We made an energetic start against Ballard and it was thanks to a fine save by Yehor that we did not fall behind. Marius led the charge with his battling and after Seb's neat pass, Max nipped in front of their goalie to put us 1-0 up. Soon after, Jamie's ball into the box was unluckily nudged into their own net by a Ballard player and we were 2-0 up. Josh fed Max who drew a decent save from the goalie whilst the Year 7 boys and Ricky at the back were being tigers! The second half remained tight and well contested. Seb pounced on a loose pass from them and his shot was well saved, but only parried out, and you know who was there to seize on the chance and score our third. It was a good performance against a lively Ballard team.

Next up was Durlston Court and this was a hot contest with not much between the two teams. We didn't close their sharp midfielder down quick enough and his long shot put them into the lead. Moments later, Yehor pulled off another good save, only for the DC player to pounce and finish from close. At half time we were two down. The half time talk was about reacting positively, showing a bit of character and getting the next goal. We did, with Max and Seb combining well. At 2-1, it was game on! Elliot set the standard with his gutsy tussle with a player twice the size of him and the boys played with plenty of heart. Josh's quick free kick took the opposition by surprise and it was Seb who raced after it and neatly slot passed the oncoming keeper. The game remained tight and finished as a gutsy 2-2 draw.

On the bus journey home, I asked the boys who should get the man of the match award and Jack got the nod. Well done all round!