Starting line up
The Match
On a day that gave us such inconsistencies from the sun shining to hail storms, Farum traveled across Öresund to meet Port Malmö on what was a game highlighted by inconsistencies. We were fortunate that the weather held off for all the old boys returning to catch a game in what turned out to be the second thriller hosted at Mauler Park this year. The price of admission was free, yet those that turned up would have paid 200kr for that type of entertainment. Down the road people paid hundreds of kronor for the snooze fest of watching Malmö FF destroy a bunch of villagers from Bosnia Herzegovina it was clear who got their monies worth.
The game started with Malmö down a few starters but that was not going to deter those players that knew they deserved a place in the starting lineup. Early on Farum brought their usual intensity to the ball and Malmö matched. Stretch was dominating in the ruck, however the Cats effort on the ball lead to them winning the ball out the middle. An arm wrestle ensued with Farum breaking the deadlock through their always dangerous full forward. Getting a few early goals against them the Malmö boys responded and kept their heads. Settling goals from our efficient and well ran forward line consisting of the killer B’s Ben and Brodie meant the damage was not as bad as it otherwise might have been. Måns showed that he is going to earn his spot each week with consistent efforts on the ball, and man, Taffy was showing us that he isn’t just an outside runner with really hard efforts at the ball all quarter, and Andy in his first game back from injury was giving loads of run from the half back line.
First quarter time score Maulers: 8 Cats: 37
If the first quarter was hail the second quarter was sunshine for the Maulers as the boys gave the old boys something to cheer about. Numbers around the ball, dominant ruck work and free flowing forward play saw the Maulers pile on the goals. This was Maulers footy at it’s best. Pack running, aggression and attack saw a usually fierce Farum team take a step back. It is a rare a sight as I have seen with Cats players second to the contest chasing players and struggling to string together more than two passes. Even rarer was seeing their usually stay-at-home full forward leave the goal square to look for kicks inside the opposition 50! It really was electric football in this quarter and a huge credit to the boys to not panic and respond to a lackluster start to the game. Hendrick started giving us run from the half back line and the back line put the shackles on what is a very good forward line for Farum. Paul was a menace to all midfielders in his path bringing more people down than a bully in a playground. Chris showed that he was the big boy in the middle and created a tonne of clearances through his physicality and creativity. Stretch seem to play by the mantra “if you want something done right, then do it yourself” and began plucking balls from the ruck and thumping them forward to the killer B’s.
Half time score Maulers: 50 Cats: 44
In the third quarter the footy really stepped up, with as expected Farum lifting to match the intensity of the Maulers. It was back and forth with goals being traded by each team. Brodie was marking and crumbing everything that came his way and Ben was running and chasing, showing that second and third efforts pay off. Paul had some players spooked with his tackling and was creating perceived pressure all over the ground resulting in fumbles and hurried kicks. Getting more players around the contest meant that occasionally players coming out of defence were rushing kicks to two on ones instead of holding the ball up and finding runners from the backline.
Third quarter score Maulers: 68 Cats 65
The last quarter was pressure footy at its best. The Maulers midfield who had played the whole match were amazing giving their all for the legends watching. Goals were traded back and forth and everyone knew the game was always going to come down to the last minute. Games this close are littered with moments that players, coaches and supporters look back on and wish they could do differently. But that is life. And that is football. For the Maulers to be in the position they were in was due to (as Chris put it) an A grade effort. In the end Farum ended up with the last shot on goal and that gave them a five point victory. A famous saying in basketball is that when a game comes down to the last shot “you should write the story of the game while the ball is in the air”. This was true in this game as well. Another 30 seconds in the game and we may have had the last shot at goal. But this wasn’t to be. The story of the game was that the Maulers turned up to the game with 20 players, gave five to the other team and matched it with the best team in the league in every department. A million things could have changed the result but it was not to be. The best part of this is knowing what we as a team have to improve and work on, while still knowing we have the ingredients to go all the way this year.
/Padsy
Final score
Port Malmö Maulers: 80
Farum Cats: 85
For full details see:
http://www.thefootyrecord.net/index.php?content1=match&m=4655