On a lovely spring evening, our Y8’s made the short trip to Wickersley in what we anticipated would be a tough game against very strong opposition.
It was an end-to-end start, with both teams battling hard to gain possession and control of the game. Nikolas, Lloyds, and Atmar pressed relentlessly in central midfield to prevent the Wickersley midfield from dictating early on. The first chance fell to us – some tidy work from Ismaeel on the left-hand side allowed Gabby to latch on to the ball and fire straight at the keeper. With 10 minutes to go in the first half, Wickersley began to settle into the game and show their qualities. Some neat passing and moving meant that Gael and Riley had to be switched on at all times – producing some excellent last-ditch tackles to keep them at bay. As halftime approached, a mix-up at the back allowed the Wickersley striker to nip in between Riley and Josh, before slotting home from a tight angle! Really tough to take after a battling performance. Half time – 0-1.
The second half was equally tight, with both teams working hard to try and create chances in the opposition’s final third. Brandon Oliver and Ellis Wolf showed their versatility by slotting in on the left hand side and doing a brilliant job – keeping it simple in on the ball and keeping their shape out of possession. We pushed hard as hard as we could with 10 minutes to go, Gabby showing his speed to get in behind the Wickersley defense before forcing a brilliant save from the opposition goalkeeper. With legs tiring all over the pitch, Wickersley came on strong in the final few minutes, with a number of corners which we defended bravely.
Full time – Clifton 0-1 Wickersley.
A brilliant effort from the lads, they genuinely left everything on the pitch which is all we can ever ask for. They represented themselves and our school immaculately – Wickersley parents even came across at the end to say well done which was nice!
MOM – Gael Kianga – “Genuinely one of the best performances I have seen since being involved with extracurricular at Clifton. Brave, strong, quick, intelligent in and out of possession – he was amazing! “
