FC Samba Online

Samba travelled to Ravenshead to play an Ashland side that beat them narrowly twice last season. Samba were still smarting from a heavy defeat to Santos the previous week and were looking to get points on the board, whilst it was Ashland's first fixture of the season.

Samba changed to a 4-5-1 system with C.Taylor coming into the side at centre half and Francis fit enough to start in midfield.

The opening exchanges saw both teams trying to feel each other out, with Ashland adopting a rather direct approach of pumping balls over the Samba back four. However it was Samba's rather more subtle approach that provided success, when Francis exchanged passes on the edge of right hand side the box, and got in behind the Ashland defence. As players jockeyed for position in the box, Gibbons found space, and Francis found Gibbons, who slotted the ball neatly home from 8yds. It was a well worked goal and the good start that Samba required.

Ashland were pumping balls forward at every opportunity with mixed success. If sufficiently pressurised the direct approach was easily dealt with by the Samba back four, but there were occasions where the defending was less assured. Ashland won a few corners but had little threat and it was Samba who struck again.

Francis received the ball in the inside left channel, and wriggled free to find space. About 20yds out he had a shooting opportunity on his less favoured right foot and with the aid of a deflection which hindered the keeper, the ball found the bottom left hand corner for 2-0.

Ashland continued to pressurise Samba but struggled to create clear cut opportunities through a mixture of good defending and poor delivery. The closest they came to a goal was when their player was allowed to advance to 25yds out and hit a shot which rattled the crossbar.

Samba ended the half in control but not passing the ball as fluently as they would have liked. However, what was not in doubt was that their half-time position was a million miles away from the previous week.

Half Time: FC Samba 2 v 0 Ashland Rovers

At 2-0 up Samba knew that they did not have to chase the game and that the emphasis was on Ashland to attack. This resulted in a rather slow start to the half from Samba whereby the majority of the time was spent defending Ashland's continiung tactic of hitting long balls.

However, one occasion where Samba did get forward led to a bizarre incident that all but sealed the three points. The Ashland keeper had the ball in his hands ready to pump it forward and was faced with G.Taylor, who with his back to the keeper was simply standing his ground. Inexplicably the keeper kicked out at G.Taylor, and the ref had no hesitation in awarding a penalty and a yellow card for the keeper. To be fair kicking the Samba forward is something many of us have thought about, but there is a time and a place for everything and this wasn't it. G.Taylor converted the penalty himself to extend the lead to 3-0.

If there was an assist from Ashland in the 3rd goal, the 4th from Gibbons was all his own work. He received the ball 30yds out and hit a beauty, which had proclaims of "great goal" before it had even reached the penalty area. The ball swerved away from the keeper's out-stretched side and gave the score-line an emphatic look.

Ashland persisted and got a goal when Samba did not adequately defend a free-kick and the ball was smashed in from 12yds by the striker.

The game was stretched now and Samba were playing some good stuff, but it was the more direct approach that worked for the fifth goal. Bassett hit a good ball into the channel and it was flicked on into space behind the Ashland defence. Rose, a second half sub, chased the ball down and won the slide tackle with the keeper to notch his first goal of the season and see Samba reverse the score-line from the previous week.

Unfortunately Ashland got a further goal to make it 5-2 but it couldn't take the gloss off a good result and solid performance from Samba, and their season is now up and running.