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| Clapping other competing teams during the Opening Ceremony |
The Loko squad and fans enjoyed themselves thoroughly, played beautiful football on an immaculate pitch and finished third despite being undefeated during the Old Boys' European Railways Tournament held in Blankenberge, Belgium on 18th/19th May 2012.
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| Adil, the tournament's highest scorer in 20 years |
Loko won 2, drew 3, scored 12 and conceded 6. Centre forward Adil picked up Man of The Tournament and also became the tournament's record goalscorer (10 goals) whereas our keeper Dries also picked up goalie of the tournament. Meanwhile, Loko also made history by fielding the youngest player in the tournament's 20-year history.....
England 4 vs Switzerland 0
ENGLAND GET OFF TO THE PERFECT START
The Loko (England) team that took to the pitch for the first match of the tournament was an experimental outfit, albeit a strong one. True, skipper Terry had concerns with the defence. But these were allayed once he had recruited Dries, a former Belgium Division 2 keeper who showed what a great talent he is right from the warm-up.
Loko’s tournament could not have started better. On 2 minutes, a throw from Marcel in the Swiss half found Rhyce who dribbled past his defender and swung a great cross in. TERRY was first to the ball, swivelled and his overhead kick ended up in the top corner despite the keeper’s touch. England 1 vs Switzerland 0.
The first half was one –way traffic against a Swiss team that in previous years had often proved a hard nut to crack but was missing key players this year.
On 10 minutes, Rhyce passed to ADIL on the left. Our new Catalan forward ran with the ball towards goal and simply slammed it into the right corner past the bemused Swiss defenders and quality keeper. England 2 vs Switzerland 0.
The first half finished on a high once the tie had been secured. This happened on 16 minutes when Rhyce crossed the ball from the left and with the keeper coming out, ADIL who was lurking in the box moved faster than the rest of the defence and tucked the ball into the middle of the net. England 3 vs Switzerland 0.
Half time: England 3 vs Switzerland 0
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| Half time against the Swiss |
The second half started in the same vein with the Swiss desperately trying to protect their goal but with England’s splendid passing and forceful attacks, the Swiss were struggling. Waves after waves of attacks saw many open chances and the outcome was never in doubt.
The Swiss attacks were also feckless with the England defence imperious. Ismail in particular was doing well and with Ivan in good voice and able to dribble out of defence on two occasions, Marcel holding his forward in check and Andy making frequent incursions the situation was in control.
In midfield, Said was playing the holding role to perfection whilst Terry and Rhyce were causing the Swiss headaches with their speed and Roger was launching many dangerous attacks.
With only 15 minutes on the cuckoo clock, ADIL put the Swiss out of their misery following a one-two with Roger on the D where he shook off his opponent with ease and blasted the ball past the keeper’s right hand side.
Club Secretary Ivan said: “The result was never in doubt against a team that was probably the weakest we are likely to face in the tournament. This doesn’t take away from the fact that we all played superbly, supported each other and kept our shape throughout. This is also our first win of 2012 so this is all the more satisfying.
Man of the Match (as awarded by Terry): ADIL for his superb hat trick. Special mention to RHYCE and ANDY.
Line-up: Dries – Andy (then Rodney at half time), Ismail, Ivan, Marcel – Said, Morris (then Alvin at half time), Roger, Rhyce – Terry, Adil
Group Match 2
England 0 vs Italy 0
ENGLAND EKE OUT A DRAW AGAINST CLASSY OPPOSITION
For many years, our encounters against Italy have been low scoring affairs with both teams neutralising – even suffocating each other.
This game was no exception. Opportunities were few and far between. The Italians outpassed England who more than often lackwd composure on the ball.
In the first half though, Andy played a good ball over to Roger down the right and the totemic Loko man sped down the wing, rounded the advancing keeper but missed the open goal and hit the right side netting.
Still in the first half, the ball was laid off to their forward on the right side of our defence and, with our keeper stranded, it looked like a sure opener for the Italians but their centre forward hit the post, too.
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| Manager Terry shaking off an Italian defender |
In the second half, as the Italians were now taking hold of the game, a rare Loko attack saw Rhyce fouled on the right hand side thirty yards out. Terry took the resulting free kick, everybody missed the ball except Alvin who, as defensive midfielder, found himself in unfamiliar territory in the box but he hit the post.
This was followed by a Terry shot from thirty yards out but it went straight into the keeper’s hands. Yes, it was now obvious that this was going to be yet another predictable goalless draw against a well organised team.
Club Secretary Ivan said: “We knew it’d be a tough one ad it sure was. We didn’t have much possession and panicked at times. However, with 4 points after 2 games we’re in pole position and finishing day 1 of the competition on a high. Plus the players sound like they want to take easy tonight so roll on day 2”
Man of the Match (as awarded by Terry): ROGER for his hard work and cool head. Special mention to Andy and Ismail.
Dries – Andy (then Rodney), Ismail, Ivan, Marcel (then Rodney at half time)– Terry, Said, Alvin (then Morris at half time), Roger, Rhyce – Adil
Group Match 3
England 4 vs Eurostar 4
ENGLAND MISS OUT ON TOP SPOT
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| We are family... |
The Eurostar team had been put together as a replacement for the Poland team who’d pulled out only a few months before the tournament so, on paper, were going to be easy opposition. However, they only lost 1-0 to Italy on day 1 so were not to be dismissed.
Goalkeeper Dries got locked out of his car in the morning and was waiting for the Belgian answer to the AA and missed the first half and was replaced by skipper Terry.
Early signs may have been deceptive. Loko scored with only 12 minutes on the clock when ADIL scored following a one-two with a left foot strike to the far post. England 1 vs Eurostar 0
This was followed by a perfect free kick by RHYCE on the left hand side of the pitch and into the top right corner on 16 minutes.England 2 vs Eurostar 0
Yet, Eurostar were becoming more menacing especially a couple of their midfielders who were pulling the string in the middle of the park.
On 19 minutes, their left wing ran down the left, passed Andy with ease and his cutback from the byeline saw their unmarked centre forward slot it in with ease from 3 yards out.
Half time: England 2 vs Eurostar 1
As soon as Eurostar came backl on the pitch they started running us ragged in midfield and in defence. On 26 minutes, their left winger nicked the ball off Rodney who seemed to be struggling with a hamstring injury and ran down the line, rounded Dries and took a long shot at a tight angle that found its way into the back of the net. England 2 vs Eurostar 2.
Thankfully ADIL latched onto a ball that Morris pinged over the top of the defence, rounded the keeper and scored to the right of the keeper. England 3 vs Eurostar 2.
Loko though were unable to hold on to their lead and conceded a silly penalty which was dispatched with venom and ended up in the back of the net. England 3 vs Eurostar 3.
Once again, goal machine ADIL salvaged the team. Following a delicious pass from Said, our centre forward rounded the keeper and placed it to the left of the keeper and into the net. England 4 vs Eurostar 3.
Eurostar hadn’t quite given up the ghost yet and equalised with only minutes following yet another incursion from the right. Final score: England 4 vs Eurostar 4.
Club Secretary Ivan said: “We’re through but it was just. Eurostar made us sweat today so credit to them.”
Man of the Match: ADIL with on account of his hat trick. Special mention to Terry and Said.
Line-up: Terry –Andy, Ismail, Ivan, Marcel (then Rodney, half time) – Said, Morris (then Dries at half time), Alvin, Roger, Rhyce – Adil
Semi Final
England 2 vs Belgium 2 (6-7 on penalties)
SO NEAR AND YET SO FAR
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| Roger puts it away in style but all in vain |
The game got off to an excellent start when, on 7 minutes, Roger passed the ball to ADIL on the edge of the box. Our centre forward turned on his heels and his mid air shot hit the back of the net to the left of the keeper.
England 1 vs Belgium 0
With this excellent start, England looked the better side and were now on top of the game, thanks to fluent movement and crisp passing.
With the second half underway for less than 9 minutes, a deep ball into our box saw Marcel tackle their number 10 hard but fairly yet, to everybody’s surprise, the referee blew his whistle and awarded the Belgians a penalty. Their big number 11 took the spotkick and dispatched it confidently to the right of the diving Dries.
England 1 vs Belgium 1
Despite this setback, England didn’t let their heads drop. With only 10 minutes to go, Said pinged a beautiful pass down the middle of the park from the halfway line that sliced open the Belgian defence. With the keeper remaining rooted to the spot, ADIL ran down the right of the keeper and struck a beauty down the middle of the goal and into the net.
England 2 vs Belgium 1
With only a few seconds on the clock, a long ball down the left of the pitch flew over the defence. This is when Dries bombed down to the edge of his box and clattered into the Belgian forward but managed to clear the ball for a last minute, ominous corner. Sure enough, their big centre back was faster to react than everybody else and shattered England’s dream of making it into the final by heading the ball into the back of the net despite Dries’s final touch….
Onto penalties…where England made a confident start with Roger, Terry, Adil, Rhyce, Said and Morris all scoring in style. Unfortunately so did the Belgians. With the game on a knife edge, it was onto the 7th penalty. With a few other players chickening out, it was up to Alvin to step up but his penalty hit the clouds and England were back to earth with a nasty bang after losing on penalties two years in succession.
Club Secretary Ivan said: “Again, we acquitted ourselves very well and should have won this game. Penalties are now becoming a bit of a nightmare despite the fact that we scored 6 out of 7“.
Man of the Match: ROGER who played a tight game and pushed his team mates throughout. Special mention to Adil and Terry
Line-up: Dries - Andy (the Rodney, at half time), Ismail, Ivan, Marcel - Alvin (then Morris, at half time), Said, Terry, Roger, Rhyce - Adil
Third place play-off:
England vs Italy 2 - 0
ENGLAND MAKE TOURNAMENT HISTORY
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| Kissing the Loko badge |
This game was an exception to the usual England-Italy stalemate, especially with Rhyce, Terry and Adil all combining beautifully to give the Italians a bit of a headache.
Midway through the first half, ADIL, again rounded their keeper and placed the ball neatly in the back of the net. His second goal also came midway through the second half and was trademark Adil as it was executed with grace and poise from a tight angle.
With 8 minutes left and his all time tournament goalscorer record (10 goals) firmly secured, Adil gave way to Marcus who, at the ripe old age of 11, made the record books as the youngest ever player to be fielded in the tournament.
This event could have turned into glory had Marcus scored with only 1 minute on the clock when daddy Roger passed the ball to him on the edge of the box. However, the occasion probably got the better of our budding star as his shot went wide to the left of the Italian goal yet the crowd gave him a big cheer to the delight of his teammates and fans....
Club Secretary Ivan said: "Mission accomplished. We beat Italy and played well throughout. Bring on Poland 2013!"
Man of the Match: TERRY for his fantastic all-round performance today. Special mention to Adil for his two well taken goals.
Line-up: Dries - Andy (then Morris at half time), Ismail, Ivan, Marcel (then Rodney at half time, then Rodney)- Alvin, Said, Terry, Roger, Rhyce - Adil (then Marcus, 52 minutes)
GALA DINNER
This took place at the hotel and the event was somehow eclipsed by the Champions League final between Chelsea and Bayern because many of the guests spent their time watching the game on their laptops instead of focusing on the proceedings.
Loko had their own celebration when TERRY picked up his well deserved Player of the Season Award whilst, no surprise, Adil picked up Man of the Tournament. A great tournament all around!
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| Player of the Season Terry |
Group A
Hungary-Belgium 1-1
Spain-France 2-2
Spain-Belgium 2-3
Hungary-France 4-1
Belgium-France 1-1
Spain-Hungary 2-0
(Belgium and Spain qualify)
Group B
England-Switzerland 4-0
Eurostar-Italy 0-1
Italy-England 0-0
Switzerland-Eurostar 1-2
England-Eurostar 4-4
Italy-Switzerland 1-0
(Italy and England qualify)
7th - 8th place playoff:
Switzerland-France 2-0
5th-6th team playoff
Hungary-Eurostar 4-0
Semi-finals:
Spain-Italy 1-0
Belgium-England 2-2 (7 penalties to 6)
Third place playoff:
England-Italy 2-0
Final
SPAIN 2 - Belgium 1 (Spain's first ever win in 20 years!)
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