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IUTT 2006 Review - University of York

IUTT 2006 Review: University of York

Game 1: Vs (Portuguese Team)

Our first game at IUTT, and therefore many of us didn’t know quite what to expect. We started quite defensively, keeping our shape, tracking our men, and trying to hit them with a direct counter-attacking style. The Portuguese team kept the ball well, but found it difficult to break us down. We had a few chances on the break, without ever looking really like scoring, while at the other end, Scotty produced some excellent saves to keep the score at 0-0. In the end, we were happy with a solid defensive display, which gave us our first point in Holland; although with hindsight we perhaps offered them a tad too much respect.

Final score: 0-0

Game 2: Vs (Berlin Team)

The evening before our game against Berlin, their captain had asked Sarge whether Futsal was played with 5 or 6 men on the pitch. This question which we assumed had been asked in jest, left us wondering what to expect. As the early stages unravelled, we quickly understood that the comment had been made in all sincerity, as the team of Berliners struggled to come to terms with the demands of Futsal. Both their passing and organization seemed poor, and they offered little coming forward. (We later learned that they were a team of footballers put together at the last minute.)York quickly took the lead when Saul made some room for himself before scuffing a shot into the far corner, just beyond the keeper’s outstretched hand. The lead soon doubled as Fooey raced onto headed flick-on and finished emphatically on the volley (off his shin). The rest of the game was somewhat disappointing for York, as they too often looked for the killer pass or the long ball, instead of picking off Berlin with simple passing. Berlin had a few chances to get back into the game but Scotty was equal to them, and kept his second consecutive Futsal clean sheet.

Final Score: 2-0

Game 3: Vs Team Alpha

Unlike their first two games, the Blue team knew exactly what to expect from Team Alpha, a semi-professional Russian club, with excellent IUTT pedigree. We had just watched them play some dazzling Futsal on their way to battering Glamorgan 10-0. Our game-plan was containment. We would wait for them at the half-way line, track our men and see if they could play it through us. This game turned out to be Team Blue’s best performance of the tournament. Our defence proved watertight, we did not let ourselves be overwhelmed by their movement, or skill. On the break we looked dangerous too; their keeper produced two top draw saves, as Ed and Sarge unleashed venomous shots, to keep the score at nil-nil. The crowd began to grow as the game truly seemed to be on. Alpha took the lead however when a split second of lax marking left one of their players free. He duly finished, underlying once more the quality of the opposition. With the game still in the balance Saul won the ball in his own box, turned, and began to run (in his own trademark head-down style). He skipped past a couple of players before completely fluffing his shot, a disappointing anti-climax, but one that still brought a rousing cheer from the crowd and York bench. The game, as a contest, ended soon after when a Russian player unleashed an unstoppable shot into the corner beyond Scotty’s reach. The defeat was a victory for the York boys however who had put in a fantastic team display, and ruffled a few of the giant Russians’ (literally) feathers.

Final Score: 0-2

Game 4: Vs Glamorgan

This game turned out to be the one of the most controversial games of the whole tournament. Glamorgan were not as we had expected a team of friendly Welshmen but in fact a team of angry Italians and Shoaib Ahktar look-a-like. One of their players in particular, Number 10, seemed to represent all of the worst qualities of the continental footballer: needless showboating, diving, play-acting, useless tricks, a dirty mouth, and ugliness. From the opening minutes, he cranked the temperature up a notch on Pitch 2 by remonstrating angrily with Webby after an innocuous challenge. There then followed ten minutes of chaotic Futsal with Webby and Scotty doing their best to keep Glamorgan’s attacks at bay. Saul had the best chance of the game, when he controlled a delightful long ball from Ben, skipped past the keeper before shooting off-balance and seeing his shot thunder against the post. The game continued in a similar vein, with York unable to grab the game by the scruff of the neck, until the referee, annoyed by the persistent fouling and moaning of number 10, yellow-carded him. The crowd erupted, and cheered whole-heartedly as the most hated player of the tournament trudged off. York pressed home their one man advantage, and took the lead when Fooey side-footed home coolly after a delicate pull-back. With the game still in the balance, and only minutes left to play, Glamorgan, back to full strength, began to press forward in search of an equaliser. It was at this stage that the game forever entered the domain of Futsal folklore in terms of controversy. As a York attack breaks down, Ed, realizing that we are outnumbered at the back produces a crafty piece of gamesmanship, sticking his hand out and blocking Glamorgan’s ball forward. To the surprise of everyone in the arena, no whistle sounds, and as the Glamorgan keeper rushes out to take the free kick, Ben serenely slots the ball into the empty net. The ref points to the centre circle, and chaos ensues. An already heated game explodes with Glamorgan players begin shouting at everyone, the ref, his assistant, our players, as Ed somewhat sheepishly jogs back to the half-way line. After a few minutes of delay, play starts again, with Glamorgan down to three players, (Number 10 having been giving his marching orders for the second time in the game) and the final whistle blows soon after. A dramatic game came to a close, with York taking all the points, but arguments and discussions would continue well after the final whistle had gone.

Final Score: 2-0

Game 5: Vs Connolly’s Irish Pub

After the draining games against teams Alpha and Glamorgan, this game against a talented team of Frenchmen from Marseille (with both Bodo and Myles look-alikes) was always going to be a struggle. From the word go, York’s blue team were on the back foot. Our passing was off and we struggled to deal with their movement. They went ahead quickly, and soon doubled their lead, as our previously solid defence suddenly seemed out of sorts. The mistakes multiplied and before long we were four down and facing humiliation. Ben pulled a goal back, finishing coolly after a neat swivel, and in the dying seconds, the Bodo look-alike (complete with Jamaica shirt) brought down Saul in the box. Sarge, still on a duck for the tournament, snatched the ball from Saul’s hand, stepped up to take it, but was unable to beat Bodo 2.

Final Score: 1-4

This defeat to the French meant that they pipped us to second place in the group, and therefore denied the Blues, by one point, a place in the top eight. Finishing on 7 points, York’s Blues nonetheless guaranteed themselves a 9-16th place finish after an action-packed and highly enjoyable first day.

Game 6: Vs Brno

Saturday morning found York Blue in below-par condition, to say the least. While most of the team were nursing hangovers and suffering from lack of sleep, Sarge and Saul were still in an Eindhoven hospital, for Saul’s hand injury, five minutes before kick-off. Enough of excuses though! Brno were by far the better team throughout, and ended up giving York the Blues (see what I did there!). York failed to get anywhere near the dizzying levels of sexual Futsal that they had showed on Friday, as Brno easily knocked four past them. Nuff said.

Game 7: Vs Totelos

This game against the tournament organizers was one that York really should have won. Totelos were by no means class A opposition, as the Oranges had proved by dominating most of their game against them before beating them on penalties. The Blues were once more out of sorts, and fell behind early. Sarge equalized on the volley, however, and the game seemed ours for the winning. We fell behind again, however, with more lax defending. At this stage we threw the kitchen sink at Totelos, Webster hit the post with a Futsal Header, Sarge and Saul both produced good saves from the keeper. When one of their players was sin-binned, we thought we could finally break through, but to their credit they held their shape well and there was no way back.

Final Score: 1-2

Game 8: Vs York Rye

By this stage, after a string of bad results, we were desperately looking for a win, to rescue a bit of pride for the mighty Blues. When the draw tossed up York Rye, one of our arch rivals, we knew that this game would mean a lot more than just the 15th spot (not really, but it makes it sound more dramatic). The Blues found their form in this game, finally finding some attacking flair and creating some chances. We took the lead when Saul poked the ball through a crowd of players into the net from a corner. The game was full of end-to-end stuff, and would have been pleasant viewing, had anyone been in the crowd (apart from our number one supporters, of course: the Oranges). Ben doubled the lead from a yard out after a pull-back, and the Blues looked on their way. York Rye pulled one back however, when one of their strikers megged Scotty (sorry mate), and began to apply some real pressure. York defended valiantly however, and in the dying seconds, after a corner for which their keeper had come up, Sarge chipped into an empty net from inside his own half, guaranteeing the Blues 15th spot. Get in you beauty!!

Final score: 3-1