Match report: WCU 2-6 CMP FC
CMP FC sunk Wellington Chin United’s second place hopes on Sunday morning in a 6-2 victory which created a genuine race for third, moving CMP above their Chin counterparts heading into the final day.
CMP might have reigned ascendant throughout the ninety, yet nothing materialized for them until the game’s later stages. For most of the match, the Chins were experts in soaking up pressure before unleashing their own counter-attacks but as the finale drew near exhaustion set in and a tired Chin defence could do no more.
The goals:
Henry (WCU, 18th minute) One of the competition's form players was set off down the left wing and his run would catch CMP by surprise. With a defence reeling and no pressure on the speedster, Henry took his chances from distance and was rewarded with a cool slot past CMP keeper Isaac Bell.
Guy Sanders (CMP, 29th minute) That never ceasing CMP pressure finally paid off for Sanders and his squad in the 29th minute, as following a spell of probing near the edge of the area with plenty of blocked attempts, Sanders found an opening and was able to smash it through to level the scores.
Tom Kirkland (CMP, 54th minute) At long long last CMP would find another crack in the unwavering Chin defence. A clearance from a CMP corner would land at Kirkland’s feet and from just inside the area he would unleash a strike which sailed above everyone to nestle in the goal’s top bins.
Matt Bouzaid (CMP, 61st minute) In a similar manner to Kirkland, Bouzaid would find himself in possession of the ball after a headed clearance. Unlike Kirkland who chose top bins, Bouzaid would instead go bottom bins which is where the ball would end up despite a diving WCU goalie.
John Hlwang Ching (WCU, 69th minute) Hlwang Ching was set free via a truly excellent ball from inside the Chin half, and with that he was off and away. Despite scattered claims of handball, Ching wasn’t going to be stopped by anything but the post. After watching the ball sorrowfully bounce off the woodwork, Ching was back for more and this time managed to slam it into the net’s roof no matter the efforts of a recovering defence.
Max Petersen (CMP, 74th minute) Those clearances just did not work out for WCU. This time a headed effort away from goal would just end up with Petersen, who similarly from the edge of the box would thrash it in.
Marlin The Fish (CMP, 80th minute) A cross came in from the right hand side, and The Fish was there to knee the ball into the top of the net as an exhausted WCU defence began to disintegrate while CMP gave themselves breathing room.
Marlin The Fish (CMP, 84th minute) With the clock running down, CMP sent one last effort out in the form of a through ball which Marlin latched on to. Despite being double teamed by the defence Marlin’s shot would still slide past WCU keeper Abiak.
The pivotal moment:
The Chin reaction to Kirkland snatching the lead was instantaneous - WCU were on the attack. And so Henry would find himself on the edge of the area with no pressure and all the time in the world. His shot was low, fast, powerful, and required superhuman reactions to save, but that’s what Bell provided as he somehow got down in time to send the shot bouncing away.
The stars:
WCU - Hlwan Ceu Despite the faltering of the defence in the end game Hlwan Ceu did give it his all and everyone has their limits, particularly when you consider how constantly under the pump WCU were. But before those final stages, Ceu and his fellow defenders were everywhere making constant blocks and absorbing all the pressure CMP threw at them.
CMP - Tom Kirkland The goal which kick-started CMP ascendancy wasn’t the only thing Kirkland provided. Kirkland was a creator of chances all round and made a display of his quality for all to see.
The comment:
Brad de la Cour, CMP defender and captain: “Not gonna lie I was panicking at the start; crate day really affected our performance and I was knackered when I had barely drank anything. WCU were very fast and I was very slow. But we got there in the end, and we’ll take the points.”
The bad boys: N/A
The meaning: WCU may have sat in third for most of the season, but this loss changes everything at the critical time. With the win CMP take third with 16 points, above the BNU Mandalorians also on sixteen (but who have played a match more than CMP and WCU), while WCU languish in fifth on 15 points.
The future: It’s a tough finish for WCU who play second place Tang’s Tangtastic Ten at 10am (naturally) next Sunday at Boyd Wilson. CMP are in the following game, going up against The Casuals 2020 to finish their season at 11:40.
The rest:
VUWAFC Unicycles 1-2 BNU Mandalorians
The Casuals 2020 2-3 Inter Galactic
Tim’s Boys 4-7 Tang’s Tangtastic Ten
Man Titty 8-4 IBU Vauxhalls