first to get to the ball which was most likely goal bound but from all of about 6 inches he made sure and smashed it into an empty net ……’deadly from there’ as they say . Clifton St. Vincent’s 1-0 Portland OB’s In fairness to Portland the goal woke them up somewhat and with the wind behind them they started their onslaught. High and long was their approach and it was working, causing the backline of Stevens, Lopez-Bland, Downes & Finney some real problems. The Vincent’s central mids of Chailett, McCollough and Mansfield did their best to protect the defence but eventually Portland found their way in on goal from another long ball and the forward finished well. Clifton St. Vincent’s 1-1 Portland OB’s Vincent’s tried to keep the ball down and play their game, but were frustrated with the final ball not being quite right. The B’s were guilty of overthinking it a bit and just needed to keep it simple. A nice move down the left saw Finney cross for a half chance to Ellet which wasn’t converted. Vincent’s then paid for another moment of allowing the high/long ball to bounce, resulting in Portland’s pacey winger to steal in and fire past Gardiner for 2-1 to Portland. Clifton St. Vincent’s 1-2 Portland OB’s Before halftime, Danhawoor was unlucky not to win a penalty when he was bundled over in the box, and Gardiner kept Vincent’s in it with a great save. Some angry words were shared during the B’s halftime team talk. They all agreed they were playing below par and needed a much better 45 mins if they were to keep the title dream alive. The second half started brightly and Vincent’s pressed from the off. Within minutes Stanleigh clipped a clever dink between two defenders allowing Mansfield a strike from close range but the keeper pulled off a very good save. Soon after another chance fell Mansfield’s way. This time from a tighter angle and his shot was well wide of the mark. Portland’s long ball wasn’t working anymore as the wind was holding it up, which was giving the B’s back line an easier time of it than in the first half. A couple more half chances fell for Vincent’s which weren’t converted, and it felt maybe it wasn’t going to happen, however, with 20 mins left, Danhawoor glided into the box and drew a foul from the Portland defender and this time the ref was in no doubt …..Penalty! Chailett coolly stepped up and buried the penalty into the bottom corner! 2- 2 Clifton St. Vincent’s 2-2 Portland OB’s The B’s now sensed a victory and went for it. They dominated possession and had Portland on the ropes but just couldn’t find that golden chance. With 10 mins left, a through ball to Stanleigh saw the defender lunge in and miss the ball allowing Stanleigh to bear down on goal from a very tight angle. He saw Chailett sprinting into the area and so pulled the ball back into the danger zone where Chailett smashed the ball home from 8 yards!! Clifton St. Vincent’s 3-2 Portland OB’s The last 10 mins were a little nerve wracking as Portland to be fair never gave up and carried on probing the B’s defence, but they held on to claim their 9th victory of the season, and keeps them in touch with Phoenix and Saints OB. MoM – Popular choices this week were for Stanleigh/Chailett & McCollough with James McCollough winning it for a battling display and covering just about every bit of the pitch. Line up – S Gardiner, J Stevens, M Lopez-Bland, T Downes, L Finney, J McCollough, M Chailett, K Danhawoor, P Mansfield, M Stanleigh, S Ellet | ||
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