Yawn, the End of the Season!

In an amazing swing in momentum the Capital 8 season finished with a whimper only one game after being the most exciting season on record. The problem was that six weeks separated the last two official games, causing a general overall lack of enthusiasm. The once bright healthy looking carrot of promotion was moved out of reach after the second round of games were rendered void and the Skins moved from one point outside promotion to midtable obscurity after one outrageous call by Capital Soccer. In the end we only had three games not played and surely it would've made more sense to double the last three results from the first round, rather than having results of played matches scrapped. This left the last game a friendly and made the Marist Skins wonder what might have been with several results over top teams considered a waste of time.

The final match was a friendly against Lower Hutt. It is difficult to get a realistic reflection of the match. We changed both our formation and positions, but who is to say that Lower Hutt didn't too? They beat us 2-1, but since the result didn't count, there was not a heck of a lot to get out of this one for anyone. We had an official referee for a change and Jimmy broke his duck finally with a nice shot. Apart from that, it was hardly an epic.

Time is quickly running out for the Skins long term plans of Central League in 2019!

Not a bang but a whimper

A 2-1 friendly defeat to Lower Hutt closed out the season. It was fun to play, but not especially memorable in any way except one: Jimmy's duck-breaking strike 20 minutes from the end, maintaining the suspense as long as possible by hitting the underside of the bar on its way over the line.

Oh well. Tournament next week. Updates may even appear here. You never know.

Skins 3-3 Tawa Bears

This was two points dropped, but after the way the game changed mid-way through the second half, it had stopped being a proper contest anyway.
The first half was in the Skins' favour. More possession, and a few good chances, but nothing too dominant. The Bears certainly looked dangerous through their quick striker (number 13) and the skilful and powerful midfielder (number 3). But Mark was posing many questions down the left that the right full back struggled to answer. The defence generally looked solid, and with Marshall's distribution and Aaron's running and positional sense, it looked encouraging. No goals at half time, due to their good keeping and our mixed finishing. The rugged ground did not help the control and passing of either team.
The first goal was simply a blinder, Ray hammering home with a mighty shot at a difficult angle. Tawa's equaliser came from good passing and direct running.
Then there was the second Marist goal. Simply put, the ball was lifted over the defence, Ray latched onto it and squared for Stephen to tuck it home. However, the reason Stephen was still unmarked was because the defence had decided there was at least one offside during the attack and had stopped to abuse the ref for not stopping play. After that, the game descended into farce. Every decision was argued, the Bears' goalkeeper decided to threaten Ray with a raised elbow and foul play was rife. Ray scored a fine second to put the Skins 3-1 up with 10 minutes left, but then defensive lapses in concentration allowed Tawa back in. First to get one back and then to equalise in the dying moments, with a practiced - but predictable - free kick.
Ray's finishing was the treat of the day, with Dan's superbly timed tackles and Thomas' well-struck clearances also highlights, but this was not a game to look back on fondly.

Some Photos To Wash Away The Football-less Days!

Team photographer and esteemed paparazzi Dan Popham obliged by taking some of these photos a few months back. I finally found them again! We have only play once in a month, but these photos are a lasting memory of the bitter defeat to the Chuggers!

Swamp Soccer

The Onepoto pitch resembled a swamp after the Marist Skins vs Tawa Bears clash on Saturday. Persistent rain greeted early morning risers in Wellington and several hours later these two teams did battle. The Skins started slowly with a 4-3-1-1 formation to compensate for late arriving team members who were a much welcomed addition 10 minutes into the game.

The game was relatively even until a 10 minute first half blitz by the Skins in the messy conditions yielded three well taken goals. The first was created by a dangerous through ball by Marshall Benson which stopped in the mud just outside the box and energetic Skins midfielder Aaron Watson ran onto it beautifully. Watson took his time in an attempt to find a dry position to shoot past the stranded keeper. He went right, then left onto his bad side, then as the defence finally arrived he slotted it into the back of the net off his right. It gave the Skins relief as everyone was questioning his decision to take the ball onto his left in the first place.

The next goal wasn't long in coming as Tuong Nguyen was let loose with a great exchange of passing down the left side. He was causing problems for the curly haired blonde guy with two left feet in the opposition. This time he was let loose and made a great raking run before dragging it back to Ray Hardy who got onto the score sheet with a cooly slotted shot into the bottom left corner.

A minute later a corner taken was headered in by a poorly marked Ray Hardy for his second goal in two minutes. Both teams had some golden opportunities, but the heavy mud which was by this stage causing a sucking sensation in the wet counted against both teams. Mark Crookston made a brilliant forty metre run, but finished it off with a great demonstration on how not to finish from close range as his head went back and it went over the goal. The Bears also had some chances, but the Skins back four scrambled well, and the Bears had limited players with shooting ability in these conditions.

The Skins started the second half rather defensively and the game reached a stalemate, with neither team able to get many decent shots away in the slushy ground which was deteriorating as the game progressed. Centre back Donaldson put a headed corner over the bar for the Skins, his time will come. A penalty midway through the second half was saved by the mud soaked keeper when it went straight. The Bears then scored a run away goal as the Skins had most of their players up for an attacking corner with a chance to get their name up on the scoresheet.

The final score 3-1 was reflective of the dominance of the Skins who controlled possession well and took their goals well. The Bears toiled well and showed that they didn't give up, with their late goal.

Division 8 continues to throw up surprises. How did the top team Stokes Valley lose 8-2? That win helped one of the Skins main rivals North Wellington's goal difference. Stokes Valley didn't want to be promoted last year, would they not want to be again? Maybe they were short of players? The Marist Skins win miraculously was recorded as a 2-1 win somehow instead of 3-1. We will question that one! The Petone Chuggers went down to the lowly Spackos which is brilliant for the Skins.

CAPITAL 8:
North Wellington 8 SV Killer Bees 2
Petone JJ's __ Tawa Saintz __ Postponed
Lower Hutt City 3 Wgtn Un Salmon 0
U/Hutt Spacko's 1 Petone Chuggers 0
Tawa Bears 1 Marist Skins 2


P W D L GF GA Pts
SV Killer Bees 13 8 4 1 34 26 28
North Wellington 13 7 3 3 41 24 24
Marist Skins 13 7 2 4 28 16 23
Lower Hutt City 13 7 2 4 40 30 23
Petone Chuggers 13 7 1 5 22 21 22
Tawa Saintz 12 6 2 4 21 16 20
Wgtn Un Salmon 13 4 1 8 23 29 13
Tawa Bears 13 3 3 7 24 27 12
U/Hutt Spacko's 13 2 3 8 18 46 9
Petone JJ's 12 2 1 9 25 41 7

Muddy Reward

The Marist Skins slid and splashed their way to a 4-2 win over Petone JJs on Saturday. Details of the opening goal was sketchy from the forlorn spot of goal keeper down the other end, but was an ugly, but important goal through a combination of the dangerous Scott Crookston and a helpful defender. This goal gave the Skins confidence and despite one major scare where the dangerous spectacled JJs striker could've provided the equaliser, the Skins had the better of proceedings, yet were kept honest.

The second half provided a smorgasbord of great goals. The Skins increased their lead to 3-0 with two breath taking goals. The first (I think) was a brilliant free kick from Scott Crookston which went into the bottom right hand corner of the goal. The third was from a stray shot from the unlucky Jim Boutcher which collected a conveniently well placed heel from Stephen Toplis to fall into the goal. The Skins then eased off with a three goal lead.

Petone JJs didn't give up and their spectacled striker was in the thick of it. Firstly a lobbed ball looked to be heading dead for all money about five metres wide of the goal. Keeper Donaldson was actually preparing to stop the ball from ending up miles away from the field, when suddenly someone appeared and headed the ball in from an incredibly obscure angle on the dead ball line. It was such a surprising goal for several reasons including that picking the ball up from his own net was the first time the Skins keeper had touched the ball all half, but worse was that the Skins keeper had no idea anyone was there. There was no one around it seemed, no one was telling him that this guy was there and no defenders followed him back. Some mysteries of science exist as to how he was onside and how the ball made it in from that angle and you have to assume that the ball managed to get into the goal even though it seemed to be out or at least very close to it. It was a science defying piece of brilliance by the Number 15.

The JJs weren't finished when the same guy managed to evade three Skins defenders who actually got in each others way and couldn't get decent footing to clear the ball and he slotted it. This guy then hurt his hamstring, unluckily for JJs and luckily for the Skins.

The game could've slipped away, but former goal scoring supremo Jim Boutcher turned provider for the second time when he fed midfield maestro Marshall Benson, who calmly slotted a low left foot shot into the bottom right corner of the goal. It was a well taken goal and gave the Skins a deserved 4-2 win.

Petone JJs were dangerous with their spectacled striker, but were generally kept in check, with some great play, especially from Dan Popham. The Skins mids dictated play well and Scott Crookston was especially dangerous. I must say that the Marist team could've scored more, but the way they put four away, you can't complain!

A "Lucky" Win: Skins 5 - 1 North Wellington

This is how the North Wellington captain described this match. An interesting term, "lucky". To paraphrase Gary Player, the better we played the luckier we got.

To be fair, the first half was hard work. The Skins didn't retain possession, rarely attacked with commitment (the only real chances fell to Symon and Darren) but defended tigerishly. The wind meant that clearing the ball was harder work, but options were not given and there was a negative mindset, possibly because the opposition came out with passion (possibly from their extensive pre-match callisthenics) and got an early goal. Other chances came to North Wellington, but they seemed keen to play it into the net rather than shooting with the wind. The 9 man Skins defence did well to limit their opportunities.

And then the second half. There was no hint of panic despite being a goal down. And pressure was applied quickly to keep the ball in the North Wellington half. An early corner was cleared to the edge of the box where Symon utilised his impressive technique to hit the ball from over waist-height and keep it under the bar. The immobile keeper was presumably unsighted, but it was a difficult chance well taken. To be honest, from that point on, the match was really only going one way. The goal brought confidence and the wind was now taking the pressure off the Skins defence. Goals were inevitable and I may well mess up the order in which they flowed.
A sweet move down the left through Aaron to Scotty C to Marsh and then back to Scotty gave him the space to place a shot in the far corner. With humility, the top scorer suggested the keeper should have got to it, but it looked a fine finish. The next goal came from another dangerous corner from Ben (whose delivery was consistently high quality) and Scotty took a good effort which looked to be covered by the defender at the far post, but he took a swing at it and put it into the back of his own net. That was a lucky goal, I guess.
The fourth was another set play: a low corner from Ben, flicked on at the near post by Jimmy for Willy to double his tally for the season, rising gently above the defenders to nod home. That's a total distance of 2 foot for his goals.
But more was to come. Some strong play down the left and middle gave Jimmy the chance to put a lobbed ball over the defence into the area, the keeper dithered and Scotty C accepted the invitation to score.
There were others chances which came and went, but the second half dominance was a welcome change from recent games where the Skins have been out-muscled, or just not wanted it as much as the opposition.

If that's luck, then I guess we'll ride it.

So Close, Yet So Far!

The Marist Skins sunk to 6th place with a demoralising 2-1 away defeat to the Stokes Valley Killer Bees on Saturday. The Killer Bees struck a late winner in the last five minutes to move to the top of the table in Capital Div 8 action.


The Killer Bees started strongly and scored after 10 minutes. A nice right sided attack opened up the Skins defence before Number 22 nutmegged Donaldson to feed the nemesis Cookie who slotted the goal past a diving Chamberlain in goals.

The goal sparked the Skins into action as they finished the first half with some great plays down the left, with the Crookston brothers and Fernando creating havoc for the Bees defence. The Skins continually got the ball into the box, but just lacked the killer finish. The away team were rewarded for the pressure they created with a penalty as the dangerous Mark Crookston was taken down in the box. His brother Scott, looking to preserve his Golden Boot aspirations, slotted the penalty to bring the scores level. At half time the game honours were pretty even, with the Bees starting stronger, but the Skins finishing stronger.

The Killer Bees changed their strategy, by pushing more players forward. They moved their tall midfielder into a more attacking role, creating further pressure for the Skins who were left drawing back their troops to compensate. Sportsmanship was the winner when Skins forward created some havoc for the Killer Bees defence and was awarded a penalty for being taken down in the box. The Skins attacker refused to accept the penalty as in actual fact he had fallen over himself. The act of sportsmanship is rarely seen these days, especially in tournaments like Euro 2008, but it was a commendable action. Both teams played some nice passing football, with the Bees more aggressive eye finally showed when their left back laced a shot into the top left corner to give them the winner with five minutes left.

The Skins played well, but were forced into defending more than they should've been. They passed the ball well using their wings and got the ball into the opposition red zone, but just lacked the finishing prowess required. The Killer Bees were always threatening, with their aggressive play. They showed why they haven't lost a game, yet only just avoided sharing the points. It is typical of this league, that the 5th place team can get so close to an unbeaten team.

Northerly Chaos!

The Marist Skins went down to Tawa Saintz in the gale force northerlies at Cobham Park 2-1 on Saturday. The visitors won the toss and played into the two goal wind first half. The first quarter was relatively even and the speedy young Tawa Saintz took the lead after about fifteen minutes with an attacking raid which saw them find space up the field with the ball. They suddenly were left with an overlap in the middle and a nice pass and shot scored a clinical go ahead goal. This gave the Skins the kick in the pants they needed and some great keeping by the Tawa Saintz goalie kept the home team honest. Finally from a cross, Mark Crooston's flick on got high with the wind and Ray Hardy headered the ball into the net. The home fans were cheering at this stage. There were plenty of opportunities for the Skins who had a great finish to the first half, but finding the target without being stopped by the fists of the Saintz goalie proved difficult.

The second half was dominated by the increasing wind and uneven pitch conditions which combined to make passing difficult. Tawa grabbed a second goal ten minutes into the second half when the ball boggled around the Skins defence before falling into the path of a Saintz striker who made the home side pay. The Saintz had more chances with the wind, but again some stoic goal keeping by Ray Hardy kept the Skins in it. The long range shots were the order of the day. The re-jigged Skins created half chances, but the game was ruined as a spectacle by the conditions.

The Saintz took their chances better and played better into the wind. The Skins really needed to be up at halftime, but battled well with the tough wind. It was almost a case of the wind being too strong to exploit effectively. Player of the game went to Dan Popham who was often the thorn in the side of the Tawa attacks. Aaron Watson worked industriously in midfield, while Ray Hardy was going well at both ends of the field. Capital 8 is a tough competition, so the Skins shouldn't lose heart.

Things don't get any easier next week as we play Stokes Valley the top team away. The positive is that we play better away from home, usually!

Shooting Fish in a Barrel: Wellington United Salmon 3 Marist Skins 4

Scotty is the detail man, but damn! that was a close-run thing. 1-0 down to a good finish from the excellent Salmon striker, the Skins were not playing especially well, but then there was a wake-up. Thomas had done some promising work down the right flank, but Ben's arrival (and the confidence boost the defence received with Thomas back in goal instead of this year's sicknote, Jimmy) triggered some excellent football and a fightback leading to 3 goals before the half ended.

Ray put the Skins back on track with 2 goals, a clean finish from a fumbled save after a Scotty C looping shot and a powerful header. Scotty C also hit the net, putting himself in the way of a hard challenge from the keeper, and just getting a touch on the ball.

The change of ends meant the rising wind and lowering sun counted against the Skins and the Salmon looked to be taking full advantage. A handball from a grounded player put the ball back to a Salmon forward who knocked the ball superbly over Thomas from outside the area. And then the first goalscorer outpaced the defence to put another quality finish away.

This was not to be the Salmon's day however. One of the more agricultural challenges from the powerful Salmon defence was penalised, and the freekick was floated to the back post where Mark put in a decent header that the keeper could only palm across the box for Willie to strike powerfully home. Or for Willie to walk into, scuffing it over the line. Depends who you talk to.

The Salmon continued to pressure, but the Skins held on for a good win. This is a tight division, and no mistake. The Skins strikeforce showed quality finishing and there was superb industry in the midfield to limit the opposition and create chances. While the defence conceded 3 today, it still performed solidly, with Dion and Dan still managing to support their wingers while shacking the opposition wingers

Goooooal


Aerial warfare

Committed challenges


Post-impact

Ground Transfer

DIVISION EIGHT:
Wgtn United Salmon  v Marist Skins transferred to Ngatitoa at 12.30pm

On State Highway One, turn left, north of Paremata Bridge.
Three playing fields.
Headquarters of the Paremata Plimmerton R. F. C.
I don't even trust the directions I read!
Hmmm
Or maybe here
Piss-poor maps

Remind Me Why The Skins Don't Practice Again?

Training heated up for the World Champion Italian team when two females did an underwear streak. They are preparing for the EURO 2008 tournament, which I am excited about! This has never happened to me before, but is an indication that matches aren't the only places for streakers to gain notoriety.

Aparently one of them was Miss Venezuela in 2006.

Marist Skins Go Down in the Mud!

The Marist Skins went down to a more passionate Petone Chuggers 2-1 at Kilbirnie on Saturday. The home team were dominant in the early exchanges and deservedly went up one nil when left wing Tuong Nguyen slotted a defected shot into the bottom left corner. The Skins could've been up by more, but were undone by the experienced Petone Chuggers goalie. The match turned on its head after 37 minutes when a ball hungry Chuggers forward capitalised in the mud and slotted to score the equaliser.

This goal for the Chuggers, spurred them on, as they finished the first half strongly and got the go ahead goal just before half time. This inspired finished to the first half was the defining period of the game as the Chuggers sent players forward in numbers and they were dangerous on attack, outnumbering the Skins defence.

The second half was even, but the Skins with the breeze at their backs were unable to equalise. The final result was typical of the match, where the Chuggers were more hungry for the ball and adapted better to the mud against the lethargic Skins. It also sees the Petone team leap frog the Skins onto 12 points. This result typifies the topsy turvy nature of Capital 8 this season!

This result is the kick in the pants that the Skins need and hopefully they will be back on their games next week against Wellington United Salmon!

Golden Boot

The Marist Skins Golden Boot Award is a Three Horse Race

5 Scott Crookston
3 Ray Hardy
1 Mark Crookston

Our attack hasn't been our strength this season, but Jimmy will no doubt join the list at some stage!

A Big 0-0

It wasn't the wrong result: we had the better opportunities in the first half and they had the better in the second. All keepers made fine saves and the shots were of reasonable quality. Dion, an ongoing revelation this season, was gently teased for his pre-match regime,


but, given his remarkable suppleness during the game, I'd say it was paying dividends!

Many positives to be taken from this, not least the resilience of the defence and our creativity on attack. This looks to be a tight but good division.
Willy and Scotty admiring Thomas' form even before his goalkeeping heroics...




Anyway. Has anyone seen the superb Nike ad featuring Wayne Rooney? It is very fine indeed.

How it was done...

And some Aussie pros re-enacting it...

An Inspiring Nil All Draw?

It is with some satisfaction that the Marist Skins claimed a nil all draw against Tawa Saintz at Onepoto Park. On a warm Wellington day and wide pitch, the fitness of both teams was sorely tested. The Marist Skins squad of 13 for the match was depleted through injury in the second half, forcing target man forward Ray Hardy to miss his flight to Club Med Tahiti, but that is the commitment of these celtic warriors.

The Tawa outfit had the youth and speed to be threatening all game, especially after they subbed their two fast forwards with two faster forwards. But the experienced Skins had their fair share of chances, including a header into the crossbar from Ray Hardy, while controversy shrouded the game in the last 9 minutes when midfield lynchpin Mark Crookston was taken out near the edge of the box. Not surpisingly the free kick was awarded millimetres outside of the box. It is hard for referees at this level to make the big calls, given the closeness of the contest.

The first half was a dogged battle with both teams evenly matched. Some great plays by both teams created chances, but some great defensive work and some wide shots kept the stalemate.

The second half was dominated by the Tawa Saintz with a lions share of the chances on goal, but despite their fresh fast legs causing problems for the Skins defence, bombed a few sitters. There were plenty of other dangerous raids by both teams, but the defence of both teams was impressive. The Saintz dominated possession with 57% possession.

The Skins defence remains the best in the league and with some great saves by keeper Thomas Liddle, gained a morale boosting draw and the point will be crucial in the chase for the Division Eight title. Midfield livewire Mark Crookston was tireless and gained the plaudits of the talent scouts on the sideline.

New Nike Commercial

They aren't household names like The Skins boys!

Stoke? Meh.

City Ground, Nottingham. This is partly my blog, so I'm sharing my joy with you. So there.

The Passion of Football

Where's the Passion in Rugby?

Stoke City got promoted to the Barclay's English Premiership and check out the passion of the fans! It is inspirational! There is more passion and emotion with relegation and promotion than there is at the top of the table.

That is How to Score Them!

The only thing to dry up on this grotty Wellington day were the goals. As the guys above show you, it doesn't have to be smoked into the top locker all of the time to be a successful goal. We managed to still score a 2-0 win over the lowly Upper Hutt Spackos in the wet, somewhere in the murky depths of the Hutt.

Despite playing several Skins out of position, we managed to keep a clean sheet, which was satisfying as a defender, while wet conditions and too much time in front of goal saw us only net a 2-0 win. Many easy shots missed the target, but a couple of obscure shots (especially the second goal) gave us a 2-0 buffer through a goal in each half.

Ray claimed the first goal when a long range shot/cross was nudged past the keep by two hairs on Rays head. This was much needed after we struggled to absorb the Spackos featuring a resurgent Tim Pate up front and attacks from their star player. Once the Skins got into their groove they dominated possession and territory, but Spackos tactics of chipping our defence for their star and a fastly tiring Pate became repetitive yet dangerous at times.

The second half saw far more chances for the Skins, but alas it took until the 69th minute for Scott Crookston to make up for some massively over struck shots, when he beat the keeper to the ball and with the keeper sprawled on his haunches shot a falling away grubber into the goal from the left hand edge of the box. It was quality football. The keeper got up and threw his hat on the ground in disgust, yelling "You suck!" or something of that nature (I was on halfway at the time!). IT was hard to know who he was talking to!

The Skins then shut up shop and ensured they took the points. It is the sign of a good team who can win when they may not have played to their best ability!

It will be interesting to see if the re-introduction of J Boutcher puts added pressure on the strikers.

The results are below, with the top two teams dropping points to the Tawa teams, so our game against Tawa Bears (from Div 9 last year) will be an epic this coming weekend. Hopefully our result gets recorded.

CAPITAL 8:
North Wellington 0 Tawa Saintz 1
Petone JJ's 1 Wgtn Un Salmon 6
Lower Hutt City 0 Petone Chuggers 1
U/Hutt Spacko's __ Marist Skins __
Tawa Bears 1 SV Killer Bees 1

P W D L GF GA Pts
SV Killer Bees 5 3 2 0 12 9 11
North Wellington 5 3 1 1 17 5 10
Tawa Saintz 5 3 1 1 11 8 10
Lower Hutt City 5 3 0 2 16 12 9
Tawa Bears 5 2 2 1 15 13 8
Marist Skins 4 2 1 1 8 3 7
Petone Chuggers 5 2 0 3 9 12 6
Wgtn Un Salmon 5 1 0 4 12 14 3
Petone JJ's 5 1 0 4 11 18 3
U/Hutt Spacko's 4 0 1 3 6 23 1

Fine Weather, Fine Finishing

The Marist Skins finally played to their potential with a 5-1 win over the top of the table Lower Hutt City in fine conditions on Saturday. The Skins have looked dangerous on attack all season, but this game without the striking play of Jim Boutcher, improved their accuracy and were rewarded with five goals. Scott Crookston bagged a hattrick, showing something missed in recent years, pace, while Ray Hardy was the target man, scoring twice.

Playing into the energy sapping sun in the first half, the game was relatively even, with the smaller and faster Hutt side looking dangerous. The Skins first half well worked goal was balanced out by a well taken Lower Hutt goal.

The second half was all Skins as the sun sapped the energy of the substituteless City and it showed. The cool headed Skins dominated possession and didn't panic in front of goal as usual. There were fewer blasts and more well placed shots than usual.

It was a great win and shows what the team is capable of!

Capital 8 Table

The Skins are the sleeping giants of this league, sitting mid table after playing most of the good teams and none of the bottom three. Lower Hutt City up next!


CAPITAL 8:
U/Hutt Spacko's 1 Lower Hutt City 6
Marist Skins 2 Petone JJ's 0
Petone Chuggers 1 North Wellington 5
Wgtn Un Salmon 0 SV Killer Bees 1
Tawa Saintz 2 Tawa Bears 3

P W D L GF GA Pts
Lower Hutt City 3 3 0 0 15 6 9
SV Killer Bees 3 3 0 0 7 4 9
North Wellington 3 2 1 0 12 1 7
Tawa Bears 3 2 0 1 11 9 6
Tawa Saintz 3 2 0 1 6 4 6
Marist Skins 3 1 1 1 3 2 4
Petone JJ's 3 1 0 2 9 8 3
Wgtn Un Salmon 3 0 0 3 3 9 0
Petone Chuggers 3 0 0 3 4 10 0
U/Hutt Spacko's 3 0 0 3 3 20 0

Action!

It was a solid game, this one. Nothing given away at the back, but not too many saves forced at the other end - a bit of wayward finishing confirming Scott's statistics below. Nonetheless, there were incidents of interest, mostly involving the Crookston boys. Presumably, because they are working hard to create their chances, and contributing across the field, they should be considered above criticism. I agree. Up to a point. But this would deny us the pleasure of reliving the moments that bring us such pleasure as the air-hit shot from a cross that bounced behind the swinging leg to smack the backside of young Scott, or the two-yard blaze over the bar from Mark (although there was a slight deflection off the head of Jimmy that could have put him off). It is only fair to put in the portrait of these two.


We also have Aaron giving us his legendary "Old Man Steptoe" impersonation


Dion showing his exemplary throwing technique

And even the kick off. Dan can claim many a beer for his contribution as referee, having been duped by a decidedly nefarious Jimmy.


The Skins comfortably deserved this one

Playing in the Wind is Never Easy

Marist Skins scored a goal in each half in windy conditions to gain a 2-0 win over Petone JJs at Cobham Park on Saturday. The Wellington weather lived up to its reputation as the windy capital of New Zealand as the Skins battled into the elements in the first half. A well taken scrambled goal by striker Scott "Windmill" Crookston gave the Skins a valuable goal lead halfway through the first half. The game was relatively even in possession and territory first half, with the Skins having possession just with 54% but the JJs combination had a 57% territory.

The second half was dominated by the Marist Skins who camped themselves in the opposition half. Eventually the pressure told with a botched JJs header steepling into their own net in the 69rd minute of the match.

The Skins won this match and rightly so 2 nil. With 75% territory and 63% possession.

While it would've been nice to score more, the wind made it more difficult to hit the target than usual. The defence held tight in tricky conditions and the Skins are now out of the relegation zone with a full house from three games placing them in mid table obscurity.

The Skins have the second best defence in the league and equal worst attack with three other teams. On a positive note, the Marist battlers have played two of the top three teams with the other this weekend and haven't played any of the bottom three sides!

Like the man says...

Can't add much to the below. Skins took the first half, and North Wellington had more of the second, although it still required some excellent defence to keep the Skins goalless.

A couple of piccies:
neatly demonstrating Dan's flexibility pre- and post-game...

The Most Enjoyable Nil All Draw in Recent Memory

In this day and age the punters yearn for goals and quality from their Div 8 players, it was refreshing to be a part of a quality nil all draw against North Wellington. The field was large and conditions ideal for the beautiful game, but both defences were more than up to the challenge of snuffing out the opposition attacks.

The North Wellington combination dominated the first twenty minutes as their intensive warm up routine produced dividends, but a combination of desperate defence and inaccurate shooting kept the scores level.

The visitors fought their way back finishing the second quarter strongly and with several chances could've and would've scored had it not been for some quick long striding defence. The Marist wings were dangerous in open spaces, but the Skins couldn't finish off their chances.


I don't know what was in the half time oranges, but the the second half was one sided traffic with the North Wellington side showing some silky skills and dangerous ability on attack, but were often forced to shoot from wide out. They dominated territory and possession, with the only chances for The Skins coming from the counter attack. It got desperate at times, but the goal less draw was a moral victory for the Skins. North Wellington dominated territory 62% and possession 59%.

The Beautiful Game?????

Look familiar?

The newly promoted Marist Skins went down 2-1 against Stokes Valley Killer Bees in the wet Capital Div 8 match at Cobham Park on Saturday. The match made most players look like elephants on roller skates and left players reaching for their goggles and wetsuits. Variable ground conditions made short passing games difficult and judging the bounce, skid and stopping of the ball was a nightmare.

Both teams had plenty of chances, with few on target shots. The first twenty minutes were even, before the Killer Bees pressure told. A deflected clearance bounced skidded and spun more than the Shane Warne "Ball of the Century" (to dismiss Mike Gatting in 1993) to bemuse the defence and the Valley made the Skins pay as they slotted it for a one nil lead.

The home team were sparked into action and created several chances but unfortunately the skillful Marist team were unable to turn the pressure into goals. The halftime score was one nil to the Bees with the Skins dominating possession with 53%.

The second half started evenly, but for a period in the middle of proceedings the Skins scored a deserved equaliser through left back come central midfield Mark Crookston who put a long cross into the mixer and the keepers waterlogged gloves were unable to stop it going in. Finally the Skins got on the board.

Unfortunately for the home team, the Bees responded with the winner in the 79th minutes from a break down their right flank and a well executed cross created havoc in the waterlogged red zone and a nice finish left the goal keeper stranded. They were a constant threat as they sent players forward up the middle, leaving the Skins defence under pressure!

That is the way the match finished. The Marist Skins went down 2-1 in a close game, which on another day may have resulted differently. There was some great play by the home team and there is plenty to build on for next week!

Marist Skins 1 - 2 Stokes Valley

The heavy rain meant this was not a football game in the traditional sense. Airshots, 2 metre passing, hilarious (under other circumstances) tumbling and wild shooting characterised a frustrating day for our heroes. Neither side really had an edge, although Stokes Valley had more pace up front and the Skins more flair through the middle, but the slippery surface helped defenders enamoured of sliding tackles and hampered those reliant on close control and mid-range passing.

SV scored first and last, each being, as I recall, from a ball given away softly and treacherous surface betraying defenders. The Skins goal was (forgive me, Mark) a little fortuitous, and the keeper made a wonderfully theatrical cry after he had palmed the ball into the net and Ray made his presence felt. It looked like a big, far post cross that eluded everyone.

But there were encouraging signs as well. There is a lot of skill spread throughout the side and chances were created without simply relying on defensive errors and lucky breaks.

The Squad

Following the final pre season win over Wellington United Div 7, the Marist Skins management had little hesitation in naming the following players for the forthcoming Capital 8 campaign.

Full Time
Dan Popham wing/back
Marshall Benson centre mid
Jim Boutcher striker
Dion Chamberlain wing/back
Scott Crookston mid/goalie
Mark Crookston wing/back
Scott Donaldson centre defence
Glenn Campbell defence
Aaron Watson centre mid
Ray Hardy centre mid/defender/forward
Darren Reid centre mid
Anthony Williams centre defender
Tim Pate right back

Stephen Toplis either part-full time

Part Time
Symon Ross centre mid
Tuong Nguyen left mid
Christian Redgewell right back injured
Rohan Fernando left/right mid
Thomas Liddle midfield

Friendly Update

Rumour has it the game will take place at Seatoun at 2pm Sunday. There should be an update of some kind...

This has been confirmed. Let's hope we have a team.

Friendly and Draw Update

There is a friendly this weekend (11am Sunday at Kilbirnie Park). Short of numbers currently, but we shall see. The Cavs start their season this week, poor sods!

The draw is out for the Saturday after...

CAPITAL 8:
Lower Hutt City __ Petone JJ's __ Fraser 2;
U/Hutt Spacko's __ North Wellington __ Awakairangi 1;
Tawa Bears __ Wgtn Un Salmon __ Kura (12.30);
Marist Skins __ Stokes Valley __ Cobham.
Petone Chuggers __ Tawa Saintz __ Petone Memorial 4.

Cobham, eh? It'll be like playing on concrete, but there are far, far worse places to play. My recent memories of Stokes Valley are battering them completely and still losing. JJ's used to be a Marist team, and the Bears of Tawa got promoted with us (a good team). Feedback on the others all welcome.

Week 1: That didn't really go as we'd hoped

I'll be honest: I don't know how many we conceded. We scored 2, I believe, one a smart finish by Ray and the other a late strike by Jimmy, but it was scant consolation for a mixed performance. Some of the movement and passing was excellent, but some of the communication mix-ups should have been avoided. That is why we have a pre-season.

Raiders are a good team. They close down hard and fast, with a few challenges that might be considered a little too hard and fast. They have an excellent striker, quick and cool-headed. And they were organised and reasonably disciplined. The Skins were less so on most counts. There is a lot of loosening up, communication practice and refresher playing needed.

There is another friendly in 2 weeks, and hopefully a match next weekend, even if just a 5 a side kick around. Clearly we need to get used to each other again and, as Aaron pointed out, we need to get used to kicking the damn ball around. It really isn't the same as we've been used to in the other forms of the game.

After the game:

Pre-Season Friendly #1

Our first friendly match takes place on Sunday 16th March at 2:30pm against Willy's brother's team. Looks like Cobham at 2:30 for kick-off.
Goalie - Thomas

Defence
Scotty
Glenn
Tim
Mark
Dion

Mids
Scott
Tuong
Marsh
Ray #1

Forwards
Ray #2
Stephen
[Jimmy wants to play]

The Final Countdown

As the dust settles on another summer, the linament comes out and the backs start being cracked as the football season is about to commence. Too professional for pre season training, the newly promoted Marist Skins will rely on a diet of pre season friendlies and natural fitness to get themselves to middle table position in Capital Div 8.

They may be short on youth, but never underestimate the experience of a side with thousands of senior caps between them. Although short on speed and flair, the green and white striped Celtics will rely on experience, guile and a stroke of genius to remain competitive in the 2008 season.

The timetable for the season is friendlies on March 16th and 30th. The two weeks between friendlies provides adequate recovery and Easter Egg time. Then it is the real deal. Division 8 represents a tough uncompromising step up from Div 9, but the plucky Marist combination must be backing themselves for a mid table position when the first competitive game takes place on 5th August.

For the fans, administrators, coaches and players, so many questions remain;

1) how many players bodies will survive past the first few weeks?
2) can the Skins cope with one specialist striker?
3) what will the step up from Div 9 be like?

Place your bets and add your comments!

Skins manager

Key Dates

First friendly is 16th March
Second friendly is 30th March
There may be others with luck

...

First league match is April 5th

Squad Announcement

This has been edited to put satirical comments in. Any criticism, it's the manager's fault.

Full Time
Dan Popham (attacking wide boy/player)
Marshall Benson (patrolling tank unit)
Jim Boutcher (the Enigma - how the heck does he score?)
Dion Chamberlain (versatile but possibly somewhat brittle after last season's misfortunes)
Scott Crookston (newbie - I'd tease, but he's faster, fitter, more skilful and probably smarter than me. He smells.)
Mark Crookston (Newbie's brother. Jack of All Trades, and master of several of them)
Scott Donaldson (Ron Knee)
Glenn Campbell (Rhinestone Cowboy and committed defender, with all that euphemism implies)
Stephen Toplis (or part time) (forward - or so a young lady claimed after the last drinks - Boom! Boom!)
Aaron Watson (central to the team. At least in positional terms)
Ray Hardy (the Swan - looks like he glides effortlessly up and down the pitch. Surely deceptive?)
Tim Pate (or part time) (Shady)

Part Time
Symon Ross (attacking midfielder, perhaps less comfortable than most in the green and white hoops for some reason)
Tuong Nguyen (so fast he can play two positions at the same time. Handy when the strikers have training wheels)
Christian Redgewell (harder than he looks, which may say more about his looks than his hardness)