Tigers last game of the season was against Newmarket Town D. This was due to be away, but as Newmarket could not get a pitch, the game was switched to the glorious coliseum of Margarets Field – our home.

We had a full squad and started with big Al in goal, Noah and Max in defence, Ben and Matt in midfield and Joe up front. Immediately, Ben won the ball, feed it to Matty, who played it to Joe. Joe went round one player and hit a lofted shot around the keeper and into the top corner – one nil. Soon after, Jon and Elliot come one for Joe and Noah. Ben played the ball for Elliot, who laid it of for Ben, who hit a sweet first time shot into the bottom corner. Soon after, Joe came on for Matt and set up two goals for Elliot. The first was a wonderful pass from the left through the defence to Elliot, who controlled and hit it low into the bottom corner. The second was a powerful shot, that the goalie could not hold, which bobbled onto Elliot, who eventually managed to get it into the back of the net. Four nil.

In the second period, we started with big Al in goal, Jon and Noah, Fraser, Josh and Kieran. We were again straight on the attack and earned a corner. Noah took the corner which went straight across goal and was sweetly struck into his own net by a Newmarket defender – very unlucky indeed. Soon after, Josh was sent clear and hit a hard low shot past the goalie and in the very next attack, Max and Ben combined well to set up Kieran for his first – the third game on the trot that Kieran has scored. Seven nil.

In the third period, Josh added another, with a fine pass from Joe, that he hit first time hard and low past the goalie. We had another own goal, that was a mirror of the first own goal. Soon after, Joe won the ball in defence and played a pass through to Matty, who controlled, sped past one player and hot a hard and low shot whistling into the far corner. Soon after, Matty was the provider, collecting the ball from Josh and feeding Elliot for the simplest of tap in's. In the forth period, we started with Jon in goal, Tim and Noah in defence, Ben and Alex in midfield and Kieran in attack. After the whistle blew, Ben set up Kieran for his second, Max came on for Kieran and scored a lovely goal, having been set up by Alex and finally, Ben scored straight from a corner to complete the scoring and win the game 14.1.

It’s been a wonderful season and the coaches are really pleased with the progress of the squad of 12 lads. We have a set of lads who are shaping up into a really good team and will become even better as time moves on, into 11 a side.

Alex has become and really fantastic goalie and is the teams unsung hero, now commanding the goal and instructing his team in defending. He is a fine shot stopper and is an imposing figure to get past. Couldn’t want more between the sticks. Think Petr Cech and that is Alex.

Noah is our tough, uncompromising defender who is shaping up nicely as a full back, who will run the line, tackle tough and keep getting up when the going get’s tough. A ‘nobody get’s past’ attitude. Think Stuart Pearce – that’s Noah!

Max has come on fantastically in the second half of the season and seems to have found his spot in the team, in defence. Since switching to defence, he has been fantastic and has done exactly as asked. Think Ferdinand!

Ben can play in defence or midfield. Ben’s passing has got better and better and without doubt is the best striker of a dead ball. The coaches are now asking Ben to take more freekicks and corners due to Ben’s ability to hit it well. Beckham is back!

Matty started in defence and was simply bril! The ultimate clear up defender. Recently, Matty has also played in midfield and attack performing well in midfield and linking great with Joe, but playing equally well in attack, being our fast big man up front. Where will his best position be now we don’t have to play him in defence – time will tell, but I foresee a formidable midfield next season! Fabregas in now a Tiger.

Joe has been sensational in midfield all season – the power behind the team and the person who dictates games. When he is on, he controls the game and 30 goals from midfield is a wonderful record. He is the engine, power play box to box, strong shooting, skills and passing – think Gerrard.

Jon has come on fantastically this season and has shown what a wonderful talent he is. Playing in midfield earlier in the season, Jon was known for his tough tackles and powerful runs. In the later part of the season, Jon played in defence and played well. Another great option in defence for next season. Where is his best position – hard to tell, but we have great hopes for Jon next season. Think Hargreaves.

Elliot – our captain marvel. Elliot has had a great season, finishing top scorer with 35 goals. Elliot was labelled our ‘fox in the box’ for his ability to be in the right place to put the ball in the net – give it to El in the box and he will stick it in was the motto. An out and out striker – think Fowler.

Timmy has been exactly what coaching is all about. He has come on brilliantly all season, playing in midfield and defence, always working hard, making the tackles and not letting the team down – he give 100% and the coaches and really pleased with Timmy’s progress. Another option in defence, but also as a wide attacking midfielder. Think Joe Cole!

Fraser is our tough man in the middle. Fraser has developed well throughout the season and has found his position – in the middle to tackle and win the ball – he does that great. We wondered about his best position and this season he has performed well as that defensive midfielder – think Mascherano!

Josh is a little terrier up front. He works hard and has a great shot on him. Josh is a great option for attack in the future with his pace and ability to hit a good shot. He has done really well all season and will get better next season – watch this space. Reminds me of Owen.

Kieran – what a delight. All season he has tried really hard with no luck at the last possible moment and then like London buses – scored 4 in three games. Kieran can be a tough little footballer and be a good attacker in future with his physical approach and speed. Next season will be really interesting – think Adebayor.

The coaches have really enjoyed the season. Thanks to all the players and parents. We hope you have enjoyed the season, seen some good football, seen good progress and like us, think we have a bunch of lads who have developed and all being well will get better next season. Looks very exciting indeed and we are likely to have a very good team going forward.

The game ended as all games do when it is the last game of the season. The boys had their Tiger huddle and the mums provided the refreshments, drinks and bubbly water for spraying. All the lads got wet, as did the coaches and mums ;-)). In good old fashion, the players waved goodbye to the supporters – as they departed for the Tigers lads and dad’s camping weekend. There, well that’s another story, that ends there, because as the coaches say, what happens on camp, remains on camp, but their was plenty of roaring…..

See you all next season.

Final score: Won 14.1
Goals: Joe, Ben x 2, Elliot x 3, Josh x 2, Kieran x 2, Matt, Max, og x 2

On a glorious sunny morning on Saturday 3rd May, Tigers welcomed Newmarket Town B to Margarets Field for our last home game of the season.

We had a good squad, with only Alex and Josh missing for a game against a side we had beaten previously in the season 12. 1. The bacon was cooking, the coffee was on and the crowd was ready!

With Alex away, we started with Matt in goal, Max and Noah in defence, Joe and Ben in midfield and Elliot up front. We started well, with some good passing, dribbling and tackling. It was not long before we got ourfirst break through. Max won the ball in defence, played the ball to Ben, who fired a cross in, that found it’s way through to Joe coming in on the far post, to hammer the ball into the back of the net – one nil. Soon after, a fine tackle by Noah, left the ball for Joe to collect, who ran at their defence before laying the ball of to Ben. Ben passed the ball to Elliot, who turned and hit a hard low left foot shot into the near bottom corner. Two nil. Joe then scored a first for Tigers – a headed goal. Tigers earned a corner, which was taken by Ben. Joe met the cross with a flick header, that went in through the goalies legs. Three nil. Soon after, Joeearned his hat-trick, with a lovely run down the right, cutting into the middle, past the final defender and placing a lovely shot into the far corner. Towards the end of that 15 minute period, Timmy scored the Tigers fifth goal, with a lovely low struck shot from outside the area, into the far bottom corner of the net  - great strike.

In the second 15 minute period of play, Tigers started with Matt in goal, Max and Jon in defence, Joe and Ben in midfield and Kieran up front. Again, Tigers played some very good football, tackling well, working back, marking and passing well. Tigers put  a lot of pressure on Newmarket’s goal, but Newmarket defended well, making some fine tackles and great saves. It was not until the last 5 minutes of play in that period that we scored again. The 6th goal was an own goal, with a corner fired in from Joe, which a Newmarket defender headed into his own net. Soon after that, Joe scored his forth goal. Running down the right with Elliot calling for the ball, Joe fired in a hard cross, that went straight into the net – great cross – he will take the goal.  Immediately after, the same move worked right, with Joe running down the right – Elliot called for the ball and Joe delivered it to him for the simpliest of tap in’s. Eight nil.

In the third period, Fraser went in goal, with Jon and Tim in defence, Matt and Ben in midfield and Kieran up front. We controlled this period of play with Jon tackling well in defence as last man. Matt scored the Tigers ninth goal, with a fast powerful run through the middle and finished with a hard shot past the defender. Soon after, Ben passed to Matt, who ran the length of the pitch down the left and passed the ball to Kieran, who controlled the ball and hit a hard shot into the far corner – Tigers tenth and his second for the season – Kierans on a roll now.

In the forth period, Tigers saw out the game, with some fine passing and a further goal for both Joe and Elliot – his hat trick.

It was a comfortable win, with all the boys playing well. With no Alex, a big thank you goes to Matthew and Fraser, for being goalie for the day. Both played well in goal and outfield – Matty finishing of a fine display between the posts, with a fine goal during his 15 minutes as a midfielder. Max, Noah, Jon and Timmy all performed well in defence and Joe, Ben and Fraser had fine performances as well in midfield. Kieran had another fine game up front, scoring his second of the season. But this weeks man of  the match goes to Elliot, who put in one of his better performances, showing that he listened to the coaches about when to mark and when to spin away and find space. He worked hard up front working back, making the runs and laying the ball off and could have scored more if he had not done as the coaches had been shouting – to pass – and shot instead – so well done Eliott – keep it up.

Tiger, Tiger, Tiger – roar, roar roar.

Final score: Won Twelve nil
Goals: Joe x 5, Elliot x 3, Tim, Matt, Kieran, og

Cometh the hour, cometh the ‘Kier’-man….. with three minutes to go, Kieran scored!

On Saturday 26th April, Tigers were away to Milton Colts. We were without Noah, Timmy, Max and most importantly, the Gaffer! Could Mike and Karl handle the pressure?

We started with Alex in goal, Matt and Jon in defence, Joe and Ben in midfield and Elliot up front. For the first 5 minutes, Tigers were in first gear. We had not got started and for at least three minutes, we were pegged back into our own half and the coaches thought we were going to be in for a very tough game. Ben, Joe, Jon and Matt all defended well, with Alex making number of fine saves to keep the score sheet blank. Following of few words of encouragement from the coaches, the boys came alive and started to pass well and from that point onwards, Joe and Matt completely dominated and controlled the game, enabling the other lads to play with freedom. With those two in top form, it was only a matter of time before we would score. After a fine tackle by Jon, Matt, broke away, knocked the ball to Joe, onto Ben, who knocked a fine cross into the area. Eliott came flying in, hit a shot that was heading into the near bottom corner, only for a defender to stick a foot out and deflect it into the opposite corner. One, nil. Soon after, Joe had a powerful run down the right and was stopped by a tough tackle that the referee deemed a foul. From there, Ben struck a powerful low shot around the wall and into the near corner – two, nil. During this period, Milton attacked well, with a couple of players who could run and hit the ball. This demanded that Matt and Jon were strong in defence and neither missed a tackle. Soon Milton realised they could not get past our defensive duo and started hitting long range shots – Alex was up to the task brilliantly. With 5 minutes remaining, Joshua and Fraser came on for Elliot and Ben. Both got stuck in brilliantly with Fraser performing like Mascherano,  stopping everything coming towards him and making simple, safe completed passes. Joshua was a right little Tiger – working really hard up front and tracking back well – one of his best performances up front for a while – well done Josh.

For the second period, we started with Alex, Matt, Jon, Ben Fraser and Kieran. Milton’s coach had obviously said some motivational words to the Colts, who came out strong and on the attack, pinning the Tigers back in their own half with all the lads having to defend well and once again, Alex having to make a number of saves. After five minutes, the coaches brought Joe, Joshua and Elliot back on the pitch, which completely reversed the game and Tigers were now totally on the attack. A Milton attack broke down and Elliot got hold of the ball and fed it to Joe, who ran the length of the pitch towards the corner flag. With Joshua and Elliot screaming for the ball in the middle, Joe hit a very hard cross from the corner flag, that whistled straight into the net – it was a cross, but they all count – three nil. With five minutes remaining,  Kieran came on for Elliot. From another strong run from Joe, the ball was hit across the goal. Kieran came running in and hit the ball – right against the post – it bobble to Joshua who poked it into the net – four nil.

In the third period, we started with Alex, Matt, Jon, Joe, Fraser and Elliot. Again, Milton were attacking, when Jon won the ball and ran the entire length of the pitch, evading tackle after tackle and leaving Joe and Elliot in the middle of the goal unmarked, screaming for the ball. The coaches were screaming pass, but Jon just hit a hard shot straight into the goal – Five nil. For the fourth period, we played Matty in goal, Alex and Ben in defence, Joe and Josh in midfield and Kieran up front. During this period, two moments to remember. Firstly, that wonderful first goal of the season for Kieran Hassle. Kieran played well all game and following a good move involving Alex, Ben, Joe and Josh, the ball was fed through to Kieran who hit a fine shot into the bottom corner – his celebration was almost better then his goal – running the length of the pitch, arms out stretched and all parents and coaches cheering. FANTASTIC. Soon after, Alex broke down the right and hit a really hard shot – what followed was a fantastic two handed save……by a defender. The referee awarded a penalty and Alex dispatched it with power and style – game won Seven nil.

Tigers were back in form. All nine lads played well. Matty and Joe performed to the levels we know and completely controlled the game in defence and midfield, enabling the other players freedom to play with confidence, which enabled the entire team to get back to our great passing game – they were brilliant in their positions. Fraser and Ben put in good displays in midfield with hard tackles by Fraser and fine passing by Ben, Elliot worked hard up front, but was marked hard and had little space, Josh put in one of his best performances this season – really worked hard and tackled like a Tiger, Alex was great in goal and out on the pitch. Jon had an exceptional game, winning tackle after tackle, fine runs and many great headers.  But today was about one lad, who scored his first of the season and celebrated in style – Champagne was mentioned….and it is for this reason that Kieran wins this weeks Man of the Match – well done Keiran.

We really do have a great squad of players. In Alex we have a goalkeeper as good as the best at this level. In Matty we have the complete defender, who stopped everything and ran out of defence in style. He was the perfect last line and mopped everything up. Jon had another brilliant display in defence – with these two in fine form, we have a great defensive line – with Noah, Timmy and Max to return, the options are great and the competition good. In midfield, we have Joe, who put in another display of dominating the midfield and being the centre of the game – get the right partner with him and the future will be great. In Ben, we have a great option. Ben can pass beautifully and links up well with Joe and the strikers. He is one of the best strikers of a dead ball around – brilliant at freekicks. Fraser is becoming a great defensive midfielder – gets the tackles in, wins the ball and then plays it safe – just what you want in front of your defence. In Elliot, our Fox in the box and captain marvel, we have a fine striker and with Josh and Kieran now shaping up into great link players or strikers, the full eleven aside team looks great.

Finally, the gaffer will be pleased. In his absence, Tigers have NEVER lost… ;-)

The future looks bright, but today was about celebration, about the that first goal of the season – Tiger, Tiger, Tiger – ROOOOOOAAAAAAAAR!

Final score: Won Seven Nil

Goals: Eliott, Ben, Joe, Joshua, Jon, Kieran, Alex.

Man of the match: Kieran Hassall.

This was super Saturday with an end of season clash between the top two teams.

On Saturday 19th April, Tigers welcomed Fulbourn Institute to the colleseum of Margaret’s Field. The sun was out, the supporters amassed, teams ready – the tension was high. Our previous game with the Institute was our hardest game against a very good team, with good individuals and a well organised team. We had a full squad, well warmed up and ready for our toughest test.

As soon as the referee blew the whistle for the start of the first period, it was full of pace, commitment and power from both sides and all players on the pitch gave everything – tough tackles flying in, hard running whilst defending and attacking, fine passing and some wonderful saves from both keepers. All players for both sides played well, with a high tempo, matching each other, but in the right spirit and friendliness that should always be in our beautiful game. It is to the credit of both team set-ups, that both tried to play football, to tackle fairly and were playing with smiles on their faces. The end result was a one nil loss to Institute, but the memories are of a high tempo, tense and very exciting good game of football, showing the spectators everything they would want to see in a game. If Tigers are going to lose, we do not mind losing to such a good side, in such a good game.

All of the Tigers squad played well. Alex was fantastic in goal, making save after save. Institute had one player who was able to shoot from his own penalty box, meaning that Alex had to be alert at all times  - and he was, making a number of fine saves from long and short range shots. Timmy was also fantastic – he worked really hard, tackled well, was strong, ran the line well and made a number of wonderful saves. Noah was as ever, tough and resilient – on one occasion, making a very strong tackle, only to then be on the receiving end – he kept plugging away. Max, Ben, Matty, Joe, Jon, Fraser, Elliot, Kieran and Josh all played very well against a well organised and very good defensive side. All deserve special praise. The coaches were really pleased with everyone.

Alas, the final result was not to be of victory and the one goal was a reminder of the need to remember our jobs on the pitch and that one small lapse in concentration, even at this level can lose games. All game we marked and defended well, tracking back, making the tackles and remembering to mark our man when they had the ball. On this one occasion, Institutes striker lost his marker, who was at least 10 yards clear. When a long ball was played forward, it evaded the midfield and defensive lines and ended up at it’s target – the lone unmarked striker – who put it in the back of the net to win the game one nil.

However, compared to our previous two games, our marking was fantastic, so much better boys.

For Man of the Match, it was a very difficult decision as all the players played well against the best team in the league – the coaches could have picked a number of lads who were all deserving of the award. However, after much consideration, the coaches have decided to award the Man of the Match trophy to big Al in goal. As mentioned above, throughout the game he had to be on his toes, made a number of fantastic saves and kept the scoreline down low. He was also vacal in organising his defense, so well done Alex.

As the season begins to draw to a close, the boys can take real heart from a fine performance against the best team in the league and know that over two games they have more then matched them. Although Institute won the game, a draw may have been fair. With a little more concentration and remembering how Tigers play football, by passing, we can turn these close games into victory. Institute showed the boys how to play as an organised team, who defended and attacked as a team and limited our attackers to two notable shots. Next season we will be stronger and better, so lets play to this same level of performance in our remaining three games.

No win, no roar……

Final score: Lost One nil
Goals: n/a

Tigers were BEATEN for only the second time this season.

On Saturday 12th April, Burwell Tigers under 8’s welcomed Cottenham to Margarets Field. When Tigers played Cottenham in November, it was a very tight game that ended in a one all draw. The coaches new the Tigers would be in for a tough game, but knew if we played to our usual levels, we would come out on top.

Our biggest concern was the lack of match play – one game in 5 weeks and we’ve looked very rusty. Soon after kick-off, the coaches realised that Cottenham were clearly a well drilled team with a number of young lads who could all play football well, but a team that was also physically strong – we would have to match that and play good football.

Unfortunately, it was not to be.

Cottenham’s first goal was from a corner in the first period of play, that was well worked and steered in at the near post – another goal conceded from a corner. During that period of play, Tigers had one wonderful flowing move involving Matty, Joe and Eliott, only to result in a well timed tackle by a Cottenham defender to thwart Eliott just as he was about to shoot.

During the second period, following some encouragement by the coaches, Tigers began to  play a little better, resulting in some fine attacking play. After one attack, the ball rebounded out to Timmy, who controlled and hit a well placed shot into the far corner from outside the area – one, one. However, soon after, Tigers conceded a free kick inside Cottenham’s half. The free kick was taken, which rebounded of our wall straight back to the Cottenham player who took the kick. From the halfway line, he hit a wonderful powerful shot  that whizzed into the bottom corner – what a strike! That seemed to have an affect on us as soon after, Cottenham extended their lead through Tigers not clearing the ball properly and the ball falling at the feet of the opposition, who hit it into the back of the net. Three one. During the third period of play, Tigers got a second through a very unlucky own goal to make the final result Three, Two.

Tigers did have a number of good chances that if we had played the pass, taken a touch and shot at the right moment, the score could have been very different. Ben Cooke had a marvellous freekick, that was curled over the wall, only to hit the crossbar. It was a game the Tigers should not have lost and a team we are more then capable of beating if we played to our usual high levels. However, we did not do the basics well, which included passing, getting back, marking and defending at corners.

However, the game was a very good lesson for the boys. Watching Match of the Day, the pundets often comment on how the beautiful football passing teams often get out muscled and not allowed to play their usual game – Arsenal is a fine example. Cottenham had that affect on Tigers. They had a couple of lads who could play and others who were strong and could mark well, tackle tough and follow instructions, often resulting in our better players being marked out of the game. The lesson to the boys is to match that physical tactical approach and remember the basics that the coaches have been drilling in for sometime – pass and work as a team. By matching the physical approach and remember the basic principles of good football, they can beat any team in the future. Like Arsenal, we will not change our approach. IF YOU PASS, YOU WILL WIN!

Although the boys did not play to their usual high standards, their was one performance that was very good and if it had not been for his solid display in defence, the result could have been much worse. Max Canning put in a fine display in defence, making the last tackle, not missing a tackle, remembering to be the last man and making two wonderful last ditch tackles just when it looked like Cottenham would shoot. When asked to move upto midfield, Max also performed well with some wonderful runs. It was an all round great performance that earns Max the Man of the Match award this week – well done Max.

Sadly, no roar – it is Fulbourn Institute next week, so we will need to roar then. On top of that, like Liverpool, we need our Kop behind us, so cheer us on.

Final score: Lost Three Two
Goals: Timmy 1 plus OG

On Saturday 5th April Burwell Tigers were away to Fulbourn Falcons. Tigers had not played since 8th March. Last time Tigers played the Falcons, it was one of our hardest games – how would we fair away having not played for a number of weeks?

We arrived at Netherhall Upper School 45 minutes before kick-off with the aim of ensuring the boys were well warmed up. We had three noticeable absences – Kieran, Alex and The Gaffer! Would Mike and Karl be able to return to the home of the Tigers and keep our chins up or would their be resignations to consider? The whole Tigers squad needed to show what we could do without the Gaffer, Alex our goalie and Kieran, one of our strikers.

With Alex away, a special note of thanks and praise needs to be mentioned first for Matthew and Noah, who bravely stepped up to fill the hole between the sticks, pulled off some wonderful saves and only conceded a goal each through poor defending. Thanks boys.

We started the first 15 minute period with Matty in goal, Noah and Max in defence, Ben and Joe in midfield and Elliot in attack. As soon as we started, we could tell the boys had not played for a while and were lacking match awareness. We did not pass well, timid in the challenges, lost our positions and did not defend well. However, we had moments of good attacking, with two fine efforts from Elliot and a further two from Joe that should have gone in – all four went wide! Timmy then came on for Max in defence, Fraser for Joe and Joshua for Elliot. Fraser tackled well in midfield and did what he does best – stopped their attacks and made good simple passes to team mates once he had won the ball. When Falcons got through Fraser and Ben, Timmy mopped up well at the back, making some fine interceptions. During this period, Joshua had another great chance, that he rifled just wide. Ben had two further chances, one just over and one pushed wide – how many chances were we going to get and miss? During this period of play, what was  most noticeable was how well Ben played – he did find passes, made some good defensive headers and had some good chances. Towards the end of this period, Falcons had their ONE attack and yes, scored, through bad Tigers defending. The Tigers all lost their possession, lost the ball in a key area through not passing and left the Falcons to run in on goal without working back to defend. They fired in a fine shot, that Matty saved well, only for the rebound to fall to a Falcon who tapped it in. How were we one nil down at the end of this period.

During the interval, Mike gave some choice words about how they had played and what they need to do in the second period. We started with Matty in goal, Jon and Timmy in defence, Josh and Joe in midfield and Elliot up front. Now we started to play! Some better passing, good runs, tough tackles and a well worked goal, through to Elliot who put it away – one, one. Soon after, Max came on, won the ball and played it to Joe, who went round one player, before putting the ball in the back of the net. Two, one. During this period, what stood out was how well Jon played in defence – he did not lose his position or his man and made perfectly timed tackles, again and again. He was the stand out performer in this period, but Max put in a fine performance, As did Josh up front and Matty in goal.

The third period started and again, we seemed to lose concentration and what we were supposed to do. Noah went in goal, with Matty and Tim in defence, Jon and Ben in midfield and Elliot up front. Only Matty kept his position in defence and stopped many attack by the Falcons. Jon tackled well in midfield, Ben again performed well, passing and working hard, but none seeming to link up and play the ball through to Elliot. Whenever they ball did get through to our Fox In The Box, he was heavily marked. The boys all chased the ball as a pack, lost their positions to often and did not pass when they should have. During this period, the Falcons scored their second goal. The ball was cleared up field, our defender collected the ball and tried to run out of defence, only to be tackled in the middle of our own half, leaving all 4 Falcons to run in on goal. Again, a hard shot, that Noah did well to stop, but there was no defender to stop a tap in from the rebound. Two, Two.

Before the final period, the boys were again reminded what they needed to do. Noah in goal, Max and Jon in defence, Fraser and Joe in midfield and Matty up front. Mike gave his team talk and Karl gave the midfielders some advice about linking with Matty. This was without doubt our best period of play. Max and Jon were superb in defence, stopping everything with well timed tough tackles and passing out to Fraser and Joe. Fraser worked really hard and won some great tackles and Joe came to life, working hard with Matty through midfield and up front. For the Tigers third goal, Max won the ball with a fantastic challenge, played the ball to Fraser, who turned and hit it to Joe, who went round one player and hit a hard drive into the bottom corner. Three, two. Soon after, Falcons attacked and Joe won the ball right by the Tigers bye line and set of running with the ball down the left, hotly pursued by FOUR falcons. Mike and Karl were shouting pass as we could see Matty and Fraser completely unmarked. Halfway through the Falcons half, Joe quickly turned in field, leaving three of his markers standing. At that point he should have passed to Matty, but he hit a long range shot that curled into the top corner – great shot and goal – should have passed. Joe had scored a hat-trick. Joes forth goal was an example of what should have happened. Jon won the ball, to Joe, who then passed the ball to Matty, who went round two players and set off down the right and a fast run from within his own half. Joe kept up, running down the left calling for a pass and as Matty closed in on goal, passed the ball across goal for the simpliest of tap ins for Joe. Best move of the game and an example of how we can play and should play. Game won Five, Three.

It was a performance that showed one thing. The long break did not help us and we clearly lacked match awareness. There was some fine performances by Max, Jon and Fraser and of course, brave performances by Matty and Noah in goal. There was also some fine goals by Elliot and Joe, but over the next few weeks, the coaches are going to be concentrating on getting the boys back into the team playing mode – remembering positional play, tackling, being goal side, looking up and passing, calling for the ball which hardly happened and remembering, to link from defence, through midfield and to our attackers, who were especially isolated.

Finally, this weeks man of the match performance goes to Ben Cooke. Ben worked hard, played some fine passes, made some good tackles and got into good positions, both when defending and attacking, including making 6 fine defensive headers. We were really pleased with Bens performance and Ben showed the coaches in a game, what we see him do in training. Well done Ben – keep it up.

The squad returned to Burwell, game won without performing at our best, but a performance that showed that even when we don’t play as well as we should and certainly can, we have enough talented boys who are now a really good squad and will be a fantastic 11 a-side team in the future. Most importantly, Mike and Karl can keep their chins up at Tuesday’s training and hopefully keep their jobs. Gaffer will be pleased.

Tiger, Tiger, Tiger – roarrrrrrrrrrrrrrr.

Final score: Won Five, Two
Goals: Elliot 1, Joseph 4

Tiger, Tiger Tiger – oh boy did we roar.

On Saturday 8th March, Tigers welcomed Milton Colts to Margarets Field for the rearranged fixture from December and delivered a barn storming performance.

With the absence of Alex, Josh and Fraser, Tigers had a reduced squad of players for this game, but put in a rampant performance against good opposition. The game was like a typical Merseyside derby, full of pace, ambition and skill, with a fine performance in finishing by Elliot, Joseph and Ben, in front of  enthusiastic spectators.

With big Alex away, we made the decision to start with Matty in goal,  Noah and Tim in defence,  Joe and Ben in midfield and Elliot up front. Both teams were ready and the referee blew the whistle to start the game. Immediately, the coaches could tell this was going to be a tough game, against a well organised and coached team of talented footballers. Tigers tried to pass the ball around with some wonderful one touch passing reminisent of the one touch play by the Gunners. However, the team could not come up with a goal. Milton closed down fast and hard, with some tough, hard tackles to win the ball and when the Tigers did get through, their goalie made save after wonderful save. After a while, Jon came on for Ben and immediately got stuck in with some wonderful Scoles type tackles to win the ball – he stood tall and strong and came away with the ball. With Jon playing a type of defensive midfield role, that enabled Joe and Elliot to link up with him, and with Noah and Timmy, the passing started to flow resulting in the Tigers first goal, with the ball played through to Elliot, who slotted it home. Tigers second goal, was the result of some fine passing by Timmy, Jon and Elliot, ending with Joe, who went past two players and slotted home into the top corner from a tight angle. Soon after that, Tigers got their third, with a goalkeeper clearance that did not reach its target, collected by Elliot, who ran in on goal and put the ball in the back of the net. Soon after, Kieran was introduced into the game and was the centre of a fine piece of play by Max, Joe and Jon, who passed to Kieran, only to see his shot blocked, who then hit the rebound just wide. The first period of play finished 3 nil to the Tigers.

The second period of play was much more even and Milton came out very strong, tackling tough to win the ball and working hard as a team. Tigers had to match Miltons effort and commitment and in doing so, the Tiger showed it’s teeth. Timmy, Max, Joe, Ben and Elliot started and in the first 5 minutes of the second period, both sides played with vigour and tackled with intent, winning the ball. Milton were without doubt the toughest team we have come up against, but the Tigers not only matched their commitment, but passed through it, resulting in a third wonderful goal into the top corner by Elliot. During this period of play, Elliot had a fine shot, Joe had a long range power effort pushed away and Ben had another finely placed shot tipped round the corner, by a wonderful goalkeeping performance by Milton’s goalie – he was without doubt Milton’s man of the match and when a goalie is man of the match, you know there were many attempts on goal. Jon came on for Noah in defence and Kieran came on for Elliot. During this final 5 minutes of the second period, was probably the move of the game. Jon, won the ball in defence with another fine tackle, passed the ball forward to Max,  out to Kieran, onto Max again and one touch onto Ben, running through, who hit it first time into the far corner – a wonderful goal……..

The third period of play was a tight period with more tough tackles, fine shots and good saves. Milton played some fine football during this period and pressurised the Tigers defence. During the fourth period, Tigers again came alive. With another fine goal by Joseph and a further two by Elliot to finish the game eight nil.

Individually, all the lads put in a fine performance. Matty in goal, was a sound deputy for big Al. A few times he was tested and on all occasions performed well as a goalie. Normally we write about wonderful defensive play, but today Matty was the man between the sticks and did what all good goalies need to do – kept a clean sheet. In the later stages of the game, he even came out of goal and into midfield and but for a few more seconds, may have scored right at the end. Timmy and Noah again showed how good they are in defence. Both tackled hard, match Miltons commitment, won the ball and played the ball – future Nevilles and Coles – maybe. Joe put in another fine commanding midfield display of his usual standards, running, passing, tackling, skills and a couple of goals to top it of – new Gerrard?. Elliot had won of those fine fox in the box displays, with a number of calmly placed goals, but also a real stunner from outside the box. Elliot has hit form recently and if the midfielders continue to do their job and feed him, the fox will bang them in – a wonderful finisher along the lines of Fowler or Owen. Ben had another fine classy display. His control was great, his vision to find a pass good and tackling matching those around him. It was another fine composed display along the lines of all good passing midfield players like Ballack and Alonso. Max gave another fine display in midfield and defence, doing what was asked, defending well and passing brilliantly. Kieran had another of those nearly days – he worked really hard, tackled tough and took some very hard challenges indeed. He had a number of chances, only to be foiled by a fine goalkeeping display – that first goal surely will come soon.  Finally, Jon put in a fantastic display of power play for someone of his age. He tackled brilliantly, won the ball on countless occasions and having won the ball, found other team mates with a fine pass. The coaches lost count how many times he was last man, needed to win the ball and did. It was an amazing performance and one that rightly deserves this weeks man of the match award – well done Jon.

Finally, this was a game where the team toughened up. We know they can pass the ball and indeed today, they did. We know they can score goals and yet again, got a hat full, but what the coaches always wondered was how they would cope when a team was physically stronger and tougher in the tackle and today, the Tigers roared loudly and matched Milton all the way. What today also showed was the depth in the squad. Anthony, Mike and Karl have a squad of players that are shaping up well for the future and although we are a few years away from full 11-a-side games, the future is always in the Tigers coaches minds and this squad is shaping up very excitingly. It was a fine display and one that really pleased the coaches – well done boys.

This game was a great learning experience for the team. All the boys played well.

Final score: Won Eight Nil
Goals: Elliot (5), Joseph (2), Ben

This was a game of one half and one half only, thanks to the wind, with all goals scored at that same end – a great goal, an own goal and a wind assisted goal!

On Saturday 1st March, the Tigers under 8 side departed for an away game against Bottisham. It was a beautiful sunny fresh day – but a very windy day which was almost unplayable. The conditions were so windy, that the entire warm up was  focussed on explaining to the team how to play in very windy conditions – what to do and what not to do. Very little ball play was possible in the warm up. It was going to be a game against good opposition, but against tough conditions.

We had a full squad – Alex, Noah, Max, Joe,  Matt, Elliot,  Ben, Timmy, Kieran, Fraser, Jon and Joshua and we started with Alex, Noah, Max, Joe, Matt and Elliot. The referee blew his whistle and the game was underway.

We were attacking into the wind and immediately Bottisham earned a corner. Bottisham unleashed a driven corner into the area, only for the wind to get behind the ball and sweep it straight into the net – one minute played and one nil down – thanks to the wind.

We then kicked of again and started to attack, but not only were the boys playing good opposition, they were having to run, pass and shot into very strong head wind and understandably, found it very difficult. In that first period of play, we had two shots at goal – one from Joseph, that was heading for the far corner, only to be blown wide by the wind. The second by Elliot, and on target, only for the ball to be driven wide again – so wide it ended up as a throw in…. The boys found the conditions very hard. Bottisham had the wind behind them and this had the opposite affect – every time they got the ball and shot, it zipped speedily towards goal, demanding big Alex in goal was the rock we know him to be. On one occasion, a strong wind assisted shot flew straight towards him – he threw himself to his left and produced a fantastic save.

In the second period, we thought with the wind behind us, it would have the opposite affect on the boys and they would be able to unleash their shooting skills at goal – we were unleashing the Tigers. It was in this period, that Tigers got their equaliser. A wonderful bit of controlled passing play, between Matt, Joe, Fraser and Josh, with Josh unleashing a wonderful shot from 10 yards, that flew into the net without touching the ground – a great shot that would have been hard to stop without the wind behind it – and Josh celebrated in true style. What was noticeable throughout the rest of that period, was that the Tigers did break through on a number of times, only to experience that when running at speed with the ball past their defenders, that the wind then got behind the ball and made it run so fast, that the lads could not catch the ball – Matt, Josh, Joe and Elliot all experienced the same thing – a run away ball. In fact, the hardest working persons during that period of play was the number of parent ball boys behind that goal, collecting the ball.

In the third period, the Tigers had the same problem as in the first period. They all passed the ball better and worked better as a team and on occasions, managed to get into shooting positions. Joseph, Elliot and Matt having a number of fine shots, only to have the sting taken out of them by the wind. At the other ends, Jon and Max were having to work really hard, chasing wind assisted balls as Bottisham ran at the Tigers and Alex again, had to be on his toes, making fine saves and learning that facing a strong head wind, the ball had to be played out low, not high, otherwise the ball gets no further then a few yards……

In the forth period, we had the wind behind us again. We told the boys they needed to concentrate, play the ball on the ground, control it and work a goal by passing the ball – they did just that. Matt, to Ben, to Tim, to Joe and onto Elliot, who ran in from the right, firing  in a fine cross for the attacking players, only for a Bottisham defender to put the ball into his own net. Two one and game won.

Sometimes, you can not play pretty and sometimes you have to be happy to have got the win. All the boys worked hard, in conditions the coaches agreed they would find hard to play in. The boys tried to pass, to shot, to dribble and to play the kind a fantastic football we experienced in our last game and in the previous training session, but this game was all about the conditions and although we got a win out of the game, the most important thing is that the boys learned a really good lesson in playing football in difficult windy conditions – keep the ball on the ground, control it and pass it. We were really pleased with the effort the boys put in. The coaches thought all the boys tried really hard in frustrating and difficult conditions, so well done boys.

Because of the conditions, it was very difficult to pick a man of the match as all the boys worked hard, Alex making some fine saves, but this weeks award goes to Joshua Bonizzi, for scoring a wonderful equalising goal. Well done Josh.

Final score: Won two, one
Goals: Joshua, OG

It was a match that had everything, it was fairy-tale stuff and was the best performance since that wonderful display against the Falcons.

In training on Tuesday,  the boys really trained well and passed and called fantastically – it was one of the best training sessions yet – we hoped they would put that kind of display in during the match – and they did!

Burwell Tigers welcomed Arbury Aces to Margarets field on a cold frosty Saturday morning. Arbury were Tigers second opponents earlier in the season in a game where Tigers came out top 4.2, but a game that was tough and this time, Tigers knew they would be in for another tough game.

Tigers started with Alex in goal, Noah and Timmy in defence, Jon and Max in midfield and Joshua up front and for 10 minutes of the first period both sides matched each other for commitment and effort with neither breaking through and both defending well. After 10 minutes, Ben and Fraser came on for Timmy and Max and with 2 minutes remaining, Joe and Elliot came on for Jon and Joshua.  What stood out in the period of play was some fine tackling by Fraser. He got stuck in, did some fine tackles and passed  the ball he had just won.

For the second period of play, Tigers started with Alex, Timmy, Ben, Joe, Fraser and Elliot – at this point the Tigers had warmed up and really started to play. Timmy and Ben commanding the defence, Fraser tough tackling again and Joe and Elliot linking up well. The passing was really beginning to flow and we created a number of chances for Elliot, Joe and Ben, only to be foiled by some fine saving by the Aces goalie. Jon then came on for Fraser and it was soon after his introduction that Tigers got their first breakthrough.  Jon won the ball in midfield and the ball fell to Ben, who put a lovely pass to Timmy, who ran down the wing and passed to Joe, who went round two players before hitting a sweet long range shot low and hard into the bottom left hand corner. One nil to the Tigers. The second Tigers goal was another contender for goal of the season, not due to a fabulous strike, but for a wonderful flowing move. Max and Noah had come on for Timmy and Ben. Jon again won the ball, passed to Noah, who passed to Max. Max then put a sweet precise pass forward to Joe, who then linked up with a one touch pass to Elliot, who interchanged 5 one touch passes together, ending with a final pass from Joe that put Elliot clear through, with Elliot hitting the ball first time with the inside of his foot into the far bottom corner – this move was wonderful fairy-tale football that had coaches Anthony and Karl purring with delight – it was a fabulous move. Two nil.

Arbury then  started to attack and forced Alex to make a couple of fine saves, that if Tigers did not have such a good goalie, could quite easily have ended with the scores all square. On a third attack, the Aces broke clear on the counter – one on one – and as the player closed in on goal, he unleashed a fine shot, that Alex dived down low to his left to produce a fantastic one handed save, which rebounded away from Alex, straight to the same attacking player, who hit another shot, straight at Alex, who saved again, pushing the ball wide. The same attacking player shot to goal, with Max flying in to clear of the line and out for a corner. From this corner, Aces scored, again, from a corner, hit hard and low to the near post and in of the Aces player at the front post. Two, one.

Straight from kick off, Tigers attacked again, with a move started by Elliot, to Max, to Noah and through to Joe, who hit a fine hard shot beyond the goalie – three one to Tigers. It was at this point that Tigers played one of their best moves, keeping the ball and passing it into position. Elliot was by the oppositions goal line surrounded by defenders and unable to move towards goal. He looked up and passed to Joe, who passed to Max, across to his fellow defender Noah, who found Jon. By this point, Joe had run to the other side of the pitch and received a  fine pass from Jon. Joe looked up and passed a wonderful ball through to Elliot, who hit a fine shot, only to be foiled by another fine save. A move of keep ball, from attack, to defence and back was some wonderful passing. It was really good stuff.

For the third period, we started with Alex, Noah, Ben, Max, Fraser and Joshua and again it was very tight, with the Aces having a couple of fine attacks with Alex needing to be at his best. We then brought on Timmy, Elliot, Jon and Joe and produced some fine moves, resulting in a fine second goal for Elliot.

In the forth and final period, Tigers started with Alex, Noah, Timmy, Joe, Max and Elliot. We were very strong in this period and produced some fine passing and constantly looked like we would score more and indeed we did. Elliot completed a fine passing move and run by Joe to earn his hat-trick – with a fine celebration. We then brought Ben on for Timmy. Max was fouled just outside the area. Ben lined the ball up and shot – straight into the goal – only to be disallowed by the referee. Ben lined the ball up again, struck another fine freekick, only to see the goalie produce a fine save, pushing the ball outside the area, where Joe ran onto it and fired it into the net to earn his hat-trick. Fraser and Joshua came on towards the end and worked well in midfield and up front.

The final score was Six One to the Tigers – game won.

This was a really pleasing performance and coaches Anthony and Karl both agreed this was the best performance since the wonder display against the Falcons. Alex was superb in goal when needed, producing some wonderful saves, particularly one on ones – just like Peter Cech. Noah was again solid and reliable with some tough fine tackling and blocks – looking more and more like the Stuart Pearce we all remember. He worked really hard and was often the last line of defence. Timmy had one of his best performances for the Tigers, doing nothing wrong, passing really well and running the line fantastically – just like Ashley Cole. Ben also gave a superb defensive display, that was all grace and composure. Wonderfully calm and some fine passes. Fraser was great in midfield – this was one of his best performances and he is getting better and better. Joe put in another  majestic midfield display of power running, fine solo runs, dominating midfield, scoring a hat-trick AND looking up and finding some fine passes. Max was back to his best, with great displays in midfield and in defence, passing well, winning the ball and running out of defence. The link play between Max, Joe and Elliot was wonderful to watch. Joshua had another tigerish performance up front, working hard and closing down. Elliot put in another high level performance, scoring a fine hat-trick and linking up with Joe really well. If he could not get at goal, he found his midfield colleagues – he was that fox in the box and gave a good captains performace – indeed, the spectators commented on how well Elliot and Joe were congratulating and encouraging each other. Finally, Jon had another fine powerful midfield display, working hard, winning some fine tackles and passing well. All the boys performed well – it was a great performance and it is why, when going to press with this report, we still could not decide on Man of the Match.

Finally, we noticed that the boys were all calling for the ball – they were really vocal.

Well done team. Tigers are solitary creatures – today, they hunted as a pack – as a team. If we continue to develop on from this display, the future looks great. We welcome back Matty and Kieran next week who were missed. When they return and if we continue as we have, things can only get better. This team has great players in goal, defence, midfield and up front – the future looks bright.

‘Tiger, Tiger, Tiger...’ go on, you know the rest.

Final score: Six. One
Goals: Joseph (3), Elliot (3)

A cold windy day saw Tigers eagerly awaited return game against Waterbeach, the only side to beat the Tigers this season.

Since the defeat, the coaches have worked hard on getting the lads back to doing what they can do best – playing football – passing the ball, closing down and working as a team. The lads had worked hard in training and the coaches were hopeful. During the warm up, we focused on closing players down and defending at corners – we felt we were ready – were we? The crowd was ready, the Tea was hot (and needed and appreciated), the boys keen to get started and the coaches nervous……..

Tigers started with Alex in goal, Matt and Noah in defence, Joe and Jon in midfield and Elliot up front. As soon as the ref blew the whistle, we could tell it was going to be another tough game for the Tigers – Waterbeach worked hard and closed the Tigers down in a pack formation. It was clear Waterbeach were a good team, well organised, tough tackling, with a couple of very good players. It will be interesting to see their development in years to come. The teams were evenly matched. Passing was difficult with little time to think and space to move, to enable the players to find somebody to pass to. Both teams tried to break through, but were foiled with some fine defending. Matty and Noah worked hard in defence, sweeping up anything to come at them and not letting anything get by. Joe and Jon worked really hard in midfield, closing down, helping out in defence, running with the ball and trying to work a pass to our striker Elliot – our captain and fox in the box. Elliot had a hard period, doing well in helping the team to defend, but finding little space to work a good shot. Waterbeach had a number of corners that Tigers managed to defend well, but on the 4th corner, another well worked move, saw a corner played out to a player on the edge of the box, who’s shot whizzed past Alex in goal – another goal conceded from a corner! Max, Tim and Fraser came on for Noah, Jon and Elliot. Following a fine piece of defending by Matty, the ball fell to Joseph, who turned and ran at Waterbeach, around one player, then another, riding a tough tackle and a bit of luck with the next, but still had the ball at his feet, at this point, he unleashed a low hard shot into the bottom corner – one, one. A fine individual goal.

During the second period, the Tigers really started to roar. Noah and Timmy were fantastic in defence with Noah throwing himself in the way of any shot, with painful rewards for his effort – a fine defender in the Stuart Pearce mould. Kieran had another hard working game with little space or chances in front of goal. His effort will be rewarded soon with a goal and possibly, once the first goes in, an avalanche will follow.

At times, Tigers produce the kind of magical football that would have every neutral cheering them on – the start of what could be another 1970’s Brazilian wonder team. At times, individuals produce moments of magic – Pele, Maradona, Zidane, Gerrard and Rooney, that will be remembered forever. If Joseph scored a super individual goal, the second for Tigers by Matty was just amazingly fantastic and worthy in the Tigers Hall of Fame. Playing in midfield for the second period, Matty picked the ball up in a defensive position, rode one tackle, went round another player, ran at the two remaining defenders, knocked the ball between them and  then excellerated past and beyond Waterbeach’s last line of defence straight for goal. As he closed down on goal, the goalie stood large, but Matty coolly placed the ball with the outside of his foot into the back of the net – a wonderful individual goal and another contender for goal of the season. If a Brazilian had scored it, Match of the Day would use it in it’s opening credits for many years…… This was a moment that if Matty does not remember forever, his Dad will.

During this same period, Tigers scored two further goals. Another fine attack by the Tigers – Jon won the ball and passed it to Joe, who weaved his way towards the box, only for Waterbeach to clear the ball straight to Max, who hit the ball back into the box. The ball bobbled and fell at Elliot’s feet, who turned, hit a shot, that looped up of a defender and over the goalie. Three one to Tigers. Towards the end of the same period, Tigers got their forth. Another fine move and some good passing resulted with the ball at Matty’s feet, who hit a shot that went in of the goalie. Four one and game won.

During the third period, there were no further goals, but some fine football to be watched. Waterbeach came out determined and demand that Joe, Fraser and Elliot were on the defensive, helping out Max and Noah who put in a fine performance together that gives the coaches further options. The forth period was not much different. Although the Tigers played some good passing football, they were unable to score another goal due to a fine defensive performance by Waterbeach. They had a number of fine efforts by Timmy and Ben and Kieran had a couple of chances that just did not fall right for him to hit a shot at goal. What stood out in the period was a fantastic shot by Waterbeach from the halfway line, that all the coaches thought was in, only for Alex to produce an amazing save, tipping the ball over the cross bar. Alex had to make a few saves in the game, but being a tight game, neither teams had a huge amount of chances to shoot, meaning neither goalie had many shots to stop. What was pleasing about Alex’s performance was that he remembered to tell the defence what to do when marking was needed, particularly at corners as the game went on. However, when we needed big Alex to make a save, what a save it was.

Anthony, Mike and Karl discussed the game afterwards. We all agreed that picking man of the match was a really difficult decision this week. Noah, Elliot and Joseph all put in strong performances, close to their best and doing what was need against tough opposition, but this weeks man of the match goes to the defender with the grace of Bobby Moore, the dribbling skill of John Barnes, the pace of Michael Owen and the finishing of Alan Shearer, resulting in a wonderful goal. Matty gets the man of the match award, not just for the goal, but a fine performance all round when on the pitch – well done Matty.

Maybe, just maybe, the Tigers are getting their form back and remembering what we all know they can do. Individually, there are some very good players and once the coaches get them to gel as a passing team, they are going to be really exciting in the future. They are young, mere 8 year olds, but as time moves on and these players develop, what a team in the making.

It is said a Tigers roar can be heard 20km away. These lads are mere cubs, but watch and listen because a wind of change has hit the under 8’s, which will mean stronger Tigers team and a louder roar – Tiger, Tiger, Tiger, ROAR, ROAR, ROAR.

Final score: Four, one
Goals: Joseph, Matthew (2) Elliot

Tiger, Tiger, Tiger – roar, roar, roar reverberated across Margarets Field – the Tigers were back with a ROAR. On Saturday 26th, Tigers welcomed Teversham Terriers to Margarets Field for the return game. Teversham were our first opposition of the season in a game that Tigers won 3.1. This game proved just as difficult and the 4.0 win was hard fought.

We had a full squad of 12 lads for this home game and we started with Alex, Tim, Max, Joe, Fraser and Jon. We could tell very early on that this game was going to be a hard close game. Both teams were good playing football teams and both teams had players committed to winning. The tackles were tough, the passing good and the play tight – neither team were prepared to give way. As time passed during the first period of play, we started to bring on the subs – Ben, Elliot, Matt, Noah, Josh and Kieran. It was through one of our subs that the deadlock was broken towards the end of that period. Following a scramble and some tough tackling, the ball eventually broke lose and fell at the feet of Joshua. Josh controlled the ball, turned, ran and hit a sweet shot from distance that nearly burst the back of the net. A wonderful strike….. One nil.

During the second period, we started with the same lads who finished the previous period. There was some fine passing, with the ball ending up with Elliot, who turned and hit a firm low shot that was too good for the keeper to stop….Two nil. At this point, we started to play well and had good periods of possession and passed the ball well and closed down fast and tackled tough when we lost the ball. From a corner, we scored our third goal. Noah hit a firm corner, straight at the goalie, who could not hold it and diverted it into his net….three nil.

The third period was tough with both teams playing well. Teversham threatened during this period, hit some fine shots, which needed Alex to be at his best to save. They also had a couple of corners were Tigers defended well. Neither team were able to score during this period of play.

During the final period of play, the Tigers started strong again, with some fine passing, tackling and running. During this period, Tigers got their forth and final goal. Joe won the ball in midfield, ran at goal, was pushed wide, turned back and hit a hard low shot into the bottom of the net….four nil and game won.

Following our loss the previous week, Teversham were a good test for us. Capable of playing some very good football, with some fine players. They were more then capable of beating Tigers, which made them the perfect opposition for us to face. A team that could beat us, demanded a better performance from the Tigers and although it was far from one of our better performances, it was a great performance compared to the previous week, with all the boys working hard, tackling when needed, starting to pass again, shooting well, scoring goals and most importantly, started to play and support each other as a team. The coaches worked hard on this aspect of the game – we are one team. No one is better then anybody else – we are all the same – we play together as one, lose as  one and win as one – we are one team – and the team showed against Teversham that they understood that – well done lads – well done team.

Every player performed and played their part with better performances all round – it was very pleasing to see. There was one performance that stood out. Timmy King put in a fine performance in defence, tackling well, running out with the ball well and finding some wonderful passes. It was a tough game, were we needed our defenders to play well and Timmy did just that – Timmy is this weeks Man of the Match.

The Tiger is back – roar, roar, roar……

Final score: Four, nil
Goals: Joshua, Elliot, Noah, Joseph

The unbeaten record has gone – Tigers have lost their first game!

Burwell Tigers welcomed Waterbeach to the collesuem of Margarets Field on Saturday 19th January. It was a wet, grey and cold day. The pitch was wet and muddy, but the attendance was good and the bacon cooking.

The coaches knew that Waterbeach would provide a much tougher test then the previous weeks opponents - some of the Tigers under 8’s played the same Waterbeach team in a tournament in the spring of last year, with the end result a draw. Tigers were going to have to play good passing football to win this match.

We had a fall squad again on this damp winters day. Alex, Matty, Ben, Noah, Timmy, Max, Fraser, Joseph, Joshua, Elliot, Kieran and Jonathan. They were warmed up and ready. The referee blew the whistle for the start of the game and within 1 minute, Waterbeach had a clearance from their own half that looped high, direct at goal, over our goalie Alex and finally hitting the post and bouncing clear – a near miss and a warning of what was to come. During the first few minutes of the first period, it became clear that it was going to be a very good, but tight game. Waterbeach were clearly a good team, with good individual players who were well trained. During that period, there was only a few chances for both teams, with both goalies performing well and producing some fine saves. For Tigers, Elliot had a shot from distance that the goalie turned away, and Max had a clear run in on goal, ending in a fine shot, only to see the goalie produce yet another fine save.

During the second period, Waterbeach got stronger and forced Tigers on the defensive, with fine defensive displays by Ben, Timmy and in particular, Noah. It was during this period of the game, that the deadlock was broken. Waterbeach earned a corner, where they drilled the ball across the goal mouth, with a player coming in at the back post to tap the ball into the net. It was something they had practiced regularly in training and unfortunately, today was the first time it came off – one nil to Waterbeach. Soon after that, the second period ended.

For the remainder of the game, the Tigers rallied, worked hard, with lots of commitment, but did not quite click as a passing team and in the end ran out of time to score a goal, let alone win it.

The loss was a very good experience for the team. They learned that although you may well have a goal feast against a side winning 22-nil, there is always a team out there that could beat you. We worked had, in wet and muddy conditions, but we did not pass the ball as we have done in the past. In the end, we lost to a team, who could play, had been trained well, who closed us down fast and tackled hard. They got at us, went through us and deservedly won. The boys will remember the 22 nil win, but will now also remember that they need to pass and play as a team, to play to the high levels of attacking football that we all have enjoyed during the season in all games. There is a little work for the coaches Anthony, Mike and Karl to focus on, but the team will become stronger and much more understanding of the game after this defeat. The famous Shankley once said ‘ we are here for one reason – to win trophies’…. Well, our famous Cobbold once said ‘ we are here for one reason – to learn football’ – a lesson has been learnt.

Although we did not pass as we have in the past, what was pleasing was the high level of effort the boys put in and the coaches were very pleased with that – well done boys.

During this hard game, there were some fine performances, most notably in defence. Because of how good Waterbeach was, the whole team had to defend, from the strikers, the midfielders and of course, the defenders. However, it was our backline that really impressed, with Matty, Timmy, Ben and Noah performing well in defence and doing exactly what they were asked to do. One of our defenders had a wonderful performance, not missing a tackle, getting stuck in and producing some wonderful blocks, taking many stinging wet shots on the legs. He worked really hard and kept going to the end. For this fine performance, Noah Cobbold wins man of the match – well done Noah.

A frustrating reality check for the Tigers, who did not roar today. We will pick ourselves up, shake ourselves down, work hard in training and ensure the Tigers show its teeth again – the roar will be back.

Result: Burwell Tigers nil, Waterbeach 1
Goals: none for Tigers

It was a chilly Saturday morning for the first home game of the New Year that saw Tigers Under 8’s welcome Newmarket Town D to Margarets Field. The atmosphere was good and the bacon was cooking.

Tigers had a strong squad with all the boys turning up for the game. The referee blew the whistle and the game started. The Tigers played well, with some good passing, tough tackling and some fine goals scored resulting in a final result of Tigers 22, Newmarket Town nil.

The final score hides the fact that a young Newmarket side played very well. All their players worked hard, tackled well and tried to pass. They had a number of shots on target and reminded the Tigers coaches of where the Tigers team were last year. If Newmarket continue to work and play as they did, they should shape up to be a very good side in the new season. All credit to Newmarket and everybody at Tigers wish them well for the future.

All the Tigers players played well, especially Fraser Smith, who worked hard, tackled well and played some very good passes. He did not stop working and was happy to play in any position. This was his best performance so far this season. Fraser is this week’s man of the match. Well done Fraser.

The other lads played very well as well. Jonathan Lankfer put in a very fine performance scoring his first hat-trick, Noah and Timmy also scored a pair each and our goalie, Alex scored a hat-trick in one 7 minute period as an outfield player. Elliot, our fox in the box and captain, was back to his best scoring 6. There was also fine scoring performances for Joseph, who got a brace, Matthew, Joshua and Ben. Max and Kieran, who did not manage to get on the score sheet this week, also put in a fine performance. This was a game were the coaches, Anthony, Mike and Karl could mix it up a bit and put players in different positions to where they normally play. Alex played up front, Matty and Noah played in midfield, Joe and Max played in defence and Joshua, played in goal. We were able to see that the boys were able to play in a number of positions that give the coaches options for the future.

What pleased the coaches the most was that although this was not Tigers best playing performance and not the strongest of opposition, it showed that the under 8’s have  a strong squad of 12 players, who if they continue to develop, try their best and play as well as we know they can, then in time they will shape up to be a good 11-a-side team in the future.

2008 has started well. Margarets Field witnessed a feast. Not Mr Kings bacon butties (although very nice), but Tigers goals. There will be very few games were the boys can get their shooting boots out, but Saturday 11th, was a day the boys will remember for scoring goals.

Long may it continue throughout 2008.

Result: Burwell Tigers 22, Newmarket Town D 0
Goals: Elliot (6), Joe (2), Noah (2), Matt, Joshua, Jon (3), Timmy (2), Alex (3), Ben and an own goal.

Christmas matches always produce entertainment and this match did not disappoint. Two hat-tricks, one 5 goal salvo and a solo goal that is a real contender for goal of the season. Tigers won this game 12 . 1.

Burwell Tigers turned up at the Newmarket Town football club with a good squad of Alex, Noah,  Matt, Joe, Ben, Elliott, Max, Jon and Fraser. Although the players were clearly lacking sharpness, it became clear we were by far the better team early on. However, in the first 15 minutes period, we only scored one goal and that was by Matty, scoring his first goal for Tigers. Matty unleashed a fantastic shot from outside the area that flew into the back on the net. The joy on his face was clear for all to see.

In the second 15 minute period, the Tigers finally shook of that excess Christmas pudding and unleashed the flowing football and with that, the goals. Elliot Webb scored two goals, one cool shot from outside the area and another scrambled shot that you expect from the ‘Fox in the Box’. Joe Howe scored two goals, one the result of a powerful run down the left resulting in a shot using the outside of the foot and another that was a cross, the curled into the bottom corner from the tightest of angles. Jonathan Lankfer produced an amazing run, from his own goal box, down the left, cut into the middle and unleashed a powerful shot – candidate for goal of the season. In this period Newmarket Town had their one and only attack that ended with a powerful shot that Alex was unable to stop – other then that, Alex had very little to do and on the odd occasion when Newmarket did break, Alex ran out to clear the ball.

In the first 7.5 minute period, Tigers again attacked and surprisingly, were able to score only one goal. Joe Howe burst down the right and got to the bye line. At this point, he drove in a hard cross, with Elliot coming in on the near post to tuck it into the net.

In the final 7.5 minute period of the match, coach Karl suggested to coach Mike that we had a slight tactical change, coach Anthony was in agreement. With the game won and Newmarket Town unlikely to attack, let alone score, it was suggested that we put Matty, one of our defenders up front. From there on, Matty Edwards and Joe Howe tore through Newmarket Town everytime they got the ball, It really was a case of will we score each time we attack. During that period, Joe Howe scored a further 3 goals to secure his first hat-trick and Matty Edwards, put in a fantastic performance up front scoring a further two goals and also his first hat-trick. Game won.

It was a solid performance by all the lads. Alex was able to have a quiet game. Noah was his usual terrier self in defence, tackling tough when needed and not letting anybody get by. Joe put in another powerful midfield display, scoring 5 goals. Ben put in another fine performance, doing exactly what was asked and as usually expected of Ben – calm and composed with good passing. Elliot, the caption and ‘fox in the box’, was back on the score sheet with a hat-trick. Max put in a fine display up front being very unlucky not to score a goal and Fraser had a fine display with a wonderful volley that only just went wide – if that had gone in – wow? Jonathan Lankfer put in a wonderful display in midfield, scoring a superb goal and a tough midfield show.

Finally, the man of the match performance goes to Matthew Edwards. A fine display as usual in defence, scoring his first goal whilst in defence and then a great display up front, scoring a further 2 goals and his first hat-trick. Well done Matty.

Result: Burwell Tigers 12  Newmarket Town 1
Goals: Elliott Webb 3, Joseph Howe 5, Matty Edwards 3, Jonathan Lankfer 1.

Saturday 1st December brought the clash of the two remaining unbeaten sides – not Arsenal and Liverpool, but Tigers and Fulbourn Institute. It proved to be our toughest test to date and yet another example of how far Tigers U8’s have come.

The referee blew the whistle and within 2 minutes we were one –nil down. A well worked goal, ending in a shot from 10 yards was just to strong for Alex to save. Within another 5 minutes, we were two, nil down. Again to another well worked goal, down the left with a strong cross across goal and tapped in at the far post. It was clear that the Institute was a good, well disciplined side, with a couple of very good AND big players – one making Alex look small! Quickly the coaches, Antony, Mike and Karl discussed who we were up against, their strengths and weaknesses and got the boys focussed on what to do. Soon we started playing the football we knew we can produce.

Although this was not our best performance and certainly not of the standards set in the previous game, from that point onwards the boys performed well. We started to tackle, pass the ball and looked a treat. Halfway through the second period, we pulled a goal back. Joseph Howe won the ball in his own half, ran round one player and was forced wide left. From here he hit a powerful cross and from nowhere, Joshua Bonizzi came in at the far post and tucked the ball away. The second goal scored in the last period was all Joseph. This time, he again won the ball, went wide left and struck a powerful shot into the far corner that was too strong for their goalie to save. Two, Two and the final result. A draw was probably a fair result, but it was certainly a game Tigers felt we could have won and we will look forward to the return game in Burwell – I suspect when this return game happens, both sides will still be unbeaten.

Other then the two goals, there were other moments in the game that stood out. It was a game where the coaches went tactical, other then the structure of the team, by sticking either Joseph Howe or Matty Edwards onto the big number 6. This was a very big lad for his age, who could hit the ball from his own box into the back of the net, without bouncing and was more then able to score from range given the time. However, once we realised this, Matty and Joe completely took him out of the game. Institute were well organised and always very quick to close Tigers down, not giving them the time to play, however, we were also very solid and stopped the opposition getting through and in Matty Edwards, Noah Cobbold, Ben Cooke and Timmy King, we always had sound defence and midfields who never let us down and always competed. Jonathan Lankfer put in a very good display, and Max Canning, Keiran Hassle and Joshua Bonizzi all performed well. It was a tough game for our front strikers in Elliot Webb, Keiran Hassle and Joshua Bonizzi as the Institute defence was very well organised and tough in the tackle – none of them really got any space to do what we know they can do and it is no surprise that this game was a battle in midfield.

There were some very performances – Matty and Joseph again showed how good they are with top class performances who came close to earning man of the match. Ben again played good football is a calm and composed manner, always looking for the pass, and Jonathan, Noah and Timmy put in tough performances The performance that stood out was by our goalie, Alex Coles. I have said for a long time how good Alex is in goal and on Saturday, Alex lived up to the tag.  Goalies need to stop goals – simple as that and in a game that was so tight and with Tigers pushing for an equaliser right until the last period, we were always going to be a little open and on two occasions the Institute attacked fast. On the first occasion, they struck with a powerful long range shot that we all thought was in, only for Alex to leap high and push the long range shot over the bar – a wonderful save. However, that was not as good as the second. Institute broke away and their striker was closing in on goal – he struck a really good shot and somehow Alex dived fast to his right with an instinctive reflex save and pushed the ball wide – what a fantastic save. It is for these two moments that the coaches awarded Alex man of the match – congratulations to Alex.

Result: Fulbourn Institute 2, Burwell Tigers 2
Goals: Joshua Bonizzi and Joseph Howe

It was a performance the coaches dreamed off. Hope was high, expectations cautious and nerves tense for the visit of Fulbourn Falcons to the colleseum of Margaret field. Super Saturday round two was about to start on an autumnal morning against the team top of the table, who had played 5, won 5 and banged in a hatful of goals on their way past all opposition. It turned out to be a match to meet expectations against a team way beyond the quality of opposition the Tigers had faced so far, but ended with a  result and performance the coaches will be purring about for some time.

Alex, Matty, Noah, Timmy, Ben, Joe, Max, Jonathan, Fraser, Joshua, Kieran and Elliot all turned up to play and all played to a level beyond their normal standards – they all played and delivered what was asked of them – a truly fantastic performance individually and team wise.

Mr Cooke blew the whistle to start the game and instantly, the Falcons showed their quality and attacked resulting in a fine save by Alex. Falcons tackled hard, passed the ball and instantly attacked again needing a fine tackle from Noah to halt them at the last possible moment. Then, we finally started our first attack, only for the final pass to be intercepted, passed through to a Falcon, who stormed forward and unleashed a rasping shot the Alex did well to save, only to find the rebound fall to the feet of a Falcon running in – one nil to Falcons.

What was pleasing was the reaction of the Tigers – heads stayed up and as Falcons attacked again, we got stuck in, making crunching tackles, playing out of defence with some wonderful two/three touch passing through to the front. The ball just wasn’t falling for us, but the team and the coaches soon realised, we not only could match them, but they were beatable. It was not long before Tigers equalised. The Tigers attacked, only to find their defence standing firm with the ball bouncing out to one of their players. Noah came in like a steam train and won the ball with a firm tackle, who laid it of to Timmy King, who unleashed a firm shot, that a Falcon defender could only divert into his own net – one, one.

From there, the Tigers really opened up and started playing some wonderful football, playing our way through the Falcons and demanding save after save from their fine keeper, who had a fine performance. The first period ended one, one.

When the second period started, we were fantastic with the returning Ben Cooke putting in a 15 minutes spell that was simply his best so far this season. Some wonderful control, skill to go round players and some wonderful passing. Our second goal came from some fine work from Ben, who won the ball, round another player and passed the ball through to Joe in midfield, who pushed wide, round one player and headed straight for goal, unleashing a powerful shot right into the top corner – two, one to the Tigers. The third goal also was the result of some fine defensive work. Matty put in one of his best performances of the season, winning tackles and either running out of defence, charging through or passing out with some wonderful passes. Falcons were attacking and the Tigers last line was Matty, who in winning the ball, was pushed wide and was fast being closed down. At this point, Matty curled a pass down the side of the pitch that was probably the pass of the game, that unleashed Joe again who was running into a wide position, who collected and ended a fine move and fine performance with his second goal – from a tight angle, slotting it in low at the front post. Three, one.

The third period started and again the Tigers started to perform. In this period, our Fox in the Box Elliot finally got what he deserved, picking up the ball on the left, heading in towards goal at a very tight angle, at which point surely the only thing the captain could do was pass to his team mates charging in….. No – he somehow managed to slot it in from a very fine angle. Four, one.

Fourth and finally period and the Falcons really came at us. They constantly attacked us with some fine attacks, running  through us, round us and over us. They looked really threatening and in this period hit the crossbar twice and had two shots fantastically saved by Alex, who was again, the massive final line that every team needs to rely one – a really fine goalkeeper. However, we managed to break away and score another goal, this time the ball played through by Max to Joshua, who shot home. Five, one.

Team huddle – Tiger, Tiger, Tiger, roar roar, roar.

We had won the game five, one with a wonderful performance of passing, tackling, shooting and team work against a really good team…. How good can the Tigers become?

Picking a man of the match was so difficult for the coaches as every single player played beyond the standards they had set so far. Matty and Joe showed why they are key to the team, such players whose names are normally first on the team sheet. Alex again showed what a wonderful goalkeeper he is and without his presence in goal, the score result probably would have been very different. Ben put in a 15 minute spell that was simply sublime and without doubt the best spell from Ben so far this season – very impressive. Timmy was again, Mr Reliable, fantastic in defence and wonderful charging down the line. Fraser and Jonathan again put in really solid and steel like performances in midfield, tackling hard, working hard and getting better each week. Max again, put in another high performance in midfield, working hard back and looking threatening in attack. Kieran probably had his best performance so far this season up front, unlucky not to get his first goal, but holding the ball up and laying it of wonderfully, enabling other players to collect and through on goal – well done Kieran. Our Captain and Fox in the Box was back to his best, working well up front, looking like his was going to score and working back as well.

However, Man of the Match had to be chosen and has gone to a young lad in the team who always works hard, gives his best and on this occasion, simply had that wonderful attitude of ensuring nothing got past him. He was told that in defence he would have to be tough, stay back and win his tackles – and he did not miss one, delivering tackle after tackle, stopping the Falcons shooting on numerous occasions – well done Noah.

Super Saturday lived up to expectations. The Tigers have set a high standard. Hopes and expectations will be high and this result will send out a message to the rest of the league – in the mortal words of William Blake – Tiger, tiger, burning bright in the forests of the night, what immortal hand or eye, and when thy heart began to beat, what dread hand and what dread feet…

Result. Tigers 5, Falcons 1.
Scorers: Timmy, Joseph (two), Elliot, Joshua.

Forget Sky’s Super Sunday – this was Mini leagues super Saturday. The first big clash of the 100% records – both teams had played 3 and won three – something had to give.

We were away to Cottenham. They had played and won all three of their first three games, like Tigers and we knew we were in for a tough game. We had a good squad with us – Alex, Matty, Noah, Ben, Timmy, Joe, Max, Elliot, Kieran, Justin and making his debut – welcome Jonathan Lankfer.

The warm up was good, the pitch perfect, tactics prepared and the whistle blew. Immediately we could tell we were up against a good team – and a tough team.....a battle throughout the pitch in every position. The defence was tough,  midfield powerful, strikers given very little space – one-off moments decide these sort of games.

It was a match where every player had to raise their game. Matty had an outstanding game in defence, sweeping up and running out of defence with the ball – reminding me of such graceful defenders such as Moore and Hansen – but with speed and a power shot – twice shooting just wide. Noah was yet again, unforgiving in defensive tackling with the traditional bulldog spirit of ‘thou shall not pass’ attitude. Matty and Noah are forming a real solid backline and a real insurance at the back. Unfortunately, Ben our calm and artistic defender was injured and had to bow out early in the game – we hope he has a speedy recovery as we need him back in the side. Joe showed his qualities again and again, he was that midfield engine covering every blade of the pitch, tackling tough, running out with the ball and going beyond those who stood in his way- picture the Liverpool Gerrards and Souness’s and that is Joe. At one point in the game, Joe hit a half volley halfway inside Cottenhams half, only to watch the ball wiz just past the post.. Partnering Joe in midfield was Max – he is really coming on and showing that he is a fantastic player – collecting the ball, going past players and a great eye for goal – midfield or attack – not sure yet, but one thing for sure – a bit of luck and one of his chances would have gone in. Justin again showed he is coming on fast as a tough midfield player – able to and more then happy to get stuck in with tackles that win the ball – defensive midfielder? It was a tough game for our captain and fox in the box Elliot and his strike partner Kieran. Neither had much space to go for goal as their defence was as solid as ours. When there was a glimmer of an opening, lady luck was not on our side. You will notice I have not mentioned Alex, our goalie. Because of how well the team played in midfield and in particular, defence, Alex had very little to do with only a couple of shots to stop and a couple of balls in to collect – the one thing he did very well was boss the back line – instructing the outfield players where to stand and who to mark…..just what we want, so well done Alex.

Making his debut was Jonathan Lankfer. We played him in midfield and asked that he tried to tackle and win the ball and pass it. He did very well indeed and like another debutant before, scored on his debut. It was in the third period of the game and yet again, the ball was bobbling around midfield, when it broke to Jonathan. From just inside their half, Jonathan hit the ball…and it did not touch the ground until it was in the back of the net – what a strike and certainly worthy of winning the game. Alas, that was not to be the case. In the last minute of the last period, Tigers were attacking and the ball was in Cottenhams half – their defence needed to clear it and clear it they did – a typical big punt from the back to clear the ball, up into the air and from one end of the pitch to the other  - the problem was that it did not touch the ground until it has flew over Alex’s stretched out hand and into the net – 1.1 and that is how the game finished.

There is one thing throughout the game that impressed the coaches Mike, Anthony and Karl – attitude. Choosing words carefully, Cottenham’s enthusiasm for tackles was not to our liking, quoting the boys, they hacked. Yes, the tackling was rough to say the least with just about all the boys on the receiving end of some tackles that would make any man wince. What pleased the coaches, was that although the boys were hurt, they got up, composed themselves and tried to play football – well done boys. It is worth mentioning, that player’s only hack you when you are better then them!

Finally, you will note I have not mentioned Timmy King. Timmy played in defence and in midfield. He was tough in the tackle, great in the passing, energetic down the wings and did not let the side down once. He was kicked and knocked over, but just kept getting up and going again – great attitude. For this all round performance, Timmy was voted Man of the Match.

This was a touch game and a game which was always going to be a big test – everybody associated with Tigers, should be proud of each and every lad who went out for the unders 8’s. Some games, like this are decided by small details. Their equalising goal will never happen again – you can not do anything about such goal’s and yes, the end result was an unlucky draw, but what we did get out of that game is that the Tigers can roar against anybody – bring them on!

Final score 1.1
Goals: Jonathan Lankfer

Saturday 6th October, first home game and you could smell the sense of anticipation in the air. The pitch was marked and the dugout crested with 'Tigers'. The boys had a good warm up – they were ready.

We started with Alex in goal, Matt and Noah in defence, Joseph and Max in midfield and Elliot up front. The team took control immediately but took a little while to score the first goal. Matty cleared the ball down the line, Joseph collected, controlled, ran across the pitch around their defence and hit a rocket shot with such force, that, when the goalkeeper caught the ball in his chest, the power of the shot actually pushed the goalie over the line. GOAL. The second was a beautiful display of passing, control and a left foot shot from outside the area by Elliot. GOAL. At that point, we subbed the entire outfield team and brought on Ben, Timmy, Fraser, Joshua and Kieran. Again, good team display, controlling the game, tackling hard, looking to pass the ball. Quality defending at the back by Ben stood out.

Second period started with Tim, Noah, Joe, Fraser and Elliot. Finally, Bottisham woke up and started to attack with Alex finally tested and on a couple of occasions and also having to run of his line to clear the ball. Throughout the game, Alex was commanding in goal. During this period, two Tigers stood out – Noah and Timmy – some great defending and crunching tackles, which left both attacker and defender hobbling and dazed. After one crunching foul, Tigers were awarded a free kick. Young Noah placed the ball, stepped back, ran and hit it – straight into the net. GOAL. This knocked Bottisham and Tigers attacked again, finishing in a sweetl