October 31st. u11 Boys bounce back with great win.

The Wolverhampton Schools under 11s enjoyed an excellent morning of football despite their original fixture against Erdington Schools being cancelled. Phoenix stepped in at short notice to provide the opposition and whilst they were well organised and physically competitive, the pace, movement and quality of the Wolverhampton players ultimately proved too much for them to handle.

The opening goal came through the persistence and determination of Xavier who had an earlier effort ruled out for offside and he was determined to get on the scoresheet. He chased a long ball over the top which looked destined to run out of play but was able to get hold of it and found the net after cleverly taking the ball past their goalkeeper.

George also caused problems going forward, getting into some promising positions and forcing the Phoenix goalkeeper into a number of saves but with just one goal to show for all our efforts the game was still very much in the balance at half time.

Wolverhampton started the second half positively and soon doubled their advantage. Xavier again broke forward at pace, with Zac brought down inside the penalty area. Zac took responsibility from the spot and confidently converted the penalty to make it 2–0.

The third goal was another good example of the team’s attacking quality. Following some excellent defensive work from Leo, the ball was moved out wide to Lucas, whose contribution helped create the opportunity for Alfie to finish superbly from a tight angle on the left, using his right foot to make it 3–0.

Phoenix managed to pull a goal back with a powerful long-range effort which beat Ethan, but Wolverhampton continued to dominate the attacking play and Alfie then grabbed his second of the morning with a cross-shot from the left which deceived the goalkeeper. Zac applied further pressure to make the score 4–1 and went close to adding another when he robbed a defender and forced a good save from the keeper.

Lucas also went close when he broke forward down the left but his effort went narrowly wide  before Zac completed the scoring when he took advantage of a poor defensive clearance and finished in style.Plenty of positives apart from the 5-1 score-line.

The team showed good energy, worked hard for one another and demonstrated the pace and technical quality that makes them such a competitive side. Bertie was particularly impressive in central midfield and was deservedly named Player of the Match. He controlled the midfield area well and produced an excellent all-round performance.

The defensive partnership of Rocco and Leo also deserves special mention. They worked extremely well together, dealt confidently with the physical challenge from Phoenix and provided a solid foundation for the team’s attacking play.

There were also positive contributions from the two Year 5 players stepping up into the Under 11 team. Xavier made an immediate impact with his energy and willingness to run in behind, deservedly getting the opening goal, while George showed some good attacking qualities and continued to gain valuable experience playing against older opposition.

With Jazz unavailable due to an unexpected household emergency, the team was looked after by Nick and Reece Cotterill, who were pleased with the attitude and application shown by all nine players.

Squad: Ethan, Leo, Rocco, Alfie, Bertie, Lucas, Zac, Xavier and George.