2-2 vs Pechekali

Im writing this just before New Years Eve so i cant actually remember much about the match. Needless to say it was a hard fought battle, with the moaning gits of Pechekali always trying to draw fouls and get you carded. Cedric was dismissed by a very poor referee for saying Puta to a Pechekali player who had just kicked him. The Pechekali player got no card. It meant a hard last 30 minutes with 10 men. A large brawl marred the game where the referee turned his back and made to walk off without dealing with it, until the two benches threatened him back into his role. With 11 undoubtedly we would have won, but a point with 10 men against these mugs was not bad result. Another gutsy display against the odds. Bring on 2010.....

Lost 6-1 to Black Horse

What a nightmare, this score did not reflect the game whatsoever. A couple of howlers left them 2-0 up and then a superb solo effort from MOM Chris gave us a chance at 2-1. The Collins battled well and were actually looking like the more likely team to score when a terrible penalty decision went against us, after all what would a game reffed by Chelsea John be without a dodgy penalty? The 3-1 scoreline came at about 65 minutes and knocked the stuffing out of us. The heads went down and mistakes were made. 3 Header from corners sealed the game for them, which normally wouldnt have gone in. To say that we had the chances would have been an understatement. In the ned fitness and bad decisions went against us, and although worth winners, the Black Horse will be flattered by the scoreline with this one. 3-1 would have been a more realistic representation of the game, maybe we should have stopped at 65 minutes....

Anyway, great xmas party afterwards, and looking forward to the Pechekali game on saturday in the freezing cold. At least we´ll be more used to it than the Catalans. onwards and upwards...........

3·-1 Win vs Sitges in the Cup

Well beating Sitges twice in 2 weeks is no mean feat for the Michael Collins. Although Sitges are a team that you can never take for granted. We arrived at Montañesa full of confidence, and started very brightly. The first 20 minutes, some wasteful finishing meant we should have been at least 2-0 up, but it seemed only a matter of time before we scored. Sitges are an odd team though, they hold you off and hold you off and grow in confidence, until all of a sudden you are on the back foot. I have to say defensively for 80 minutes they were excellent.

Near the 70 minute mark they popped up with a goal, and we didnt look like scoring one past them. We were looking forward to penalties before the unfortunate event, but they werent to be. Out of nothing came a perfectly weighted corner from Humberto, and Terry popped up at the back post to equalise with 10 to go. It was against the run of play but it served as the catalyst we needed. All of a sudden w were pushing forward again, and wanted another goal. It was a beautiful piece of play between JP and Lluis, even though it was about 5 metres offside, and JP slotted cooly past the Sitges stand in keeper. Five minutes later Lluis ran on to a through ball and took us to 3-1 against the odds. Sitges could feel hard done by as they played very well, and it took Terrys aggressive will to be forced onto the team to kickstart a poor game. Anyway, were through to round 2 of the cup for the first time in years...good stuff!!! MOM Terry a true captains performance.

Collins 4-0 Sitges

COLLINS improvement continues with away thumping 0-4 of Sitges

After last weeks confident performance, Collins looked to improve turning their fluid play into goals and in turn, victory. Next up was the eagerly awaited grudge match against the hostile Sitges outfit.

Talk before the game was of unsavoury past encounters where blood was shed, and games lost. However knowing the pedigree of the Collins team this season confidence was high we could put previous results against Sitges behind us and win without resorting to violence…. Well that was the plan.

Arriving in high spirits to a sunkissed coastal stadium the stage was set for what proved to be a fantastic day for the Michael Collins team. Sitges to contribute to a fairer game left out their usual trouble maker, which would ensure a greater harmony on the field. The usual referee of Sitges games took charge, if that’s what you could call it. With a history of missing important decisions, and dishing out red cards like sweets for Halloween, we knew we had to be at our best to ride the shocking decisions that we’re bound to come.

A strong side was picked with Micky returning to midfield to partner Umberto. The usual attack of Chris and Lluis we’re hoping to turn their usual gluttony of chances into goals. Width was provided by Craig & Brendon and the assured back 4 of Cedric, James, Terry & Juan. With the managers words ringing in their ears, Collins set about taking the game to Sitges early and the first 20 minutes Collins displayed some beautiful, imaginative football that had Sitges chasing shadows. Half chances we’re being created with Micky & Umberto running midfield with sporadic movement to the wings things we’re looking good for Collins. The deadlock was broken after 20 minutes after Craig was cynically hacked outside the box. Umberto stepped up and curled a delightful Beckhamesque freekick round the wall that the keeper could only push into the top corner. First blood to Collins and surely now the floodgates would open. However things didn’t quite go according to plan, although Collins searched for more a mix of horrendous finishing, brushes with the woodwork and a resolute rear guard of Sitges ensured Collins didn’t build on their impressive opening 20. Juan was at his unpredictable best as he marauded down the left wing and as the half drew to a close it was Collins on top and looking inevitably to build on their opening goal.

Second half had the wings changed as Craig & Brendon made way for JP & Nick. The changes paid dividends as within 10 minutes of the restart Chris played a beautiful low through ball up the wing which JP raced onto unchallenged, sprinting away from challengers he cut inside and played a simple cross for Lluis to convert and finally put some daylight between Collins and Sitges. Chance after chance came Collins’ way but the poor finishing continued and the woodwork count kept rising as Collins failed to put the game out of sight. The score was far more flattering for Sitges than it should have been. As Chris fluffed chance number 7 the frustrated manager pondered changing the front line until AT LAST the centre forward converted the simplist of chances to put Collins 3-0. Further changes saw Chris, Lluis & Umberto leave the field for Walter, Victor and the Finnish wonder player Ky. With supreme confidence now flowing and added to by the introduction of Ky, Collins went in search of their fourth goal. JP was having that half of his life, causing constant problems on the right and skilfully skinning Sitges players at will. It was another mazy run from JP which yielded the 4th goal. A snap shot which again hit the woodwork but cannoned off to the predator like Ky who lashed in an unstoppable 3 yard screamer which could be a contender for goal of the season……. 4-0 job done, an assured quality display. Other teams must be starting to look over their shoulders as Collins continued improvement is soon going to come together and we’ll give one team an absolute hiding. Next up is Sitges again in the cup, but away from their home surroundings it promises to be a very different game.

After match drinks in a Sitges Chiringuito was just the tonic as Collins celebrated their latest 3 points, and discussions of the Christmas party ensued……

MOM Micky Stubbs


COLLINS mejora continúa con golpes de distancia 0-4 de Sitges

Después de las últimas semanas el rendimiento seguro, Collins tratado de mejorar su juego fluido de inflexión en los objetivos y, a su vez, la victoria. A continuación fue el esperado ajuste de cuentas contra el equipo Sitges hostil.

Discusión antes de que el juego fue de desagradables encuentros pasados, donde la sangre fue derramada, y los juegos perdidos. Sin embargo, conocer el árbol genealógico del equipo de Collins esta temporada fue la confianza de que nos podría poner los resultados anteriores en contra de Sitges detrás de nosotros y ganar sin tener que recurrir a la violencia .... Bueno, eso era el plan.

Al llegar con la moral alta a un sol besó estadio costeras del escenario estaba listo para lo que resultó ser un día fantástico para el equipo de Michael Collins. Sitges para contribuir a un juego más justo omitido su alborotador habitual, lo que garantizará una mayor armonía en el campo.El árbitro habitual de los juegos de Sitges se hizo cargo, si eso es lo que podríamos llamar. Con una historia de falta decisiones importantes, y repartió tarjetas rojas, como los dulces para Víspera de Todos los Santos, sabíamos que teníamos que estar en nuestro mejor momento para montar las decisiones chocante que estamos obligados a venir.

Un equipo fuerte fue elegido con Micky regresar al centro del campo a la pareja Umberto. El ataque habitual de Chris y Lluis estamos con la esperanza de convertir su gula habitual de oportunidades en goles. Ancho fue proporcionada por Craig & Brendon y el seguro de volver 4 de Cedric, James, Terry y Juan. Con las palabras los administradores en sus oídos, Collins se dedicó a tomar el juego a principios de Sitges y los primeros 20 minutos Collins se mostró algo hermoso, el fútbol imaginativo que había Sitges persiguiendo sombras. La mitad de las posibilidades que estamos creando con Micky y Umberto centro del campo corriendo con el movimiento de esporádicas a las cosas que estamos buscando las alas bueno para Collins. El estancamiento se rompió después de 20 minutos después de que Craig era cínicamente hackeado fuera de la caja. Umberto intensificado y rizado un delicioso tiro libre Beckhamesque ronda de la muralla que el portero sólo podían penetrar en la esquina superior. Primera sangre a Collins y seguramente ahora las puertas se abrirían. Sin embargo las cosas no van muy de acuerdo al plan, aunque Collins buscado más bien una mezcla de horrendos acabado, roces con la carpintería de madera y una retaguardia firme de Sitges garantizar Collins no se base en la apertura de sus impresionantes 20. Juan estaba en su mejor impredecible como merodeaban por la banda izquierda y como el medio llegaba a su fin era Collins en la parte superior y mirando inevitablemente a construir en su objetivo de apertura.

Segunda mitad de las alas había cambiado como Craig & Brendon dio paso a JP & Nick. Los cambios en los dividendos pagados a los 10 minutos de la reanudación Chris desempeñado un bello pase bajo el ala, que corrió en JP indiscutible, corriendo lejos de rivales cortó y jugó en el interior una sencilla cruz de Lluis convertir y, finalmente, poner un poco de luz entre Collins y Sitges. Posibilidad oportunidad llegó después de manera Collins, pero los pobres de acabado continuo y el recuento de madera seguía subiendo, mientras Collins no poner el juego fuera de la vista. El marcador fue mucho más halagador para Sitges de lo que debería haber sido. Ya que Chris oportunidad desperdiciada número 7, el administrador de frustrado ponderó cambiar la línea del frente hasta que por fin el delantero centro convertido el simplista de oportunidades para poner Collins 3-0. Otros cambios vio Chris, Lluis y Umberto dejar el campo de Walter, Víctor y el futbolista finlandés incredible Ky. Con suprema confianza ahora que fluye y se añade a la introducción de Ky, Collins fue en busca de su cuarto gol. JP tenía que la mitad de su vida, causando constantes problemas en el derecho y la habilidad pelado jugadores Sitges a voluntad. Fue otra carrera laberinto de JP que produjo la meta 4. Una instantánea que a su vez golpeó la madera, pero rebotó frente al depredador como el Ky que arremetió en un golazo imparable 3 yardas que podría ser un contendiente para el gol de la temporada ... .... Trabajo 4-0 hecho, una pantalla de calidad garantizada. Otros equipos deben estar empezando a mirar por encima de sus hombros, como la mejora continua Collins pronto va a venir juntos y vamos a dar un equipo un escondite absoluta. El siguiente es Sitges de nuevo en la taza, pero lejos de su entorno familiar que promete ser un juego muy diferentes.

Después de bebidas partido en un chiringuito de Sitges fue sólo la tónica como Collins celebró sus últimas 3 puntos, y los debates de la fiesta de Navidad se produjo ... ...

MOM Micky Stubbs

West Ham 2-0 Collins

Match report by Chris

So, on the back of a convincing 3-0 friendly victory against a capable but somewhat ineffective Independiente, the stage was set for the intrepid warriors of Michael Collins to take on their toughest test of the season so far against the high flying choir boys of West Ham. The rigours of recent weeks had left the MC slightly depleted with midfield dynamo’s Lee and Stubsy both sidelined, one through a suspected cracked rib, and one suspected to be cracking one off over the ribs of some seedy internet porn hussy. This, along with Victor Guapo’s long term absence, Humberto’s broken watch, and a depth of squad which would have Sir Alex himself dribbling into his porridge, meant that the MC midfield contained a new face. The brusque, bristly Craig ‘ass like a Latina ho’ Coupe was plucked at late notice from the reserves and plunged straight into the murky depths of midfield where he faced the unenviable task of running off his hangover.

So it was, that with stirring team talks and immaculately co-ordinated warm ups complete, the MC set out in compact and committed fashion with the collective goal of keeping things extremely tight in our own half of the pitch whilst looking for pace and a slice of luck or 2 to allow us to snatch something on the counter attack. As the early stages progressed it became apparent that the MC were by no means going to be out classed by this shady bunch of wannabe southerners, and it was in fact the MC who despite giving up a lot of possession looked most likely.

Busy, battling, and composed performances from Juan, Victor ‘Maquina’, and our Terry showed MC’s intent and this was backed up by some good work on the left by JP, the usual assured play of Cedric on the right, and of course the aggressive combative play of the midfield debutant. And so it continued past the half hour mark with a distinct pattern emerging: West Ham frustrated, despite having a lot of the ball, by stern, committed defending from the MC.

Unfortunately, writing this in hindsight, my memories of major incidents during this period are slightly hazy, except, of course, for one.. As the game was heading towards half time still goalless, the MC were to forge what would turn out to be their bet chance of the game. A fine mazy run up the right from the rapid Lluis and a kind deflection lead to the ball rolling through to Chris 5 yards out with just the keeper to beat, the normally trusty striker, however, was foiled, some say, through a combination of the notoriously bobbly Montanesa pitch, the sight of the rather ‘cuddly’ West Ham keeper bearing down on him, and the shiny ball shimmering in the floodlights, and he spooned the ball high and wide when any lesser player would have just scored. Half time 0-0 and the MC were encouraged and even slightly disappointed not to be ahead.

The second half saw the introduction of Humberto in place of JP, which saw him take his place in central midfield and the thus far impressive Craig move out to the left to try and catch his breath. The MC started where they had left off in the first half, proving miserly in defence and starting to exert a little more pressure at the other end. A succession of free kicks and corners highlighted the MC’s best spell of the match and whilst creating a few half chances, that killer touch was continuing to elude them. The ‘lofty’ Terry dispelling the myth that white men can’t jump by rising superbly at the back post to force a fine double save from their tubby stopper, the gutsy ‘Maquina’ and James busting a gut to impose themselves, and the man of the match Craig further dazzling on the left when showing the turning circle of one of his employers cruise ships to get away down the wing. But it was to prove not to be enough, as the thus far frustrated West Ham finally put together a move of real quality to release their man down the right who in turn smashed an annoyingly accurate shot straight into the top corner.

This was a true hammer blow to the valiant MC troops who continued to plug away and although they started to enjoy some better play up front with Lluis and Craig finding some space, they also conceded a few chances with Hugo saving smartly on a few occasions. West Ham then put the game beyond doubt with another fine goal this time smashed into the top corner from the left. This saw MC make a few changes with youth system graduates Caitsu and Doctor coming on for the last 10. Giggs like squad member Mike Roberts was then given the chance to enter the fray when the exhausted Craig collapsed in a rather girly fashion complaining about cramp, or a limp wrist, or something, Roberts, however, refused the opportunity as he was not allowed to step onto the green baize of Montanesa with a lit ciggy in his hand.

And so it ended 2-0. A bitterly disappointing defeat for the MC, yet a hugely encouraging performance in which all players played their part. Many positives can now be taken forward to their eagerly awaited clash with the amiable folk from Sitges next week.

MASSIVE 11-1 win vs Redstars, Match report courtesy of Terry

El 31 de octubre fue sin duda un día de fantasmas y demonios para Lluis, quien a pesar de su gol al final del partido, falló suficientes oportunidades para ponerse por encima de todos en la carrera de ser el Pichichi del Michael Collins 2009-2010… si los fantasmas y duendes no le mantienen despierto toda la noche, seguro que va a despertarse chillando y sudando gracias a las pesadillas, soñando en todas las oportunidades que falló en este partido.

Sin embargo y sin hacer caso a la generosidad de Lluis, este fue un partido despiadado de los verdiblancos, aunque durante los primeros 10-15 minutos todo parecía indicar lo contrario…

El 11 inicial del Mister fue más el resultado de algunas extrañas circunstancias que un cambio de tácticas. Por ejemplo, Micky Stubbs, a pesar de vivir casi un año en Barcelona sigue sin saber la diferencia entre Sant Andreu y Montañesa… supongo que es un error que todos podríamos cometer una vez sin problema... pero dos veces!! Vamos Stubbsy!! Entonces Big Rich puso a Brendan en el medio campo, Víctor Máquina a lado de James en la zaga, Lluis y Chris siguieron como delanteros, con Humberto y Walter por las bandas. Este último tuvo la responsabilidad de darle al equipo un poquito de anchura, y no hablo sólo de su cintura cuando digo eso…

El partido arrancó de manera muy parecida a un partido de niños jugando durante su descanso en el colé. En un momento había 10 jugadores en el círculo en el medio del campo y nosotros, desesperados por alguien con un poquito de control, calidad y tranquilidad que pudiera jugar un poquito de fútbol…

Pese a esta falta de juego, llegó el primer tanto para dar un poquito de orden al partido; Lee mandó el balón en dirección a Humberto quien con un toque muy suave lo desvió a Chris y este lo puso fuera del alcance del portero, para poner el marcador 1-0 y confirmar su posición como el nuevo Pichichi del equipo.

Breves momentos después, marcamos el segundo gracias a Walter Romario quien ya comenzaba a mostrar su calidad en el juego. Humberto centró después de una falta y el esférico llegó a Walter al primer palo y en sus propias palabras: “cerré mis ojos y deje el balón rebotar en mi frente…” Pese a su falta de técnica con la cabeza, el balón voló directamente a la portería con la guardameta sin poder hacer nada. Un golazo con mucho merito para un jugador que ha mostrado mucho compromiso con el club.

El tercer gol no tardo mucho tiempo en llegar. Después de un truco por la banda derecha, Lluis dio el balón a Humberto y su fallo en contactar al balón lo regaló a Brendan. Este también fracasó en su contacto con la pelota para enviarlo a la meta… menos mal que no hizo el contacto que quería o aun estaríamos buscando el balón el Hallowe’en que viene. De todos modos, 3-0

Por su segundo tanto Chris anotó un penalti y puso el equipo 4 goles adelante y sólo fue una cuestión de cuantos goles íbamos a marcar y cuantas oportunidades Lluis iba a fallar… sólo la ausencia de espacio en la única hoja de papel que tenía me previno describir todos sus fracasos en este reportaje.

Otro buen ejemplo en la calidad de juego de Walter, permitió a Chris desviar del portero de los rojos antes de centrar el balón a Humberto, quien demostró un momento de mágica negra quitando el esférico de los pies del lateral Red Star logrando con estilo su primer gol de la temporada. El gol fue un homenaje a su rendimiento en el partido, que le ganó un muy meritado Man of the Match (a pesar de Nick votando por si mismo e intentando “comprar” votos de su compañeros en el bar después del partido…)

Llego el descanso y algunos cambios… nadie jugaba mal en el primer tiempo salvo por los primeros 10 minutos. Pero tenemos muchos buenos jugadores y había mucha calidad y energía entre los suplentes: Lee fue sustituido por Stubbsy, quien al fin ha llegado al campo, Nick entró en lugar de Walter, Juan empezó la segunda parte como lateral izquierdo por el Doctor y Chris y Craig cambiaron la camiseta 20 y la plaza en el campo. Por supuesto ni el Mister ni el resto del equipo técnico querían permitir una hincha del Manchester lograr un hat-trick con El Collins…

Unos minutos después Humberto cedía su hueco en el campo a nuestro nuevo Samba Sensación (Joao Paolo ó JP). Su primera contribución por la banda derecha le permitió centrar el balón al área para Lluis. Esta vez en lugar de mandarlo fuera de la portería eligió a dárselo a Níck quien lo metió para conseguir su primer (y ojala su último) gol de la temporada.

Micky Stubbs controlaba el partido en el centro del campo sin sudar, entrando a propósito al área de los reds mientras Brendan vigilaba el medio. Después de sufrir una falta, Stubbsy se levantó y sacó nuestro séptimo gol con un penalti.

A continuación JP (quien podría ser un fichaje de oro para El Collins) mostró más eficacia por la banda derecha y su centro permitió a Brendan conseguir su segunda diana del encuentro. Y no tardamos mucho en marcar el noveno gracias al Pichichi, Balon D’or y Premio Noble del año pasado; Sr James Imber. Un cabezazo después de un saque desde el medio campo de Víctor Máquina. En realidad fue un intento muy flojo del portero de los rojos pero eso no fue la culpa de James…

…aunque el próximo gol sí fue su culpa, sin duda ninguna!!!!

… Una entrada desesperada, feísima y totalmente innecesaria al delantero de Red Star, quien no parecía saber que hacer con el balón, dejando al árbitro sin otro remedio que pitar un penalti y James con toda la suerte del mundo… sólo recibió una tarjeta amarilla cuando merecía una roja. Hugo, quien casi no había tenido ocasión de manchar los guantes casi paró el penalti, pero no lo alcanzó a pesar de su buen intento.

Pues, se ha rotó la tranquilidad del equipo y necesitamos reponer orden al campo. Por fin Lluis decidió que no quería seguir desaprovechando de la generosidad de la defensa Red Star y se cansó de meter el balón fuera de la meta desde 3 metros. Después de controlar bien un balón largo de Craig se lo metió con autoridad a la meta roja. 10-1 para El Collins y conseguimos ser historia

Momentos más tarde cerrábamos una victoria contundente, cuando JP logró un gol muy justo después de su actuación en los últimos 35 minutos del partido. No fue nada bello, un rebote después de un centro de Craig, pero con esto quedaba con dos goles en tres partidos, nada malo.

Entonces, 3 puntos más, una diferencia positiva de goles y estamos a punto de ponernos muy nerviosos….. Sin embargo, debemos mantener un poquito la perspectiva. Fue un buen resultado, pero contra un equipo muy, muy flojo y hay muchas partes de nuestro juego que debemos mejorar. Muchas veces evitamos jugar sencillamente, prefiriendo sacar balones largos sin precisión ni calidad. Los buenos equipos de nuestro grupo nos aniquilarán si jugamos de esta manera. Hay que aprender a tocar el balón sólo dos ó tres veces antes de pasarlo rápido, en corto y con más precisión, no despejarlo 35 metros sin saber a quien lo estamos pasando.

Nuestro próximo partido en la liga… West Ham. ¿Nos llegará un momento de claridad y realidad? Lo veremos…

Man of the Match - Humberto



31st October 2009 turned out to be a personal Hallowe’en for Lluis; who despite his late goal missed enough chances to put himself way out of sight in the race for the Michael Collins Golden Boot 2009-2010…. If the ghosts and goblins don’t keep him awake all night, then he is sure to wake up screaming when he has nightmares about the amount of chances that he missed in this game

Anyway, Lluis’ very non-Catalan generosity aside, it was a relatively ruthless Collins display although with 10 minutes on the clock it certainly never looked like it was going to be so “easy”….

The gaffer sent out a starting 11 based on the fact that despite living in Barcelona for nearly a year, Micky Stubbs still hasn’t worked out the difference between Sant Andreu and Montañesa. It’s a mistake that anyone could make once, but twice…. Come on Stubbsy!!! So, Big Rich drafted Brendan into central midfield, Victor Máquina continued in defence alongside James and Lluis and Chris continued their partnership up front. Hugo was back in goal to give the team the solid foundation that was maybe missing last week and Walter and Humberto were our wide players…. And I’m not making reference to Walter’s waistline when I say that.

The game started in what can only be described as schoolyard kick and rush style… at one stage there were around 10 players from both sides in the centre circle alone; the game was crying out for a bit of width, composure, and above someone to play a little bit of football. However, the first goal soon came along to settle things down; Lee played the ball through to Humberto, who flicked it on into Chris’ path and he coolly slotted home to confirm his position as the team’s new target man.

Not long later some good play down the left, where Walter Romario was beginning to show some excellent touches, lead to a Collins free kick. Humberto drilled in an excellent cross where Walter “closed his eyes and let the ball hit his head” (his words, not mine!!) and the ball rammed into the top corner with the Red Star keeper rooted to the spot… A great goal and well deserved for a player always very committed to the Michael Collins cause.

The third goal didn’t take too long to arrive as it was now becoming fairly one way traffic. Good work from Lluis out on the right allowed Humberto to mis-kick the ball into Brendan’s path, who equally mis-kicked the ball beyond the despairing dive of the keeper. If he had made the type of contact that he was hoping for, we’d probably still be looking for the ball next Hallowe’en… but 3-0 up and looking good for 3 points.

A cool penalty down to the bottom left hand corner from Chris brought up the 4-0 score line and at this point it was only a matter of how many goals we were going to score, or how many chances Lluis was going to miss. Luckily for him, with only one piece of paper to write on, and the number of goals that we were scoring I didn’t have space to make a note of them all.

Further great play down the left from Walter led to Chris rounding the keeper, playing the ball across goal to Humberto, who worked a beautiful drag back to take the opposition left back completely out of the game, before he superbly slotted the ball home for a much deserved goal that reflected his excellent man-of-match performance (despite Nick trying to “buy” votes off people and also voting for himself in the bar afterwards…)

Half-time, and time for changes…. Nobody had played badly (first 10 minutes aside) but we’ve got a great squad these days and there was plenty of quality and energy on the bench; Lee was replaced by Stubbsy, who by this stage had finally worked out where Montañesa was, Walter gave way for Nick, Juan replaced El Doctor at left back and Chris came on for Craig up front as the gaffer and his advisors decided that we didn’t want a Man Utd fan scoring a hat-trick for us….

Soon after, Humberto had done enough to win his MOM award and was replaced by our exciting new Samba sensation Joao Paolo (or JP to his friends). His first contribution down the right wing led to him crossing the ball in to Lluis, who instead of hitting it wide from 5 metres as he did on various other occasions during the game, fed the ball on to Nick, who calmly slotted it past the replacement goal keeper for his first (and hopefully last) goal of the season.

Micky Stubbs was controlling the game in the centre of the field without even breaking sweat and was getting forward at will, while Brendan held the centre of the park together well, and after being clattered on the edge of the box whilst chasing thought Lluis ball around the hour mark, Stubbsy picked himself up, dusted himself down, and stroked the ball into the net to bring up a 7-0 score line.

More good work down the right from JP, who is proving to be an excellent addition to the club, got Chris into space, and he centred the ball to Brendan who put away his second of the game. The ninth goal wasn’t too far behind, and last season’s top scorer, player of the year, and all round good guy, decided it was time for him to get in on the act. Step forward Mr James Imber, and he certainly did, nutting in a great free kick taken by Víctor Máquina from near the half way line. The keeper could have done better, but that’s not James’s fault.

Although the next goal certainly was……

…..a reckless, senseless and utterly desperate challenge on the Red Star centre forward, who was harmlessly wandering towards the corner flag gave the referee no option but to point to the penalty spot and a certain Mr Imber was extremely lucky to escape a thoroughly deserved red card and automatic suspension. The resulting penalty was almost saved by Hugo, who did well to get so close considering that he’d hardly had anything to do all game up to that point.

So, the comeback was on. Or so it seemed, until Lluis finally decided that it was time to stop putting the ball wide from 3 metres and after controlling a long ball from Craig, he rammed the ball past the now devastated Red Stars keeper. 10-1; double figures for the Collins, and history was in the making…

The victory was soon rounded off by JP, who collected the goal that his excellent 35 minute cameo deserved when he got himself on the end of Craig’s cross to put the ball into the keeper’s bottom left hand corner, with a little help of a deflection off an opposition player.

So, 3 points in the bag and a positive goal difference after 3 games played… it really is nose bleed time for the Collins now. However, a note of caution; although it was a good result against a very, very weak side, we still need to improve in many basic areas of our play. Simple passes are being overlooked and we still play far too many long, aimless balls, good teams will beat us easily if we continue to play like that and we need to learn to control the football and play easy, simple, short, quick balls to our teammates instead of hitting the ball 35 metres into space…. Next up in the league; West Ham, and time to see if we really are any good after all

Man of the match – Humberto

New season starts with a narrow draw to Mallorca

Well after the pre season disappointment the week before, MCs were desperate to get something out of the game against tough opposition. The watchword was stability, we needed to get grip on positioning, and working with each other, keep it simple stupid!!!!
Hugo was in goal again, Cedric RB, James and Doctor CB, and Terry LB more for his gob than ability. Midfield was Victor Guapo, Lee and Mickey were reunited in the centre, and Lluis on the left. After Brendans late showing with a cold, we had to rejig the forward line and have JP partner Chris up front.
The start was a little shaky, with both wingers drifting inside and the centre of the park was very cluttered. It meant that their wingers were running at us with impunity, and defensively we looked rattled. Hugo pulled off a series of good saves with a couple of 1 on 1 stops with the Mallorca striker. It wasnt long though before our nervousness let us down and one of their strikers nipped through and scored a cracker. 1-0 Mallorca.
We didnt let the heads go down though and after swapping Lluis and JP, we looked a little more balanced, and had some width which allowed the central midfielders to start controlling the game. It wasnt long before Victor Guapo pulled up injured and had to be helped off the pitch. On came Caj to explosively change the game. Hard running and general awkwardness and the Mallorca left suddenly looked shaky. All match we had been over elaborate up front, when simple balls through to our speedy strike force would cause all sorts of problems. The ball came to Caj, one defense splitting pass later, 1-1 (Chris if i remember correctly).

The second half started brightly again and some hard running again earned us a few chances but Mallorca were slowing down and had lost midfield completely. Terrys decision to stop playing offside and man mark the forwards was paying dividends and the mistakes were few and far between. Caj on the right, overlapping with Cedric was causing problems, and we had several set pieces. One dropped on chris who looked to have lost out, but a very tenacious JP behind him scuffed and booted it over the line. A deserved 2-1 collins. At this point, we needed fresh legs, Mickey who had been booked earlier on for an outrageous "welcome to Sunderland" tackle was replaced for his own benefit with Victor Maquina, and an exhausted JP made way for Walther. The game progressed for a while with nothing much happening, apart from Pizarro´s Man Utd like timekeeping (im sure we played 60 minutes in the 2nd half). Juan came on for Chris to harry and annoy the defenders for a bit, and it looked like a good 3 points for MCs, then in the final minute, a picture perfect goal in the top corner from their striker, an uncleared cross, badly dealt with and tired legs. It was a shame, but at 2-2 we can hold our heads high, good game against good opposition, and a bloody improvement on last week.
Man of the match......Hugo, some fantastic saves!!!!

Shit Bollocks Crap 4-0 loss to Torpedo

Lat game of the season and a shite turnout meant Rich had to do 90 minutes in Goal, James and Doctor were CBs and the FBs ended up as tourists visiting Cedric. Still at half time we were only 1-0 down, and probably should have scored.

Second half we were Shit.

The end!

4-4 vs Brent FC

A nice warm day was ideal for this end of season friendly game against our guests from north London. A strong squad shows the commitment we now have within the club, and the competition for places has now intensified with both Hugo and Simon making a welcome return to the squad after both being out for almost a year. Great to see both back wearing the green and white hoops; two very good players who will only improve the team and offer us something different.

And so it seemed…. Richard sent out a strong starting 11 with Magog in goal, Terry, El Doctor, James and Hugo across the back, Cedric continuing in his new right wing role, Walther coming in instead of Micky to join La Maquina in central midfield with Brendan starting out wide left and Simon and El Guapito up front together… if not the most talented front two in the league, certainly the best looking!!! On the bench were Mike, Richard, Dan & Caj, with Nick, Humberto, Samu, Mickey & Juan all away and a freak injury to Fritz in the warm up not good news either. Hopefully he’ll be back from his broken toe nail in no time at all….

The game kicked off with the WAGs up in the stands enjoying the glorious sunshine, and we soon settled in to the passing game that we’ve begun to develop in recent weeks. The ball was soon moving from side to side as we looked to create space to allow some of our more talented players to play in. We were looking dangerous down both wings and through the middle and it looked like it could be a nice day to be a Michael Collins player. And so it started to seem…. Good play between Cedric and Terry down the right led to the first goal with Cedric putting an excellent shot from the edge of the box into the bottom corner of the net for a great opener. His delight quickly turned to disappointment as he ran to celebrate in front of Thays, who was too busy discussing the latest in fashion trends with the other girls and hadn’t even noticed that he’d scored !!!! Shame really because it was a lovely goal, and the young Frenchman deserved a better response than that....

However, his goal was soon eclipsed by an absolute beauty crafted from the feet of La Maquina!!! A controversial free kick awarded out on the right meant that the big men made their traditional journey from the back to await the cross, but they needn’t have bothered as up stepped Victor to lash a stunning shot from 30 metres in off the underside of crossbar to make it 2-0. A great shot, it has to be said, but against a keeper taller than 1 metre 50 it probably wouldn’t have been a goal… But credit where it’s due, and there can hardly be a more deserving goal scorer after all his commitment and unselfish running for the Michael Collins cause throughout the season.

The opposition were beginning to become more and more frustrated with what they felt were some soft refereeing decisions going against them, and their humour couldn’t have been helped as a third goal was added from the penalty spot after Victor Guapo had tumbled Cristiano Ronaldo-like as the opposition centre half breathed too heavily on him in the penalty area when chasing a long through ball. A shameless dive, and more worthy of an Oscar than a penalty, but the referee bought it and it was soon 3-0.

Multiple changes to the team allowed our visitors to slowly establish themselves in the game and their hard work was soon rewarded; Magog became the first keeper in history to ask for a wall for a freekick on the halfway line, and the confusion this caused dragged Brendan out of position and allowed the opposition to play an intelligent set piece through the static Collins defence to score a very nice goal.

However, the 3 goal gap was soon re-established as Simon slotted home with his left foot following a melee in the opposition penalty area, to notch a goal that his good play to that point had surely merited. An excellent return from the Scotsman, who really does bring something “different” to the team when he plays…. “Different” not necessarily being “good” however!!!

Halftime soon came and some welcome refreshment for the boys…

We started the second half as we’d ended the first, creating some good opportunities but not able to convert any of them and slowly but surely we began to allow the visitors back into the game. Some woeful defending by Terry, taking 20 touches to try to control a headed knock down from James gifted the ball to the opposition left winger who calmly chipped Magog from 25 metres for an excellent finish, and we didn’t seem to learn our lesson as we soon gifted another goal to the visiting 11.

Only 4-3 up and suddenly starting to look not as easy as we’d thought it was going to be. And we were soon punished for our lack of ruthlessness when a good ball over the top was collected by the opposition centre forward who stepped inside a clearly hungover James to slot past Magog from the edge of the area. Hardly what we deserved for the way we’d played for most of the game, but a harsh lesson to all that we must finish teams off while we can, and to concentrate more at the back.

One last chance from Walther that drew a fantastic save from the opposition keeper, denied what would have been a deserved victory, but it wasn’t to be and the game came to an end with a very Liverpool-esque final scoreline of 4-4.

After a disappointing couple of results against some of the other title chasing teams we’ve started to come back to a bit of form lately, although unfortunately too late to be able to challenge for the title this season. However, looking at the squad of players that we now have things can certainly be interesting for the Verdiblancos in 2009-10, although it looks like its going to be difficult for “El Mister” to keep around 20 players happy, and some people may not get too many opportunities next season.

However, before we talk too much about next season there’s still the small matter of our final league game against Torpedo and the end of season sevens torneo at Muntañesa to think about….

Vamos Collins!!!!

Collins 3-0 Storesnay

Match report by Terry:

Even before kick off the game had that end-of-season feel about it…. Glorious weather and far too many smiles and jokes among the players warming up for it to be anything other than a kick about in the sunshine. The manager obviously thought so too, deciding to make one or two fairly radical “tactical” changes to the starting 11, including playing himself up front as a loan striker. Without the in-form Caj to call upon, it was obviously a desperate measure in a desperate moment….

Magog started between the posts, a new look back four found El Doctor slotting in beside James in the centre, with Dan and Mike in the full back roles. Cedric wide right, Humberto wide left, Micky Stubbs and La Maquina in the centre, Richard up front, with Walter just behind in “the hole”.

The first 15-20 minutes were far from entertaining, with El Collins struggling to play with any great fluency as the players settled in to the new formation, although Cedric continued to look good in his new role and looked our one real threat for much of the first half. The game was at best scrappy and very little for the fans in the stand to get excited about. However, slowly but surely things began to fall into place, we stopped hitting long, hopeful balls, began playing more controlled football and started using the wings. Humberto began to impose himself on the left, and Micky and Victor totally dominated the centre of the pitch. Things were looking good.

And so it proved when our domination of the ball was translated into a goal for Walther.

The second goal came courtesy of some good build up play, and was neatly turned home by Humberto.

2-0 to the verdiblancos at the break, and time for a reality check for our new star centre forward, who promptly found himself replaced Brendan. Not as easy at it looks playing up front for The Collins I suppose. Mike came off to be replaced by Terry at left back.

The second half began as the first had finished with El Collins looking to get the ball down and play football whenever we could. The sun was starting to take its toll with the game slowing down and space becoming more readily available. The football improved and rarely did the defence have too much to deal with, although Magog did produce a couple of good blocks, in between shouting “Terry tiene dos” about fifty times at the top of his voice!!

Richard came back on to the field in place of the exhausted Walter, and one or two half chances went begging as we looked to turn our possession into further golas. However, just as the game seemed to be petering out, Humberto sprung to life out on the left following some good pressuring of the opposition, and following a Lio Messi-esque mazy run into the penalty area, with a trail of sweating Storesnay players breathlessly panting in his wake, he managed to keep a cool head to back heel the ball to Brendan, who coolly slotted past the keeper before Richard could get to it to blaze it over the bar from 8 yards…. 3-0 to The Collins had a better and truer look about it, and was a fair reflection of how we’d been able to control most of the game.

Next up the touring side from North London, and one last league game before we pack our little red Speedos and head off to the coast for the summer. Let’s try to finish the season on a high, and build up towards next season which will hopefully bring bigger and better things

Vamos Collins!!!

Game against Dragon 3-3

Well, it was a nice Saturday @ montanesa, when the Collins faced the chinese, who had not lost in their five last games.

So, knowing this we decided not to take them for granted, and it kind of paid off, kind of.

We started with Victor(guapo) and Fritz upfront, Humberto and Victor(not so guapo) as center midfielders, and Michael on the right wing, and Walter on the left. Defending were Rich and James in the center, Cedric on the right, and Mike on the left side.

We started fine, having some opportunities right away, and then we got a penalty, after a Chinese defender defended with his right hand(I think this was the case), nad we scored by a beautiful clean penalty given by Victor G.

Soon dragon also scored, and then soon made a couple more, and we went to halftime 3 to 1 loosing.

Halftime came, and we made some changes, Nick came on for Walter.

So we started the second half with great hunger to get back in the game.

Soon Michael got injured, and the Doctor came on for him, five minutes later, Fritz was changed for me, yours truly, Caitsu, who almost immediately scored a whopper(his first league goal!!) from a wonderful pass and play from Cedric, so we were down only one goal, now we really got fired up, and 5 mins before the end James forced a header in the Chinese net, and we were 3-3.

So, 3-3 the game ended, we could have won, but I have to say that the Chinese have really improved their game, hmm, maybe they train?

Short match report, but if I write more it will only be about my GOAL and I think you already have heard about it.

Vamos Collins, we still have two games, lets enjoy them and have fun on the pitch!!

Forza Collins!!

caitsu

4-1 loss Pechekali

Well what to say, a game of 2 halves again. First half with James Mike, Rich and Cedric in defense and Richard manmarking their top scorer, we looked good. Michael got an early goal which soothed the nerves, and it took them 30 minutes to score an equaliser, which was a cracker from 30 yards out. All even at the break!

4 changes for the second half meant that everyone had a good runout. Terry for Rich, Dan for Mike, Humberto for Fritz, and Doctor for Nick. It seemed like a strong team, but soon showed that we didnt have the structure anymore. The 4-4-2 formation dissolved into childrens football where everyone ran after the ball. Our wings stopped working, and got sucked into midfield, and the players stopped tracking their midfielders.

A silly penalty by Terry gave them the advantage, and their top scorer his first goal. Ten minutes later, no tracking back from Midfield, and a back post overlap and they had their third. 10 minutes after that and very poor marking in the box lead to his hatrick and 4-1. They deserved it, we can do so much better.

4-2 loss to Flahertys

Well it was a must win game to keep our season on track, and we lost!

The endeavor was there, the final piece of the puzzle is missing though. When we play with confidence, we are more than a match for BIFL teams, without it, we crumble and look like there is no direction. The fact that at 2-2 with a brace from James playing in Midfield, we should have pushed on means nothing now. The final 20 minutes in my opinion, we were slow, lethargic and uncreative. The majority of the rest of the second half, we were half a yard off the pace, and less aggressive than Flahertys. As Terry summed it up, they just wanted it much more than us!!.

Caj thinks that we are scared of making mistakes, and therefore we dont have the confidence to create what we can. Well now we have nothing to play for, so lets go out and play for fun, enjoy ourselves, try something different, and stop playing the blame game.

We lost to a Flahertys team with heart, and a strong core, with the central midfield strong and fluid. They also back each other 100%, lets get back to basics and enjoy our football a bit.

1-0 loss to Sitges

The less said the better, so ill keep this short. We battered them, and they were so under the kosh that one of their players resorted to punching Victor in the face for nothing. The ensuing fraces ended in him and Samuel getting sent off (our only out and out striker). After that we lost our heads a little, and got affected by the constant Sitges incitement, provocation and gamesmanship. We had about 30 chances to their two, but they scored in the 93rd minute to win it. We should have been about 5-0 up at half time, but we werent, we should have ignored their harrassment, but we didnt, they should have had at east one other player sent off, but they didnt. Its the way the game is and weŕe up against it now in the title race. Concentration, tough battling and an eye for goal will get us through vs Flahertys on saturday, and we are desperately in need of the 3 points now. We are our own worst enemies, and it will take some maturity to get us through.

1-0 win vs Terrassa

What a great day out. The sun was shining, summer in the air, and we had an excess of players for once. Taking such a strong squad meant that we could mix up the team, and have a strong bench which seems to be the winning formula for Terrassa. The pitch was as dry, uneven, and dusty as ever, and the longball tactics that Terrassa employed meant that the defence had a few confused moments in the first 5 minutes, but soon settled into their rhythm, with Mike, James, Terry and Cedric controlling the poor Terrassa front line easily. Our midfield of Michael and Victor totally dominated and it soon became clear that barring mistakes, and better subs, we were going to be on the front foot for most of the game. Walther on the right wing was having a great game, and as he often does, was embarrassing their defenders regularly with his trickery. Mid way through the first half, he dropped a shoulder in the penalty area, dribbled past 2 defenders, and put a delightful chip over the outstretched hand of their keeper for James to nod in at the back post almost apologetically. This goal brought him to 4 for the season so far, and the fact that our strikers have only 5 each shows where the problem has been so far. The incidents for the rest of the game centred around dodgy tackles from their keeper trying to injure Juan, and Nick. Juans bravery playing on with what looked like a broken thumb, the Doctor almost being chopped in half by the bars on the side of the pitch, and a few poor misses up front. The fact that we were only 1-0 up with 10 minutes to go meant the guaranteed comeback would be a little nailbiting. The defence held them off pretty comfortably though, and apart from a couple of crosses that missed everyone, a draw for Terrassa would have been a disgraceful score. Either way, another 3 points and thats 4 wins in a row for the Collins. Bring on Sitges, and Jordi Cruyff, and a day out in the sun again. Man of the Match, James for his clean sheet and goal, a colossus in the back 4, although there were a few strong performances on the day, notably Walther, Juan, Michael, and Cedric.

28.2 3-0 Win vs Mu Gung Hwa

Well without actually playing we managed 3 wins in a row this week as the Koreans didnt pay their league fees. It was a double edged sword though as we would have liked the opportunity to improve the goal difference but knowing us we would have made a hash of it anyway. It leaves us 2nd in the league only half a point off the top. Flahertys lost in Sitges which is good for our position (but only if we win there). Next weekend is the game against Fritzs austrian team which should be a good training session for the terrasa game the following week which will be a tough test to see if we are worthy of this lofty position.

6-1 Win vs Redstars

Match report by Mike Roberts:

Febrero 21, 2009, siempre va a ser una fecha para recordar, con la histórica victoria del Espanyol en el campo del FCB. Pochettino se ha santificado, el mismo honor que podríamos otorgar a varios miembros de la plantilla del Michael Collins tras el fulminante 6-1 endosado al Red Stars, la segunda victoria consecutiva para los verdiblancos.

Como ya viene siendo habitual, creo que es la tercera vez consecutiva que sucede, los Red Stars optaron por facilitarnos las cosas y empezaron el partido con sólo diez. Y pocos minutos tras la llegada del undécimo jugador rojiblanco, el veterano Sean Gribben se retiró lesionado y volvimos a disfrutar de una superioridad numérica que aprovechamos al máximo.

Sólo habían pasado unos veinte minutos y ya íbamos 4-0. El primero fue quizás el peor gol que jamás se ha visto en un campo de fútbol. James falló una oportunidad de esas que podría haber marcado tu abuela, pero de alguna forma imposible de entender, la bola rebotó entre culos y postes, y volvió a los pies del calvo, que está vez no falló. Un gol vergonzoso, pero le perdonaremos, ya que pocos minutos después subió con la elegancia de una gacela para conectar con un balón lanzado desde un corner, y su cabezazo de marca acabó en el fondo de la red.

El Collins estaba jugando a placer, burlándose de los Red Stars, y poco después llegaron dos goles más sin que nadie realmente supiera como, y parecía que íbamos a presenciar una goleada de escándalo. Uno de estos goles casi lo podemos calificar como bueno, él que marcó Fritz. Hablando del austriaco, fijados en él en el próximo partido. La cantidad de agua que bebe este chico durante un partido es una auténtica barbaridad. El otro gol no lo recuerdo, pero entre los gritos de Magog desde la portería y de Terry desde la banda, no es de sorprender que a veces resulte difícil enterarse de lo que está pasando.

El árbitro del encuentro fue Paul Gregson, y con él es inevitable que en algún momento va a pitar un penalti a o bien a favor o bien en contra nuestro. Está vez nos tocó a nosotros cuando un defensa de Red Stars impidió un gol con la mano. Seguro que en un partido normal esa acción le hubiera costado la roja, pero dada la evidente superioridad del Collins, y para no dejar a los Red Stars con nueve, se salvó con la amarilla. Humberto lo tiró, pero lo paró Zahir, el arquero carismático del Red Stars, pero no llegó a hacerse con el control de la bola, que rebotó para terminar en una de esas posiciones desde la que no se puede fallar. Humberto falló. La pelota todavía está en órbita sobre el barrio de San Andreu.

Sin embargo, llegó otro gol antes del descanso, y con un 5-0 a nuestro favor, pareció que todo estaba decidido. Sin embargo, Mike recordó un partido contra el mismo equipo hace unos seis años que íbamos ganado 5-1 en el descanso, y que terminamos perdiendo 6-5. Todavía quedaban por delate 45 minutos. Y durante el intermedio, llegó otro del Red Stars. La segunda parte iba a ser de once contra once, y sobre todo durante el primer cuatro de hora, el mejor equipo no fue precisamente nosotros. Una parada excepcional de Magog en un uno contra uno impidió que los Red Stars abriesen su cuenta, pero poco después, tras un despiste en defensa, los Red Stars consiguieron lo que al final sólo iba a ser un golito de honor.

De hecho, hubo otro momento cuando Magog tuvo que sacar la pelota de la portería, tras uno de los mejores disparos que hemos visto esta temporada. Lo extraño, sin embargo, es que este chute fue la inexplicable obra de Richard. Afortunadamente para él, su impresionante autogol no valió ya que el colegiado ya había parado el juego por una infracción anterior.

Luego un gol para el recuerdo. Desde la defensa, Mike mandó un balón en profundidad de tanta clase que no se lo creía ni él, encontró a Caj, que también conjuró una jugada de las que nadie sabía que el finlandés es capaz, y lo remató Samu. Mike, por si alguien pensase que su pase había sido casualidad, repitió la misma jugada unos minutos más tarde, pero esta vez, por poco, no terminó en gol.

Globalmente, un partido muy satisfactorio, aunque también cabe destacar que esperábamos más de un Red Stars bastante pobre que jugó la primera mitad con sólo diez. Pero una jornada redonda, que culminada con la histórica conquista Espanyolista del fuedo del Barça, ha hecho que incluso un jugador perico del Michael Collins puede, a veces, tener algo para celebrar.

And an attempt at translation by Rich.....

Feb 21st 2009 will always be a date to remember, with the historic victory for Espanyol at the Camp Nou. Pochettino was sainted, and the same honour could be given to various members of the Michael Collins team after beating Red Stars 6-1, the second victory in a row for the green and whites.

It feels like Red stars always try to help matters, I think its the third time in a row that they started the game with 10 men. A few minutes later, the veteran red and white player Sean Gribben retired injured and allowed the Collins superior numbers once again.

In only 20 minutes it was 4-0 . The first was one of the worst goals seen on a football pitch. James missed an opportunity that your gran could have scored, but some how the ball returned to baldys feet and he didnt miss the second time. An ugly goal but well forgive him as a few minutes later he rose with the elegance of a Gazelle to score with his head.

The Collins were playing beautifully, and taking the P$%s out of Redstars, and not much later we scored two more goals that no-one really knows how, and it seems that we also managed a scandalous goal to cap it all. Now one of these goals, we can accept as good, the one scored by Fritz. Watch him in the next game, the amount of water this kid drinks is barbaric. The other goal, I don't remember, but between the shouting of Magog from the goal and Terry from the bench, its not surprising that sometimes its difficult to understand whats going on.

Paul Gregson was the ref for the match, and with him its inevitable that at some point he'll blow for a penalty. This time it went for us, as a defender from Redstars handled the ball in the penalty area. In a normal game, this would have resulted in a red card, but due to the evident superiority of the Collins, and so as not to leave Redstars with 9, he only gave a yellow. Humberto took it, but it was saved by Zuhir the charismatic goalie from Redstars, but he didn't control the ball, and Humberto was in one of those positions that is impossible to miss from, Humberto missed! The ball is still in orbit somewhere over San Andreu.

We still scored another goal before the break to make it 5-0, and it seemed like it was all decided. However, Mike remembered a game against the same team about 6 years ago where we were winning 5-1 at the break and lost the game 6-5. There was still another 45 minutes left and at the break more players arrived to give them a full team, and throughout the first 15 minutes it wasn't as easy as before the break, with the teams evenly matched. A marvelous save from Magog one on one with the striker stopped Redstars opening their account, but a little before, after a disaster in defense, the Redstars managed to score a face saving goal.

Once again Magog had to remove the ball from the goal, after one of the best shots seen this season. The problem however was that this shot inexplicably was by Richard. Fortunately for him, his impressive own goal wasn't counted as the whistle was blown for an earlier infringement.

After that followed a goal to remember. From the defense, Mike sent a long ball with such class and accuracy that even he couldn't believe it. It arrived to Caj who also conjured a piece of play that nobody thought the fin capable of, and Samuel scored. Mike just in case anyone thought the original pass was luck, repeated the feat a few minutes later, although unfortunately the forwards missed this time.

Globally, a very satisfying game, although slightly disappointing was the lack of players for Redstars. Overall a good day that culminated in the historic conquest by Espanyol of Barca, and gave a Michael Collins player and Espanyol fan finally something to celebrate. MOM Samuel

2-1 Win vs Independent

Finally some points back on the board for the Collins and a good start to the second half of the season.. Almost a full team were available for the game just Caj and Terry really lacking and Victor Guapo injured but raring to get on anyway.

The game was really all about missed opportunities and the Collins should have been (does this sound familiar?) 1 or 2 up by half time, but in fact it was 0-0 with MC's struggling to get the width, and Juan struggling hard to get sent off. Luckily for us, the ref was feeling generous and we went into the break none the worse for wear. As we had subs for once, it was all change at half time, with Mike Roberts swapping for Fritz, Doctor moving over for Humberto, Walther coming on for Juan, with Nick supporting Samuel up front.

The change took effect quickly and we looked more sprightly and certainly kept the ball much better. The wings were working well, and if it hadn't been for Nick and Samuel's almost telepathic ability to miss a barn door from 3 yards we would have been away and uncatchable within 20 minutes. It took a characteristic long ranger from Nick to break the deadlock, but soon afterwards the smallest man on the pitch rose between James and Richards combined 13 foot to head home for the equaliser.

At this point we were dominating though, and many a wasted opportunity meant that we were in danger of losing it. The goal did come though in the end, and Victors' appearance for 10 minutes came with it. He gamely hobbled about for the remaining time and (although i can't remember who scored the 2nd goal) it was a deserved victory even if we were rubbish for long periods. Thats the great thing about the 2nd division, everyone else is rubbish too!

MOM Michael, our geordie midfield dynamo scuffed both knees and put in a tireless 90 minutes.

5-3 loss to Flahertys

It was a bit of a mishmash before the game as lack of fit or unsuspended players meant a frantic friday trying to get bodies in for the Michael Collins. After the last friendly vs Flahertys where we were winning comfortably until the last 20 minutes and their 5 subs made the difference, we were determined to have replacements for the game. This meant finding Michael from the BIFL website, calling Glendon who hadn´t played for us for a while, and pressganging Nick into his first game for 6 months. Sami came in too for his league debut, and Hector made up the numbers.

Terry came in as goalie which allowed Mike to get on the field in his favoured left back role. James and Rich as centre backs, and Fritz started as RB. The midfield and forwards were interchangeable in a 4-1-4-1 lineup with Nick, Victor, Samuel, Glendon, Caj, and Doctor.

I have to say, Flahertys have improved dramatically and have a very strong will to win. They battle for everything, complain about everything, shout at everyone, and expect a high standard from their players. Their Midfield is especially strong. From the start, they were putting us under pressure and it wasn´t long before they beat the offside trap to slot home 1-0. Our midfield was struggling to cope with their fluidity with the unusual formation, at 2-0 we decided to revert to 4-4-2 as the midfielders didn´t know where they were supposed to be. It immediately changed things and we came back into the game. Terry was pulling off a series of good stops, and only a poor penalty beat him after losing control of the ball and handling outside the box. 3-0 at half time, changes needed.

Caj came off and Victor came on ignoring his injury and made an immediate impact, scoring and giving us some width. Central mid was not helping to contain the powerful running of the flahertys players so we needed a change, step up Michael into his debut. Not knowing what to expect, it was a last throw of the dice, and in hindsight it should have been done earlier. Michael came in like a dynamo, snapping at heels, winning ball, and turning the tide in the centre. All of a sudden we were going forward again, Samuel scored soon after. It took a postage stamp shot from 25 yards from Nick to end the scoring but i was very pleased with the second half display and attitude. Thats the first half of the league over and we´re in the 2nd division, but now the real work starts, we need 3 points against Independent on saturday and lets try to make a challenge for this league.

6-1 loss to Metropolitan

Well it wasn´t a very happy new year for the MC FC as we all turned up fat, slow and off the pace after xmas. The full team were available too which adds to the disgrace.

Things were certainly not helped by Cedric´s sending off after 5 minutes for slapping one of their players after being pushed, all handbags really but we were screwed thereafter.

I won´t go into the goals in detail as it was pretty much one way traffic after the sending off. Our fullbacks didn´t get into their strides at all and were constantly out of position meaning that their attackers were in and behind us all the time. Samuel, then Brendan tried gamely to lead from the front as lone attackers, but they saw so little of the ball it was a waste of time. The few times that we created anything was through long balls to the forward.

One thing to take from this was that we need stability, positional sense is so important, and we lost it completely. 2 weeks off before the next match, we badly need training and friendlies to get back up to speed.