FIVE NIL
Cameron Road United continued their assault on summer soccer as they brought their unbeaten streak to four games by demolishing Babaganoutch yesterday. In the final open division meeting of these two giants of divisions past, the Honey Badgers took the field by storm and served up a 5 course meal of goals while denying Babaganoutch even a sniff of dessert.
You might not have thought that a slightly depleted Cameron Road squad was capable of inflicting so much devastation, especially with key members of the squad missing in action. But at the start of the game, CRU fielded one sub, and shortly thereafter Andy made 13 as he made the long trek from NEMP in record time. Why in the hell would he have gone to NEMP for a summer game? Good question. I mean, there is a website and an EVITE every week. Anyway… getting back to the game.
Like an 80’s cold war movie, Cameron Road and Babaga played to a stalemate in the opening 10 minutes. But just like Luke snatching up a plate of hot fried okra from his Grandmother’s kitchen, Cameron Road took the lead with a lighting-quick fast break. From the right back spot, Dave sprang Peterson with a long range pass down the right side. Chris worked the ball deep into the right channel and perfectly cut back a pass to Gianluca and Ryan who were running in tandem through the center. Gianluca called dibs on the ball and let loose a missile of a strike with his left food that left the keeper flat footed. 1-0 Cameron Road.
Not to be outdone by himself, Gianluca pounced on a loose ball and raced towards the goal. This time, he unleashed an low right-footed shot that bulged the back of the old onion bag for his second goal of the half. Cameron Road was quickly up 2-0. As Cameron Road continued to move forward, Way Shong got into the mix. Still getting closer and closer to a goal each week, he made it all the way within 1″ of the near post as he rushed towards another opportunity but instead collided with the keeper. With temperatures hovering the 100’s, the half ended with Baba searching for answers to the potent European Honey Badger attack.
After a few frosty moments huddled underneath the tent, the second half was underway with more domination by the boys in yellow. Ryan snatched up an “ugly” goal from close range as Gianluca did everything on the play but score his first hat trick. 3-0 Cameron Road. Then, later in the half, Ryan popped up from his deep midfield position and scored a cracker of a goal. Peterson played him in with a perfect pass through the middle (for his 2nd assist of the game). Ryan gathered the ball, took a few dribbles and unleashed a mother of a right-footer that zipped past the keeper for goal number 4.
As the half wore on, Baba got more and more frustrated at their inability to penetrate the Cameron Road defense. The Honey Badgers smelled blood, and attackers moved forward to pad the lead. Big Z and Andy both had chances and once again Adam tried his luck with a bicycle attempt, but he eventually got his goal with a nice volley from close range. 5-0 Cameron Road. Game over.
Scoring five goals and conceding none is never easy, so we must pay tribute to everyone who played their part: Gianluca – scored 2 goals and was a constant threat. Willis – scored 2 goals in Ciro approved baby blue socks. Chappy – started up top, finished at right back, and played 5 positions on the day. Way – sacrificed his 98 lbs. for the team again and had the best hair of the afternoon. Peterson – set the tone with the first assist and added another in the second. Adam – scrappy efforts finally paid off with a goal, and his attempted bicycle from 2 yards out was a bold move. Andy – in an attempt to break Scott Merritt’s record for most ground covered in a single game – played right back for most of the day but was actually seen around Baba’s left corner flag on several occasions. Crosley – straight up used his whole body to defend. El Jefe – steady in central defense and leader of CRU’s positive reinforcement committee. Dave – a rock in the back unleashing massive clearances without fighting anyone. Billy – silky and smooth like a pair of purple chinos. Jay – not called upon too much, but made a fantastic fingertip save to seal the shut out at the end of the game.
Man-of-the-Match: Hard to argue with 2 fantastic goals, an assist and constant hustle. Congratulazioni Gianluca!
Man-of-the-Post-Match: Tough one. The Chappy-Jeff-Jay triad all provided victory beer, but Jeff gets the edge with the chilled Twix bars.
Big thanks to Caroline for taking all the great action shots.
