Match Report - 15 February 2004

It was second in the table Ruislip against ninth in the table Headstone but on the pitch there was nothing between the teams and the 1-1 draw was a fair result. Headstone were put under more pressure in this match than in any of their other previous games. Yet the defence responded superbly and Jordan Wright made many excellent saves to deny Ruislip.

Ruislip started better and it took until midway through the half before Headstone got their passing going. But all the players worked very hard to recover when they lost possession. Russell was very strong at the back as he has been throughout Phase 2. Alongside him Ciaran had his best game of the season. His tackling and distribution were excellent. Rory battled away up front but he and the midfield players, Conor, Warren and Thomas, found it hard to break through in the early stages of the match.

Ruislip had a couple of good corners which they might have scored from but Jordan Wright denied them. He made a number of good diving saves to keep them at bay. Kushal and Jordan Coleman replaced Rory and Conor midway through the half. Headstone gained more confidence as the half progressed and put Ruislip under more pressure.

In the 19th minute Headstone took the lead. They worked the ball down the right hand side, Warren crossed the ball and Jordan Coleman, who had run into the area, collected the ball and shot home into the corner. It was his first goal for the B team. For the rest of the half Headstone held firm and never looked like losing the lead. But, despite their good approach play, they were unable to create any chances to add to the lead.

Rory and Conor replaced Thomas and Warren at the start of the second half. Headstone continued to pass well and Kushal used the ball very well up front, delivering it wide to Jordan and Warren. But early in the half Ruislip got back into the game with a swift attack down the left hand side. After a good defensive performance it was a poor goal to concede as Headstone allowed Ruislip to run through the defence and score from close range.

Headstone continued to work hard to regain the lead and had several good breaks towards the end of the match. However, they just couldn't find the final pass that would have seen them break through the Ruislip defence. Warren had a shot on goal and Headstone had Ruislip under pressure from three corners but that was as close as they came. At the other end they had a couple of close shaves from Ruislip's corners but, again, Jordan Wright was on hand to keep them out.

A draw against a team that had won 4 out of their last 5 matches was a good result. Jordan Wright and Ciaran McDougall were joint men of the match for their best performances of the season.