Lobster Pot 4 (Allison(3), Mukuddem) -NVCC 2

Dave Allison netted his 14th , 15th and 16th goals for the season. the second with a clinical penalty strike and Saleem rounded off the scoring by netting his 8th in all competitions. This win puts Lobster Pot level on points with Robin Hood and Tuff Dogs who both have better goal differences that the Pot and the Hood have a game in hand. This has by far been the best run of form displayed by the Pot since I have been a Pot player 2001.
This was the 5th win on the trot and it started as if it was going to be difficult. We started very shabby with shots on goal being at a premium.
Pot played well below Par and allowed North Village loads of time on the ball. Pot appeared to be hurried without any pressure into loosing possession. The deadlock was broken just before half time when some gritty work by Dave Allison dispossessed a NV defender and aggressively charged toward the goal and showed just why he is 2 goals shy of scoring the most goals in a Pot season for the last 6 years. Half time at 1-0 and the Pep talk by coach Berkeley must have once again done the trick as Pot scored 2 more thanks to Dave Allison and thus completed his hat trick and earned a case of Elephant's. That's the last time Berkeley makes a bet with Allison.
The Pot defense without the influential Ben Cooper held out until midway through the second half when a NV attacker who with his first touch as coming on as a substitute chipped the ball over an advancing Brian Ward in one of those what was he thinking moments. In fairness Brian took one for the team as during the warm up he managed to badly bruise his thumb as he displayed during the halftime break. It looked painful. Pot got a 4th courtesy of a superb Ken L through ball finding Saleem who beat the off side trap and the nagging moaning NV defenders and neatly rounded the keeper to slot the ball into the back of the net. NV managed another before the end and Pot got what they came for. 3 points and a 2 goal improvement in their goal difference.

Tuff dogs has a 4 goal advantage over Lobster Pot in the net goal difference stakes

Lobster Pot 2 (Allison, Dyer) -Tuff Dogs 1

Lobster Pot 2 (Mukuddem, Gribbin) -Key West 0

The game was going to be anything but drab when Pot manager Troy Berkley decided to play with a 3-4-3 formation and it proved to be a masterstroke.

Pot who have never beaten Key West since they gained promotion to the Commercial A division were out of the starting blocks as quick as Ben Johnson (the disgraced Canadian sprinter) while he was on steroids. Saleem rose majestically between two KW defenders to direct a powerful header into the back of the net at the near post from a Jameel corner with 1 minute 10 seconds on the clock. Pot dominated the half and on this day as everything clicked into place. Pot keeper Brian Ward caused havoc with his wind assisted goal kicks as the KW defenders struggled to control the bouncy ball knowing that a Pot attacker was charging down the ball every time. Pot created several chances and KW were fortunate to be only 1 goal down at half time. KW did have a shot come off the cross bar. Ben, Marek and Ken defended like men possessed.

Pot went 2 up midway through the second half when the 3 attackers all combined with Tommy getting the final touch. Saleem received the ball just inside the KW half and made some in road before chipping delightfully for JP who right in front of goal with only the keeper to beat unselfishly flicked (unintentionally) the ball to Tommy at the far post who was left with a easy tap in. Brian made a few excellent saves during a brief spell of sustained pressure from KW as they struggled to get back into the game.
Pot has several chances to kill off the game but held on for a memorable 2-0 victory. On a lighter side Chris will not play with indoor studs again and Curtis will be working on what to do after beating the entire defense.

Pot have now laid to rest the Key West Voodoo.

Lobster Pot 2 (Dyer, Gribbin)-BAA 1

Lobster Pot made certain of another 3 points by beating 10 man BAA 2-1. Lobster Pot themselves ended with 10 men with CJ being sent off halfway through the first half for foul language. Saleem will ensure that the team knows a few Afrikaans curse words so the ref will not understand them when we shout, Naai, vark, poes etc.

The game was not a good spectacle but 3 points is all the Pot players wanted to take from this game and they did. It was a scrappy affair with not too many chances. Pot drew first blood with JP latching on to a Jameel Effendy free kick and scoring with a powerful header. He rose unchallenged at the fast post and guided his header firmly passed the BAA keeper who earlier or later (can't remember) lashed out at CJ who in keeping with his frame of mind coming into this match retaliated verbally and thereby getting himself sent off by the referee. The same referee who communicates telepathically with the players and had Ken sent off earlier in the season. A BAA player not wanting to be outdone cursed at a challenge and unfortunately for him the referee being as bad as he is deserves credit for being consistently bad. Both teams were down to 10 men before half time.

Pot looked comfortable and would surely have taken their lead into half time when .......  A blazing Cross from a BAA Player took a horrible bounce of the very uneven Ground  in front of the goal and ending up leaving the BAA player with the easiest tap in to equalize.

Pot came out in the 2nd half much stronger. Pot had the Lions share of the possession but failed to make that count. Jameel Effendy playing in his familiar winger/defender role had several telling runs down the line but failed to provide the final cross when needed. He was so surprise to find himself with keeper to beat that he could not score even after having 3 consecutive shots blocked. Darrel was by far the busiest defender and once again had a fantastic work rate. The winner came halfway through the second half when a glorious Tommy (who else...ex BAA) Toe poke beat the BAA keeper who was flat footed and could hardly believe the accuracy of the poke. It was an inspirational substitution bringing on Tommy for the not yet 100% Lappin. Troy made a rare appearance and came on for Saleem who suffered a

groin strain midway through the 2nd half. Pot finished the stronger and secured a valuable 3 points.

Well done boys. 4 of the toughest matches remaining. Full steam ahead.

Lobster Pot 8 (Allison(4), Effendy, Dyer, Mellor, Way)-Dev All Stars 0

Pot made certain of 3 points with a very convincing scoreline over Devonshire all duds and in the process drastically improved their goal difference. For our North Americans readers they improved their Percentage of goals scored vs goals against. Pot should have at least scored 20 goals but wasted chances proved the order of the day. Let's hope that we used up all our wasted chances for the season. The Pot keeper must have had his most uneventful game of the season. Pot finished the game with 9 men because Jameel Effendy was so happy at scoring that he decided to rest a minor injury so that he could be fit for the "All you can drink for $Cheap" Special at some bar. Substitute Glen singh who made a rare appearance for Pot limped off shortly after coming on midway through the 2nd half. Pot having already made two substitutes did not want to risk the injured John Lappin so we played with 2 men short. The game will best be remembered for Dave Allison grabbing 4 and surely securing the golden boot award, Darrel scoring his first goal of the season and Saleem Mukuddem (who gets mentioned whether he plays well, bad or even when he is not present) for not scoring. Knowing him personally I think he does not want to take advantage of weaker opposition. Next game BAA - Watch this space.

Saleem

Lobster Pot 2 (Mukuddem, Way) - PHC 2

Why is it that Pot always make it hard for themselves? Maybe we are suckers for punishment.

On a cold and gusty day at White Hill we played a PHC team that had the confidence of already beating us in the first round. This time we thought we would not be caught off guard again. This frequent occurrence of falling asleep during the match once again surfaced and it resulted in PHC scoring from the quickly taken free kick. The fact that the guy was yards off-side did not hide the shortcomings that our defenders were still thinking about their night out last night and being too disorganized to see what happened. In fairness the goal should never have stood. The first quarter of the game was played mostly in the Pot half due to the strong wind we were playing into. Pot got their act together and we played much better football in the 2nd quarter of the match. Jameel Effendy making a few runs from the back a la Wayne Bridge. Dave Allison who passed a late fitness test and the pillow he kicked at home would testify that he was o.k, had another gritty performance upfront with one of his trademark work horse performances. Chris Way also had a solid performance in the engine room. Skipper Curtis Raymond back in the side after his mid season break was still struggling to shrug off his holiday legs. Pot went into half time a goal down and must have been glad to get that half out of the way. After all the game consists of 2 halves.

Having the wind behind the sails Pot were optimistic that they could get something out of this game. That light at the end of the tunnel must have faded when about 10 minutes into the 2nd half the unthinkable happened. Yes, PHC scored....again. It was now Pot 0 - PHC 2. The Pot of old would have thrown in the towel. But as this match reporter has noted before...this is the NEW NEVER SAY DIE Pot. Within a space of 10 minutes Pot drew level. Thanks to goals from Saleem Mukuddem (Yours truly) and Chris Way. Mukuddem this time latched onto a Chris Way through ball and ran the length of the opposition half of the field whilst keeping the defenders at bay and clinically shooting pass the keeper. I will personally make sure that the reporter at the Royal Gazette gets it right this time. Chris Way scored his first for Pot minutes later with a close range angled header from another Jameel Effendy cross. 2-2 and game on with 24 minutes to go. Pot had several chances to clinch it and was camped inside the PHC half. The best of the chances were both headers and the best fell to Saleem Mukuddem who was unmarked in the box and put his header from a Curtis Raymond corner over the bar. I guess Monday night at training we will need to focus on some heading. The other chance fell to Veteran CJ who defied his age with a diving header (belly flop) that flew wide over the posts.

At the end PHC defended valiantly and was glad to hear the final whistle. The draw was certainly consolation prize as it was an improvement over their previous meeting earlier this season, but with a little more time and creativity in midfield Pot would certainly have secured all three points. Better luck, awareness and sharpness next time.

Pot will wonder what they have to do to break the voodoo that Hood has over them. Once again Pot competed valiantly only to give it away at the end. The game started at a frantic pace with play largely taking place in the Pot third of the field. Pot however against the run of play struck first blood with a Ken Mahadeo finish from a Chris Way free-kick. The keeper could only parry the free-kick where a unselfish mis-kick by the ever dangerous Dave Allison inadvertently opened the way for Ken to score his first Pot goal in 2 seasons. While Pot fans were celebrating the goal Hood equalized from the penalty spot thanks to another blunder by one of the three blind mice (referee). His decision to apply the law by awarding the Hood a penalty caught all the Hood players by surprise. He also surprised the players on the bench when he ordered them back to the bench after they sought shelter from a freakish thundershower. Why is it that all Bermudian referees get the important calls wrong but they are fantastic at applying the trivia rules. Ben Cooper who stuck to the Hood attacker like glue was adjudged to fowl the Hood attacker inside the box. Even the Hood goalkeeper could have seen that it was outside the box. At half time the game was evenly poised at 1-1. Midway through the 2nd half the Hood attacker got a break from the half way line and managed to keep the Pot defenders at Bay before he shot clinically pass the Pot Keeper Ward, who was slow to come off his line. CJ replaced Dave Allison who appeared to be suffering from a knock he took earlier. This change proved vital as it was the veteran CJ who turned the clock back a few decades when his nifty footwork inside the Hood box mesmerized the Hood defenders who had no alternative but to foul the midfielder. Saleem Mukuddem calmly and confidently converted the penalty and Pot was back in it 2-2. As in the first half it took Hood less than 2 minutes to go ahead once more. The Pot defenders were in la la land when a cross was converted by the Hood attacker who headed unmarked from the back post to clinch it for the Hood. Check out the Gazette's Write up by Clicking Here

This game was over as a contest the day the draw was made. Lobster Pot nevertheless played their hearts out for 90 minutes. The result was never in doubt but keeping the scoreline respectable was a major objective. We tend to follow the gaffers instructions to the tee. He wanted us to not concede a goal in the first 15 minutes and this we did. Unfortunately we conceded 3 in the next 6 minutes. 2 were gifts to them for their sustained pressure. The Pot keeper "who shall remain nameless" will not be subjected to that amount of crosses for the entire commercial league season as he did in this one game. Their players were fit, fast and hungry. We were not as fit, not as fast (well most of us) and we only had damage control on our minds. At 5-0 down at half time there was nothing much the gaffer could say to lift the spirits. Chances for Pot was few and far between with the strikers always finding themselves isolated and surrounded by 3 or 4 PHC players. Every Pot player worked his socks off and this was rewarded by a goal in the second half courtesy of a "Giggs-like" run by Saleem Mukuddem (Yours truly) who despite turning 32 tomorrow still outpaced the young energetic PHC defense from just inside the PHC half, to calmly slot the ball past the advancing keeper. Pot missing at least 3 regular starters gave a much improved second half performance and only lost it 2-1. With a change in formation came a change in fortunes. On a day that will be remembered for Jameel Effendy's (2 own goals. He might argue that Brian Ward the Pot Keeper deserves credit for one) and John Lappin taking a dive for a breather rightly so as he was kicked in the @#$#$ with the ball by his own captain Marek Noha. A PHC player exhibited true sportsmanship by offering Lappin a HAND to ease the pain. Final score Lobster Pot 1 - PHC 7.

Pot has come out of this match with their pride and dignity intact and can look forward to a league game with Robin Hood.heck out the Gazette's Write up by Clicking Here

Mukuddem