Under 11
Manager – Mark Nolan
(nolan.mark@ntlworld.com or 07715 485400)
Assistant Coach – Richard Coe
Comets U11 Squad
Fixtures – 2011:
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2012 21st Jan vs. California Celtics D 2-2
A similarly frustrating game like last week, we weren’t up to our normal best. Though despite that we remain a hard team to beat and we came back well to draw 2-2 which I believe on balance to be a fair results. Unfortunately, we went down 1-0 after 5 mins to a soft goal, our team was sucked over to the left hand side of the pitch, the ball was played right and received open by a California player to toe punt in to the net. Despite that we came back moments later, Lewis played the ball past the last man and effectively ran on to his own pass, then one of one with the keeper for one of his classic finishes. Right back in the game and going into half time we had the edge a little. Joss and Jake did a sterling job in defence and were supported in goal by Marcus and then Christos in the second half. Both did well with some good saves too. Into the second half we looked a bit sluggish, and were weak into the tackle in midfield which made it easier for the opposition to press us. For about 20 mins we were on the back foot and didn’t have too many chances in the second half. Some nice balls forward to attack. Once Oli came on as sub along with David, we had a fresh impetus. Luckily just less than 10mins to go they conceded a penalty and Lewis confidently struck it into the top right despite the pressure of now being 2-1 down. Now 2-2, we were on fire for the last 5 minutes! And narrowly missed a couple of goals which could have seen a victory. That said we were lucky to have drawn today and we’ll settle for that valuable point today.
Lessons today: is that we must play to position and make our tackles! So in training this week we’ll be practising tackles!
Jake wins Man of the match today, ably stepping in to the Coe’s shoes as a defender. Well played.
Super save in the second half from Christos as well kept us in the match, as did the woodwork!
Scorers: Lewis(1+1p)
MoM: Jake
2012 21st Jan vs. Pinewood Polecats D 1-1
A lucky escape for the comets today, Pinewood were a fast and strong team and I think they had the edge on us today. We were fortunate to have kept them at bay, yet again proving Twyford Comets are a hard team to beat. Not many chances in the second half for us, but Pinewood had quite a few and we bravely kept them at bay. Tom & Joe Coe were immense today, fantastic play with 100% work rate and commitment made a big difference for us today – well done Tom/Joe! Finally, Man of the match was Christos, despite sustained pressure from the Pinewood attack, Christos pulled off multiple saves and kept us in the game right through to the end. Well Done!
Scorers: Lewis
MoM: Christos
2012 14th Jan vs. Winnersh Ranger Tigers W 4-0 The tigers were a strong team, and gave us a hard game in less than ideal pitch conditions. With the frost, we looked unsure of ourselves in the first half and were hesitant. Winnersh came close to scoring on a couple of occasions and had they done so they may well have took the game. We went in to half time 0-0. Second half we improved, and Christos sent us on the way with the first goal, a long range shot from the left side out toward the edge of the box, where Christos struck it hardand it flew all the way in. Well done! As ever, our confidence grows once we get a goal and we began to have more chances. Lewis scored one of the oddest goals of the season, somehow from hitting it with his butt and then it unbelievably dribbled across the line! Great to see Eddie put one away today after your close calls last week, the ball came across the goal left to right and you hit it well in to the net. And to finish with a fourth goal Lewis scored another one of his specials with his foot this time 
. In defense we were so strong today, and this made the difference between a winning and losing. The tigers had a number of counter attacks and to be honest were unlucky not to have scored at least a couple. But Tom and Joe rocked today, what a great partnership they make together, backed up ably by Marcus (another clean sheet well done!). And Joe in particular was outstanding, although Joe is the youngest in our team, he is like his big brother brave and gets stuck in to everything, as he demonstrated very well today and so earns MoM. Scorers: Christos, Lewis(2), Edward
MoM: Joe
2012 7th Jan vs. Henley Hawks W 4-0
A strong team performance from the squad in the first half saw a heap of chances on goal. Thomas Peppal poked a goal in from one of many goal mouth scrambles to put us in front. Lewis scored two well taken goals today against a brutal defence but kept going, and was unlucky not to get a couple more – one teaser post to post along the goal line. The second Lewis goal was brilliantly setup from Edward, trickling the ball delicately forward to Jake, then a similar forward pass from Jake to Lewis, for Lewis to score confidently past the keeper – nice team work beating several Henley players with one smooth flowing move.
Edward was so close on a couple of occasions today, their goalie did some excellent saves, particularly Ed’s shot on the outside of the box where he controlled it from the chest, turned and one bounce volleyed into top left – it was hard and on target, and would’ve been a cracker had the keeper not got a hand in.
Tom played superbly today, clearing the ball up to attack time after time, and Tom was also desperately unlucky to score, narrowly tipping the ball over the crossbar from a long range shot. Joss had an awesome game defending, possibly his best performance to date, being a Mr Solid to complement our defensive line up. And the clean sheet ably manned by Marcus who safely kept the opposition away – plus a good one-on-one save second half. Thanks to Joss and David for two excellent goal line clearances. David played well and it’s great to see you David working up and down the wing and making use of all that space!
Well done to Brian for scoring our final goal in the dying minutes of the game, striker mentality – right place right time for another goal poke – excellent positioning.
Oli was strong in the centre today taking over the mantle from Jake. And Jake as Richard put it – “You Bossed the Midfield today!”, excellent play Jake – you were on fire, full of energy and in charge of the midfield and so earns Man of the Match.
Scorers: Thomas, Lewis(2), Brian
MoM: Jake
2011 17th December vs. Finchampstead Real W 5-0
Early on we looked good, Lewis took a shot from the right hand side of the box which was parryed away by their keeper, falling to Jake who was unlucky to hit the upright. We soon broke through and Lewis put us 1-0 up with a great finish. Marcus took a number of excellent corners, lobbing the ball dangerously into the box. On one such occasion, the ball was cleared forward out of the penalty box and Joe was lurking mid-way in the half, Joe ran to the ball pressured, but got there first and fired it forwards. It flew all the way in, 2-0 Awesome!
Into half time we go and we are in the lead, our confidence is high. The standard of football increased throughout the game, with some excellent teamwork, passing & working the ball forwards to the attack, helping Lewis reach a hat-trick. Excellent goals today Lewis you took your chances well and hit the net. Thomas and Edward did well on the wings working up and down the sides, really good play. Jake and Oli worked hard in the centre, and made it tough for Finchampstead in the middle of the park.
One of the reasons we’re so successful as a team is our defense, we are without doubt a hard team to score against, and today Tom and Joe along with Christos demonstrated this so well. Shutting down the opposition and preventing attack after attack. Scoring goals is cool, but defense so important too – well done you guys!
Icing on the cake for me today was seeing Joss power it into the back of the net, thanks to an inch perfect cross from Oli. First goal for Joss and a very proud Dad I am!
What a fantastic game! And what a brilliant way to finish our amazing half-season rolling into Christmas.
3 Man of the matches today (hey it’s nearly xmas!):
* Edward was excellent all round, making some crunching tackles at crucial moments of play, as well as being a key provider of the ball to attack which he is a master at.
* Lewis – not only was on fire with a hat-trick today, but also made some nice passes in for goal scoring opportunities, and we really liked the sporting gestures toward the other team today, well done.
* Joss has hit the woodwork a few times throughout our seasons together over the years and today he gets his first goal ever! A magic moment for him!
Go Comets! You have all done so well together – Here’s to a successful 2012. Well done everybody 
Scorers: Lewis(3), Joe, Joss
MoM: Edward, Lewis, Joss
Well done boys! Comets grind out another victory on a chilly December morning. Throughout much of the match today I felt we were the stronger team, though South Reading were a dangerous force and every threatening. In particular, they had several skilled players who were fast and could run at our defence to create attacks.
A real team effort amongst the boys earned us a couple of goals which Lewis took very well. A few of the team had some golden opportunities today and we had a real chance of putting a few more away but alas that did not happen. This made for a nail biting end as South Reading came back with a goal with about 10 minutes to go and their confidence grew as they could smell a draw. Defensively we held tight and sealed the game 2-1 at the final whistle. Defensively we rocked today, good job Tom, Jake and Joss. Mid fielders Brian, Edward, Christos, Marcus, Oli, Joe all worked hard running up and down supporting both defense and attack. Lewis, set up two nice goals for his team mates which was brilliant to see – we need to now make sure we score these too and then we can all breath easier!
Marcus wins Man of the Match today, despite being a goalkeeper by trade, his skills on pitch today were excellent with some terrific cornering to boot.
Scorers: Lewis(2)
MoM: Marcus
A superb all round team performance from the Comets. The Tornadoes proved very tough opposition and put us under severe pressure in the first half and only some heroic saves and blocks from Christos, Tom and Joe prevented us from going behind. Jake really helped the team with his breakaway goal to bring the Comets in 1-0 at half time.
Comets become the first team to beat the Tornadoes in the league this season and the first team to stop them from scoring, so every player should be doubly proud of their efforts. Jake earns MOTM for his tireless running and well taken goal.
Scorers: Jake, Lewis(2)
MoM: Jake
2011 26th November Henley Hawks 3-1
Hooray another win in the bag for our Comets team! Well done all. Despite going into half time 0-0 it did feel like we had the edge today and that a goal would arrive sooner or later. A nice break down the left side by David, resulted in a shot from David and goalie fumble which was mopped up by Lewis who was ready to pounce. Two quick goals followed by Lewis and the Comets could breath easier 3-0 up. Some terrific passing again from our Midfield earned many breaks today, Edward in particular played some nice through balls. A relatively quiet game for Marcus today due to fantastic cover by Joss, Christos and of course Joe. All of our midfield worked hard today, Thomas, Edward, Christos, Brian and Oli. Once we got our first goal everybody looked a lot more positive and more likely to score. Brian had a great game today, and really stepped up a gear after scoring for his school this week he came close again today after a Joss free-kick to Brian in the box went just wide. I particularly liked Brian’s scooped up lob into the box for Lewis too – Well done and for all that Brian earns MoM.
Scorers: Lewis(3)
MoM: Brian
2011 19th November Winnersh Ranger Tigers W 1-0
Winnersh had a defense like concrete today, hard to breakdown and it always felt like there were loads of purple shirts in the way. This made is hard for our attack to break through and we went in to the half-time 0-0. A tense game continued in to the second half, but the Comets boys began to really pressure the Winnersh goal with lots of play in their penalty box. Finally Christos pokes the ball in the net off a rebound near the goal mouth to settle us down a little. We could have done with another goal today to breath easier, but it didn’t come despite being so close on many occasions. Thanks to Jake and Christos for slotting into goal today. Jake made a crucial one-on-one save at the end to help maintain our lead. Well done Joss who landed some big tackles today in the second half helping Tom in defense.
Consistent and reliable, Tom Coe is the Man of the Match, Tom always plays well and never lets us down. And today helped immensely in keeping a clean sheet – our first of the season I believe.
Scorers: Christos
MoM: Tom
2011 12th November Sunninghill Saints Tigers L 1-2
Tough match for the team this weak against an opposition who always had a couple of danger men up front who could break fast and attack.
Twyford went down 2-0. But came back in the last 10 mins with another goal and mounted a continual pressure upon their defense. If only we had more time, I’m sure we would have comeback for a draw.
Oli was unlucky not to score today, but put in a fantastic effort despite getting bruised and battered quite a bit – Olie just kept going! Well done Joe who scores his first ever Comets goal with a well taken shot. And for his dogged determination to make that goal happen Joe wins MoM.
Scorers: Joe
MoM: Joe
2011 5th November Bracknell Town Dragons L 2-4
Despite being our first loss today, it was an exciting game to watch. We really worried the opposition today who play in the league above, and we genuinely played some of the best football of the season. The passing and team work was excellent to see, and as always we worked hard defensively. And up front to we threatened a lot today, they had a really good keeper who kept our boys at bay.
Everybody did well. Lewis drove hard toward the end and earned a couple of goals due to his persistence, nice team work too linking with the midfield lads Oli, Edward, David, Joss, Jake and Thomas. At the midfield everybody tracked back and forward so well today. Tom and Joe’s bullish defence was superb as always protecting Marcus. Tom made so many critical tackles today – fantastic job. We went in to half time 1-0 down but very much in the game. Into the second half, a shakey 5 min spell from us saw the Dragons capitalise to go 4-0 up.
The good news is our heads stayed up and we tried harder! The Twyford team showed real spirit coming from 4-0 down to finish 4-2 with the momentum at the end definitely with the Comets.
Edward, played a blinder today with some sweet passes forward and all round good battling, getting bumped and bruised in the process and rightly earns Man of the Match.
Scorers: Lewis(2)
MoM: Edward
2011 22nd October vs. Whitegrove Typhoons 2-1
A win again for the Comets weh hey! 6 for 6.
A great game of football to watch on the sideline even though it was a nail-biting wait for the final whistle. Great job you Comets!
Lesson today: either team can win – the league positions do not matter when it comes to match day, so we must always play our best and enjoy our football.
All that said, the Comets played some of their best football of the season, some particularly great link up play between Thomas and Lewis, and Edward to Lewis and David found space well on the left wing to support the attack. Everybody worked hard, stuck to the formations and helped each other out. More of that kind of football and we’ll continue to do well.
Whitegrove took an early lead to knock us back in the first half. Defensively we were strong despite missing Tom & Joe Coe, so in stepped Joss, Oli and Jake who all held the opposition at bay well. Always well supported by Marcus, even with the hairy clearance second half! With some good tackles from Brian too.
Lewis followed their goal with two quick well taken return shots to put us back in front before half time. The first half was pretty even and tight, though in the second half we started to dominate the play and as a team we created many chances and several of the squad had lots of shots but today we just couldn’t find that net again. Christos was sturdy throughout in the center of midfield, every week his throw-ins and corners prove to be a real bonus for our attacking play.
Today, Man of the Match goes to Joss who had his best game of the season, making many crucial tackles and imposing his strength as a defender, performing some great clearances out to set up the next round of attack. Well done!
Scorers: Lewis(2)
MoM: Joss
2011 15th October vs. South Reading FC 5-3
5/5 our winning streak continues. A fab start to the first half with an early goal to us thanks to a shot from Lewis rebounding off the keeper for Marcus to slot one in on the follow up. Oli also hits the target and Lewis on song with a hat-trick to make to 5. The scoreline at half-time was 5-1 to us but didn’t reflect how strong South Reading actually were, with some pace and good shots from the outside both Marcus and Christos in goal needed to be alert.
Some experimentation in the second half from coaches Richard and Mark saw some of the lads playing in unfamiliar positions, whilst it was a good learning experience for us it didn’t always work out and in the last 5 mins we shored up defence and attack to our standard positions to ensure the lead was kept. Final score 5-3.
Good defending again from Tom and Joe ably assisted by Edward and Christos. A couple of crucial tackles from Brian, one of which probably saved a certain Goal well done. Good battling from Joss and good to see Thomas Peppal with a couple of close shots on goal. Oli had an outstanding game, excellent work and positioning throughout plus a goal to boot, and so wins Man of the Match.
Good result for all the boys – well done, #1 in the league a great achievement!
Scorers: Lewis(3), Marcus, Oli
MoM: Oli
2011 8th October vs. California Celtics 2-1
Four out of four for the Comets, our unbeaten streak continues following a close game with California.
Recently, we have gone behind in games but today we turned that around and we were off the mark early on with a nicely taken goal from Lewis to be 1-0 up. California came back quickly with an answer, taking advantage of a cross along the penalty box to level it 1-1. Similar to his first goal, Lewis does another run down the wing and a shot from just inside the box to make it 2-1 by half time. Both teams had chances on goal but defensively we held together well with Tom, Joe and Jake throughout. Well done Marcus in goal with a particularly good one-on-one save in the second half. Midfielders worked hard end to end, so well done Christos, Oli, David, Joss and Brian.
Very impressed today with the workrate of all the lads. Great throw-ins especially from Christos and Tom. Plus cornering from Christos was excellent. Some good tackles too from the team, especially Joss in the box to clear a scary goal mouth opportunity and David with a sweeping tackle on the wing near the end to disrupt the attack.
Another solid win today guys – well done!
We’ve set a bit of a pattern this season with MoM each game so far scoring two goals in the game. A high standard indeed, and this week the honours go to Lewis who hit form again today.
Scorers: Lewis(2)
MoM: Lewis
2011 1st October vs. Ashridge Park Royals 3-2
What a fab day again for the Comets! Another win on one of the hottest days of the year and it’s Autumn, what’s going on?
Ashridge Park Royals were proved to be strong opposition with some big kickers and skilful players. It’s fair to say they were the stronger team in the first 15 mins and they scored from a volley sent in from a corner. Christos was busy in the first half and stopped a lot of shots but didn’t have a chance against that one. David and Edward subbed on around the 15 mins mark, and brought some fresh strength to the Comets team, the game evened up. A nice turn on the edge of the box from David saw him crack a shot in to deflect of the right post in to the goal. Brilliant shot 1-1 now! A little later Jake launched in a few good corners, one of which fell to Lewis’s feet for him to poke it in to the net for 2-1 and soon it was half time. Tom and Joe played their solid defensive game throughout and made it hard for Ashridge particularly in the second half. The various midfield players had to work hard in the heat, Edward played some nice passes forward today. Christos and Jake in the centre held the team together well. David and Thomas worked hard on the left, David in particular tracked back well today. Joss in the second half battled really well with a nice run down the right wing toward the end, playing the ball forward to Thomas up front. Great to see Lewis back today and upfront he worked hard and had some good runs at the opposition. David scored a cracking third goal for us in the second half from just inside the halfway line to make it 3-1. Ten minutes to go, they scored from a long driving shot to make it 3-2. The boys worked hard for the last 10 mins to keep Ashridge at bay, making for a nail biting game from the sidelines. Game finishes 3-2 Comets!. Great team performance from everyone, the boys pulled together well. MoM had to be David for all round hard work plus 2 fab goals to boot.
Scorers:Â David (2), Lewis
Man of the Match:Â David
2011 25th September vs. Pinewood 2-1
Again Wow! From the kick-off, the opposition proved to be a strong team stringing together passes confidently, attacking down the wings into the box well. Tom and Joe stood up to the attacks,with Christos being a safe pair of hands in Goal for the first half. Edward, Jake and Brian also battled hard supporting the defenders and moving up to help attack. Pinewood seemed stronger in the first half but we kept them at bay until late in the half they broke through. The ball dropping nicely to their attacker’s feet for a clear shot on goal from a few yards out.  Comets go into half time 1-0 down.
Throughout Thomas Peppal used his speed and skills again in attack to create several chances, narrowly missing on one occasion with a powerful shot just above the cross bar – very unlucky! David and Joss tackled well in midfield, moving the ball forward to the attack.
Jake played a solid game throughout being strong in midfield and steady in defence helping Tom.
In the second half Jake took a corner, the ball bounced in to the path of Christos for a shot, it rebounded out again to Christos, off the bounce he shoots again and scores, 1-1 now! Minutes later the ball flies forward with Thomas chasing hard, their defender passes back and their goalie picks it up just outside the edge of the box – free kick! Christos takes it and fires it past their wall and keeper straight in to the net, 2-1!
Joss, Brian and Joe came on and kept Pinewood at bay. Marcus was steady in goal this second half keeping shots away. Whistle goes! Comets Win!
Great team performance, especially in the second half ,we really notched it up a level. Jake deserves special mention for pulling his wobbly back tooth out before the game so he could play safely, and almost wins man of the match for this feat alone. Today though, it had to be Christos for MoM well done!
Scorers:Â Christos (2)
Man of the Match:Â Christos
2011 17th September vs. Sunninghill 5-1
Wow! What a start to the Twyford Comets Third Season. In fact, not only is it our best start to a season but one of the best results since we have been playing.
An excellent all round performance with everybody working together as a team made a big difference today. From the off, Sunninghill proved worryingly skillful opposition with a player going past 5 of our team to make it in to the box to shoot. Later, Oli made his own luck taking the first goal from a deflected cross in the box.Thomas followed soon after with some quick thinking to snatch a goal from a keeper mistake. Some nice linking play from Edward across to Jake another goal. Â Tom, Joe and Brian all battled with some hard tackling throughout the game. Christos kindly took up the mantle of goalie first half making a series of good saves. This left Marcus out on pitch to show some strong out on pitch skill. Comets go into half-time 3-0 up. Second half saw Saints go deep on the attack with a few chances they took a goal back making it 3-1. David worked hard covering back extremely welll and counter attacking. Christos struck back shortly after the Saint goal to make it 4-1. Finally Thomas took on the last defender and with a solid shot made it 5-1. Thomas was on form today earning him MoM.
Scorers: Oli, Thomas(2), Jake, Christos
Man of the Match: Thomas Peppal