Crossley 8 v 1 Rose and Thistle            (Division 3 Cup 1st Rd 2nd Leg Match)

This team causes me so many headaches as our performances against them seem to be at odds with our normal play. That couple with a nice black eye and a banging headache.

Team wise, everybody seems to be coming back to full fitness but several players unavailable.

Team Sheet - Conetta, Oakey, Leach, Gray, Davison, Gadsen, Lindley, Harris, Holman, Waygood, Scales. Subs - Winnard, Trigger, Sutton, Bunce, Marshall, Goacher. the only real change from last week is that Cup Cake goes back in goal, Davison reverts back to Centre Back and Scales starts upfront in stead of the missing Milburn.

The pitch was better than before and we had hoped that a different ref would help, sadly not. It didn’t start off well with the ref only being there 2 mins before KO and not willing to accept our teamsheet, funny how he took the others!! As you’ll see in the write up he managed to ref in a most peculiar way!! Why can’t refs just do their job and not side one way or the other, used to happen when I played back in Kent but alas here in Surrey it seems to be different...

1st Half - Thistle looking to over come their 4-2 deficit they started off very slowly, so slowly in fact I thought the lads had been replaced with dummies. We struggled to get any momentum going, a Davison back header was not his best and nearly put Crossley in for their first. It didn’t happen but the first wasn’t too far away and so 1-0 in the first 5 mins. The second then followed with the guys running through from midfield past the standing Centre Backs. Scales managed to keep up his Cup Goal Scoring spree with his 3rd cup goal of the season to bring it back to a respectable 2-1 down, alas it wasn’t the spark the manager had hoped for. Crossley came back with two more goals before half time to make it 4-1 at the break. Very disappointing game so far, but things were to get worse. The ref made some very one sided decisions, which sounds like sour grapes, but all I ask for is a neutral ref , for example one that doesn’t coach the opposition by telling their players they are in the wrong place, I’m sick of the one sided refs we get at Crossley, it spoils the game.

At half time there was 1 sub, Davison off, a most dreadful performance from him and his severe lack of fitness showed, he was off the pace and very quiet . Marshall to come on on the right with Lindley to Centre Back. However, unbeknown to the manager, the team sheet hadn’t been received by the ref and so he did not allow any subs to occur. Davison back on and the subs no chance of playing, even the opposition didn’t mind, but then they think we are piss easy and afraid of them so what the heck (that’s what their manager said about us during the game to me). So apologies to the subs, I did want to make changes.

2nd Half - So with the team unable to change Davison didn’t improve nor did the score line. A lot of huff and puff for no real reward found us 6-1 down. Davison then got a corker of an elbow in the eye and got up looking for the man in question only for the Ref to stop him. Davison now playing with only 1 contact lens in and struggling to see - just close one eye and you’ll know how he played out the last 1/2 hour, most difficult to work out where the ball is. A few more challenges came and Davison blown up again, this time when asked why the ref said “you threatened him last time so freekick” - there you have it, what a way to ref a game! The rest of the match went the way you expected, Crossley scoring 2 more to make it an embarrassing 8-1, our worst defeat yet. Conetta made some great saves to keep it into single figures and Gadsen tried as hard as he could. I won’t mention the misses but suffice to say I think we could have at least doubled our tally - it just wasn’t to be. I checked their goalkeepers jersey at the end of the match and it was still a nice yellow colour the same as when he started. oh Dear.

All in all a bad game and a bad choice to play Davison in his current state.

M.O.M - Again against Crossley its Mr Gadsen.