Byfleet’s Under 6 of the Best

A last minute goal from ‘golden boots’ Dan Collett, in the final of Sunday’s Woking Cougar’s Celebration of Football, was enough to secure a well deserved victory for Byfleet Village in the under 6’s age group. Like a late summer wasp, Dan proved the sting in the tail for Byfleet, notching an emphatic total of seven goals in the tournament. But the buzzing centre forward was not the only star of the show and manager, Chris Long was proud of the entire team, ‘Yes, we have got some great players’, he said, ‘but the energy and commitment of the whole team has been fantastic. To go the whole season unbeaten and to see all of the players have so much fun has been immensely rewarding’.

Despite Byfleet Under 6’s prodigious unbeaten start to their inaugural season, the group stages of the tournament were certainly not plain sailing. The opening rubber, against Byfleet Scorpian’s B Team, was nicked with a solitary goal from the precocious Taylor Munroe. The same player, already on the books at Chelsea, fizzed down the left in the second game, unselfishly squaring the ball for Dan Collett to cheekily take the ball round Hart FC’s goalkeeper to score the winning goal. A Dan Collett hat-trick against Woking Cougar’s B Team secured the promise of the semi-final, with a late challenge by Tate Pilgrim ensuring three clean sheets.

Things were understandably tougher in the semi-final as the Byfleet boys battled past Guildford 2000. Early runs from the tenacious Max Ling and the effervescent Jordan Long failed to find reward. The first half ended with a head in hands goal mouth scramble as both Max and Dan failed to convert. However, mid way through the second period, Dan latched onto a Xani Lawrence throw and drilled the ball into the bottom right comer.

In the final against Woking Cougars A Team, Taylor Munroe was promptly reprimanded for an over zealous challenge, but he quickly made amends with a sweet left footed strike to take the lead. In the second half, poor marking from a throw saw Byfleet keeper Tristan Fahey beaten for the first and last time, as a thunderous Cougar’s shot found the net. As extra time beckoned, Byflleet attacked and forced a corner. Xani Lawrence delivered a perfect cross, Jacob Sutton nudged the ball to Dan Collett who fired the winning goal.

Byfleet can now hold their heads high and look forward to a profitable season as they enter their first league as Under 7’s. High 5’s for the 6’s.

Following their recent success at the Woking Cougar’s ‘Celebration of Football’ , Byfleet Village Under 7’s couldn’t believe their luck when they were invited to participate in a festival of football hosted by’ none other, than Chelsea at their Stoke D’Abernon training ground on 30th August. Teams from as far as Somerset and Essex ventured forth to meet the best the South has to offer in the under 7’s age group. It was with some trepidation that Byfleet entered into their first match against Lewisham’s Moonshot and rightly so, as Byfleet suffered their first ever defeat, but only by a solitary goal. However, the defeat proved to be an efficacious experience for the Byfleet boys as they produced a fantastic team performance to win their remaining 7 matches, scoring 16 goals without return. Manager, Chris Long’s team have taken the short road to success, ‘All of my players were heroes’, he said.

The opening defeat against Moonshot was a close affair, keenly competed and difficult to call. Dan Collet could have so easily latched onto an early defensive mistake but couldn’t sneak the ball home. Both he and Taylor Munroe battled against a resolute defence, to no avail. Ultimately, Byfleet committed the cardinal sin of failing to leave a defender at the back. Moonshot capitalised with a lofted ball ably collected by their swift number 7 who calmly slotted home. Byfleet countered desperately but despite Taylor’s looping half volley in the closing seconds, the whistle blew signifying Byfleet’s first ever defeat. As club secretary Fiona Creswick optimistically observed, an opening defeat was not necessarily a bad thing.

The coaches led the players through a post match synopsis, posing the question, ‘How can we do better?’ The team responded and Byfleet never looked back! The next game against Somerset’s Aller Park saw Max Ling open proceedings with a true poacher’s goal. The prodigious Dan Collett scored two more to make it 3-0 and Byfleet were off. Jordan Long was man of the match for the following game against Staines. Indeed, it was Jordan’s dipping shot that looped over the opposing goalkeeper’s head to secure a score line of 4-0.

As Byfleet moved into their next group, their first opponents were Petersfield. Dan and Taylor shared the spoils in this one, both netting two goals each. The first from Taylor, was arguably the goal of the tournament, a thunderous shot from distance that cannoned into the underside of the crossbar and over the line. Taylor’s twenty yard curling free kick into the top right corner, in the following game against Essex’s Buckhurst Hill, was arguably as good. However, the score line of 3-0 in this the penultimate match was not s convincing as it sounds. Buckhurst attacked relentlessly. Resolute defending led by Byfleet’s own ‘John Terry’, Xani Lawrence and a match winning performance by goalkeeper Tristan Fahey secured the clean sheet.

Two goals from Dan Collet ensured a comfortable victory in the final match against the enthusiastic Reading team, Wrightchoice. Jacob Sutton made the opening goal, poking the ball through to Dan, who did what he does best, and scored. Dan scored his ninth tournament goal soon after, served by a defence splitting ball from Taylor.

In the end all of the players must take credit. Tristan didn’t have much to do but when called upon, he was incredible. Jacob and Tyler Scott worked tirelessly. Xani was the stalwart at the back. Jordon was Mr Flexibility, adapting seamlessly to every role he was asked to perform. Max was tenacious as ever. Dan and Taylor were predictably good, (if only they would pass to each other!) And the manager, well he’s not bad!