CRU 2 – Chopped Liverpool 2
It was a glorious sunny day at NEMP. The temperature was holding at a pristine 65 degrees, the wind was a cool 5mph out of the north, the turf was a radiating hue of green that looked fresh out of a Skittles packet…. oh who am I foolin’, it was another disaster of a day with blustery winds, freezing cold temps, and a rock-hard, muddy pitch.
And into these conditions trudged 19 Honey Badgers, including a blast from the past. John Ammerman revived his role as a central midfield rock for this one-time-only guest appearance. Also making their way back from the nurses tent were Stevie McKenna, BT, Peyton and Chappy. The walking wounded were no more – except for Dave, who will be out for a month or so unfortunately with a knee knock.
Facing their pub rivals, Chopped Liverpool, Cameron Road took the field with the wind at their backs trying grab an early lead. And grab one they nearly did as both Ciro and Andy came close to putting the Honey Badgers ahead within the first 5 minutes. The pace was furious, and Cameron Road owned 90% of the possession in the the first 20 minutes. Crosses were coming in from both sides with Adam delivering form the left, and Ryan putting in a fantastic ball to Steve at the back post from the right. Chappy laid a ball off to Cuyler as the Kraken unleashed a blistering shot over the bar, and Andy could have had 2 goals early on, but his close range bicycle kick wasn’t up to Gianluca’s high standards. With a rotation of Ciro, BT, Peterson and John in the middle of the park, the Honey Badgers were looking dangerous.
Defensively, CRU Was looking strong. Cuyler stood strong and gave Johnny Football a bit of the business as the dangerous forward tried to surge forward several times. Danimal and Luke were also active heading away balls to safety and breaking up play. And from his right back spot, Billy tested out the waters up front more often that not, providing the Badgers with a bit more offensive firepower.
At the other end, Steve was back on the pitch trying to play his way back into some good form after being out for several weeks, and he showed exactly what he could do as he blasted a shot at the keeper from 20 yards.
Cameron Road’s opening goal came from an unlikely source. After winning a corner kick, El Jefé grabbed the ball and took it to the corner flag. His first attempt was juuuuuust a bit short but tipped out by a Liverpool player. His second attempt took a wicked bounce and zipped over Ryan’s head at the back post and into the back of the net. The Soccer Gods considered Jefé’s books balanced.
Cameron Road continued to ride their wave of good fortune and closed out the half with a slim one goal lead.
The second half started up and for the first five minutes, Cameron Road played some pretty sweet stuff. They were patiently moving the ball around from side to side and attacking down the flanks when the chance presented itself. But as the half wore on, Chopped Liverpool started to gain the momentum and press into the Honey Badger’s den. There was a lot of defensive work to be done, and Cameron Road was sucking up a lot of pressure. Unfortunately all that pressure finally broke through the dam and Liverpool got a penalty kick, which they converted to tie it up at one a piece.
As the half wore on, it was still Liverpool who were controlling the ball and creating chances. But Cameron Road fought back to reclaim the lead when Ryan and Chappy connected for the go-ahead goal. Holding up the play on the right side of the 18 yard box, Chappy played the ball back to Ryan and then made a mad dash for the far post. With intimate telepathic knowledge of his precise whereabouts in the 4 seconds ahead, Ryan whipped the ball in to ground zero where Chappy headed it back across goal. The ball smashed against the crossbar and back out into play, but Chappy pounced on the rebound like Luke snatching up his Grandma’s last steaming hot biscuit and headed it again – this time beating the keeper to the far post. 2-1 Honey Badgers.
The final 10 minutes were tense, and Chopped Liverpool were eager to get back into the game. With a few unlucky bounces, the ball ended up at the feat of Johnny Football and he fired the ball into the far corner to grab the equalizer. Still, Cameron Road pressed forward for the winner and on the last kick of the game, Luke chested down a ball at the top of the box that was right in his deadly wheelhouse and blasted a shot narrowly over the bar.
It would have been a poetic end to the game and a dramatic winner, but the Honey Badgers would have to settle for a point.
So in the end, with neither team scoring the winning goal, it was the Crown & Anchor who came out victorious, showing she just doesn’t play favorites.
Man of the Match: Traveling all the way from Spokane, Washington, John Ammerman laced up the boots, pulled up the old white socks over 20 pounds of ankle braces, and proudly wore the golden top from days gone by to give the Badgers some quality minutes at central midfield. It was a pleasure to see him again after so many good years of time on the pitch and off.
