FC Excelsior V FC Marton match report provided by Andy Mac this week.

And so Excelsior lined up with Ross in net, Nico, Green, Macca and Scholsey across the back, from left to right, Lizzy, Fiss, Perr and Merce in midfield and Sean and Wazza up front.

The game started off with Excelsior kicking into the wind and it quickly became apparent that the Ex men were still in bed. Marton took the initiative and, using the wind to their advantage, began to make inroads into Excelsior’s defence. Early domination led Stevey D to make an early formational change, bringing Scholsey into midfield, moving Perr to right back and switching Nico to left back. It didn’t take long until the ref became the centre of attention. Merce took a rocket to the pants in the middle of the park and, leaving the man down in distress, the ref waved play on only for Marton to put the ball out so Merce could receive treatment – even then the ref was telling them to take the throw and to leave him down! Minutes later, some grumbling from Scholesy earned him a yellow card and Green went in the book shortly after, following a tactical foul in the centre circle. The Marton attacks continued forcing Ross into numerous top saves, keeping Excelsior in the game. With only minutes of the first half remaining it was time for the ref to step up again.. following a Marton corner it appeared to everyone (including our liner) that the ball had spun out of play. Everyone stopped apart from Sean who knocked the ball back to Scholsey who delivered an inch perfect pass through to Merce who hit a shot goal bound only to see the opposition keeper fumble it in to the net, 1-0 to Exceslior. These the referee overruled the liner stating the ball had stayed in play and booked a Marton player for protesting. Another Marton player went into the book at the end of the first half for wiping Lizzy out after a strong run down the left.

After receiving the ‘hairdryer’ treatment from Stevey D in the dressing room, the Ex men approached the second half with a more determined outlook. A hamstring injury to Macca allowed Steve Mck on for his first taste of football this season, replacing him at centre half. Excelsior started to get the ball down and moved it around as has become the norm in recent weeks. The second goal of the game came from Mr Green. A whipped in ball from Fiss saw Green kick the ball kung-fu style towards the goal and an attempted clearance from a defender saw the ball fire in off the crossbar, 2-0. Two up and the gaffer brought about more changes bringing off Perr and Lizzy replacing them with the fresh legs of Dezzy Warral and Danny. Marton surged on to try and get something out of the game leading to a penalty from a Green handball, with no doubts the ref pointed to the spot. The Marton no.9 stepped up and with the promise of a pint for Ross between the sticks if he saved the pen Ross dived completely the wrong way but fortunately the pen was caressed wide of the post. As legs tired, the excelsior forwards began to find more space and with Danny powering down the left and Fiss driving at the Marton back line it was only going to be a matter of time until Excelsior scored again. A chance fell to Sean as Wazza worked the defence down the left and employing the ‘Ronaldinho trick’, Waz cruised past a defender and squared the ball to Sean who misfired. Minutes later Sean returned the favour to Waz with some good work down the right following an Excelsior breakaway; Sean squared the ball across the box finding an unmarked Wazza who lashed the ball home, 3-0. The fourth was to come towards the end of the game when Fiss broke out of midfield and baring down on the Marton backline, played the ball to Sean along the byline, Sean pulled back and Fiss smashed the ball home, 4-0. Unfortunately for Fiss, his vigorous celebration led to a stint of vomiting on the pitch, the repercussions of a night on the sambuca!

So 4-0 the final score, a score line which somewhat flattered the Ex men. Not our best performance, but through fortune and hard work we managed to stay in the game and our quality shone through in the end.

MOM – for me it was Scholesy. He stood up to the challenge in the centre of the park winning some cracking headers and tackles. His pass for the first goal was a different class also.

Other moments of note….

1)Mercer taking a shot to the seeds in the centre circle, Marton players putting the ball out so he could receive attention AND then the ref telling everyone to leave him down, take the throw in and carry on!!

2)Mercer flailing his arms in the air in annoyance that he had not received the ball, and mid rant, promptly fell over in front of the Excelsior faithful.

3)Wazza’s ‘Ronaldihno trick’ in the second half.

4)Wazza screaming like a girl when he got felled on the edge of the box.

5)The gaffer feigning to hit Hopesy in the balls, and when Hopesy tried to avoid the jab, smashed his head on the roof of the dugout!

Ratings time….·
Ross – superb performance, made some quality saves and is providing the team with confidence in his ability - 8

· Nico – solid as a rock, dealt with everything sensibly and kept the communication going at the back – 7

· Perr – Good debut. Battled well in the air not much escaped him along the ground and played some fine balls down the line – 7

· Green – Dealt with most things, good goal and a goal line clearance – 7

· Merce – fairly quiet game. Still managed to provide some class moments and got us the sucker-punch first goal - 7

· Fiss – despite his binge drinking escapades of the previous night, got into the game more in the second half and treated himself to a goal – 7

· Scholesy – my MOM. Showed good fitness, tackled and headed well and played a sublime pass to Merce for Ex’s first – 8

· Thin Lizzy – Little rusty from his time out but his quality showed as a murdered Marton’s right back on numerous occasions – 7

· Sean – No goal for Sean today but his work rate was exceptional. Had a couple of chances he should have buried but made up for it in assists – 8

· Wazzle – did I mention he did the trick? Not enough from him this week I’m afraid but managed to get a goal and could have assisted another – 7

· Steve Mck – Good to see him back, typical last gasp tackle from him in the box hopefully more to come – 7

· Dezzy Warrel – Dare I give him a 6? Has to be doesn’t it!! Didn’t have an awful lot to do but dealt with most that came his way – 6

· Danny – didn’t get time to impress, he’ll get his chance and particularly on a big pitch , should prosper – 6.