Monday 11 February 2008

Hythe Aztecs 0-2 Burridge AFC

Saturday 9th February
Claypits Lane, Hythe

How times change, and how they continue to change.

I spent Sunday afternoon at a friend's house.

From his lounge I looked out the window over the Itchen River to reflect on Burridge's two-nil win away to Hythe Aztecs, their third win on the bounce. It was at this moment my friend bought me a cup of tea - white with none - and with it what I momentarily mistook for a biscuit tin, that on closer inspection was in fact a shoe box. Size eleven Adidas.

When I took off its lid to examine its contents I found something better than any Jammy Dodgers. Better than chocolate Hob Knobs. Better even than Tunnock's Teacakes, those beauties that come dressed in the red and silver foil wrapping. The shoe box was filled with paper cuttings from the Southampton Sports Echo spanning some two decades. I picked up a copy of a Sports Echo that grabbed my attention. It was from April 2003. Saints had beaten Watford at Villa Park in the FA Cup Semi Finals. Burridge on the other hand laid second to bottom in Senior Divison Two.

I took another look out the window, this time beyond the banks of the Itchen, to St Marys, that modern stadium we thought would take us to new and exciting places. Not Scunthorpe away in the Championship. How times have changed.

Burridge now sit in second place in the Southampton Senior League. In years to come, maybe Burridge players will look back to this particular time, when training sessions were well attended, more games won than lost and a genuine chance of promotion lay within their grasp. Welcome to the good old days! That is unless your name is Jay Schwodler. The Burridge right-back may have reason to call the Guinness Book of Records after being substituted with barely a minute of play on the clock. If there's been an earlier substititon I've forgotten it. A bone in his arm is broken and he'll need an operation to pin it. We wish him well.

Burridge had taken to the field dressed in their all red away kit and started this game slowly. (Why does that happen?) Once the seasoned veteran midfield pairing of Mark Reeves and Justin Newman got going there was no stopping them snarling away in the middle, while Bryn Schwodler and Jamie Hewitt found time and space on the flanks, giving Burridge a solid foundation on which to build on. Jamie Hewitt is the eldest of the three playing Hewitt brothers, and can often be seen shrugging moodily during play like some French pantomine villain, until he receives the ball, when he has the ability to sidestep challenges with minimal effort, and it was from the right flank that Burridge gained the lead.

It was Ben Hutton who provided the impetus, driving down the right flank and crossing low for Sam Hewitt, who met the centre on the volley in a manner that Mark Hughes would have been proud, sending the ball low past the keeper's right. 1-0.

Burridge continued to toil during the second half. Hythe too. The second goal came late, killing the game dead. Mark Reeves struck low and hard from out the box, his shot hit the base of the post. His second woodwork hitting in three games leads me to ask what the boy's putting on his Cornflakes these days. Sam Schwodler was first in the queue to side foot in the rebound. 2-0. Leaders Freemantle are up next for Burridge.

4-4-2: Stanfield, L.Sanderson, K.Hewitt, M.Sanderson, J.Schwodler (Kelly), J.Hewitt, Newman, Reeves, B.Schwodler (Baker), S.Hewitt, Hutton (S.Schwodler)

13 comments:

Anonymous said...

Hythe Aztecs 0-2 BURRIDGE
Durley Res 6-1 Inmar
Hythe & Dib 2-0 Bishopstoke
Mich & Tims 3-3 AP Sports
Freemantle 3-0 Comrades Res
Sporting Wessex 2-0 Netley

Second in the league boys, way to go. I thought you'd lose that one. Justin, I heard you were great as always, but it's complicated you know...

Unlucky Jay. Maybe it happened for a reason. I told myself that when I broke my leg, and had to miss out on my holiday. You never know..

10 out of 10 for the other Schwodler's fall on Saturday night. You really can turn it on when you need to, I was most impressed! :)

Anonymous said...

Thanks for your support, Lee. Why don't you, Kev W and Andrews all get together, make yourselves some sandwiches, maybe a thermos of soup and come and watch us play?

Anonymous said...

good idea. but i don't always know where you are playing, and also don't know how to use the telephone to find out. PLUS, my saturday afternoons are frequently reserved for taking pictures of myself for facebook, and eating baked beans cold from the tin. i'll try and make it this week. promise

Anonymous said...

Just an idea.
It'll be a real test on Saturday against Freemantle. Especially without Stanners. We're not having a bad run but compacency should be none existent considering we've got to play Freemantle twice. Comrades - who beat us 4-2. Bishopstoke, who've beat us twice. Durley, who beat us, and M&T who we drew with. Six big ones to go.

Anonymous said...

Good performance again two good finishes especially the first one.Lets keep it going lads we wont catch Freemantle but we could give em something to think about.The league is very tight so lets keep it going.see you all wed the gaffer

Anonymous said...

Yes i think i'm out for the season, we'll see how the op goes tomorrow. I'll be there saturday to support the team, lets just stay in 2nd place now.

Anonymous said...

its like playing for east enders so much drama going on,a good win saturday shame about jay,we all know he is going to say when i was playing we were second in the league bla bla bla.
interesting night saturday night,more gossip than corrie,bryn was on fire,reminds me of a dog on heat,lee and baker so complecated,shall i, shant i .sam h has got a girl friend jonesy likes luke,luke fancys jonesy,and at the end of the night everyone became gregs best friend because he had two girls staying over?unreal the more everyone drank the looser their tongues became,my my what a team i play for,your all so naughty i thought i was bad boy. oh and another thing i reckon sam swads dabels with drugs, i have no proof of this but he seems to love everyone,drink does not do that, does it?
come on mark s just come out no one minds.

Mark Sanderson said...

well "anonymous," (cough, cough, Justin Newman) that was a very nice round-up of Saturday night, I'm sure we all agree we'll miss Birksy. Don't think there'd be anyone to have a bad word to say about him.

But you're right. It is about time I was true to you all. Perhaps in the past I have been leading something of a double life.

Thing is, I've a fetish for the old days, when men were men, going to Top-Rank with only a splash of Brute about their cheeks. By the way, I thought Justin looked really handsome on Saturday night.

As soon as he accepted my invitation to come round my humble flat I set to work, buying the strongest horse tranquiliser I could afford.

I crushed it up and put it into a bottle of lager which I gave him, hoping that when he drank it he'd soon be out sparko so I could...well, I don't need to draw you a picture do I?

When I grow up I want to be just like you, Justin.

Anonymous said...

Do you still have any of that horse tranquiliser left? It would have come in very handy in the early hours come Saturday. Oh no, not so people could get their jiggy on with the ladies, but just to settle Bryn down for a few hours. Out of control I tell you. OUT OF CONTROL.

Mark Sanderson said...

I'm just glad I retired to my quarters at a sensible hour with my Evian and my Hemingway and avoided the whole debacle. Let's keep our talk to where the real excitement is - on the field of play.

Anonymous said...

In that case, I don't have anything to talk about.

Anonymous said...

Thanks birksy for your support over the past two years we all will miss you have a safe trip keep in contact might need your management skills in the future as your better than your dad!!!the gaffer

Anonymous said...

Yes Birksey, good luck, once I get access to Baker's broadband courtesy of the Football League, I'll be all over Facebook reminded you of Burridge every five minutes.

Anyone watch Liverpool against Chelsea? It's not even football anymore. I don't even know half of Liverpool's players these days. No wonder the Yanks won't give him anymore dough, even they know he'll spunk on what's turning out to be the new Torben Piecniks and Sean Dundees of this world.

Looking back (bringing back the blog)

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