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Firsts were playing rivals LXG away in Schaarbeek. After having a decent start, a fault by Alvaro resulted in penalty giving them a 1-0 lead. We quickly recovered and an Alvaro corner created the opportunity for Nair to get on the scoresheet for the first time in 5 years. Then 5 minutes later a great Ciaran/Arjan combination resulted in the 1-2 by Arjan. HT 1-2.
Second half we struggled with staying in our formation and had to sit out a few big chances, but of course Ricard was there to save us. A nice Ricard kick-in lead to a great finish by Ciaron getting us 1-3 ahead. All in all a great team effort with some nice spels of possession.
FT 1-3, MOTM Ricard
1sts were looking to get back to winning ways against an in form Portugal. Very even & high quality game, Arjan running through, taken out, red card. Free kick despatched beautifully by Rachid. Added a 2nd through Ciarán just before HT & a 3rd just after by Arjan. Then conceded 2. We scored a beautiful 4th, Daan cross field, Rachid chest, to Bono, slipped to Ciarán who did the defender & curled into the corner. Got a 5th, lovely curler James from the edge of the box. Ricard then with a brilliant penalty save , Arjan finished a lovely 6th & they scored a soft penalty at the end. Great win against a very good team
1sts were playing in deep Wallonia against New Arquois on a pitch with a 10% slope. First half we hit the bar twice, 2 off the line saves and played well on a difficult surface. However, we failed to score. Second half we struggled more and didn’t manage to get a lot of chance with New Arquois parking the bus.
1sts were looking to recover from their first loss of the season against old foes Euro Union. Started really well, scored through Arjan twice & Sigve but conceded just before HT to lead 3-1. Conceded again just after HT & with 10 minutes to go. We missed a penalty, 3-3 result.
Firsts were in Watermael-Boitsfort for a tough game away to Coin Du Bailli, we were on top but then conceded a penalty when the ball hit Alvaro on the shoulder from 5 yards away. 0-1 HT. We dominated the 2nd half despite missing a few great chances & a very harsh 2 yellows for Arjan. We equalised through Rachid from 20 yards after great work from Ciaran, 10 to go. We pushed but they scored on the break & added a 3rd at the end. Good news is Choule in 2nd lost.
Firsts were at home in Nossegem against Chenois to consolidate our position at the top of division one. Started well & scored a lovely opener through Sylvain, Ciarán skinned 2, crossed, Arjan chest down, Sylvain buried it. We played some fantastic stuff at times & added 4 more before HT through Ciarán, hopefully his 1st his first many for the club, Arjan, Rachid & an og. The second half & Chenois pushed, their heads never dropped but we managed to scor 4 more. First of which came from a move from our box involving Rob, Sean, Sylvain, Seb, Ciarán across to Arjan, lovely goal. Arjan added 2 more, Ciarán got his second to finish 9-0. A wonderful display, important to keep the momentum going next week away to Coin De Bailli, always a tough game. Motm Arjan but it could have been anyone.
1sts went to 2nd place Choule Auderghem looking to pull 7 points clear at the top of Abssa. Started sluggishly but keeper & defence were very solid. Game was very even with half chances at both ends. HT 0-0. We were the better team in the 2nd half & started pushing for the opener, another few half chances, then Arjan was fouled on the edge of the box, Rachid despatched the penalty with ease, 18 to go. We continued to dominate & with 10 to go Rachid fouled, got up & another fantastic penalty. We could have added to it but 2-0 will do. Great effort from 1-14 & support from Dave, Denis, Seb & Cillian, great to see. Need to keep this going until the end of the season now. MOTM Sigve at centre back.
FCI took on the weather and New Arquois at Nossegem, looking to bounce back from a disappointing 0-0 in Genappe two weeks ago. Starting well we missed a number of chances, with their keeper pulling off saves to deny Arjan and Sylvain. We made the breakthrough after a defensive mix up allowed Erik, who was on day release from Nua pub and nightclub, to prod home.
A mistake at the start of the first half allowed the visitors to rattle the bar with a free kick in a rare foray into the Irish half, but Arjan scored with his seldom seen right foot. After a let off on the other end, subs Tommy and Ciaran (on his debut) set up a number of chances which we couldn’t convert. Enough to send us into the Christmas break unbeaten and with another clean sheet.
Goals: Erik, Arjan
Assists: Siggi x2
MOTM: Luke
Firsts had a though game in Genappe against newcomer Braine Storming. The start of the game was decent. Naim got injured after 10 minutes making us use our only sub, after two players dropped out today. End of the first half an Alva cross lead to a header of Arjan just missing the goal. HT 0-0
Second half we struggled with breaking into their defence leading to few chances. Last 5 minutes they managed to break through but Ricard made great save, helping us not to lose the game !
FT 0-0
1sts played 2nd from bottom Press Amicale, started very poorly, conceded from a through ball & it could have been more, we got into the game, Sylvain finishing after a lovely back heel assist from Rachid. Dominated after that & Rachid put a 25 yard free kick in the top corner just before HT. Rachid added his second just after, did a chop, turned the defender, beat another one & dinked the keeper, lovely goal. 4th came when Rachid played Sigve through & he finished well. Got the 5th after great work from Luke on the right (have a rest. Bono) played to Erik who squared for Rachid to complete his hat trick with his right foot. Weren’t at our best but important to get the points, still unbeaten, still top, game by game now.
The firsts got lucky and stole a point from LXG. First half we struggled to get into our play and got behind 0-1 after a nice shot from LXG. Then we got some good chances with Rachid and Seb but their attempts got blocked. Second half LXG got a red card for a taking Arjan down who was free on goal. We got more in the game but conceded a counter that got us down to 0-2. With fresh legs on midfield with James and Rob, and their down to 10, we managed to dominate the game that lead us to Arjan scoring the 1-2. Then unfortunately Bonaldi was sent off after a tackle on their keeper.
Firsts kept pushing which resulted in a penalty that Rachid calmly finished. All in all we made it a difficult game, but still got a point out of it. FT 2-2, MOTM Rachid
1sts had an early start in Tervuren away against Wong & it showed. Very windy & a narrow pitch, we weren’t quite at it & they caused us some problems. We had a few half chances but were thankful to Ricard for an incredible save down low at his near post to keep it at 0-0 at HT. Started the 2nd half much better, had chances through Erik, Naim & a few goalmouth scrambles. Went ahead when a cross come shot from Alvaro flew in the far corner. They pushed & we we again had Ricard to thank with 2 great saves, one before we scored & one near the end. Did not play well but showed great character to get the win, still unbeaten & still top. Tough game against LXG next week
Firsts played a difficult match in deep Wallonia against Grez. After a great run of 3x 3-0 victories this match was a struggle First half not much chances were created besides a nice Rachid-Erik-Arjan combination that didnt lead into anything. Grez missed a huge chance for open goal.
Second half, also not much happened. But After a nice Alvaro free-kick, Rachid headed the ball in goal, while Bonaldi was kicked on the ground. 0-1 FT, an ugly game but an important to win!
1sts had an away game against old foes Euro Union. After a scrappy start went 1 up. Naïm from the edge of the area with his left foot. Started playing well then & after a lovely move involving about 10 passes, Arjan was taken down by their keeper, Rachid despatched the penalty, 2-0 at HT. We went 3-0 up through Erik after HT following a goalmouth scramble. Had a few more chances but over elaboration cost us, they rarely threatened apart from some set pieces, a very good, disciplined performance by 1-14, Naim outstanding in the middle. We need to keep this momentum going now.
Firsts had a home game against tough opposition Coin Du Baillie. Started well, few have chances, were creating very well down both flanks. Went one up after 15, great work by Erik & Sylvain, cross by Alvaro, great header from Arjan saved, Rachid finished. We continued to dominate, creating overloads & eventually got the 2nd, Arjan blocked, possibly fouled, ball fell to Erik, lovely finish with the outside of his foot. 2-0 HT. They came into it a bit in the 2nd half but we were still the better team, eventually made it 3-0 through Erik, Alvaro cross after a lovely 1-2 with Jimmy on the sideline who had a very interesting cameo on his 1st team debut, hitting the post & almost scoring & assisting too. A very good win against a good side, Euro Union next week, another tough game. Motm Erik
First went to Waterloo to beat Chenois on a sunny saturday afternoon.
After a strong start Seb gave a great cross to Arjan scoring the 0-1. We continued on the same gear and the 0-2 quickly followed after a beautiful combination resulting in a finish by Naim. The second half we struggled a bit to stay organised in the midfield, but still were able to manage the game pretty well. After a classic Alvaro corner, Rachid scored the 0-3.
FT 0-3, MOTM Rachid
Firsts had a good win against a strong Choule side, who we were level on points with ahead of kickoff. Having to soak up pressure from the outset, we opened the scoring after a flowing move that saw Erik convert from a Bono cross. Our start to the second half was much better, with three quick fire goals from Alvaro (after a super Seb pass), Arjan and Rachid killing the contest. Missing countless chances left the game open, with Choule getting two in the last ten minutes from some sloppy defending, but the boys in green made it three wins from their first four by full time.
Firsts win the derby against the British! After a bad beginning from FCI 1, Arjan managed to go on two great solo’s giving us a 2-0 head start. Second half the boys picked it up better resulting in multiple chances. Later on Arjan gave a cross that one of the British was friendly enough to kick in himself. Then Arjan missed a penalty and the usual suspects (Arjan, Siggy and Rachid) got a yellow card. As you can read it was a lot about Arjan this game, making him the man of the match as well. Solid performance of the lads! FT 3-0
Special mention for the Brits centre back who got off with a head injury. Wishing you agood recovery!
1sts played Brussels LTC1 today, hot weather didn’t stop the boys from attacking LTC1 from the beginning, Rachid dribbled and drilled in a low cross forcing an own goal. 1-0. 2nd half we became stronger, creating chance after chance, finally Bonaldi with a great cross, Sylvain scoring a nice half volley. 2-0. We immediately conceeded from a deflected shot from a corner 2-1 but we attacked straightaway, Arjan winning a penalty and scoring it. Great performance from the boys !! 3-1 FT !!
1sts were playing Portugal away on a nice sunny afternoon. We had a chaotic start to the game, finding out bono is suspended, started the game with no subs. We conceeded from a scrappy ball behind the defense that resulted in pass back in the box that helped them to go 1-0 up. We fought back, took control of the game, scored from a lob by Seb (brilliant assist by Tiago). 1-1 HT.
2nd half was tough, we missed a great open goal chance, but could’ve conceeded as well, goal line save from Erik and a flying stop from Ricard. In the end we managed to hold on to get a point 1-1 FT. New signing Rob played a great game in the defense with fellow 45-year-old Siggie.