| JCR Football Match
Reports |
Vulpem pilum mutare, non
mores
Saturday 20/03/04
Over the past two seasons there has
been talk of almost unprecedented Nuffield success on the football pitch: after
a couple of years of ignominious defeats the Lions have become a force to be
reckoned with in MCR football. What better way to test this newly acquired
reputation than to play a team of stars from the (not so) recent past? Nuffield
football stars of the past, present and future congregated to find out whether
the famed Nuffield Red Star of the 1980s and 1990s would be able to withstand
the challenge of the current Nuffield Lions. Would vast experience and skill be
enough to win over pace and stamina? Would the Lions, after a terribly draining
season of 18 games and with a half-depleted squad, still have what it takes to
send the Old Boys to the scrapheap of history? Only 90 minutes of football
would tell. Unhampered by the hurricane-like conditions the Old Boys started
brightly dominating possession. The Lions were a danger only on counter-attacks
through the pace of Chris Tyson and the skill of Chris Bowdler who made a much
welcomed return to the squad. High-quality chances, however, were a rarity on
both sides for much of the first half. Nonetheless, the Old Boys would have
deserved the opening goal when an unfortunate clearing attempt by the Lions'
defense was deflected off the cross-bar or when, moments later, Mayamiko
Kachingwe unleashed a powerful shot from 8 yards out. As magnificent as the
shot may have been the mighty Rittberger's response was just as impressive as
he turned away the ball in outstanding fashion reminiscient of goal-keeping
great Lev Yashin. And so, true to the dictum that one ultimately has to concede
the goals that one fails to score, the Lions grabbed the lead from the penalty
spot. Despite desperate attempts to shift responsibility (or "expected blame")
the captain stepped up and buried the ball in the Old Boys' net.
Half
Time: Lions 1 - 0 OId Boys
With the wind blowing in their favour in the
second half the Lions were confident to extend their somewhat fortunate lead.
However, a tactical stroke of genius that brought current Nuffield Lions team
members Al McMillan and Stefan de Wachter on for the Old Boys proved decisive
when the Old Boys deservedly got the equaliser early in the second half. Using
his famed goal-scoring instincts Al McMillan exploited a crucial mistake of the
Lions' defense and revived the hopes of old men. Both sides subsequently
created a series of half-chances as the increasingly erratic conditions did
their part to disintegrate what was left of a proper football match. The Old
Boys, however, coped much better with the wind as the game wore on. And so,
when players and spectators alike thought that after 17 games of wins and
losses the Lions would finally get the first draw of the season, Mayamiko
Kachingwe sealed the game for the Old Boys with a delightful overhead kick.
After all, a fox may change its habits, but never its aims ...
Full
Time: Lions 1 - 2 Old Boys
The game was followed by a drinking session
at Oxford finest un-licensed watering hole, Nuffield Bar, and came to a climax
at the Bombay Curry House where the following prizes were awarded:
"Fair
Play" Award: Emre Ozcan
Lifetime Achievement Award:
Eric Harrison
Contributor of the Year: Alberto Behar
Golden Boot: Florian Ederer
Ringer of the Year: Spyros
Kallipolitis
Player of the Year: Heiko Hesse Captaincy: Jamie
Sergeant
-------------------------------------
Sgt.
Ederer's Lonely Hearts Club Team
Saturday, February 14th
2004
What do you do on Valentine's Day if you are married, in a
stable relationship or desperately in need of a relationship? Obviously, you
play football with the boys like every other Saturday. In fact, nobody
hesitated to indicate his availability when the success of the Nuffield Lions'
Cuppers campaign was on the line because with a victory the Lions could still
keep their chance of qualification for the quarterfinals alive.
Earlier
in the season the Lions had beaten St Catz in an outstanding match at the
Worcester home bastion and the first half of yesterday's encounter proved
equally exciting with opportunities on both sides of the pitch. St Catz were
especially strong in midfield, but due to their extremely offensive orientation
were left exposed at the back whenever the Lions broke quickly on the
counter-attack. After multiple half-chances on both sides Nuffield took the
lead off a fast counter-break which put me in excellent scoring position.
Though my effort was insufficiently strong to beat the Catz keeper, Daniel
showed off his deadly striker instincts as he kicked the ball into the empty
net. Nuffield should have made more of the momentum gained from Daniel's
opener, but failed to capitalise on the numerous opportunities that presented
itself. Instead it was the opposition that were next to score. The Lions kept
their heads up despite the equaliser and were rewarded shortly afterwards when
Alberto - in the starting XI despite a nasty infection and the dismal
performance of the Bafana at the African Nations Cup - put the magic finishing
touches to another textbook attack. Alas, another moment of inattention gave St
Catz yet another equaliser before half-time.
With some exception
Nuffield were on top of the game during the second half. However, those
exceptions were enough to almost reduce the Lions to 10 men (we gladly thank
the referee and the opposition for mistaking a last-man-penalty-box foul for a
corner kick) and to give St Catz the lead. A mazy run through Nuffield midfield
and defense followed by an easy tap-in brought us to the brink of despair. Just
as in the game against Wolfson we were probably going to walk away with nothing
despite being the better team for most of the game. Would all those magical
moments such as Heiko hitting the crossbar from 35 metres out be worthless?
Fortunately, Nuffield's newest acquisition Hansi knew what he had to do and
scored the equaliser off a Heiko rebound. The Lions were back in the game, had
the momentum and repeatedly overran the St Catz midfield and defense. Al's 20
metre screamer missed the target only by a few centimetres, Taane headed a
Heiko corner just over the crossbar, but it seemed that the Lions at last had
to settle for their first draw of the season. After all, even more surprising
than a draw would be a Nuffield comeback from a one-goal disadvantage. Well,
Fortuna clearly realised that she had to a lot to make up for from the Wolfson
game and so granted the Lions a victory in the dying seconds of the game.
Oh yes, and do make sure to remember that the right name for a goal
where the ball passes between the keeper's legs is "Gurkerl" or "Steirergol"
...
Final Score: St Catz 3 - 4 Nuffield
Man of the Match: Heiko
Hesse
-------------------------------------
Match
Report
January 24th
2004
-------------------------------------
Outshot,
Outscored, Outclassed
January 17th, 2004
Each week I try to
dig up quotes of my erudite Hellenic and Roman friends, but this week they are
clearly outclassed by a text extract from one of Britain's most famous sons. In
his ground-breaking novel with autobiographical traits "The Nuffield Lions:
Heroic Defeats" the literary wizard Eric Harrison ends his description of
Nuffield's MCR Cuppers (2003) match against University College with the line:
"Look, I try hard with these reports, but basically we were rubbish
right?"
It would certainly be unfair to say the same about the
Lions' most recent efforts against the same team. The Lions battled hard,
played an excellent defensive game - said Eric Harrison, Al McMillan, Jamie
Sergeant and Tom Norman were once again at their best - and created the
occasional chance through the persistently outstanding Spyros Kallipolitis, but
with a squad filled with JCR and Blues players last year's league champions
University College were simply too strong. Nonetheless, until late in the
second half the game was held close by Italy's hottest goal-keeping export
since Gianluigi Buffon. However, even he was eventually beaten on opportunities
that staunch Nuffield defenders simply acknowledged as "yeah, that's really
hard to defend against". With the firepower upfront largely constrained by the
early loss of Daniel Sokol and the close marking and faultless play of the Univ
defense, shots on the opposition's goal were rare. And when that usually
dead-certain penalty dive from Nuffield's captain only drew laughters from
opposition and referee alike it was clear that a 4-0 defeat was inevitable.
But, no doubt the Lions will be back (tomorrow in fact!) - after all,
success is the ability to go from one failure to another with no loss of
enthusiasm.
Man of the Match: Andrea Patacconi.
---------------------------------------------------
Play
it again, Nuff!
Wednesday 14/01/03
Hampered only by freezing
temperatures, ice-cold winds and the desperate search for an adequate pitch,
Nuffield College FC opened the 2004 season as commandingly as it had finished
it a month earlier. The Lions eventually demonstrated their supremacy in a
contest (an immediate rematch of the last encounter) that was only held close
by the opposition's goal-keeping (courtesy of the mighty Rittberger in the
second half) and the miraculous ability of the Lions' attack to elegantly waste
the best chances.
Nonetheless, the Lions' victory never seemed
threatened: excellent goal-keeping by Berthold (1st half) and Andrea (2nd half)
was perfectly complemented by the now customary solid defending of the backline
and the extraordinarily creative midfield ensured a steady supply of chances.
The character of a practice game was established early on when Daniel who, set
up by a sublime pass from Heiko, neatly slotted the ball away for the opening
goal. Dazzling runs by wings Chris and Tom and the excellent passing of Spyros
and Heiko provided a flurry of chances that in perfectly egalitarian fashion
were wasted by midfielders and strikers alike. But just when Pembroke started
flirting with the idea of a lucky equaliser, Tom capped off an outstanding
first-half performance with his very first goal for the Lions.
Half
Time: Nuffield 2 - 0 Pembroke
The second period was a mirror-image of
the first - not only because of the change of sides, but mainly because of the
never ending stream of opportunities. Like a true rock in the sea, Berthold
ensured that Pembroke held Nuffield's goal advantage as narrow as possible, but
the outstanding performance of Jamie, Nic, Al and Stefan at the other end of
the pitch meant that his efforts were largely in vain. There is much more to be
said about the second half, but frankly I do not want to bore you with the
translation of Austrian curses that accompanied my merry chance-wasting
activities of that windy Wednesday afternoon. Fortunately, midfielders can step
up when forwards fail (or at least they can feed off the passes that forwards
sometimes provide) and so Heiko made it 3-0 from close range to bag yet another
victory for the Lions.
Full Time: Nuffield 3 - 0 Pembroke
Man of
the Match: Tom
Norman
---------------------------------------------
Ad
augusta per angusta
Thursday 11/12/2003
Think of an Oxford college
filled with over-educated adults all aspiring to climb the heady heights of
academic glory. Now, imagine a rainy mid-week afternoon in 9th week only 36
hours after the alcohol-fuelled escapades of a Christmas Pantomime. Think of
the onerous task of travelling down St Aldate's to reach Pembroke's well-hidden
football ground and realising that the other team was too incompetent to book
their own football ground. And finally, picture another ground next to a school
whose students seemed more intent on stealing belongings than watching the
glorious football that the Lions were about to produce. Fair enough, the ground
was so far down Cowley Road that one could already see the burning tyres of
Blackbird Leys ...
But nothing stops those men who desire to achieve
(especially if the captain and coach is shouting non-sensical comments from the
sideline). Every obstacle is simply a course to develop their achievement
muscle. It is a strengthening of their powers of accomplishment. And so, the
Lions immediately showed Pembroke why they had come so close to promotion. Back
in the side after a red card ban and nagging injury problems, Heiko and Eric
Budish created plenty of trouble for the Pembroke backline and the first goal
seemed only a matter of time. Clearly, it would never come on the other side of
the pitch where the Nuffield defense was yet again wonderfully orchestrated by
Al, this time partnered with Nic who brilliantly replaced the absent Eric
Harrison. Constant pressure finally paid off when aggressive fore-checking by
Eric set up Heiko for his first goal of the day. The next one followed quickly
when an elegantly-struck pass from midfield (please claim it if it's yours - I
must have forgotten who it was after all that white powder of the last 2 weeks)
and the blistering pace and cool finish of Chris Tyson surprised the Pembroke
defense. And so the game continued in similar fashion: Nuffield produced chance
after chance, defended well through Al, Nic, Alberto, Emre and Stefan and when
Pembroke did break through, then Baden-Wurtemberg's favourite son Berthold was
still there to save shots from all kinds of angles and distances.
Hardened by numerous training session and a demanding league campaign
Nuffield were dominant towards the end of the game when Pembroke were hardly
able to clear the ball out of their own half. Heiko set off his usual fireworks
of tricks and passes and scored another goal when the linesman was just rubbing
his eyes. Fed by an excellent cross from the now forward-moving Al, Heiko
completed his well-deserved hat-trick in spectacular v. Nistelrooyesque
fashion. And had it not been for that Chancentod of a captain brought on in the
dying minutes of the game the Lions would surely have added a couple more.
Full Time: Pembroke 0 - 4 Nuffield
Men of the Match: Berthold
Rittberger and Heiko Hesse, but actually pretty much everyone who showed his
incredible commitment and passion for the game by turning up!
------------------------------------------
Why
does it always rain on us?
Saturday 29/11/2003
It had been a
disheartening week for the Nuffield Lions. After suffering defeat at the hands
at the most spectacularly incompetent referee the beautiful game had ever seen,
a 2 game suspension for midfield magician Heiko and a cancelled practice
session (courtesy of the Worcester groundsman), the English weather once again
lived up to its dreadful reputation this morning. In fact, by the time the
Lions took to the (undersized) pitch against Christ Church (2nd place in the
MCR table and serious contenders for the Championship crown) in the pouring
rain the game had the unpleasant characteristics of the previous Saturday
written all over it.
However, Nuffield started brightly helped by the
formation of one of the deadliest striking duos ever seen in MCR football
history. Paul and Daniel were a constant threat to the Christ Church backline
and one easily lost count of how many defenders they skinned during the course
of the game. Spyros and Emre were in complete control of central midfield both
setting up numerous opportunities for wings Taane and Florian and the attackers
as well as limiting the action radii of the Christ Church midfielders. The
Lions went close a number of times before a carefully struck pass by Spyros and
a perfectly timed run by Paul ripped the Christ Church defense wide open for
Paul to skillfully set up Taane for the well-deserved opening goal. It was
really only one team playing in that first half due to both the solid defending
of the vastly experienced back four (Jamie, Al, Eric and Tom) as well as
brilliant football at the other end of the pitch. Only a few minutes after the
first goal Spyros increased Nuffield's lead to two from the penalty spot after
I had been inexpertly hacked down by the Christ Church left wing. Christ Church
were paralysed: they had come into the game with the intention of sealing their
Grand Final spot but instead were taught a lesson in modern total football by
the Lions in the first half.
Half time: Christ Church 0 - 2 Nuffield
However, Christ Church subsequently showed why they are in contention
for the title and that they had learnt from the lessons given in the first
half. A very open and exciting match ensued with chances on both sides.
However, once again it was Jamie, Eric, Tom and Al as well as the customary
goal-line heroics from Andrea that held the score at 0 - 2 and left the Lions
with many opportunities to increase their lead even further. Shots by Taane,
Daniel, Paul and myself were on target but were dealt with by the Christ Church
keeper - a goal for Nuffield was in the air, but it was Christ Church who
closed the gap 20 minutes from time when an unfortunate save attempt by Andrea
led to a penalty. It was this goal that provided the wind beneath the Christ
Church wings. Having gone more than 340 minutes without conceding a goal from
open play, the Nuffield backline were caught offguard on an excellent break by
the opposition's attack who scored a tantalisingly beautiful goal to level the
score. But as Herodotus pointed out, great deeds are usually wrought at great
risks and despite the risk of exposing their defense, the Lions pressed
forward. Their admirable spirit was rewarded when Spyros, who had been involved
in every Nuffield goal of the day, scored goal number three on the break. We
thought it was all over, but with a series of saves reminiscent of goalkeeping
greats Andrea helped to us to hold on to that narrowest of winning margins.
Would Banks or Yashin have caught a three-times deflected shot on a slippery,
rain-washed surface? Would they still have been able to play despite being
maliciously charged at by the opposition's keeper on a corner ball? I think
not, but the best keeper in Nuffield history was able to pull off such heroics
when it really mattered!
Full time: Christ Church 2 - 3 Nuffield
Man
of the Match: Andrea
----------------------------------------
Blood, sweat and
no tears
Saturday 15/11/2003
Who cares about 8-0 victories against
sides that cannot match the talent of Nuffield's midfield or repeatedly fail to
test our defense? For all its beauty, Champagne football may amuse your
sportive taste, but it will never make you win hard-fought battles against MCR
teams full of excellent JCR players and skillful ringers. Bearing this in mind
the Nuffield Lions started their match against St Catz knowing that only 90
minutes of blood, sweat and commitment would send us victorious in our 6th MCR
game of the season.
Adopting a revolutionary 3-1-4-2 formation with
veteran Al at the helm of the defensive wall (whose combined age allegedly
rivals that of the Limes), the Nuffield Lions demonstrated early on why they
had scored no less than 22 goals in only 5 games. Midfield magicians Heiko and
Spyros linked up beautifully with Colin and Daniel who seemed almost back at
his very best. Pressure was going to tell and after referee legend Stan
Wheeldon had ignored an obvious handball in the St Catz box, he was forced to
award Nuffield the deserved penalty at some point. Heiko had put Daniel
perfectly into play and, challenged for speed and skill, the grim reapers of
the St Catz backline had no other options than to bring Daniel down just inside
the box. As expected, not even high fever could prevent the Ruhrpott sensation
from scoring from the penalty spot. Just like in the last games, as soon as the
Nuffield offensive armada had hit the target the first time, numerous shots and
headers followed. Daniel, Heiko, Spyros and myself narrowly missed the target
or were frustrated by the excellent St Catz goalkeeper as the first half drew
to a close.
Half time: Nuffield 1 - 0 St Catz
We all know that
the MCR defender or goalkeeper that can stop Heiko still needs to be born, but
even football gods sometimes have to bow to illness. St Jerome once remarked
that no athlete is crowned but in the sweat of his brow and he certainly must
have thought that Munya would make an excellent king. For the entirety of the
45 minutes Munya spent on the pitch neutralised and frustrated the opposition's
playmaker with well-timed tackles and challenges. In fact, some correctly
pointed out that with Munya following him so closely the opposition's #7 might
not be in need of a girlfriend after all. Helped by Emre and Chris, the
Nuffield defense held its position and allowed only a few chances and even when
Catz broke through you could be certain that Al would still stand between them
and Andrea. Second-half substitute Tom was commanding in defensive midfield
beating tiring Catz midfielders and attackers to the ball as well as heading it
clear in precarious situations. On the other side of the pitch, Nuffield went
close with shots by Colin, a fantastic header from Munya after yet another of
those curling crosses from Spyros, and an excellent free-kick from Spyros that
would have beaten any other keeper. Alberto's fresh legs were crucial when I at
last decided that those cramps were something best dealt with on the edge of
the pitch. But were it not for that amazing tackle and the excellent save that
Tom and Andrea made in the dying seconds of the game, we would have gone home
almost empty-handed.
Yet, we all know when there is no peril in the
fight there is no glory in the triumph - and what a glorious triumph it was,
especially since it came under the eyes of that rare species known as Nuffield
supporters.
Full time: Nuffield 1 - 0 St Catz
Men of the Match: Al
and Spyros
----------------------------------------------
Oderint
dum metuant
Saturday 08/11/2003
No passion so effectually robs mind
and body of all its powers of acting and reasoning as fear. And what instils
more fear than the warm-up of a full Nuffield squad? Without even having
touched the ball (which incidentally they had also forgotten to bring along)
and before the game even started Brasenose had already lost this week's match.
Clearly, everything was set for two halves of champagne football:
Taane, Al, Tom and Heiko returned to the side that had convincingly proved its
strength in last week's encounter against Merton/Hertford, but above all it was
the return of the (goal-scoring) king (aka Daniel) which formed a team capable
of doing serious damage when in possession. One might say that it was rather
convenient then that the Lions were constantly in possession, spreading the
ball expertly around as though it was butter and the pitch a thick slice of
bread. In the extraordinary event of a turnover, the Brasenose attack was as
harmless as a dove: easily shot down by Emre and hence no match for the solid
back four. Andrea had all the time in the world to wonder whether as Nuffield
goalkeeper he should apply for unemployment benefits - he just had nothing to
do. Spyros was irresistible on the right wing as was Taane on the other side,
both given support by Eric and Jamie who once again proved that Lilian Thuram
and Roberto Carlos obviously cannot be the most offensively talented full-backs
in the world. With all that arsenal of WMS (weapons of mass goal-scoring)
upfront, it was all the more surprising that centre-back Colin should put us on
the scoresheet first with a magnificent goal that easily rivals Munya's
back-heel trick of two weeks ago. As if dancing a flawless pas-de-deux with the
ball he elegantly breezed past 4 Brasenose players and left the goalkeeper no
chance with a powerful shot. Forget Maradona's goal in 1986, this was the real
deal! As the game wore on, Heiko, Spyros and Daniel created more and more
chances and by the famous SLLGO (strong law of large goal-scoring
opportunities) the second goal was bound to follow. It came eventually when a
series of beautiful passes left me unmarked in the box for a direct shot into
the Brasenose net. Until half-time we contented ourselves with testing the
validity of SLLGO once more, but this time shots, headers and spectacular
mid-air volleys - Daniel clearly thought that an unspectacular goal just would
not do for his excellent comeback - failed to converge to the target between
the Brasenose goalposts.
Half time: Brasenose 0 - 2 Nuffield
In
some respect the second half was a carbon copy of the first: Nuffield passed,
shot and scored at will, this time though with greater accuracy. Taane
skillfully headed the third goal of the day after yet another excellent corner
kick by Spyros was inadequately dealt with by the Brasenose defenders and Al,
under the eyes of his daughter, soon made it 4-0 with a precise shot from
inside the box, capping a great comeback performance after a two-game absence.
Second half substitutes Chris and Munya were simply too much to handle for
Brasenose and effortlessly broke through the opposition's defensive wall on
many occasions. Not to be outdone by the goal-scoring efforts of his
team-mates, midfield wizard Heiko gracefully gave us a 5-goal advantage only a
few minutes later. True to Virgil's dictum of fearing Greeks even when they
bring gifts, the Brasenose defense was in awe of Spyros technical skills even
after he had generously gifted them with two shots that hit the bar. However,
they failed to realise that it is foolish to fear what one cannot avoid: the
Trojan Horse in the form of Spyros' goal soon came along in the customary
impeccable style. The goal-fest continued when I was ideally set up by Heiko
for goal #7 and then was lucky enough to be able to return the favour for the
Ruhrpott sensation to score his second goal of the day. While both of us had
our minds set on scoring that elusive hat-trick, the referee clearly had other
things in mind when he prematurely ended the game 13 minutes from time.
Full time: Brasenose 0 - 8 Nuffield
It would be unjust to single out
any particular player after today's performance, everyone played exceptionally
well.
-----------------------------
Commoneo ergo
vinco
Saturday 01/11/2003
With Al, Heiko, Taane, David, Tom, Daniel
and Stefan sidelined a seemingly heavily depleted Nuffield side faced the
combined strength of Merton/Hertford in a game that on paper was scarily
reminiscent of last week's defeat against the Postdocs. But as Nietzsche
pointed out a bad memory is one of the keys to happiness and so we started the
game with the clear intention of taking home three points.
Without any
doubt it was also Jamie's return who like many other of the Nuffield Lions had
vigorously fought off that malign Weissbier virus the night before, that
solidified what proved to be a defensively unchallenged and offensively active
back four. Emre & Spyros linked up wonderfully in central midfield making
all of us forget the Turkish-Greek War of 1821-29. Continuous pressure and
effective forechecking led to the ball rarely leaving the Merton/Hertford half
of pitch and it was clear that we could only be minutes away from the first
goal of the day. A flurry of quick passes left Emre unmarked in excellent
shooting position just outside the box, and his attempt was expertly put away
by Alberto on the rebound. Munya soon increased Nuffield's lead in the most
emphatic of ways with a thunderous half-volley from the penalty spot thereby
extending his streak of spectacular goals in consecutive games. Moments later
the triple advantage was achieved as I was conveniently served the ball by the
Merton/Hertford goalkeeper in one of his many moments of "extraordinary
brilliance". In a blissful reversion of the events of last week the crosses and
corner kicks rained in on the Merton/Hertford box and the Mediterranean flair
of Spyros once again made a difference when he helped the Lions to a
comfortable 4-0 lead before half time.
Half Time: Merton/Hertford 0 - 4
Nuffield
With the win comfortably secured in the first half, it was
time for the technical talent to be revealed. Nuffield's Red Baron Chris
shifted into a pivotal role on the left flank prompting comparisons with the
Kaiser's runs from defense to attack. Not to be outdone by his teammate Jamie
took on more people than some of our attackers (i.e. myself) did all of last
season. Needless to say, the Merton/Hertford attack was no match for central
defense composed of Eric Harrison and Christoph, who left nothing but a massive
age gap between them, and hence little to do for Berthold and Andrea, except
when the referee who rarely left his natural habitat of the middle circle,
decided to make the game a bit more interesting with his erratic whistling.
Just like in the first half, the pressure was going to tell and it was only
fitting that the 5-0 should come from one of the many corners when Matthias
headed an Emre cross into the right-hand corner of the Merton/Hertford net. In
the end we had enough chances to reach double digits as half-volleys, headers
and shots from Alberto, Eric Budish, Chris and Matthias went tantalisingly
close, but nonetheless wide. Hence, it had to be one of those trademark ugly
goals scored by yours truly that finally completed the half dozen and set us up
for next week's clash against Brasenose.
Full Time: Merton/Hertford 0 -
6
Nuffield Man of the Match:
Jamie
----------------------------------------------
Great
Expectations Revisited
Saturday 25/10/2003
The Great Expectations
engendered by victory in last week's West Oxford Derby turned rapidly into Hard
Times as Nuffield suffered the wrong end of a one goal margin against Postdoc
over at the University Club ground this morning.
Withdrawals and
injuries during the week left Nuffield with a depleted squad from which to
choose - in fact, just eleven from which to choose. In the absence of club
captain Florian Ederer, rumoured to be shooting the opening sequence for a
remake of The Spy Who Loved Me, midfield ace Heiko Hesse took the captain's
armband for the first time. Unfortunately, as all military strategists know,
every Captain needs a Sergeant to impose discipline and the eponymous Jamie
failed to show after succumbing to a mystery virus linked to the
non-consumption of weissbier.
With Andrea sidelined, the mighty
Rittberger returned between the poles and Nuffield made a bright start in their
4-5-1 formation, running the ball through and across the midfield like you
sometimes see on TV. Once again this season new acquisition Heiko dazzled with
his footwork and touchplay - indeed his football can be described as poetry in
motion, prompting comparisons with his namesake Herman Hesse, whose abiding
theme was the search for identity in a dualistic universe. Heiko's abiding
theme is the search for the top corner of the net from 30 yards. With Postdoc's
first team goalkeeper frequently tested by the skipper and by 'pocket rocket'
Spyros, the pressure was going to tell and eventually Nuffield took the lead
when a searching cross was backheeled in by Munya in a manner reminiscent of
that goal Denis Law scored to relegate Manchester United to the old Division
Two. Ah, happy days.
Half Time: Postdoc 0 - 1 Nuffield
The
break offered an answer to that old question 'What is the difference between a
Postgrad and a Postdoc?' Answer: A postgrad can at least provide some slices of
orange and some water bottles. Wilting under this lack of suitable refreshment
and increasingly frustrated by some refereeing worthy of Private Godfrey from
Dad's Army, Nuffield were under the cosh for much of the second half. The old
frailties at setpieces returned and Postdoc equalised with a header at the far
post. The Lions continued to be competitive and much praise is due to our new
brace of feisty redheads, Colin and Chris, the latter slipping a cheeky
conversion in at the far post to make it 2-1. But as the game wore on I felt an
increasing unease. Partly no doubt because of the repeated damage to my brain
from repeatedly misheading their keeper's massive clearances, but also because
I remembered the infamous game with Nine-man Christchurch last year. As the
long throws and bombed corners rained in, only some brave claims from Berthold
and solid heading from Taane kept us afloat. It's widely accepted that Alberto
has the pace of two men but we put this claim to the test a bit too literally
at times.
Even Stefan's toenail decided enough was enough. Despite
resolute efforts, our failure to clear our box and to challenge effectively in
the air eventually cost us two goals and we were going home, as Anne Robinson
would say, with nothing. Even a hot bubbling plate of Chef's beef chilli with
half rice and half chips back at Nuffield failed to raise spirits. Club
President Tony Atkinson issued a statement this lunchtime criticising what he
called 'a cold and overt betrayal' by players in which so much had been
entrusted. However we intend to publish further revelations every week in this
space, so keep the faith.
Full Time: Postdoc 3 - 2 Nuffield
Men of
the Match: Chris Tyson &
Berthold
-----------------------------------------------------------
Great
Expectations
Saturday 18/10/2003
Much was to be expected from the
first West Oxford Derby of the season against Worcester: an unheard of squad of
16 players for an early Saturday kick-off. However, Fortuna did not smile upon
the Lions' league campaign. Injury ruled out Tom and the late arrival of Heiko
and Emre once again proved that old Oxford traditions may amount to nothing
more than a waste of time. Hence, Nuffield started shakingly and was put under
pressure for most of the starting 20 minutes. The inevitable consequence was
yet another quick Worcester attack on the Nuffield left flank which resulted in
Florian being caught out of position for the n-th time and a 1-0 lead for the
opposition. Disaster struck twice as Berthold and Al signalled injuries and
were substituted by Emre and Heiko. Nuffield reshuffled and suddenly the ban
was broken as the wonderful passes that everyone had been expecting finally
came together. Was it not John Ruskin who wrote "When Spyros, Emre and Heiko
work together, expect a masterpiece"? True to style, Daniel put the finishing
touches to a masterpiece of a cross by Munya with a perfectly-executed header
into the low right-corner of the Worcester goal. As the players stormed to
celebrate the man with the seemingly never-ending scoring run, it became
immediately clear that the equaliser was a Pyrrhic victory. Daniel was carried
off the pitch and later taken away by an ambulance leaving all of us hoping
that he would get well soon. Once again Nuffield changed formation, remembering
the famous Goethe quotation of daring ideas moving forward like chessmen (or
Daniel for that matter) who may be beaten, but may still start a winning game.
The Lions kept pressing forward and were rewarded when yet another beautiful
cross by Munya (this time from the corner) found the back of Florian's head and
- more by luck than actual skill - bounced from a defender's head in billiard
style into the Worcester net. More football magic followed as Heiko and Spyros
once again connected perfectly with the latter slotting a sublime pass into the
back of the Worcester defense, leaving Florian only with the easy task of
beating the goalkeeper.
Half Time: Worcester 1 - 3 Nuffield
The
second half started just like the first had ended with Nuffield creating
numerous opportunities. Alas, the Lions allowed Worcester back into the game
when a very unfortunate bounce was deflected into Andrea's goal. Having learnt
from the first half that disaster always strikes at least twice, the Lions lost
Heiko who had been singled out for "special treatment" by the Worcester
backline, and Munya with injuries. Alas, there is not much more to be said
about that second half. A strategic move by the skipper that could safely be
called "less than inspired" saw Nuffield reduced to an 8-1-1 formation, but the
Nuffield defense kept its cool, Andrea performed a couple of his trademark
superhuman saves and had it not been for a number of missed chances we could
have claimed our first victory of the season a little earlier.
Full
Time: Worcester 2 - 3 Nuffield
Man of the Match: Spyros
-------------------------------------------------
Defeat
and Success
Saturday 11/10/2003
Nuffield College F.C. started their
MCR league campaign against a strong Magdalen side that seemed virtually
unchanged since Nuffield's last trip to Marston Road. The Lions were happy to
welcome back Berthold in the side as the squad also benefited from the
Mediterranean flair of newcomers Emre and Spyros. Despite a promising first 5
minutes which saw Nuffield controlling the game and putting the pressure on the
Magdalen defense, it was the home team that put itself on the scoresheet first.
Nonetheless, the game continued in the same spirit with numerous waves of
attack rolling towards the Magdalen goal. Taane and Berthold linked up well in
central midfield creating a number of chances for the forwards. Hence, the
equaliser was only a matter of time and Nuffield were rewarded with it 30
minutes into the game, when Daniel's speed saw him clear of the Magdalen
defense after a wonderful pass by Taane. Last year's Golden Boot winner kept
his cool and in this way started the season just like he had ended it. The
Nuffield defense weathered heavy pressure in the final minutes of the first
half, but kept the score level at half time.
Half Time: Magdalen 1 - 1
Nuffield
Much was expected of the second half with Nuffield's newest
secret weapon Heiko deployed upfront. It did not take long for chances to
emerge, yet they were left unused as shots by Florian and Heiko went wide;
instead Magdalen took the lead with a goal that probably will not be remembered
for aesthetical reasons. Three other goals quickly followed in a way
frighteningly reminiscent of Nuffield's practice match. However, substitutes
Alberto and Munya spurred Nuffield on to a passage of play that was as bright
as the October sky. Heiko was omnipresent in the Nuffield attack, but was
denied in a rare moment of competence by the Magdalen keeper. Excellent crosses
from Heiko and Alberto, both of whom had been put wonderfully into play by
Spyros found Daniel in the middle of the Magdalen box, but left the Lions still
4 goals behind. Nuffield's highly deserved second goal came when Alberto scored
his first goal for Nuffield from a corner. With 10 minutes left on the clock
Munya was brought down in the opponent's 18 yard box giving Daniel the chance
to add his second goal of the day. Subsequently, Nuffield created more chances
within 10 minutes than they had done in many games of the past season, but
alas, that heroic ending was not meant to be. Had Leo Tolstoy seen Nuffield's
last two games, he probably would have written: All victories are alike; each
defeat is unhappy in its own way.
Final Score: Magdalen 5 - 3
Nuffield Man of the Match: Taane |
|
|
|
