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Hachioji Park, Sunday 18th January.
Vagabonds demolished Maritizio 2-0 in their best performance of the season at Hachioji park. Maritizio didn't get a single shot on target, Vagabonds countless.
Mother nature provided us with a squad of fifteen players, raging with insecurity about so long without a win. In fact I saw a few players levitating, half way to heaven, the ghost almost given up, their twitching heads muttering nonsense into the blinding floodlights.
Through glassy eyes the Vagabonds made out small players dressed in the colours of BOOK OFF far away in the distance, the Referee was a brown spot – I think its called a floater – crossing their irises as the whistle ignited the fuse, damp as a basement this few months, but suddenly dry as a bone packed in silica gel.
The Vagabonds crackled with energy from the tip off and the first minutes produced a barrage of persistent attacks that set the tone of the game.
There were a huge amount of chances for Vagabonds in the first half. I would say more chances than in all of the other games of this season combined. Sparkes found himself through but shot wide. Cox headed a corner millimeters wide. Hughes blasted a number of shots over the bar. There were others but they were all of similar quality.
The first goal arrived after twenty minutes and involved a bungle by Maritizio defenders leaving the ball for Muzzy who calmly placed his shot high and wide of the keeper.
Old habits die hard and for some reason panicky screaming put us to flight into our own half. The Vagabonds found themselves in the preposterous situation of retreating to defend a one goal lead when they were just about ready to drive a stake though our hopeless, disoriented, dazed, etc. opponents and kill the game off.
Anyway retreat we did and Maritizio got within range of the Vags goal a few times but never got a dangerous shot off. Quickly tired of the nonsense, Vagabonds made a break from deep releasing the ball through the middle into the gaping hole that Maritizio had left. In came Wadsworth, Toczko, Baxter, all rabid for a goal. Baxter put the tackle it, Toczko made sure there would be no questions, and Wadsworth knocked the throttle in a stride to fast. Quinn ran up the middle waving and shouting like a drowning man for the pass, but Waddy`s mind was set – if Muzzy could do it so could he – high and wide of the keeper and no need for assistance.
Kaneko was excellent at left back, and I`m thinking of starting a fan club exclusively for him, our most creative defender. Unlike Beckham he can tackle and head a ball as well as cross and dribble. When he sees an opening he heads for it, ball at his feet or else shouting for the pass, making himself available to support an attack. So what if he is caught out of position now and then when a defender hoofs a ball over his head while he is tracking back? Better than standing idle inviting our opponents to picnic in our half. He was involved in a rash of great moves down the left side the best of which Muzzy headed just wide.
Vagabonds began the second half with a flowing style, players beautifully spread around the pitch with a good awareness of each other`s positions – we conserved considerable energy and Maritizio, unable to close us down, really were at sixes and sevens. They had to wait until we`d fired a shot or over hit a through pass before regaining possession. Unfortunately we didn't score again although Wadsworth missed a golden chance from six yards out.
The two goal lead of course helped our confidence, it may have been harder to play this way, so late in the game, with a single goal lead, or no lead at all - we almost certainly would have been reticent about moving forward. The open play occasionally allowed a Maritizio player to get near our box with the ball at his feet. But so what? What harm? There was always a defender there to tackle him. As in the first half, Maritizio failed to get a single shot on target. Keeper Burt was bored senseless.
It's been a long time since Vagabonds played such open and confident football, with the exception of the mad spell of defending at the end of the first half. Maritizio are not a terrible team but they had to chase us for most of the game, desperate and hopeless. I said that already.
If there was some way to remember how we played today, but of course it is impossible. We could now be set for a run of beatings until we find the magic conditions again. But you never know, it could also be the start of a glorious year of football.
Finally I want to correct an error that was pointed out to me. The Vags goal against the Dutch Embassy on January 10th was not an o.g. but was properly scored by our star Simon Sparkes. Sorry Simon!
Report by Gary Quinn
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