This weekend’s matches were livened up by playing a number of competitive International Friendlies against Crystal Lake Illinois, USA:
The Firsts beat Enfield Borough 0-2 away in the Second Round of the Middlesex County Premier Cup. This midweek match led to yet another win for Dragons.
The Firsts and the Blues League matches were postponed due to waterlogged pitches.
The Old Dragonians narrowly lost 3-4 away to Seshfield in Round 2 of the Roger Perry Cup. This wasclassic cup tie action as both teams not only had to fight each other but also battle a strong cross wind. Despite going 1-3 down the ODs were never out of the tie and through a hattrick from their Midfielder clawed back to 3 apiece with the match heading towards penalties. Alas, horror of horrors, Seshfield snatched a winner in the final minutes.
The U18 Boys away game to Regents Park was postponed.
The U17 Boys beat Old Actonians 5-3 at home. Matches against the OA’s have not always been happy affairs; indeed, historians noted that the recent away leg resulted in some Dragons taking a minibreak from football. To compound matters the Dragons veteran winger was cruelly tackled leading him to limp off. The match started evenly but a momentary wobble from the Dragons, an oft defining feature, resulted in their conceding two quick goals to leave them trailing 1-3 down. There was much gnashing of teeth amongst the Dragons fans. The players however regrouped and pressed and pressed to eventually score three wonderful goals whilst the OAs gave a helping hand by heading one into their own net.
The U16 Boys beat Foxes 3-1 at home. Thank goodness after 3 weeks playing away the Dragons finally had a home game with a lunchtime KO – perfect! The Foxes are third in the league, just above the Dragons who were nevertheless optimistic as they had beaten them in the semi-finals of the Cup last season. Both sides started well and were evenly matched. Unfortunately, after 15 minutes the Dragons conceded. They kept their heads up and were rewarded with a superb goal from the halfway line. The Dragons then took control to record a great victory after a tough few weeks.
The U14 Boys beat London Athletic 5-0 at home. This was potentially a difficult match for the Dragons who were missing a handful of players, whereas London Athletic turned up early, in their shiny new match kit, with at least five substitutes to win the warmup. When the actual match started however it was the Dragons who kept their shape, repulsed the attacks, and created the goals. Well done.
The U12 Boys Red lost 0-1 to Princes Park away. The Dragons had most of the possession but just couldn’t find the back of the net. There was also a very blatant foul in the box by their keeper but the ref denied the penalty and Princes Park got out of jail for free.
The U11 Boys beat London Athletic 2-1 at home in what was euphemistically labelled a “Friendly”. TheLondon Athletics’ coachchallenged the Dragons to a “Friendly”without explaining to his parents that football is for fun – not an excuse for parents to behave badly. London Athletics scored first and it took some time for the Dragons to pull back to even the score and then pull ahead to eventually win – in the face, it must be said, of over excitement amongst the opposition parents.
The U12 Boys White drew 3-3 with Crystal Lake. After going 3 nil up in the first half, the Dragons tired a little against a very fit and technically gifted team, conceding the last of 3 second half goals in the last 15 seconds of the match. The Dragons also had a second half goal chalked off for an incorrect offside call. All in all, a performance to be proud of, and an ‘international cap’.
The U13 Girls beat Crystal Lake 2-1. A very entertaining game played out end to end and in the right spirit, where both teams showed great skill and sportsmanship alike.
The U13 Boys lost 0-3 to their Crystal Lake counterparts. The Dragons were ultimately defeated not by skill, but by a fitter American team who embodied work ethic to the core.
The U15 Boys lost 0-3 to Crystal Lake. The Dragons dominated the play but couldn’t score against Crystal Lake’s 6ft 8” giant goalkeeper. A great experience for all.
The U12 Boys Red lost 0-1 to Princes Park away. The Dragons had most of the possession but just couldn’t find the back of the net. There was also a very blatant foul in the box by their keeper but the ref denied the penalty and Princes Park got out of jail for free.
The U15 Girls drew 2-2 with Actonians at home. A closely fought out game right to the end with the Dragons local rivals Actonians in the home leg of a west London derby. On another day it would have been the Dragons who earnt the points
The U11 Girls home game against Ruislip Rangers was postponed due to the weather, and the U14, U16 and U18 Girls had no games.
