HALLEN REACH DOUBLE FIGURES IN OPENING GAME

Hallen youth under 15’s kicked off their Avon Youth League 1 campaign with a comprehensive 11-1 victory over Rockleaze, After a frenetic opening 20 minutes where both teams had chances to take the lead, Hallen began to take control of the midfield battle with man of the match Tyler Edmunds beginning to dictate play alongside Billy Saunders and Jacob Howell, Hallen eventually opened the scoring through Jack Brice who went on to complete his hat-trick as did debutant Luke Henderson, Hallen started to show their class as they went in to half time with a 4-0 lead, Hallen’s defence was rock solid in the first half with Sam Hilton marshalling the proceedings to snuff out a competitive Rockleaze outfit, After the break Hallen continued to dominate and further goals continued to flow, a double off Sammy Jackson again on his debut linking the team together, Centre half Birthday boy Wesley Ben-Carew grabbing a collector’s item with a rare goal and after changes which included another debutant Jack Knight, an unlucky own goal and a goal from central midfielder Billy Saunders, Hallen conceded a consolation goal for the plucky Rockleaze who never let their heads drop and continued to fight until the end. It was a great team effort where every member of the team played their part and this was highlighted by the amount of assists by various players, Jacob Dumble topping the stats with 4 assists which highlights the strength in depth, We are actively pursuing new players to further enhance our chances of success this season on all fronts. The foundations of our team are so solid that we are able to interchange players into different positions and this was highlighted when Sam Hilton went into midfield and created havoc in the Rockleaze team when a mazy midfield dribble past 4 opposing players resulted in the own goal, Brad Lewis then came into the midfield and again dominated Rockleaze . With other players to come into the squad this will keep everyone on their toes and put Hallen in a strong place.

IMPRESSIVE DEBUT FROM TOM HARRISON

A midfield master class from Debutant Tom Harrison ensured Hallen under 15’s maintained their unbeaten start to the season by overcoming a stubborn Bristol City side, with tough tackling from the outset both teams struggled to play any free flowing football and it took a 20 yard left foot screamer from Luke Henderson to separate the two teams on the stroke of half time as Hallen went into half time 1-0 up. Man of the match Tom Harrison and Sam Hilton conjured up a bit of magic from a free kick to double Hallen’s lead, and with changes of personnel to both teams Hallen continued to dominate proceedings, Jack Knight coming on as substitute showed some deft touches and was unlucky not to score on his home debut. With both teams committed Hallen’s resolute defending from Wesley Ben-Carew and Brad Lewis saw them snuff out any danger that Bristol City threw at them, With the game seemingly petering out to 2-0 home win for Hallen Bristol City were thrown a life line with a last minute penalty to ensure a nervy finish, The penalty was expertly dispatched into the corner of the net giving home keeper Tyler Edmunds no chance, it was harsh on the home keeper who commanded and marshalled the game from the back. There will be tougher games to negotiate throughout the season but a fantastic effort from all the boys who found a way to win in tough conditions.

  TOP OF THE LEAGUE FINISHES ALL SQUARE

Hallen juniors went to last years League winners Bitton on Sunday and thoroughly deserved the point they came away with after a fantastic hard working team performance. After our lack of pre-season preparation many neutrals felt the fixture may have come too soon in the season but the coaches set the team up in a new formation and tactics to counter the opposition which the boys embraced from the first whistle much to their credit. Bitton started strongly and they have been scoring goals for fun this season with their potent attack ,and they had us pressed back but without question we have the best back 5 in the League so it came as no surprise that with our midfield and front two working tirelessly for the cause we were comfortable defending in our shape & soon got a foothold in the game which was played @ a high tempo from the start. Gradually we began to create chances in pockets of good play , Jack Knight & Sam Jackson out wide were putting some good balls into the middle for Luke Henderson & Jack Brice and the boys caused their defenders all kinds of problems. Tom Harrison & Billy Saunders in central midfield worked constantly to nullify their midfield and to retain possession for ourselves and with Sam Hilton marshalling the defence & sweeping up any over the top danger it was all that the opposition could do to shoot from long range, this played into our hands as Tyler Edmunds who had a dominant game in goal was always dealing with their attempts @ goal with ease. Hallen were lucky on 25 mins not to give a penalty away for a needless foul in the area but the referee decided otherwise.However on 35 minutes Bitton scored after a tremendous save from Ty but then the ref missed a blatant foul on Wes as he was clearing the rebound for their striker to have a tap in.There were no extended complaints from the boys after the referees mistake which showed great maturity and was pleasing to see that the attitude of all the boys was excellent.This we felt helped our cause in the second half as Bitton in general were giving the ref a hard time. Half time was upon us and we felt the belief gained from an unlucky scoreline would stand us in good stead for the second half and we were not disappointed as we started much stronger after the break. Brad Lewis , Wes Ben Carew & Jacob Dumble all won their battles with their opponents and the belief carried through the team , our work ethic continued as we frustrated Bitton also with our good shape and we started to cause chaos in their final third with Bitton not coping with the pace of Jack Brice, allied to the industry of Luke , Billy & Tom , while out wide both Jack Knight & Sam kept the width when required , we created a few chances but were a little wasteful in the final third. Jacob Howell came off the bench after 60 mins and was just as outstanding as the players that were being substituted which was pleasing to the coaches. Eventually it was only to be a matter of time before we took one of our chances and finally we did as Jack chasing a lost cause beating two defenders on the by line was fouled by their defender to give us a penalty.Jacob Howell stepped up and converted the penalty which was thoroughly deserved.Hallen then continued to cause Bitton problems and were finishing the game strongly which culminated in one final attempt by Sam Jackson which unfortunately went wide but the overall result and performance against decent opposition is a testament to how good a group of lads we have in this squad.

 HALLEN THROUGH TO NEXT ROUND

Hallen began the defence of the League Cup Trophy on Sunday with a dominant 4-1 victory against a hard working Warmley side. After the terrific display last week the coaches emphasised that the progress needed to be maintained and we were not to be disappointed with a breathtaking 25 minutes of play.Our ball retention , passing , movement and link up play with an end product and creativity in the final third was arguably the best we have seen from the lads , Warmley not surprisingly struggled to cope with our play and couldn’t get any possession so it was no surprise that we took control in that period with 2 quality goals. Jacob Dumble played the ball from left wing back into Jack Brice and he turned his defender just inside the box and struck an unstoppable shot into the far side of the net. Shortly afterwards a defence splitting pass by Tyler Edmunds put Jack Brice through with a one v one opportunity against the Warmley keeper which he cooly finished to put us 2-0 ahead. During this period of play Man of the Match Jacob Howell was setting the tone of our play along with Tom Harrison & Jacob Dumble while the hold up play of Tyler & Jack was making it easy for our midfield of Billy Saunders , Sam Jackson & Jack Knight to cause problems to the Warmley rearguard. Unfortunately as so often happens we then eased off and let Warmley back in the game so it was really disappointing to concede a goal from long distance which could easily have been avoided with better focus.As we went into half time Sam Hilton had to go off injured frustratingly as both himself and Wes had dominated the opposing forwards so we then had a reshuffle for the second half. After the break we never recovered the tempo or the same level we had achieved in the first period but we did enable West Brom trialist Oscar Bright to make his seasonal debut and he tormented the opposition with some direct wing play and switching to a striking role with Luke Henderson also now up front we created several chances but failed to be clinical in our finishing and we were also kept at bay by some very good saves by the opposing goalkeeper.We were then awarded a penalty after a trip on Oscar which was slotted by Jacob Howell in his usual confident manner. This enabled us to then rest Billy Saunders for the remainder of the game as he had been unwell prior to the game and thus give Jack Knight the opportunity to play and impress in central midfield. We nearly conceded a 2nd goal except for a really brave point blank save from Harry Clarke.We made the game totally safe with a fourth goal by Tom Harrison expertly tucked away at the far post after a wonderful free kick from Jacob Dumble. In conclusion some excellent performances from the boys and with the positives taken from another solid display overall we are progressing well, with the lessons learned and our squad also being strengthened we are extremely confident of another successful season.

HALLEN MAINTAIN UNBEATEN RECORD 

Hallen under 15’ maintained their impressive unbeaten start to the league campaign with a hard fought 2-0 victory over a determined Warmley Rangers side. Hallen started slowly and struggled in a tough and uncompromising first half with chances few and far between.It was no surprise that Warmley grew in confidence during the half as they ensured we went to the break scoreless 0-0. At the start of the second half the Hallen coaches brought on defender Sam Hilton and made other changes including their wide players while asking for more quality in possession and to increase our work ethic.We were then able to produce the Hallen style of play and immediately started to impress. Sam Jackson after good work on the wide right created a chance that joint Man of the Match Jacob Dumble took full advantage of with a left foot drive that gave the Warmley keeper no chance ! After the formation change that saw Jack Knight join Tom Harrison in midfield and the other joint Man of the Match Tyler Edmunds moving up front to partner Jack Brice the second goal eventually came, An impressive pass from Luke Henderson was skillfully put away by Tyler with a classy finish. In a game of few chances the Hallen defence rarely looked in trouble and after one terrific block by Wesley Ben –Carew we saw out the game 2-0 and in the end were worthy winners while protecting Goalkeeper Harry Clarke who was playing with a damaged hand. In conclusion we didn’t turn up first half but were much better second half , credit given to our opponents after the way we comprehensively beat them last week and while its not always possible to play at your best we found a way to win the game with some decent performances including Josiah who made a pleasing debut with lots of potential for the future.

ANOTHER CONVINCING WIN

Hallen under 15’s hot streak continues as they maintained their unbeaten start to the season with a dominant 3-0 home win against a battling Brislington team, Hallen started brightly from the outset and quickly put Brislington on the back foot with their passing game, Only some wayward finishing and some excellent goalkeeping from the Brislington Goalkeeper ensured the game stayed goalless for half an hour. The deadlock was broken when the unfortunate Brislington keeper made a mistake from a Jacob Dumble free kick to allow Luke Henderson a simple tap in. Hallen continued to press and were rewarded a few minutes later when Josiah struck a sweet left foot shot to make it 2-0 at Half Time and celebrated in impressive fashion with a Nani style back flip. The second half started in pretty much the same fashion as the first half as Hallen continued to dominate with man of the match Tom Harrison having an excellent game in Midfield ably assisted by Sammy Jackson, Billy Saunders and Jacob Howells who all made telling contributions , along with Josiah who caused problems for the opposition all afternoon.Both sides made changes and the game went a bit flat but Hallen weren’t to be denied a well-deserved third goal after a terrific move starting from the back involving several players finished off by Luke Henderson , Brislington continued to battle and finally forced Tyler Edmunds in the Hallen goal into action as he made a routine save, Hallen’s defence was rarely troubled and fully deserved their victory and clean sheet.

NO REPORT AVAILABLE FOR THIS MATCH

HALLEN STORM THROUGH TO SEMI FINAL 

Hallen progressed through to the Semi Final of the Avon youth League Cup with a comfortable 5-0 win over Mangotsfield. Hallen started the game with some excellent free flowing football which was a pleasure to watch with the emphasis on better ball retention , more composure and our decision making to be more incisive we deservedly opened the scoring with an excellent goal from man of the Match Sammy Jackson , who beat 3 defenders and rounded the keeper to put us 1-0 up. Hallen were well on top in this period and extended their lead when a burst from inside his own half saw Sam Hilton open up the Mangotsfield defence where he crossed for Jack Brice to head us 2 up. Hallen were very creative in midfield with Tom Harrison , Jacob Howell and Billy Saunders linking up well but were thwarted by the offside flag on numerous occasions which was frustrating but credit to Mangotsfield as they created their best chance of the half only for Tyler Edmunds to pull of a very good save. Mango’s played their part in an open and entertaining half in which the scored stayed at 2-0 and both teams passing the ball about beautifully. Hallen didn’t start as well after the break but eventually imposed themselves on the second half with an excellent finish coming from Sammy Jackson to make it 3-0. Hallen were dominating play and after several good pockets of play it took the re introduction of Billy Saunders to net the fourth goal to break the opponents resistance again. An excellent run and near post finish from Jacob Dumble finished the scoring in a fantastic game of football, There were some excellent performances from the Hallen boys , Brad Lewis, Tom Harrison, Jacob Dumble , Sam Hilton, Billy Saunders and Sam Jackson showed their quality, Also a special mention to Goalkeeper and Captain Tyler Edmunds who was on the Chiropractors bench all week but he stood brave whilst in pain to command his troops and lead the team forward by his shining example.

ANOTHER FINE PERFORMANCE

Hallen enjoyed a comprehensive 7-0 win over a battling Fry’s team that in previous seasons had given us some of our toughest games. The football the boys played today was outstanding and we are showing good progression from the start of the season !! Our ball retention , composure , work ethic , our ability to switch play and our incisive forward play was a joy to watch. Sam Jackson opened the scoring early on with an excellent strike from the edge of the box into the bottom corner giving the keeper no chance. The link up play between our midfield and attack was proving way too much for Frys defence and Sam with a bit of magic played in Josiah to make it 2-0 showing great composure with a classy dink over the keeper .Jack Brice then grabbed a third before half time with a thumping left foot volley following a tremendous passage of play and an excellent team goal starting from the back and playing through the thirds which always pleases the coaches. The second half started like the first with Hallen continually putting Fry’s on the back foot ,Josiah Jones made it 4-0 with a clinical finish following a defence splitting pass from Sam Jackson, Tom Harrison capped a fine display with a well taken header and pressure from constant corners led to Frys conceeding an own goal with a delivery by Jacob Dumble. Brad Lewis Brad Lewis completed the scoring with a run from right back , he burst into the box and put a low finish into the far corner of the net. Hallen with their watertight defence easily kept a clean sheet , Wes in his usual efficient manner kept the Frys striker quiet while Sam Hilton cruised through the game and goalkeeper Tyler Edmunds was not required to make a save.Billy Saunders out wide right along with Brad Lewis both put in good performances , on the left Jacob Dumble and Sam Jackson showed great quality ,up front Jack Brice was back to his best while in a fantastic team performance Tom Harrison and Josiah Jones were given joint Man of the Match as both were superb. Jack Knight came on at halftime in centre midfield and played really well while Luke Henderson who came on during the second half was unfortunate not to add to the tally, firstly with a disallowed goal then he drew a last gasp save from the keeper both after good pressing . In conclusion a really enjoyable game to watch as the performance was outstanding , lets keep up the good work on the training ground and not much to say except ….Well Done Boys…………

DOMINANT HALLEN

Unbeaten Hallen played newly promoted and League 2 champions Ashton Boys on Sunday and after a frantic opening 15 minutes on a heavy pitch it was business as usual as Hallen began to dominate proceedings. We deservedly took the lead when Man of the Match contender Tom Harrison scored a sensational goal from 30 yards.Our quality of ball retention and ability to switch play enabled further goals before half time scored by another man of the Match contender Josiah Jones with a volley and Luke Henderson who scored the first of his hat trick with a typical strikers goal , a tap in from a corner.With a couple of players missing this week we changed our shape from 4-4-2 to play 3-5-2 which enabled us to keep Ashton constantly under pressure.Currently the football being played is a joy to watch from our Hallen side which is brimming with confidence and the second half started like the first half finished with Hallen completely on top. Sam Jackson with another outstanding performance scored another excellent goal and JJ scored a further 2 goals to complete his first hat trick followed by a back flip !! Luke Henderson playing arguably his best game of the season scored a further 2 with the latter a stunning strike that went if off the post as the game finished 8-0. Ashtons goalkeeper along with a few missed chances played a part in keeping the score down in a second half which also saw the return of striker Elliott Gardner after a long lay off from injury. Wesley Ben-Carew, Sam Hilton, Jacob Dumble and Jack Knight all played well with home keeper Tyler Edmunds having little to do. , Jacob Howell was back on form playing in the number 10 role he thrives on while Billy Saunders as always contributed his part in a great game of football played in the right manner.With our continued development and the progressive football being played we look forward to next weeks game with great anticipation. Well done again boys !!

LUKE HENDERSON MAN OF THE MATCH

After a really enjoyable club night @ Moorhouse Lane where we had the pleasure of ex professional & England International Ray Parlour giving the benefit of his experiences which was a fascinating insight into the world of the pro back then and several of the boys that came along really seemed to enjoy his talk , we arrived on Sunday to find our pitch had already been played on so was not in very good condition!! Unfortunately with the challenges of the pitch on a cold damp day we didn’t come to terms with the game for around 20 minutes.To be fair to the opposition they had a game plan to spoil and make things difficult and we nearly conceded in the first minute but for a terrific save from Tyler Edmunds in a one v one situation , after that scare it was good to see us take charge and attempt to play our usual passing style in the conditions , we managed to score after 25 minutes thanks to a calm Luke Henderson finish which enabled us to settle into the match and then the goals started to flow.Josiah continued his goalscoring of recent weeks with our second goal following a break out from the back by Wes quickly followed by a third before half time from Luke.The boys were now in complete control of the match with Tom Harrison , Billy Saunders in midfield and Jack Brice , Sam Jackson out wide by Wes quickly followed by a third before half time from Luke.The boys were now in complete control of the match with Tom Harrison , Billy Saunders in midfield and Jack Brice , Sam Jackson out wide , Josiah , Luke and Jacob Howell all contributing in our attacking play while in defence it was business as usual with Wes dominating their attacker backed up by Jacob Dumble in fine form on the left side of the back three. Wes was then injured in a clash with the Yate striker and came off to be replaced by Brad Lewis , we were then also able to bring on both Jack Knight And Elliott Gardiner second half and they promptly settled in and continued our grip on the match.Josiah scored his second and as it was his birthday he was keen for his second hat trick in a row but was thwarted by bad luck on a couple of occasions.Sam Jackson then scored his customary quality goal for the fifth and Jack Brice now playing up front scored to complete the scoring @ 6-0. One of the most difficult decisions of the season (which is a really nice problem to have )was again picking Man of the Match as there are so many candidates each week but we sided with Luke Henderson on this occasion after much debate , we felt due to his continued progression , excellent attitude and work rate and work off the training ground it was well deserved.

FIVE CLEAN SHEETS IN A ROW AS HALLEN MARCH ON

Bristol City entertained unbeaten Hallen in the GFA Cup with the game played on a fantastic surface @ Failand which was always going to suit the Hallen Boys style of play so we started in confident manner against opponents that we beat 2-1 earlier in the season .Hallen went ahead from a defensive mistake at a corner when Man of the Match Luke Henderson playing against his old teammates directed a great header into an empty net for the 1st of his 5 goal salvo.With constant pressure being applied we forced another mistake with Luke again the beneficiary and as Bristol City tried to get back into the game Josiah Jones got to the by line and cut back a wonderful pass for Luke Henderson to complete his first half hat-trick and go to the break 3-0.Without playing our best football we were now pretty much in control of the game with Tom Harrison again dominant in midfield backed up well by Billy Saunders , Brad Lewis was impressive playing on the right of our back three along with Jacob Dumble & Sam Hilton but just after half time Bristol City did breach the Hallen defence only to be denied by a great piece of goalkeeping by Tyler Edmunds, A few tweaks of formation and a double substitution by Hallen really opened the game up as Jack Knight and Elliot Gardner came on and were impressive in midfield with the later showing great pace and a cutting edge out on the right.This also enabled us to switch Josiah into the number 10 role and we were much better balanced second half with Sam Jackson out wide left having another excellent game against his old club. Brad Lewis went up for a corner and was rewarded with a goal and Luke Henderson grabbed another 2 on a day to remember for him .A special mention must go to Billy Saunders especially on a cold and windy day as he volunteered to go in goal with the score @ 6-0 so Tyler (freezing in goal with very little to do) was able to play up front allowing Jacob Howell to play in midfield alongside Tom Harrison who was having yet another terrific game and it shows the awesome strength of our squad as there was a continuation of our dominance with Jack Brice then rewarded with 2 goals and Jack Knight also scoring to make the final score an incredible 9-0 to Hallen !! Watching the performances over the last few weeks has been a pleasure while the team spirit from the boys has been brilliant.We continue to improve , learn and progress every week , and it’s just reward for all the boys graft and hard work allied to the undoubted talent and ability we possess that we are seeing fantastic results against decent teams , so exciting times ahead @ Hallen with this outstanding group of players!!

Well done boys …………………………….

HALLEN COMPLETE DOUBLE OVER RANGERS

This week was the return fixture from the opening day against a Rockleaze side that have been putting together a decent run of results.The game was in doubt as the original pitch was called off but due to the hard work of our groundsman , the game began on a not so very grassy pitch and still quite a wet surface which caused us a few problems initially until we came to terms with the conditions. We were keen to continue our free flowing football of recent weeks so the message was to retain our focus and endeavour and not to underestimate the opposition but we soon were able to take a grip on the match with our usual dominance of possessionI.It wasn’t too long before we made the breakthrough as Luke Henderson continued his fine goal scoring form to net the opener which was followed by goals this week from eight different goalscorers!! Half time we were 5-0 up and cruising and there were again pleasing performances all round , Man of the match Jack Knight played in a number of different positions and excelled in them all , Josiah Jones scored a hat-trick along with well taken goals from, Sam Jackson, Billy Saunders, Jack Brice, Elliott Gardner both from the bench while Brad Lewis was again on the score sheet from defence along with Tom Harrison who again impressed from midfield. Jacob Howell switched to the defence to enable us to make many changes of position and personnel and we were able to rest some players while giving others opportunities to play and develop in different roles.Sam Jackson took up some great attacking positions more centrally but was unable to finish off a couple of good chances after we had finally conceded a goal after 5 consecutive clean sheets but to be fair it was an excellent strike from the Rockleaze striker. Hallen ran out comprehensive 10-1 winners much to the plaudits of the opposing manager which was nice to hear .We ended our final fixture for 2014 in great spirits after the Zorb football on Friday evening left the boys a bit battered and bruised but the team ethic in this group is fantastic.We have progressed so much since the opening of the season in September its good to keep a check on how things were back then but the overall feeling that parents and coaches have and are in agreement with , is that this group are capable of playing at such an extremely high level that we can push on again in 2015.We are looking forward to putting together some more performances that @ times have been sensational and we hope everyone has a wonderful Christmas and comes back in January ready to progress and to be successful in the New Year. Well done boys !!!!!!!!!!!

HALLEN REACH FINAL

Avon Youth League Cup holders Hallen juniors continued on their quest for honours this season with a 5-0 victory against a tough and uncompromising Peasedown side on a pitch that was barely playable !! We started slowly with Xmas and New Year hangovers seeming to be affecting our first half performance but we gradually edged our way into the game and after a dour period of football we opened the scoring with a terrific free kick from Man of the Match Tom Harrison. The goal followed a foul on Sat Nav (Tom) which appeared to be inside the penalty area but without any complaints and after weeks of dead ball practice on the training ground the ball was expertly dispatched past the opposing keeper.Luke Henderson missed an opportunity to double the lead after a decent save from the Peasedown glovesman but this didn’t compare to the save which Tyler Edmunds somehow pulled off in the Hallen goal which was generally described after as a “worldy”. The ball wasn’t cleared in the box which their striker with his back to goal overhead kicked the ball , spinning into the top corner Ty arched his back , leapt backwards to somehow push the ball onto the crossbar which was then cleared amid high fives from the boys. After harsh words @ halftime the boys responded with a much improved performance which is testament to their character , our work ethic was back to its usual level and the second goal then followed after a clinical finish by Luke Henderson following a free kick from Jacob Dumble. The game was over as a contest soon after when Jack Knight deservedly fired in the third goal following a header which beat the keeper and was on its way in from Luke after an assist by Jacob Howell , this was soon accompanied by a fourth goal volleyed in by Sat Nav following a cross from Sam Jackson.The roles were then reversed as sat nav played a ball forward to Jacko and with fantastic ability , desire and perseverance he beat two defenders and slotted the ball past the keeper at his near post to complete the 5-0 rout. Great credit must be given to the boys as again the team spirit showed through on a day when we didn’t play our best and several were asked to play in various positions during the game , while we still managed to run out 5-0 winners due to our second half performance , hopefully the lesson learned today will be to never underestimate the opposition. Congratulations to everyone involved for reaching the final for a second year running , Cup final night is on Wednesday 6th May to be played @ Bristol Manor Farm. Well done lads !!

HALLEN BACK IN ACTION WITH ANOTHER WIN

After two weeks of postponed matches due to the wet weather we were back in action against Brislington but the fixture moved from their usual venue to Victory Park which lets just say wasn't the biggest pitch we have ever played on !! Our opponents surprised us with their formation of 8-1-1 while the tactics seemed to be kick the ball as far up or off the pitch as possible while a combative approach was encouraged by the vocal parents in attendance , which was all very disappointing!! We started the game a little bit rusty but soon began to dominate possession in our usual manner and there were some excellent pockets of play in the first half.Several chances were created but we didn't take one until Sat Nav beat 3 opponents then having his shot saved by the keeper the rebound was tucked away in good style by JJ . Jack Brice had a terrific strike saved low down by a remarkable save from the Bris keeper and we went into half time 1-0 to the good which in all honesty could have been six or seven. Second half started with a major shock as we conceded an unnecessary goal due to sloppy play but a decent strike from the Bris striker so it was good to see the boys character tested after the dominance of the opening period and it was JJ that stepped up with a Man of the Match performance as he showed maturity & a tremendous temperament as he continued to cause the opponents all kinds of problems , resorting in them just kicking him in attempts to stop his progress. Good play from Elliott Gardner down the right led to our second goal which Luke Henderson converted and the game was soon over as a contest with an excellent header from JJ following a Sam Jackson corner which he had earned with skilful wing play.The scoring was completed with a fluke goal from Luke but earned due to his presence in the six yard box.There were good performances also by Jacob Howell , Billy Saunders , Sam Jackson Tom Harrison and Jack Knight while defensively we weren't tested very much.3 points earned today but with the game under our belt after such inactivity we move on to our quarter final of the GFA Cup next week.

HALLEN INTO THE SEMI FINALS

On Sunday we travelled to Lydney Town for our GFA Cup Quarter Final against opponents that were top of the Cheltenham Sunday League which is traditionally a strong division! There was a nervous excitement about the task ahead so our preparation was thorough and as there was expectation of a very tough game the whole squad (15) were involved. The facilities were good and the pitch was of a decent size however the surface wasn’t great as it had been played on the previous day.We started the first half kicking against the elements and the boys immediately took control of the game showing their quality with a good work ethic , excellent tempo , while also showing composure and confidence throughout the team.We began to test our opponents with decent service into our front two of Jack Brice and Josiah Jones and the pair caused their back line constant problems .Out wide left Sam Jackson and wide right Jacob Howell (Harry Potter) were both retaining possession and feeding the front two with excellent passes , so it was no surprise that the first chance was soon created as Jack Brice went clean through to place his attempt just past the post.This was just a minor hiccup as we continued to create further chances and it was only a matter of time before we opened the scoring following good work by JJ and finished off by Jack Brice.1-0 to the boys and now Billy Saunders and Tom Harrison (Sat Nav) were in complete control of the central midfield area , winning their battles and showing great quality on the ball which gave us a fantastic foothold in the game , both of them constantly feeding our left back Jacob Dumble as he was another that had an outstanding game.Our opposition were visibly shaken as we pressed on with our dominant start to score the second goal courtesy of JJ with an excellent strike after an assist by Jack Brice.With great credit to them both it was quite obvious that our front two first half were unplayable for the opposition and with the whole team playing well we deservedly scored our third goal before half time courtesy of Jack Brice ably assisted by JJ and in terms of a contest the opposition seemed well and truly beaten. With a few players carrying slight knocks and not feeling 100% we were able to use our subs at this point to show the outstanding strength in depth of this group and it was seamless when players were rotated.Our back four of Jack Knight , Wesley Ben-Carew, Brad Lewis and Jacob Dumble were all rock solid and both fullbacks had lots of opportunities to push forward and they kept providing good service to our attack minded players , well , apart from the odd bobble or two!! With tremendous credit to the boys they started the second half with the same desire and commitment to complete the job at hand so it was really pleasing for the coaching staff to be able to watch and enjoy the performance while being able to utilise our squad and take the Mickey out of Harry Potter!! Meanwhile Elliott Gardner (Elz )was proving to be a constant threat playing either up front or out wide and it was soon to be 4-0 thanks to a clinical finish from Elz…..Brad Lewis showed his versatility by pushing forward and showed good hold up play also enabling Corey Luke show his ability in defence , we were so dominant that Tyler had a cold afternoon in goal with not one save to make !! JJ came back on to score the fifth and final goal of the afternoon with a quality strike into the far corner. In conclusion this was a fantastic team effort against decent opponents , however we never allowed them to play as there were individually outstanding performances from nearly everybody.It was extremely difficult to award a man of the match vote, so we asked the boys instead and they voted for Jack Knight .It would be fair to say the opposition were gracious in their praise of our boys performance and it was also nice to hear plaudits from opposing parents about the ability of our lads .We are next drawn to play our semi final @ Hallen on March 1st in this competition which we will give every endeavour to win. Well done boys !!!

NOT SO GOOD, BUT STILL THREE POINTS

After a week of hearing about injuries to key players and off the field problems with another (ex captain) we arrived @ Keynsham to play Frys Colts on Sunday with our unbeaten team looking to continue this seasons good run of results , so If the old adage is correct about only being as good as your last game then we were gonna be super confident against the team we thrashed 7-0 earlier in the season!! However on any given Sunday ,as we all know it’s a different day and a different challenge.Frys have usually given us a tough game and today was definitely in that category.We started poorly playing down the slope without our usual basic qualities and struggled against a determined and robust opponent which left us all wondering why we were so lacklustre after probably our best team performance of the season previously.We were not playing into the final third as we normally do but instead were taking shots from way too far out and played with very little patience while not keeping our shape , this led to our opponents coming more into the game and began to cause problems in both midfield and in our defensive third.Sam Hilton delivered a tremendous free kick to the back post but in keeping with our poor start somehow nobody was on hand for the tap in which was very disappointing.After one switch of positions we seemed to have a better balance but our lack of ball retention and due to our inability to pass the ball accurately we conceded a poor goal defensively as the ball which should’ve been cleared on the edge of the box ended up in the top corner of our net courtesy of a fantastic strike by the Frys player.So we went 1-0 down and soon after this Sam Hilton came off injured thus leaving us to use our only substitute and we temporarily asked Luke Henderson to tuck into fullback and changed several players around to find yet another formation that might spur us into action. We went into half time still 1-0 down to which the players were questioned about their desire and commitment and we needed a response to show some character in the second half and also needed more leaders on the pitch than just the Captain and vice captain.Now playing up the slope against opponents that were sensing a surprise result we started much better after Luke and Elliott won a couple of tackles which seemed to somehow kick start our drive which had been sadly lacking in the previous half.With 12 minutes gone we were awarded a free kick on the half way line which Goalkeeper Tyler Edmunds delivered a glorious ball into the opponents area over their centre halves for Jacob Dumble to smash into the net for the equaliser.It was fitting reward for the captain and vice captain with the assist and the goal and this was the game changing moment as our tempo improved we were now in the ascendency pushing our opponents back under constant pressure.Man of the Match Elliott Garder playing up front with Jack Brice was causing the opposing defenders problems and we scored a second with a wonderful combination from Elz And Josiah with a dummy by Elz and a finish by JJ after holding off a challenge with a terrific strike into the bottom corner.We were now with the momentum on top of the game and had a much better shape and work ethic , our ball retention wasn’t of its usual quality so we asked the midfield of Billy Saunders and Harry Potter to keep turning the opposition around towards their goal by playing balls into good areas that our attacking players could work with and the pair did this in good style causing our opponents major difficulties.Sam Jackson and JJ came to the fore as it is hard to keep quality players out of the game even when they are not having their best day and defensively Jack Knight now playing in his third different position of the day and Wesley Ben Carew were doing an outstanding job of keeping their attackers quiet.Tyler was having his usual dominant day in goal while talking his defence through the game , Jacob Dumble was having another decent game at left back and Luke Henderson playing right back for the first time were both solid so we decided to keep Luke there which is a good testament to his temperament and credit to him.Meanwhile after a surprise burst forward from Wes we earned a throw in towards the opponents penalty area which ultimately led to us working the ball into the box for Sam Jackson to draw a foul after some magic footwork and therefore a penalty was awarded which our usual taker Harry Potter was on hand to dispatch into the bottom corner with the wand that is his right foot! To be fair to Frys they started to pass the ball better in the remaining period than they had done all game and had some tidy pockets of possession but we ended the game quite comfortably winning 3-1 after undoubtedly our worst performance of the season in the first half. In conclusion we didn’t play well today but the sign of a good team is that we had enough character to win with key players missing and after questions were asked of the players @ half time we won the second half 3-0.While it is understood that we cant always play at our best , the one thing we can do is we can always match our opponents with endeavour and give 100% .Our belief in this group of players has never waivered and we proudly move on to our coming fixtures hopefully returning to the quality of football we have been accustomed to watching this season.

HALLEN REACH SECOND FINAL

Hallen entertained Rockleaze in our GFA Cup semi final and although we were forced to make a few changes to the starting line up we started nervously and struggled to find our usual passing game. All credit to Rockleaze as they began in determined fashion and the first half was a tight cagey affair with Hallen having the upper hand in the exchanges.After a less than convincing opening Hallen took the lead with a fine goal from Sammy Jackson. Rockleaze responded well and an unbelievable save from Tyler Edmunds which in hindsight was a defining moment in the match enabled us to retain our lead into the half time break . The second half started in a similar fashion so we made the decision to change the personnel and make substitutions, allowing Brad Lewis to move into midfield, this proved to be a great tactical decision as Brad Lewis turned in a man on the match performance along with Jack Knight who was impressive throughout .We were now able to retain possession much better and JJ soon added the 2nd goal with a great piece of skill although he got injured and wasn’t able to play any further part in the match. Rockleaze continued to be stubborn opposition and it was only when Sammy Jackson scored the 3rd were Hallen able to relax and start to impose themselves. It was a hard fought win in which both teams played a part and Hallen booked their spot in the final against Nicholas Wanderers. In conclusion we didn’t play anywhere near our best but the boys showed fantastic character in grafting out a 3-0 win , congratulations to the lads for reaching the cup final to be played on March 29th @ GFA headquarters.

Well done boys !!