FC Irlande Men 3

“Dulce et decorum est pro patria mori, mate.” – Saul, circa 3pm.

The thirds finished the season with a match against league leaders Maccabi. It was a massacre. Gabri was gunned down by his own hamstring after 2 minutes. Shortly after that Andrea rolled his ankle on a land mine. Maccabi scored a lucky goal. Piet almost scored from outside the box. 1-0 half time. Piet gave us all a motivational team talk at half time. This was his last game for the 3rds after 20 years and we were the best 3rds team he’s played with in all those years. We decided then and there that we had to do it for Piet.

Anyway, we immediately conceded from a looping, deflected shot. 2-0. Then Theo got hit with a cannon to the face and had to go to hospital. Some of his teeth stayed on the pitch. A tooth for every goal. Now playing with 10, we dug deep. We looked to Piet. You could see it in his eyes. There was no way he was losing his final match. Not on his watch. Not with the captain’s armband on. Enough was enough. Then Noel marched forward into No Man’s Land and dislocated his shoulder. Now down to 9, everything was going against us. “The horror… the horror,” Gav muttered as he looked at the battlefield. “Medic, MEDIIIICCCC!” screamed Timo as he desperately tried to push Sylvain’s intestines back in. Shane was found walking in circles near the corner flag. Shellshock. The match finished 2-0.

Despite that the 3rds finished the season in high spirits. We reached our aim of top 4 and had a terrific run in the second half of the season where we won a silly amount of games and played some terrific football. Special thank you to the captains – Saul, Gav and Matt – for all their hard work and for giving up so much of their time over the past year to ensure the season was a success. We all owe them endless beers, or in Matt’s case, manual labour. He’s currently looking for “an actual plasterer and someone who can handle delicate tile work”.

MOTM was Piet. The greatest of servants to the 3rds for the last 20 years. His legendarily long legs will be missed.

Those we hold most dear
never truly leave us,
they live on in the kindness
they showed,
the comfort they shared,
and the love they brought into our lives.
Rest (those legs) in Peace Piet.

On a sunny Saturday, the Thirds were seeking to continue their unseen winning streak, with 10 wins out of 11 games. The opponent, ranked 5th, right behind us, looked strong on paper but not so much on the pitch, where the 3ds took the best start, with a nice header in the top corner from Gavin, to open the score. 10 minutes later, it’s Nico who doubled it by coming inside from the right wing, fixing his defender, and making a very good shot from outside the box in bottom corner. Right before half time, Gavin intercepted a ball from the last defender and passed it to Shane, who pushed it in. Same domination in the second half, with a low defense but dangerous counterattacks. Nico scored a beautiful though slightly deflected top corner shot. Sylvain scored the final one on an another counter. The 3rds controlled until the end thanks to incredible work from the two supersubs 😁. Congrats to all! Next week, we may play for promotion, which is already in itself a massive achievement!.

MOTM Nico for the 3rds

Saturday(14/03) 3rds match report against NEW INN FC.

On a normal Belgian weather to start the match 😅😅, we did start pretty good with good pressure and amazing transitions. Matthew was playing really well but unfortunately he had a knee injury and needed to get subbed off, talking for everyone we hope you get better asap!!
After that our MOTM entered, Adrian got the job done brilliant as a right back, of course it was a bit easier when you have an amazing right wing to help you out😁. First goal after a good corner from Nico, Andrea scored and 1×0 for us.
We kept the intensity the whole first half and after a long free kick from Nico, Michael scored the second goal👏🏼👏🏼. Shoutout to GUUS for the 2 defenses to keep us alive on the match. We went to the half time with 2×0 and controlling the match.
For the second half we kept the same intensity but with no goals, the referee disallowed 2 goals, wrapping everything up, we did a great performance with great intensity that everyone gave, let’s keep with this intensity for the next 2 games.
VAMOS TURDS!!! 💚💚💚

A deep howling wind swept across the fields of zaventem as the turds kicked off against Choule 2, a team of tiktokking Gen Zers who held the unc chopped turds to a draw in the pre-Christmas fixture.

It was a slow start and the neutral spectator might have have been disappointed with the spectacle, but the turds started to master the headwind and created numerous great opportunities to score. Michael was finding lots of space on the left and Gabri was twisting and turning around defenders, while Shane was ready as always to pounce, with himself and Gav crafting some good moves down the right. It was clear that we were the better team. Oh and Saul was the ref.

Anyway, it was very much against the run of play that Choule 2 found the net, with their forward finding some space behind on the right after the turds lost the ball, and and he slotted coolly by Guus. 1-0 Choule 2, late on in the first half.

The turds were calm at half time knowing we had the better of the opponents and that we’d be playing with the wind in the second half. Still, Choule 2 fought admirably to keep us out for most of the half, despite total dominance by the turds, numerous chances created (and missed!). It looked like they would soon crack and, surprise surprise, when they did it was the prowling Shane who pounced on his prey, slotting home for 1-1 with about 15 minutes to go.

Then, the dam burst, the turds gushed forward pouring through the Choule defence and shot for 1, 2 and 3 more goals before the end of the game. It was Shane who got all three, including a penalty after a dubious decision by ref Saul to not allow advantage for an eventual goal. It was a terrific second half from everyone and not letting the foot off the pedal ensured that the goals inevitably came. Shane was rightfully chosen as MOTM, and was most pleased by Guus finally voting for him (treat em mean etc.). 4-1 on a windy, cold February Saturday in Zaventem to go 5th in the table – ¡VAMOS TURDS!

Away at SYB FC, FC Ireland are put on a swampy grass field instead of turf. Shitty conditions, a tough ref and a team that plays direct football, it was a match of long balls and strong challenges.

The first half started slow for FC Ireland, the ball barely moving into the opponents half. Fending off threat after threat, we finally found our feet. A few well worked long balls found Gabriele and Shane on the wings, playing dangerous crosses into the box. Closest chance comes with Gabriele finding Shane in the box with a smooth cross, the touch from Shane putting the ball centimeters wide. 0-0. HT

Secone half starts with Ireland with a lot more in control. Winning challenges and pushing forward. Working with the pressure, Gabrielle swings in a low cross, just past the keeper, Sylvain throws himself eyes closed at the ball head first, a brave goal. Ireland see out the rest if the half, defending deep pressure for the last 15 minutes. A handball from Aravind nesrly giving the game away, luckily the ref never saw it. 1-0 to Ireland at FT.

Noel an absolute unit in the back, a well deserved man of the match.

On a cold Valentine’s Day🥶🌹, against our eternal rivals, the Brits, the match began with great intensity from everyone. Shane managed to find the net with an impressive shot from outside the box in the first minutes of the game. Following this, Gabri, on his comeback as an FC Ireland player, scored a header, jumping as high as Cristiano Ronaldo in his prime. Shane and Gabri were able to score again, as well as Gavin (sorry, I don’t remember those goals perfectly, but for those who weren’t present, imagine goals like James Rodríguez’s goal at the 2014 World Cup).

The Turds finished the first half with a solid 5–0 lead. Saul Guardiola gave precious advice to continue with a clean-sheet victory. Unfortunately, the Brits scared us by scoring a great goal from number 17, followed by a penalty conceded by Guus, who tried to catch a tricky ball (careful Guus, I might replace you 😬😬). Later on, the Brits managed to put a cross into the box and Max conceded an own goal. We still had some chances on our side, including a goal from Gabri that was ruled out after the referee checked VAR.

The game came to an end and the Turds were all happy heading back to the changing rooms.

Solid level in the first half with a lot of goals from Ireland, which gave us the win.
Man of the match: Gabri, with his comeback for the team, congrats! 🎉

The boys travelled to Nossegem for an “away” game v ITT Claudy FC. In the reverse fixture we won 2-1 thanks to a last minute goal and we firmly believed we would get the 3 points again. After what can only be described as a scrappy 1st half we found ourselves up 1-0 thanks to a stray pass in the ITT defense that was worked out to Timo on the wing who found Aravind free in the box. He calmly slotted the ball home. 1-0 up at HT.

After some formation fine tuning at HT the 3rds took over the game, winning every battle in the midfield and defence plus creating many chances. We were in total control of the game but needed a 2nd goal to guanantee the victory. After some good defending the ball came Slyvain who found Timo out wide. It looked as though Timo would cross but noticing that the keeper had his angles all wrong Timo fired the ball past him at the near post! Queue crazy scenes of joy from Timo as he celebrated!!!!

Result 2-0 comfortable win for the 3rds and Timo MOTM with a goal and an assist. Onto the Brits next week at home 💪🏻💪🏻

Back on our fav grass pitch in Nossegem, FC Ireland suffered a tough result despite delivering a strong collective performance.

An early goal was conceded after a brief lapse in concentration, but the reaction was immediate and impressive. For nearly 40 minutes, FC Ireland controlled the game, dominated the midfield, and imposed its style through disciplined teamwork and a tactical approach inspired by Pep Saul Guardiola.

The dominance was rewarded with a moment of brilliance, as Andrea struck a superb shot from outside the box, finding the top corner.

FC Ireland kept pushing until the final whistle, but Chiefs were more clinical, scoring twice from avoidable mistakes.

Despite the scoreline, the positives stand out: commitment, unity, and an ever-growing team spirit. Week after week, this group is becoming more cohesive—let’s build on that momentum.
Up the turds 🍀

Match Report:

The team took to the pitch at SK Nossegem at 15:30 with positive feelings already evident during the warm-up, partly thanks to a great pre-match atmosphere knowing that the real game is played tonight, and with an extra emotional edge due to the farewell of the Spanish lads: Jose and Brais. From the opening whistle, Irlande dominated the first half, moving the ball with intelligence, patience and real personality, at times playing like Pep’s Barça in its best days.

That control quickly turned into goals, with Gav popping up where he always does to score a brace and put Irlande 2–0 ahead. Defensively, the team looked solid throughout, giving little away and managing the Extraños’ attacks well, who struggled to find space against a well-organised back line.

The second half was a very different contest. With less possession and more emphasis on experience and grit, Irlande unapologetically morphed into Bordalás’ Getafe: compact lines, hard duels and zero romanticism. The Extraños managed to pull one back (2–1), pushing the game into that uncomfortable phase where every clearance feels like a chance created.

From then on, it was time to suffer, and Irlande did so with discipline, commitment and the occasional piece of textbook time-wasting. Special mention goes to Brais, who started on the bench but, true to his style, came on to deliver a little touch of quality, proving that class has nothing to do with minutes played.

And if football was fair, so too was the MVP award. José Carlos Elena produced a masterclass, spraying long passes and switching play in a way reminiscent of Xabi Alonso, leading the team through the toughest moments and signing off his farewell exactly as he should have.

Final score: Irlande 2–1 Extraños.
Second consecutive win, three more points on the board… and now, finally, time to focus on what really matters: tonight’s game 💪🍀

The lads set off with a strong first half, with a solid defence not allowing many opposition chances, and showing promise going forward, despite Vogelpik’s numerous attempts on Gav’s ankles, unanswered by the referee. Unfortunately, a shot (definite cross) from the Vogelpik winger was carried by the wind into the roof of our net, leaving us 1-0 at the break – not to take away from a stellar performance from Guus, keeping us in the game later on. Going downhill in the second half, we managed to get the ball wider and create chances higher up the pitch, where we unfortunately lacked conversion. The game took a rough turn, however, when Massi took the ball forward and two Vogelpik players decided to make an attempt on his life. Unsatisfied with the advantage given to Irlande (whilst chasing the game), Massi took matters into his own hands, pushing their midfielder to the ground with a string of ‘Vaffanculo’s, where he lay in unquestionable agony for several minutes, setting the tone for the remainder of the game. Fair play to the ref though, seeing Mario as the true puppeteer behind the scuffle, promptly awarding him a yellow card. Spot on, could have been red. Despite Irlande being the better team, the game ended at 1-0. Comfortable man of the match for Jose, who was marking their 6”2 midfielder for the best part of the game, at one point winning a 2019 Ronaldo-esque header, a good foot above his opposition. However, the ref once again implemented his wisdom which stretches beyond us all, awarding Vogelpik a free kick – possibly due to suspicion of Jose’s use of performance enhancing drugs. Despite the loss, plenty of positives to take forward to the next game💪

On a moist, warm November afternoon in Nossegem the mighty Turds took on 2nd placed Curtis L’Ausele. Once again, the boys forgot to bring the kits, which did not stop Nico – our, according to Gav, 40 year old winger decided to warm up topless, which the crowds watched in awe. Unfortunately for him, the ref wouldn’t have it – we had to wait patiently for Matt, who drove 150kmh down the motorway and made it just in time.

Admiration of the Turds continued when they started the game in excellent fashion. A new midfield trio of Ara, Sylvain and Nico found each other quite well. After having been denied by the Curtis keeper once, Shane smartly slotted another 1v1 home to put the Turds up 1-0. Well deserved.

Good play continued across the field, with the Turds getting some of their best football all season on the ball. The Turds came close to more goals and Curtis had little to answer for it. Unfortunately, a slip up at the back from a free kick let to a good driven finish: 1-1.

At half time, the boys motivated each other to keep the good football going. And it did. Within the first 10-15 mins of the second half the Turds created more well worked chances, unfortunately we couldn’t find the back of the net. Another freekick at the other end came in and the Curtis striker was able to produce a well placed header into the back of the net. 1-2 against the run of play.

The Turds kept pushing and kept getting close but were unfortunately caught up once again from a set piece. A corner came to the back stick where an unmarked Curtis player slotted it home: 1-3.

In the end a very frustrating afternoon in Nossegem, because it was arguably the Turds’ best game of the season. 2nd placed Curtis come away with all 3 points, winning the game through efficiency, but it should not have been close. The Turds go again next week as they visit New Inn.

MOTM: Aravind

In a rare sunny day in november the thirds took their talents to auderghem to face choule ll
The game started with many duels in midfield and a lot of messy football, which continued throughout the game
Midway through the first half they got their goal which came from a series of unlcuky and slopy challenges
We went down 1-0 into the half
Second half contunied as the first with a tough battle and many duels, Guus made a couple of big saves to keep us in the fame and the additions of colm, Leo and Mike helped us keep fighting
Our goal came towards the end of the game with a perfect long pass from Mike to Shane who sloted it pass the kepper
Unfortunately not the result we wanted, but they were a good team and we showed good fight.
F.T. 1-1
MVP- Guus (14 votes 🤯)

The Thirds had the honor of opening a big day for FC Irlande: a series of games against the perfidious Albion.  We started strong, with a few deflected crosses into the box, José, Timo and Massimo controlling the midfield, and a solid defense.  We had a moment of fear when we almost conceded a fourth penalty in a row, but the ref gave them a free kick, which was good news for us since the Brits’ captain was the poorest free-kick taker we’ve seen in a while.  Besides that, they weren’t very dangerous, and anyway, our keeper Guus was there the few times they threatened us.  Second half lost a bit of tempo.  We had a few opportunities, thanks to great deep balls and a corner kick that should probably have ended up in a goal for us (video attached).  But it remained 0-0.  As such, not a bad result, but a disappointment considering that we’re missing points in what’s been a frustrating start of the season, with very decent football but too many draws.  Mario was elected MOTM with a very solid performance, always first on the ball.  On the podium: Jose and Guus, if I remember correctly, with very strong performances as well.

On a warm, late September morning the Thirds arrived in Nossegem on the hunt for their first win of the season. They had a strong squad, strengthened by Fourths captain Alé at CB, but were without their leader Saul for the first time this season.  The Thirds settled into the match, and found space down the wings where the opposition was weak, doing well to release Thor and Brias with balls in behind.  Ten minutes into the match, an Asturias player went down softly in the box and was awarded a generous penalty by the referee, 0-1.  The Thirds continued on, finding combinations in the middle and creating chances with good team play, but failed to find the back of the net before the halftime whistle.

The Thirds adjusted their pressing shape going into the 2nd half, trying to cut down on the gap between the midfield and defense.  The pressure was on Asturias, as FCI continued to produce chances for Shane and Thor but still they were unable to put any away.  Another momentary lapse on a long ball counter attack resulted in an Asturias shot tucked away bottom corner, 0-2.  Frustrations grew as the Thirds, clearly the better side, worked the ball around the opposition but couldn’t put shots on target. A few more questionable calls from the referee resulted in yellows for FCI for arguing.  The Thirds found a bit of energy when Sylvain finally put away sustained chance that touched off a few players in the box, 1-2.  The momentum with them, the FCI attack kept their foot on the gas, and continued to put crosses into the box, only to be headed wide.  Unable to convert their chances, the match finished 1-2.

MOTM Syl

Today’s match was a real challenge from the start. We faced one of the league’s top contenders on a natural grass pitch that was far from ideal, with strong winds making it difficult to play our usual game.

We struggled in the first half, spending most of our time chasing the ball and unable to get a foothold in the game. We started the second half with more energy and created two clear chances through Shane and Brais that could have changed the momentum of the game. The match ended without any further major incidents, perhaps as our opponents eased off the pressure.

While it was a difficult result, we have a lot to work on in the coming weeks. We are more motivated than ever to show what a united team we are, with a great feeling both on and off the pitch.

Result 2-0 loss

MOTM Ahmet