ECONOMICALS AFC

Economicals 1sts

Captain: Michael Turner 07775992415

League table Black and white striped shirts, black shorts, black socks

Date	L/C	H/A	Opposition	Result	Scorers
22/09/07	L	A	Hamp. Heath.	2-2	Wogan, Shiva
29/09/07	L	A	Wandsworth	4-2	Kiwi Mike (2), Dan T, Freddy
13/10/07	L	H	Fitzwilliam OB	0-1
20/10/07	C	H	Old Brentwoods	3/2-3/1	Freddy (2), Paolo
27/10/07	L	H	Fulham Comp.	1-1	Antny
03/11/07	C	H	Parminterians	2-4	Tommy, Steffen
10/11/07	C	H	Edmontonians	5-2	Fishlock, Tommy, Shiva, Mickey, Freddy
17/11/07	L	A	Fulham Comp.	2-1	Tommy, Dean
24/11/07	L	A	Kings OB	1-0	Dean
01/12/07	C	H	Broomfield	2-3	Tommy, Freddy
15/12/07	L	A	Meadonians III	4-2	Dean, Antny, Mandie, Kiwi Mike
05/01/08	L	H	Kings II	4-2	Vini, Dean, Paolo (2 pens)
19/01/08	L	H	Guildfordians	5-0	Micky, Freddie, Dean, Vini (2)
26/01/08	L	A	Centymca	3-3	Callas, Dean, Steffen
02/02/08	L	H	Hampton II	2-2	Dean, Micky
09/02/08	L	H	Wandsworth	5-2	Freddie (3), Vini, Paolo
16/02/08	L	H	Centymca	1-2	Micky
23/02/08	L	A	John Fisher	3-1	Dean, Micky, Paolo (pen)
01/03/08	L	A	Hampton II	2-2	og, Dean
08/03/08	L	H	Hamp. Heath.	3-1	Freddie (2), Micky
15/03/08	L	A	Guildfordians	2-0	Freddie, Micky
29/03/08	L	H	John Fisher	3-0	Micky, Vini (2)
05/04/08	L	A	Fitzwilliam OB	0-2

22/09/07	Team	☻	Hampstead Heathens 2 Economicals 2
1	Pete Wright		The new-look firsts came away with a share of the points from Hampstead in, um, Beckenham. For sure it was two points dropped against an unimpressive opposition, but at two-nil down with 15 minutes to go it was in reality a well-earned point. The Comics started brightly, but as the first half went on the play got more ragged, with a lack of quality in the final third and a general sluggishness and complacency to the play. Indeed, only a pair of fine saves from Pete kept it goal-less at half-time. Not only did the expected second half onslaught not come, but Hampstead took the lead following a rare error from Pete, and then doubled the advantage as the Comics appealed for offside. This finally spurred the Comics into action, and Wogan's shot was deflected in to reduce the deficit. It was one-way traffic now, and when the hard-working Freddy's cross was not cleared, Shiva calmly slotted home. Freddy almost stole victory late on, but a draw was ultimately no more than the Comics deserved, and better performances will be required from now on. Mandie suffered a concussion after colliding with Pete, but sadly he was ok, and he was able to make it to All Bar One in one piece. Hopefully Micky will show more consideration for Paolo next time, and choose a pub that accepts children.
2	Boz Winstone
3	Christian Papworth
4	Amol Mandrekar
5	Nick Wogan	☻
6	Dan Stanton
7	Paolo Azzola
8	Mikey T
9	Freddy Salt
10	Jimmy Little
11	Chris Cooper
12	Tommy C
13	Shiva Tiwari	☻

29/09/07	Team	☻	Wandsworth Boro 2 Economicals 4
1	Ali McDonald		The firsts got their first win of the season, but once again made heavy weather of disposing of a fairly average side. With Ali, helping out in goal, running late, and Freddy and Jimmy going via the moon, the Comics started with ten, Coops in goal, and Kiwi Mike making is debut up front. Ali soon arrived, and Mike nodded home from Tommy C's assist to give the firsts the lead. Wandsworth equalised, but Dan T guided home Micky's cross to give the Comics a half-time lead. Mike calmly finished after a defensive mix-up soon after the restart, and Freddy slotted home a fourth to seal victory. Wandsworth grabbed a late consolation, but it was too little too late. So in the end a comfortable victory, but performance levels will need to rise if the Comics are to rise phoenix-like from the ashes. Starting with ten, substitutes in their pants due to lack of kit and playmakers puking in the centre circle is not what champions are made of.
2	Boz Winstone
3	Loz Morgan
4	Amol Mandrekar
5	Dan Turner	☻
6	Dan Stanton
7	Paolo Azzola
8	Mikey T
9	Tommy C
10	Mike Warren	☻2
11	Chris Cooper
12	Freddy Salt	☻
13	Jimmy Little

13/10/07 Team ☻ Economicals 0 Fitzwilliam OB 1

1 Pete Wright I was in Vegas, having got married, dumb cnut that I am. While the Comics were falling to Fitzwilliam (very much against the run of play by all accounts), I took the wife on a romantic trip to UNLV vs BYU in the college football. BYU's Harvey Unga rushed for 178 yards and a touchdown on 25 carries Saturday night to lead the Cougars past UNLV 24-14, for their 11th straight Mountain West Conference victory. BYU (4-2, 3-0) took control in the third quarter with a pair of time-consuming scoring drives. The Cougars ran 24 plays over 11 minutes, 44 seconds and scored on both possessions to take a double digit lead. UNLV, meanwhile, ran eight plays for 13 yards in the third and was held scoreless in the second half until the final two minutes of the game. Max Hall capped the opening drive of the half with a 4-yard scoring strike to Vic So'Oto. Following a three-and-out for UNLV, the Cougars went on a 14 play drive that resulted in a 27-yard field goal from Mitch Payne for a 17-6 lead. Unga, a bruising 6-foot, 220 pound red-shirt freshman, finished the scoring with a 5-yard touchdown run with 3:15 to play. The run highlighted a 15 play, 81 yard drive that drained 8:49 off the clock. BYU outgained UNLV 441-217 and had 11 more first downs. Hall completed 21-of-33 passes for 214 yards, but threw three interceptions. Dennis Pitta had seven receptions for 97 yards. UNLV (2-5, 1-2) scored with 1:11 to play on a 5-yard touchdown from Omar Clayton to Rodelin Anthony. Clayton found Casey Flair for the ensuing 2-point conversion.

2 Boz Winstone

3 Christian Papworth

4 Amol Mandrekar

5 Loz Morgan

Dan Turner

7 Shiva Tiwari

8 Mikey T

9 Freddy Salt

10 Jimmy Little

11 Tommy C

12 Theo Ricketts

13 Gaz Fishlock

20/10/07 Team ☻ Economicals 3 Old Brentwoods 3 (2-1 pens)

1 Pete Wright What a difference a week makes, as a poor result was followed by a toppling of the Arthurian League champions. They were a strong unit, but were matched all round the park by a battling Comics side, which came back from a goal down three times in regulation time. Freddy notched a couple of poacher's goals, around a nice solo effort from Paolo, thus taking the game into extra time. The tempo dropped as legs tired, and penalties came about with no further addition to the scores. Skipper Turner courageously allowed others to go for glory, and so it was that Freddy, Paolo, Dan, Mandie (yeah I know) and Shiva would test their nerves. Only the first two would stay sufficiently calm to avoid joining the Karia Klub, which would normally mean defeat, but for the heroics of Pete. Not content with a string of fine saves during the match, the big fella pushed away not one, not two, not three but four spot kicks. Looking so imposing, from the hapless Brentwood takers' perspective, the gaps around him were smaller than those at Pete's beloved Bank station. And these were proper saves, not like their keeper turning away Shiva's putt and Mandie's sand wedge. At least DT had a excuse, for hitting bars is what he does best. Christian missed all this, as he left early to give a cake he had baked to someone else's girlfriend.

2 Boz Winstone

3 Christian Papworth

4 Amol Mandrekar

5 Loz Morgan

6 Dan Turner

7 Shiva Tiwari

Mikey T

9 Freddy Salt ☻2

10 Paolo Azzola ☻

11 Chris Cooper

12 Antny Rankin

13 Gaz Fishlock

27/10/07	Team	☻	Economicals 1 Fulham Compton 1
1	Mark Veitch		Frustrating. The Comics once again put in a mixed bag of a performance, but ultimately it was bad luck that prevented them taking all three points versus Fulham Compton. The game was goal-less for over an hour, but this gives no indication of the Comics' dominance, with Dan T in particular dominating the man who had made mincemeat of Scotty two years earlier. Fulham had barely had a sniff, and when Micky T's fine cross was slotted home improbably by Antny, it looked game over. But fate was to take a sinister turn. With Paolo having gone off injured, and Freddy departing at half-time to see his mummy, the Comics could ill afford another injury. Not that there was a real injury, but Christian lost a filling in a challenge so ferocious that it weakened his heart and shattered his fragile backbone. Down to ten, while the wonky-toothed lothario offered to bake Elkie a cake on the sidelines, Fulham suddenly took control and it was no great surprise when they beat stand-in keeper Veitch with a smart finish. So two more points dropped, at least this time under mitigating circumstances. Time to start winning!
2	Boz Winstone
3	Christian Papworth
4	Antny Rankin	☻
5	Loz Morgan
6	Dan Turner
7	Shiva Tiwari
8	Mikey T
9	Freddy Salt
10	Paolo Azzola
11	Chris Cooper
12	Tommy C
13	Theo Ricketts

03/11/07 Team ☻ Economicals 2 Old Parminterians 4

1 Pete Wright The Comics departed the LOB cup after a plucky effort against premier league opposition. While Old Parms had bibs and cones, we had Cal leisurewear and straw boaters, and clearly it meant more to them - judging by the state of the gargoyles on the sidelines and their poverty-stricken mongo banter, I doubt they have anything else worth savouring in a typical week. They went ahead early, only for the Comics to take a surprise lead through goals from Tommy and Steffen. Indeed it could've been more as a few chances went begging, but Parms gradually got on top and equalised and then took the lead towards the end. As the Comics pressed ahead, Parms broke only for Boz to try his patented "saw the lady in half" trick. A straight red was harsh perhaps, and certainly ended any Comics' hopes. The lumpen proles grabbed a late fourth to give a slightly misleading final scoreline, but in truth we had again probably not done enough to win. Still, no shame in defeat, and similar effort in the league will see the Comics march up the table.

Boz Winstone

3 Pete Callas

4 Antny Rankin

5 Theo Ricketts

6 Nick Wogan

7 Shiva Tiwari

8 Mikey T

9 Tommy C ☻

10 Steffen Issleib ☻

11 Chris Cooper

12 Amol Mandrekar

10/11/07	Team	☻	Economicals 5 Old Edmontonians 2
1	Pete Wright		Botham at Headingley in 1981, Beckham at Old Trafford vs Greece in 2002, Flintoff at Edgbaston in 2005. To these storied names, add Tiwari at Berrlyands in 2007. This was the sort of performance that had indeed elevated his namesake to Deity status after a dominant Kabbadi showing in 1700 BC. Indeed, it was an accomplishment more reminiscent of Vishnu than Shiva, for surely more than the regulation number of limbs would be necessary to achieve such a feat in just 90 minutes. Edmontonians battled hard, and but for Shiva’s super-show they may have come away with the spoils, rather than a 5-2 drubbing. And so to those memorable moments, in his own words, though speaking in the third person like any hero can: "1) Shiva whipping in a delicious free-kick which someone duly converted to give us the lead. 2) Shiva rallying the troops and raising the tempo and morale once the oppo equalised. 3) Shiva courageously ‘saving’ two goals by making two goal-line defensive headers and a third clearance, all in the last minute of first half. 4) Shiva refusing to let a crippling hamstring injury prevent him from playing in the second half, and valiantly carrying on. 5) Shiva sending a devastatingly brilliant free-kick into the back of the net to give the Comics some breathing space and seal victory." His modest and unassuming way indicates that his achievement was indeed greater than he makes it sounds, and it is not the case that any embellishment has taken place, such as in describing his scuffed sand wedge as “devastatingly brilliant”. One wonders what more he could have done? Fortunately he did not have to endure a penalty shoot-out, also known as Kryptonite to all Indian heroes, whose noses run red with blood like the Ganges at the thought of the 12-yard duel.
2	Boz Winstone
3	Christian Papworth
4	Antny Rankin
5	Amol Mandrekar
6	Loz Morgan
7	Shiva Tiwari	☻
8	Dan Turner
9	Tommy C	☻
10	Steffen Issleib
11	Gaz Fishlock	☻
12	Mikey T	☻
13	Freddy Salt	☻

17/11/07	Team	☻	Fulham Compton 1 Economicals 2
1	Pete Wright		This is the exactly the sort of team that makes the Comics not like the league they are in, and the type of performance that means the Comics may well stay in the league. A match devoid of class, beauty or even a string of three passes and, in the end, played in near darkness surrounded by haunted woodland. But the only fact that matters is that the Comics came away with a much-needed victory. Freddy Salt and Tom Winstone did well to stand out in a game of such mediocrity, Salt sporting his latest £100 clown shoes epitomised the five-yard touch and the misplaced pass (if Salt can ever be accused of making one), and the only thing he had to offer was a couple of late tackles before he begged to be substituted. In truth no one played well, but at least Mandie thought he did, for a change. At half time, with Tommy’s hard work probably the only thing bordering on impressive, a plan was hatched to bring on the Comics’ only fan, who has one fit leg but the legend of Zorro. Boz demanded a further tactical change as “I have problems (turning my head left)”. The comment was in fitting with his performance – self-damaging, mildly spasticated and in line with pulling a friend of yours for a second time who you know fancies you and you know the Comics' Steven Gerrard fancies her. Entirely out of keeping with the match, one of the Saffa’s homogeneous outfit lashed a ball from at least 30 yards out, leaving Safe Hands with no chance. As the darkness descended, hope appeared to be diminishing…enter Dean Taylor. Almost immediately he picked up the ball and ran across the pitch and then played a sublime through ball in the opposite direction for Tommy to slot home. Then with five minutes left, the Comics won a free kick in shooting range. Deano stood poised, bang, clean as you like, the keeper like a statue, victory stolen from the jaws of defeat with a brilliant strike. The Yarpies cried foul, accusing the Comics of playing a ringer, in their, um, first team. But they will never be known as the sharpest tool in the global box, and in any case it seems brutally clear that Deano has finally found his level.
2	Boz Winstone
3	Paolo's mate
4	Antny Rankin
5	Amol Mandrekar
6	Loz Morgan
7	Nick Wogan
8	Paolo Azzola
9	Tommy C	☻
10	Freddy Salt
11	Mikey T
12	Dean Taylor	☻