FC Irlande Men 1

Match was forfeited by the opposition

Last year’s Abssa champions took on this year’s Abssa champions in a sunny Rossiers, very even, good quality game with some nice passages of play from us. We deservedly took the lead after a great cross from Alvaro to Tommy who headed down for Nair to volley home, high quality goal. We came close to adding to the lead through Sylvain with an audacious effort, James & from a corner. HT 1 up, 2nd half they pushed us back a bit, eventually scoring a really good team goal themselves. We hit the post, Erik just wide with a one on one & we thought Remy had won it right at the end with a brave header but was given offside. Draw probably just about a fair result, congratulations to Brussels British on their deserved championship, hopefully we’ll be back to challenge again next season & still the cup to play for. Motm Alex, majestic at the back but everyone contributed.

The 1st took on Wong away in a bid to secure second place in the league. It was never going to be easy against a Wong team who beat us narrowly in the first encounter. Due to low availability, the team was supplemented with a few players from the 3rd/4ths, but as Wong also missed quite a few players an even game could be expected. From the start, Wong was a bit more on top, with us creating some half-chances. As the game progressed, the “newly” composed team started to show cracks: we couldn’t find each other, used too much time on the ball, and were not well balanced. Wong found a lot of space and ran over us at times. Had it not been for an outstanding Ricard in goal, we could have been down 4-0 at halftime. We agreed to try and play simpler and more direct in the second half. However, Wong had other plans and early on scored a nice goal from a run into the box, which even superman Ricard could do nothing about. The game became more even, but we didn’t manage to create clear chances. It didn’t help that we picked up a red card with 10 minutes to go. All in all, a fairly poor performance from us and a well-deserved win for Wong. MOTM Ricard

On a very sunny, but cold, saturday, Firsts were into a tough derby facing British United, with huge will for a revenge after an undeserved loss during first game.
Despite high possession and great builds-up, our green boys did not make it to score a goal before half time. Football was good quality and all strikers (Lolo, Rachid, Ciaran and Erik) had very promising 1v1 opportunities.
Second half showed a different configuration, with a reorganised team: Rémy entered as central defender, Rachid moved to midfield, and Bono had the chance to show his strikers skills. Less chances, but after a free kick at the edge of the area (obtained by Bono) shot by Rachid, blocked by the wall and a nice passing move between Bono and James, Ciaran found himself in front of the empty goal: 1-0.
To be noted a very nice performance from Ricard: few, but very important saves.
Mom: Ciaran
Nice and very well diserved win!

The firsts went to Waterloo in a typical summer-weather day of March.
The team was missing some banana players due to the World Championship of… darts. But luckily the great Club spirit is there and we welcomed some players from 3rds, 4rds and Vets.
Chenois, a team relegated, they started with 10 players and we tried to press high to get quickly goals. But it took us 20 good minutes to brake the score. Rachid running on the right, clean cross and Grisha put the ball in the net. No more to say from the 1sts half, except that we went six times in offside position.. Abssa referee…
Second half, with a non comfortable 1-0 we had the possession, but we could not create nice combinations. But after missing some chances, Rachid closed the game with the second goal. Typical Rachid one, from the right to the center, shot to the long post. Over. 2-0.
Kind of ugly game, dominating, but with lack of speed and good decisions in the last third of the pitch. But three points and a clean sheet, and a great Club spirit! Motm: Rachid.

Firsts were playing champions from 2 years ago LTC in a freezing Nossegem without Sigve & Sylvain who were helping out Vets 1. Very even game, some nice passages of play from both teams, few half chances. Just before half time after some great work by Nair, Arjan cutback & a lovely finish from Erik. HT 1-0. 2nd half was much the same & we could have added more before Seb eventually made it 2-0 from another Arjan assist. Nice win & a decent performance against a good team. MOTM Nair

The Firsts traveled to Sint-Stevens-Woluwe to face newly promoted Azur. We got off to a fantastic start, with Erik breaking through and setting up Arjan for the opening goal: 0-1. Rachid came close to doubling the lead with two well-struck free kicks, both narrowly missing the target. Our pressure continued, and after a brilliant dribble, Rachid delivered a perfect cross for Erik to finish, making it 0-2.

Just before halftime, Azur pulled one back to make it 1-2 after we forgot to mark their players.

The second half proved much more challenging. After a tough 20 minutes, our passing and movement became less effective. The game took a turn when Ciaran, attempting to clear the ball, accidentally caught an Azur player in the box, conceding a penalty. Azur made the 2-2. Things went from bad to worse when Arjan surprisingly received a red card, leaving us with 10 men for the remainder of the match.

Special thanks to Noel for stepping in. Man of the Match: Erik.

Firsts played in Auderghem against Choule looking to extend our 5 game winning run. Very even game, had a couple of half chances but they scored after some neat play. 1-0 Choule at HT. 2nd half we pushed & missed some more but it wasn’t our day & they got a 2nd with 10 to go. We finished with 10 when Luke got injured, hopefully he won’t be out for too long

1sts had a tough game at home to LXG, were missing quite a few players. We had a great chance at the start through Ciarán, even 1st half ended 0-0. 2nd half we got the breakthrough through Tiago after great work from Ciarán down the right. We had 3 or 4 clearcut chances that we couldn’t take & were punished on the break with an unlucky OG. We didn’t panic & when Ciarán was fouled on the edge up stepped Rachid to curl around the wall into the corner of the net, 5 to go. They pushed a bit & with time up they got a penalty when Bono was penalised. It was a really good penalty but Ricard flung himself to his right & saved brilliantly. There was 5 minutes added time which confused but we held on for a moral boosting win to hopefully keep the pressure on Brussels British at the top. Motm Ricard, special mention to Alvaro rolling back the years at 6.

Match Report: FC Irlande 2-0 Braine Storming

FC Irlande returned to Nossegem this weekend to face a strong Braine Storming team. After a slow start, it was Sylvain who unlocked the defense with a brilliant Zidane-esque pass to Ciarán, who slotted the ball past the keeper off the post for the opening goal. 1-0.

Just two minutes later, Luke made a surging run, leaving the opposition keeper stranded as he calmly finished for his first goal of the season. The 2-0 lead gave us control, with the second half seeing some excellent passages of play, though we were unlucky not to score more.

Zizou Penouilh was the maestro in midfield, pulling the strings as the team cruised to a well-deserved 4th consecutive victory. The defense, led by a solid backline, never looked threatened for the full 70 minutes.

Next up: a trip to the Brits on the 11th of January to continue the momentum. Merry Christmas one and all🎄🎅

MOTM: Sylvain

A wet and windy day, FC Irelande started the first half running up hill (literally). A mixed beginning to the game as the boys got used to the pitch. A few half decent passages of play. One of which led to FC Ireland being awarded a penalty. Starting from the back.. Luke cut in, played a nice ball, which funnelled its way through to Ronaldo, twinkle toes won a penalty. Calmly and skilfully stroked home by our talisman Dutchman.
Shortly after, Wolanski slipped and handled the ball in the box for a penalty to be awarded the other way. Despite Ricys left hand it crept in. Another error while trying to play on this mud pit, allowed Arquois a counter attack and goal. Again despite Ricky’s best efforts.
2-1 at half. Saw a very dispondid Ricardo begging his players not to play football and just kick ze fucking ting.
The second half was a much more controlled game, until wolanski was awarded a ‘soft’ red for his long distance flying tackle. Ari apparently said ‘fuck tis man’ and decides to just score direct from his corner kick. Now With the momentum and the wind. Ireland won back the ball high up the pitch. A nice move ended with erik 1v1 as he slotted the ball through the keepers legs.
Ari saw red with 5 to go and the boys battled to hold down a gutsy and honest 3-2 win with the 9 men left !!!!!

A depleted 1st team were at home against newly promoted Hermes. Bolstered by seconds captain Gabe & Dario from the 4ths with injured old-timers Alvaro & Sigve on the bench & Ciarán on a train platform in Germany it was all hands on deck but some off track. Started off well & went ahead when a nice ball from Erik to Luke who played to James on the edge of the box, lovely first touch with his right, swivelled, he likes swivelling & buried in the corner with his left. We then should have had a penalty but conceded immediately after from a defensive mix-up, nice finish. Very even then but we got a lucky break when their defender passed to Tiago who ran through, rounded the keeper & finished well to put us 2-1 up at HT. Second half we retreated a bit, half chances each way, we probably should have added a 3rd, they had a shout for a penalty too. Sigve with a 10 minute cameo at the end for Dario & we held on. Big thanks to Dario & Gabe who were both excellent, hopefully more players to return next week to keep the pressure on Brussels British. Motm Luke on his return after injury but a real club effort overall.

Firsts secured a hard-fought 1-0 victory against Portugal which was first and foremost due to a strong team performance.

The game started 30 min late so keeping warm in the cold wind was a challenge in itself. The opening 10 minutes saw an even battle with both teams creating half-chances. Erik came close after a cross from Jimmy but couldn’t convert. At 15 minutes, we countered effectively following several dangerous corners by the opposition, with Jimmy’s shot denied by their goalie.

Around 20 min in, their left back suffered a bad knee injury after trying to go shoulder to shoulder with Tiago in the corner. After resuming play, we began to assert dominance. Seb created a great chance with a drive down the left wing, shooting just wide of the near post. Despite our control, the final pass was often lacking and we felt we should have been up at half time.

The second half started with increasing pressure from the Portugal. Richie made two excellent saves at 20 minutes to keep us in the game as Portugal pushed through the middle. However, we broke the deadlock when Sylvain won the ball high up, ended to Tiago who set up Sylvain for a composed finish past the goalkeeper. Seb was brought down as last man, but the referee wrongly waved play on. We also had a goal wrongly disallowed for offside after Seb’s shot was saved by the goalie which Tiago tapped in.

Alva had to leave the pitch due to injury, leaving us with no substitutes, but the team held strong. Richie continued to make crucial saves, and the defense remained resolute.

Overall, a solid team effort and excellent goalkeeping ensured our 1-0 win. Sylvain’s goal was the difference in a match where we proved to be the better side despite moments of pressure. Great work from everyone!

1st took on joint 4th place Wong. Looking to bounce back after last weeks undeserved defeat against BUFC, we dominated the first 10 minutes creating some good opportunities which went wide or were denied by their goalie. The rest of the half was fairly even with both teams creating some half decent chances. Second half we dropped down on both accuracy and tempo. Wong scored early on a counter attack and continued to look dangerous on the counterattack. After 20 min they went 2-0 up with a well executed header from a cross. The last 10 minutes we finally looked dangerous and showed glimpses of last years glory. Arjan got us a penalty with a few minutes to go, well executed, which gave us some hope of a point but time ran out. Disappointing in the end, but well bounce back!

The firsts were playing the B-side derby against the newly promoted British United, who are currently in second place in the league. After a good press we managed to put Arjan 1 on 1 with keeper, resulting in a shot going just wide. The British were overall a well organised squad and managed to go up 1-0 after a perfectly placed shot from 20 metere. We came back with a perfect cross from Ciaran to Tiago who then managed to put it over the crossbar instead of under.

In the second half the British were playing more defensive. We had a couple of chances, but didn’t manage to get it in the net. MotM : James and special shout out to Daan who will become a dad!

1sts got back to winning ways with a 2 0 win over Chenois . Missing a few regulars but still able to field a strong side 1sts began the game in determined mood .  Well on top for most of the game 1sts found chances hard to come by and it was 0 0 at Half Time,  in the 2nd half we opened the scoring when Arjan slotted the ball in from a good move. We kept pressing but it was proving hard to get real chances. As we approached the last 5 minutes we finally put the game to bed when Arjan worked his way through on the left and then slid a great pass across the area   where Nair came in to drive it into the net. Game over.

Good performance with some great moves at times but also some loose play as well.

MOTM   Arjan

Firsts travelled to Genappe to face Braine Storming, dominated the 1st half & took the lead through Ciaran, great half volley after a sweeping 5 man move. HT 1-0, dominated again in the 2nd half bit conceded against the run of play from a defensive slip. Pushed until the end, had a few chances & should have scored before a great Rachid header from a corner was disallowed right at the end, marginal call. 1-1 result. Motm Nair.

FC Ireland faced Portugal today in a top-of-the-table clash. Ireland struck early when Seb won the ball and set up Arjan with a great pass. Last year’s top scorer, Arjan, finished clinically to make it 1-0 within 3 minutes. Shortly after, Arjan drew a foul from the Portuguese center back, leading to a red card in the 5th minute, but Ireland couldn’t capitalize on the resulting free kick.

At the 25-minute mark, Liam fouled a Portuguese player on the right wing. The subsequent curling free kick, aided by the wind, caught Ricky off guard and found the net, leveling the score at 1-1.

In the second half, Ireland’s play improved, with sharper build-up involving more players, but no clear chances were created. With 10 minutes remaining, Portugal delivered a cross from the left, which their striker controlled and hammered home, making it 2-1. Despite efforts, Ireland couldn’t find a late equalizer and will need to regroup for the next match.

Man of the Match: Arjan.

Firsts travelled to Ohain, scene of our famous cup win last season to take on top of the table LTC. Unfortunately we were playing on the mud pitch behind the stand rather than the lovely one in front of it. Scrappy game, conceded from their first attack, good cross & header but avoidable. We created a couple of chances, 0-1 at HT. We dominated possession, our subs adding greatly, but couldn’t get the equaliser until with 15 to go Daan rose to bury a bullet header from a pinpoint Rachid corner. We continued to push & with seven to go Clovis was fouled on the edge of the box, Rachid territory. He shot low & it got a slight deflection to put us ahead. They threw everything at us & had a goal disallowed for a foul, we could have added to our tally on the break. Great effort from 1-14 in difficult conditions against a seasoned, well drilled team, huge character shown & we now move to within 1 point of them at the top of the league. Motm Daan.

Firsts were back in fortress Nossegem to play newly promoted Azur, with the injury crisis biting but boosted by the return of Tommy P and Andreas.

We started sluggish, leaving Azur have possession but defending well. On the break James won the ball back, beat his man and laid it out to Ciaran, with another Ron rocket (this time on his right) being rifled into the net from the edge of the box. We repeated the feat minutes later, Remy beating three Azur players in a duel before Tommy P (on 🔥) played in the returning Rachid to finish.

The second half saw us kill the game, even though we’d the better chances. After a couple of breaks Erik fed Rachid to finish the game.

Despite not getting out of third gear, another clean sheet and three goals. A big thanks to the high-flying seconds for both Tommy and Andreas. For us, on to LTC in a big one next week

Firsts travelled to Coin for the Rob derby on the back of a 4-0 win last weekend. Having lost to Coin in pre-season and heard the hype, early on we allowed the “league favourites” a small amount of the ball before a Ron rocket put us 1-0 up. Next was Seb after great work from Erik, with the dink finish following great pressing in midfield. We repeated the trick with another pinch in midfield finish by Seb again. Erik beat the offside trap to round the keeper and make it four before half time.

We keep working and await Coin’s newsletter 👀

The firsts?! I thought you was dead

Finally started our season with an excellent 4-0 win against Choule at fortress Nossegem. With good availability for the first time this season we started brightly, debutant Seb winning it in midfield and releasing Tiago (el Toro) who finished excellently. James also hit the crossbar 2mins after. We repeated the trick with James nipping in ahead of their midfielder, playing in el Toro who hammered it into the roof of the net with his left.

In complete control, Erik fed Ciarán who turned his mind and smashed it into the far corner. With the last kick of the game he got his second after a surging run from Nair won us a penalty.

4-0 and a start to our season (fashionably late), with a tough trip to Coin ahead next week

MOTM – Tiagoals

1sts welcomed old rivals Brussels British to Nossegem on another hot day. Went one up against the run of play after lovely play from Sylvain, dinked ball to Ciarán who took a nice touch, rounded the keeper & slotted home. We missed two great chances to increase our lead. HT 1-0, they pressed in the 2nd half & equalised after a defensive mistake. Game was even when they were awarded a penalty, file under soft but seen them given. We pushed but couldn’t get the equaliser. 1-2 result & a wake up call for the 1sts in their championship defence.

Firsts kicked off their title defence against New Arquois in sunny Nossegem. They had a revolutionary 8-2-0 formation, we started well, creating chances but they scored with their first attack, a deflected free kick gave Ricard no chance. We equalised through a Tiago header after a lovely move & great work & cross from Rachid. 1-1 HT. We completely dominated the 2nd half but had to wait until 5 to go, lovely move down the right, Bono onto Tiago’s head, big relief. 3rd came straight after, Rachid to Erik, shot from the edge. Added a 4th through Rachid, another Bono assist. Up & running, Brussels British up next. Motm Tiago