Match Reports - 2009-10 Under 14s

Below is a list of all the match reports that have been done for the under 14's over the course of the 2009-10 season...

20th Sept 2009 FC Huthwaite 3-5 Darley Dale Juniors U14s

Huthwaite were one of our main rivals last year when we lost to the twice and remain so this season. Therefore we knew this was always going to be hard fought fixture. The new signings this season proved to be invaluable and gave the team the belief and lift they needed to go and play the performance of a lifetime. Despite going 3-1 down which would have meant capitulation last year the team rallied, rolled their sleeves up and refused to be beaten. By the end we dead on our feet and came out comfortable winners and could have scored more goals. This was a magnificent squad performance and I and parents who witness the display were immensely pleased. It was also great sportsmanship to see the Huthwaite manager come over and say we deserved the win and the opposition parents giving our team a well earned round of applause. I was incredibly proud and was buzzing for days.

27th Sept 2009 Darley Dale Juniors U14s 12 - 2 Heanor Staffs U14

Heanor Staffs are a new team to the league this year and as such an unknown quantity. A late arrival of the opposition and our regular keeper being held up meant we took a while to settle down and find our rhythm. The improvements in defence were obvious and this allowed our front and midfield players the space and time to surge forward. The match was one-sided once we had established a comfortable lead. A good squad performance against difficulty opposition.

11th Oct 2009 Hasland Community FC U14 0 - 11 Darley Dale Juniors U14s

Complacency could have very easily been the order of the day with Hasland struggling at the foot of the division. The remit for this match was not to concede any goals bearing in mind goal difference could determine promotion this season. This was a one-sided match with a number of Hasland players being absent with the dreaded flu. A comfortable and well disciplined performance.

18th Oct 2009 Darley Dale Juniors U14s 4 - 4 Beaufort United FC U14

A ding-dong battle with a nervous Darley team finding any platform very difficult. For some unexplained reason the team seemed to revert back to type. At times we showed superior skills but lacked the consisntacy of the Huthwaite match. By the end we managed to salvage a point and had the ball cleared off the line in the dying seconds. Overall, a disapointing result bearing in mind how far we have come this season but a draw is better than a loss any day.

25th Oct 2009 Darley Dale Juniors U14s 4 - 5 Buxton JFC Athletic U14

This was the fixture we were all looking forward too as Buxton are our local rivals. The flu bug hit us very hard for this match and we were without three of our regular defensive players. In fact, the squad were desimated, we could only manage twelve fit players out of seventeen. Darley were very surprised to race into a three goal lead within ten minutes and committed the cardinal sin of taking their foot of the gas. Instead of consolidating our winning position the players 'decided' they all wanted to score which left us open to counter attacks. During the second half we were by far the better team but unable to find the killer punch. A harsh lesson learned. The team were extremely disappointed.

8th Nov 2009 Cresswell FC U14 7 - 0 Darley Dale Juniors U14s

Cresswell are the run away leaders of the division and its not hard to see why. They are a very physical side with some good players and a well organised match plan. To our credit we matched them for the first thirty minutes but failed to protect our goal at corners and this cost us dear. Six corners, six goals is not good, but we never gave up hope despite some ferocious tackling by the opposition. We were on the back foot most of the match but we took some positives from the fixture. Defending corners will certainly be worked on at training.

7th Feb 2010 Chesterfield Cougars 2 - 5 Darley Dale Juniors U14s

Chesterfield were relegated last season from division 2 and on a very damp and cold Sunday morning we made our way to their ground. We settled far better than the opposition and went into a rapid 2 goal lead kicking uphill only to be pegged back to 2:2 by half-time. We were very confident in our ability and pleased with our first-half performance so decided attack was the best form of defence. The backline pushed up to the halfway line meaning they had along to go to score and with Rob Garratt in excellent form we though it a risk worth taking. Very soon we went into the lead and finally finished scoring a further 3 goals to cap a brilliant performance. Darley thoroughly deserved the win, a win that was based on attacking football and excellent passing.

14th Feb 2010 Darley Dale Juniors 0 - 6 F.C. Huthwaite U14s

A rematch of an earlier fixture which Darley won 5:2. But this was a very different affair. On a heavy pitch Huthwaite settled far better than Darley. Huthwaite were more physical and raced into a very early lead from which we never recovered. Their constant pressure and fierce tackling took it's toll and we paid the price. By the end Huthwaite ran out comfortable winners and look set for promotion this season. For us this was a disappointing match in which we failed to reach the standards of the Chesterfield match the week before. If this match was a school report it would read D- could do much better.

Keywords : darley dale juniors fc Under 14s 2009-10 season