Saturday 26th September - Loxwood Magpies 2 v 0 Bookham Colts Barbarians
 
Squad : Kinley, Nathan, Bubba, Declan, Harry P, Alex, Charlie C, Chris, Liam, Ethan, Charlie D, Dan, Tom, Neo, Hamish
Scorers : Neo, Liam
 
​The Magpies continued their excellent season with a home win against the early pacesetters Bookham. The visitors had started the season in outstanding goal scoring form with two wins and 20 goals so to get a shut-out shows how strong the boys now are as a defensive unit.

The game was quite even in the first half although Neo and Tom were finding some space around the back of the the Bookham defence, with Neo unlucky not to score when he hit the post after taking it round the keeper. His persistence paid off a little later though as he broke the deadlock after 30 minutes with a nice finish after a good long through ball from Liam.

The second half was more of the same with Loxwood generally on top and after some good pressure with a number of corners Tom's dangerous deep delivery was majestically headed in by Liam to make in 2-0. Get In !! A few minutes later and Neo nearly made it 3 a little later when he lobbed the keeper following a lovely through ball from Chris only to see a last gasp clearance off the line.

It was great to see Charlie Chambers returning from injury and also Hamish returning after a long lay off, and the latter nearly scored with his first touch having come on in the last 10 minutes but the ball agonisingly sped away from him and the chance was gone. 

With the final whistle not far away Bookham threw everything at us, and their best chance came with 5 minutes to go with a goalmouth scramble but the defence put their bodies on the line and Kinley did a great job making a brave save under pressure.

So a great performance and win sees us go equal top !! Several candidates for Man of the Match this week but given the potential potency of the opposition as an attacking threat to keep a clean sheet is a great effort and the man of the match goes this week to Bubba who marshalled the defence brilliantly.

Saturday September 19th - Milford Jets 1 v 2 Loxwood Magpies

Squad : Kinley, Nathan, Declan, Harry B, Chris, Harry P, Liam, Ethan, Will, Alex, Charlie D, Tom.
Scorers: Liam (2) (1 Pen)

Sometimes you have to grind a result out and this was one of those occasions as the Magpies came out winners in a tricky away tie to one of the Milford teams. This was a new away ground for us and given the dry weather as with many pitches at this time of year the surface was hard and uneven making our passing game really difficult.

The hard and uneven pitch certainly played its part, shown with the first big chance of the half when the keeper spilled a shot from Tom to Will but he was unable to convert as the ball bobbled away. Most of the action was at the end of the first half with Milford having the ball in the net only to be ruled out due to a handball infringement. The boys took this as a wake-up call and a driving run from Liam ended up with his strike squeezing under the keeper for the opener. This was followed with a penalty after handball in the area which Liam duly converted for a 2-0 half time lead. 

In the second half the whites were looking comfortable with Charlie coming close after a great corner from Alex, but Milford reduced the deficit to 2-1 after a good strike. Following this the defence held firm without too much drama and Loxwood came away for their first win of the season.

Man of the match this week goes to Liam who was the driving force in midfield and grabbed a brace to boot  - congratulations 'Spackers'. !!!

Saturday September 12th - Loxwood 0 v 0 Dorking Wanderers Reds

Squad: Kinley, Nathan, Harry P, Declan, Harry B, Chris, Alex, Daniel, Liam, Tom, Charlie, Will, Neo, Rowan

Our first league game of the season saw us welcome Dorking to 'the nest'. After an all-conquering season last term, Dorking were smarting from a recent 3-1 defeat at Loxwood just weeks before.

Although the match ended as a shut-out it certainly wasn't a bore draw with both sides putting everything into the contest. It was one of those intriguing, competitive, closely-matched games where both sides had chances but neither could break the deadlock.

Watching from the sidelines it could be seen that this is now 'proper football' and although there were no goals it was a great watch. This performance and result once again shows that the magpies have matured football-wise and certainly should be scared of no-one in the South Surrey set-up.

Everyone played well but the standout performer was Chris on his SSYFL debut who was the coaches man of the match for his combative and assured display. Well done Chris!!!

The Fixtures for he new season have been published.

Vanessa will upload these to the Doodle Poll so please select availability as follows :-

12/09 - Dorking Wanderers (H)
19/09 - Milford Pumas Jets (A)
26/09 - Bookham Colts Barbarians (H)
03/10 - Milford PUmas Typhhons (H)
10/10 - Albury Saxons (A) - Cup Game

After such a long break due to the pandemic it was great to get back into the groove with some friendly games against strong opposition to get the Magpies ready for the new season.
We started against Broadbridge Heath Bears on 22nd August but with many of our key players out and with several triallists in the squad this made for a rusty and somewhat erratic display with the whites succumbing to a 6-0 defeat. The opposition had already played some friendlies themselves and had notched up a similar scoreline the week before so clearly they were in a more developed status, but that said, improvement would certainly be needed for the new season.
Onto the following week, and Dorking Wanderers were the opposition on 29th August. The all-conquering champions of the South Surrey league came on the back on a long unbeaten run full of confidence but with a much stronger line-up the whites ran out deserved winners with a 3-1 win following a brace from Neo and a strike from Rowan.
Finally, the last game of pre-season was a run out away to Steyning on 5th September. The game was played on their 3G pitch so both sides could use their passing skills to maximum effect. Although the game ended as 0-0 it certainly wasn't a 'bore draw' with both teams coming close to breaking the deadlock but a draw was a fair result in the end. 
The close season was a great opportunity for us to bring in some new players for trial and so we are delighted to welcome Declan, Chris, and Charlie to Loxwood, and really pleased to welcome back Alex to the magpies after a few years with our neighbours, Ewhurst.

A warm welcome to everyone for the new season!!

It has been a traumatic time for everyone over the last 6 months with the onset of the Coronavirus pandemic and having not played since March I'm sure everyone is keen to begin playing football again!!
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We ended the season strongly last term and with some excellent close-season new recruits its looking like a positive new campaign for Loxwood Magpies as the new u14 age group.

Saturday 7th March -  Loxwood 4 v 0 Onslow 

Having had a number of weeks out with flooded pitches it was great for everyone to finally get a game in!! It had been a month or so since the last outing for the whites and coincidentally our last match being against the same opposition - Onslow Wolves !!
 
The pre-match briefing was all about starting well, and striking that fine balance about being confident but not complacent.
 
And start well the magpies did!! - lots of good possession and some nice interchanges in midfield without creating too many chances in the final third. However, as the game continued Loxwood increased their grip on the game and chances began to appear with Will the first to go close, shortly followed by Liam smacking the upright with a lovely strike, and then by Paddy almost breaking the deadlock only to be denied by the Onslow keeper (who was having a very busy morning!!!).

Offensively, Onslow were being kept at bay by some good defensive work by Harry P, Bubba and Kinley, with just the one speculative effort in the whole of the first half.going past Charlie’s post. A few more good chances the fell to Will, Tom and Neo but they all went begging and so the half finished goalless. Was it going to be 'one of those days'??

Unlike the last outing against Onslow when the first half from the magpies was well below par, this time it was a different story with the only feedback from the coaches being to ‘take our chances’, 'don't worry it'll come' and ‘let’s not panic’.

The second hand started with a similar pattern with Loxwood having the lions share of possession and so it was no surprise when Liam broke the deadlock 10 minutes into the half with a fine strike. This was shortly followed by a cool finish from Charlie D (see the video!!) capping a very neat, workmanlike display in midfield. Liam then doubled his tally to make the game safe with some good skill and determination coming in from the side to slot home. A few more chances came to Tom who was unlucky to get on the scoresheet before Rowan capped off a fine win with a great finish when sent through with a ball over the top.

All in all a successful morning which should give the boys confidence as everyone had a great game with a number of outstanding performances.
Man of the Match this week goes to Charlie (D’Aoust) who ran his socks off and by moving the ball on simply and quickly helped make the transition between defence and attack work a treat, Well done Charlie!!!!
 
 

Saturday 8th February, SSYFL Cup Semi-Final Onslow 1 v Loxwood 5

The Magpies came into this semi final on the back of a decent run of results (and a week's rest) and were looking to get into the Div 1 cup final for the second successive season. The opposition were Onslow, and the Magpies were in confident mood having already dispatched them pretty comprehensively in a league fixture earlier this season.

The full size pitch and goals (why?!), in theory, should have made the starting 3-4-1-2 formation favourable in an attacking sense, but potentially leave gaps form a defensive perspective - we would see. Just prior to Kick-off the coaches prepped the boys with the game plan (and some inspirational words ), and sent them onto the pitch ready for action.

The play started quite tentatively, and the opposition made it clear that they were 'up for it', despite their poor recent results and league standing. The Magpies looked unusually lacklustre, and their defensive shape didn't look anywhere near as solid as it had been in recent matches, and there were some nice passages of passing from the opposition who were happy to push their midfield high up the pitch to try and outnumber the Magpies at the back. This started to look like it may pay off, and keeper Charlie was called into action several times to intercept balls in behind the back three.

Not long into the half, a speculative shot from distance caught Charlie Davies by surprise and despite getting a valiant hand to it, it bounced down and crept over the line. 1-0 to Onslow. The Magpies looked a bit shell-shocked - this wasn't in the script! Time for action !!!

Play resumed and Onslow looked like they were starting to believe a shock was on the cards, and started to apply some nice passing through the midfield areas. As the half continued, the Magpies started to get some space on the right, with Ethan getting plenty of the ball and linking up with Neo nicely. It was from this area that an equaliser came. Liam found the ball on the right and after a couple of nice touches let fly with a smart shot which flew over the keeper and nestled into the net - a nice finish. The Magpies were now starting to find some drive through the middle with Liam and Charlie D'Aoust  getting more of the ball and causing the opposition defenders back, deeper and deeper.

Half time came, and the match was evenly poised at 1-1. probably a fair reflection overall. The coaches applied some 'corrective action' and let the boys know in no uncertain terms that the standards they had set themselves recently were not being reached. the message was; 'you have got yourselves into a battle that you didn't need to, and you are now accountable for getting yourselves out of it!'

And so, the second half started somewhat more positively, although the boys still looked well below par - the passing was poor and rushed, and the communication was lacking.  That said, the shape of the team started to look more solid, and there was an element of control that started to grow. It was soon after the resumption of the match that Neo got onto the score sheet with a smart near post finish which flew in past the keeper. This seemed to settle the nerves a little and the boys started to enjoy huge amounts of pressure, with Charlie in goal becoming a spectator for long periods. The midfield battle that we had been drawn into had now become won, and Liam was enjoying a dominant physical display and carving open the opposition over and over. With this, the boys were working good positions on the left hand side, with Jack (great to see him back playing after injury) using the space intelligently and making sure that we were winning the ball back high up the pitch.

The game was now almost entirely being played in the oppositions half, such was the dominance of the boys. There was still work to do though to make sure they got over the line- this was by no means a polished performance. Neo - so often to thorn in the side for Onslow, got another goal to make the score 3-1. The opposition were now flagging and starting to look deflated. Captain for the day Rowan, couldn't quite add to his recent scoring hot streak, just missing out on a couple of good chances.

In a strange situation, Hamish (who was now starting to get on the ball more) was fouled close to the edge of the area, and the ref awarded a free kick. But the opposition player, in a totally out-of-character moment, sent an elbow into the face off the ball, cutting his lip. The referee had little choice but to send the player off. Sad to see.

The coaches used the opportunity to make sweeping changes, Ethan went up top alongside Bubba, Neo dropped into defence, and Will got a shot in midfield. Paddy was deployed higher up the pitch on the right. It was one way traffic now, and Bubba was using his pace to good effect, just missing out on a lobbed finish with the keeper stranded. It didn't take long though for him to find the net though  - causing much celebration among the boys - who were now (at last) starting to pass the ball confidently and beginning to look like the confident side they have become. Ball retention was much better, and the timing of passes was much much better.

A fifth goal was scrambled in from a free kick from Ethan, and no one really knows who got the final touch - its being recorded as an OG! The game ended without further incident worthy of note, and the boys were well worth the win in the end - but overall this was a very patchy display against limited opposition. Our cup final opposition will demand a much improved focus and performance.

Not too many highlights from the actual performance; Jack looking sharp, Bubba scoring, Liam's drive from midfield and Paddy's composure being exceptions. And the response to the challenge to turn things around was good to see.

The net result is that the boys have won through to the final for the second successive season, and after being the 1st LYFC team to win silverware last season's win), and we are all looking ahead to repeating the achievement this year, against Dorking Wanderers in the repeat of last year's final.

The Coaches' MoTM this week goes to Liam for driving the team onwards when it was needed. Real determination and maturity - well done. 

​Thanks again to Hannah H for the great action shots !!!

Saturday 25th January, Loxwood 4 v 3 Milford Pumas

Our last encounter away at Milford was a close game where the whites won out but in truth it was a turgid, ugly affair. This, however, was a very different proposition with loads of skill, goals a plenty and lots of excitement on show!!

Milford had come up with some notable results recently and came to 'the Nest' with real confidence, but with a strong line-up the magpies were looking to implement a high pressing game plan from the start. However, it was Milford who had the better of the early encounters although the back line of Paddy, Kinley and Harry Bubb were looking assured in defence. The midfield battle was a fascinating match up with Liam, Ethan and Charlie D'Aoust working hard to keep Milford's No.11 dangerman at bay.

And it was the whites who took the lead following a long ball over the top from the back, when Rowan beat the offside trap and with blistering pace ran clear of the Milford defenders and slotted home to take the lead for the whites. Nice!! Then Neo ran clear and the opposition keeper just stopped his goalbound effort with a cracking save. A few minutes later and Milford drew level after their dangerman broke through some tackles after the whites didn't clear their lines and squeezed the ball past Charlie Davies' right hand post. The same player then got the goal of the game as following some great skill he made space for a strike on the edge of the area and the ball flew into the top corner. Fair play that was a great goal.

So Loxwood went in 2-1 down at half time and the team talk at the break was that the whites needed to keep going with the high press and that the game would be won and lost on who wanted it more. The whites responded by coming right out of the blocks in the second half and it was Rowan who provided a cool finish when put through and shortly afterwards was on the scoresheet yet again for a fantastic hat-trick after the keeper spilled a long shot from Tom and he was the first to react.

The game was now getting stretched with chances end-to-end like a good cup tie but it was Loxwood who were the next to register after a great deep cross from Ethan caused havoc in defence and after a scramble the ball fell to Neo to poke home. Then a chance following a deep cross from Liam and Nathan did well to keep the ball in with a volley which the keeper just managed to save, but it was Milford who were the next to score following a breakaway goal to bring the score back to 4-3.

The last few minutes were somewhat frantic with Milford pushing Loxwood all the way for an equaliser, whilst the Magpies were looking dangerous on the break with Gethin, Neo and Michael looking to exploit the gaps at the back. But Loxwood are now learning to win games by using good decisions and 'game management' and got to the final whistle without conceding to signal a 4-3 victory and the close of what was a cracking game of football!!

Again, as with recent weeks to win a close game like shows how far this group of players has come. Loxwood simply wanted it more in the second half, and this together with a calmless and composure to see the game out showed maturity beyond their years. Well done everyone!!  There were some great performances out there but the coaches could only go for Rowan Stewart today as Man-of-the-Match for his superb hat-trick!!! Well done Sonic!!

Thanks to Hannah for the great action shots this week !!

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Saturday 11th January - Bookham Colts 0 v 0 Loxwood
 
Our matches against Bookham have always been close and entertaining games so we went into this one with an expectation for some good football and lots of goals. We certainly had the first of these but not the latter as unusually the game ended in a goalless 0-0 draw.
 
This was a late start and one of our longest away trips but with some fancy footwork and a condensed game at 30 minutes each way we managed to get the logistics to work. The late start was due to many of the opposition having an earlier rugby game and so our game plan was to hit them early with a high press energetic start.
 
Although the whites started well the first few opportunities fell to Bookham with their number 9 looking ever dangerous. However, Loxwood did well to contain him with Liam, Paddy and the two Harry’s looking solid. On the occasion the defence was breached Kinley did a great job with good saves using both feet and hands. Opportunities were limited to half chances for both sides however as the midfields cancelled each other out and the first half ended as it began - scoreless!!
 
Into the second half and the dynamic changed with more space opening up. There was a real cup tie end-to-end feel to the game with both teams pushing for the winner and the magpies had a great chance when Hamish broke through and created space for a low strike which was saved by the keeper with Paddy just missing from the rebound. Then some great work by Bookham's dangerman with a chipped finish bound for the top corner was athletically tipped away by a diving Neo. Great Save!! With full time approaching Ethan then broke through for a one on one with other keeper but his driven shot when just over the bar. Onto the last minute and the ref blew for a foul for Bookham just outside the box. Could this be the winner? No - it was relief for the whites as the Bookham striker lined up a shot but it sailed over the bar and shortly afterwards the ref blew for full time.

So 0-0 it finished. In summary a draw was a fair result with Bookham having the best of it the first half and Loxwood shading it he second. It was great to get a shut-out and bearing in mind the opposition are second in the league this again showed that the magpies can mix it with anyone in the division. 

There were some good performances all over the pitch with Kinley and Neo both doing well in goal and Daniel catching the eye on the left with good energy both on the wing and tracking back, but this weeks man of the match goes to Harry Bubb who had a very composed and committed game at the back, keeping Bookham's dangerman at bay. Well done ‘Bubba’!!
 
 Onto an in form Milford next!!