Postal ALC 1 - University 3 - Div 2 North - Webster Park - 12/11/2002

TEAM - 1. D.Cruickshank 2. R.Webster 3. A.Baxter 4. C.Collie 5. B.Patterson 6. B.Schrader 7. A.Clark 8. J.Steele 9. L.Melia 10. B.Webster 11. K.Dowbekin 12. M.Hunter 14. C.Reith 15. S.Walker 16. S.Cotovici 17. N.Wiley 18. D.Aitken 19. L.Giulianotti

OPPOSITION MOTM – A.Clark

Postal welcomed University to Webster Park on an unseasonably mild November afternoon. Postal kept, largely, the same starting 11 which beat Westend the weekend before with Dowbekin being the only change replacing the unavailable Frampton on the left.

The first half was a fairly even affair with neither side creating too many clear cut chances. Postal probably having the majority of the play shooting down the slope.

On 16 minutes Postal keeper saved the defence’s blushes with a good save after he was left to defend a 1-on-1 to the right of his box. He came out to meet the player and did well to block the shot and smother the ball.

5 minutes later Postal were behind, though. A corner from the Postal right was fumbled by the keeper right on to the head of a criminally unmarked student who easily nodded into the back of the net. Postal too slow to get organised prior to the set-piece and it came back to haunt them. 0-1.

A moment of controversy on 22 minutes when Postal were adamant they had equalised when a Schrader shot was scrambled from the line by the Uni keeper. Looked like it was definitely over the line from the Postal sideline but the ref waved play on.

On 43 minutes Postal were provided with a chance to draw even when Baxter was taken down just inside the Uni box. Steele stepped forward but his low shot was saved to the keepers left hand side.

HALF TIME – POSTAL ALC – 0 – University 1

Postal were given a warning in the first 5 minutes of the half when an unmarked student was allowed to get a shot away low to the Postal left hand post. Luckily the Postal keeper pulled off another great save to keep the score line at only 1.

It wasn’t long before Uni doubled their lead though. Ten minutes into the second half, with Postal attacking, Unit counter attacked quickly and a nice little passing move saw one of the Uni players stroll through to dispatch past the Postal keeper. Poor marking again from Postal. 2-0.

Postal should have had a pen when Dowbekin was bundled down inside the box but unbelievably, the ref not only waved the game on but booked Dowbekin for diving. Poor mistake from an experience referee.

Postal cut their own throats 25 minutes into the second half. With Postal attacking in the Uni box, the ball was cleared, as Postal were running back out, Postal defender, Baxter, took a wild swipe off the ball at a Uni player, right in front of the referee and was correctly red carded. Madness.

Ten minutes later, Postal were handed a lifeline. A good pass from Steele to Dowbekin down the Postal left saw him send across a good ball across the face of the Uni box where Bruce Webster was on hand to knock the ball home. 1-2.

Postal huffed and puffed for the majority of the game but the big centre half for Uni could have been smoking a cigar at the back for Uni, as the Postal front 3 failed to give him any concerns today.

Inside the last minute Postal got a free kick and sent everyone into the box, including the keeper. The ball bounce about for a while around the 6 yard area but Postal couldn’t dispatch for the equaliser and when it was eventually cleared, one of the students had an easy task to walk the ball into the empty net. 1-3.

Overall a fairly even encounter between the two sides for the majority of the match, with Uni taking their chances, when gifted, and Postal struggling to cause the young defence many problems at all.

Add on a missed pen and a stupid sending off, and it certainly wasn’t Postal’s day today. Most players fought to the end and never gave up, being a positive for Postal, but lessons certainly need learned.