
Division 1: Sprig + Fern Tahuna 1st XI vs FC Nelson Locomotive Division 2: Sprig + Fern Tahuna 2nd XI vs FC Nelson Loco Steamers
Division 4: Sprig + Fern Tahuna 3rd XI vs Suburbs Rovers
Women's Premiership: Sprig + Fern Tahuna Breakers vs Nelson Suburbs FC Swans
1st XI 3-1 FC Nelson Locomotive
Location: Neale Park
Goals: Josh Johnston (1), Mackenzie Manaton (2)
Match MVP: Mackenzie Manaton (MACCA)
What a day for the blue army!!!
Tahuna Football Clubs two top teams headed to Neale Park in a double Header against FC Nelson LOCO. After our seconds secured their first win of the season, we knew it was time for our 1st 11 to do the same.
The game started quickly with Tahuna trying to utilize our superior pace on the wing to spread Locos defence wide. For one of our wingers this tactic lasted all of 3 minutes as cramp from his previous 90 minutes of football took hold of both his calf muscles. Off went Dan but on came Mitch for his first game of the season.
Tahuna continued to apply pressure down the flanks. Keeping locos spread wide opened the middle of the park up for an easy ball to Jake who turned his defender and calmly coughed the ball back to Josh outside the 18yrd box. Josh belted the ball into the back of the net, sending Deano the wrong way and netted the ball top bins!
The first half continued with Tahuna attacking Locos defence and a perfectly executed move down the right wing fell just short as a diving header from IT avoided the goal by inches. More goal scoring woes as Macca sent a shot right at the post that rebounded and hit the other beans on toast.
Loco had a few chances that our Multipurpose keeper Joe handled calmly and Tahuna ended the half defusing a couple of decent loco corners.
The second half was long and both sides seemed to tire. Everyone other than Macca that was, soon into the half Macca found himself 1 on 1 with the keeper he slotted the ball near post and was finally able to celebrate his goal after an overthrown offside call.
Unfortunately Loco found a hole in our defensive lines and sent a ball rocketing toward our CB Matt (assist King) Jepo, Matt regrettably blocked the first rocket but wasn’t able to stop the Locomotives running through for the second.
As the games end drew closer and a flourish of yellow cards came out of the refs pocket Tahuna struck again through wonder boy Macca once again, scoring his 3rd goal in 2 weeks.
--FULLTIME Tahuna 3 Loco 1
Cheers for the game Loco and the best of luck for the rest of the campaign.
Big Tahuna ups ups to the 2nds lads for sticking around and supporting us. Love you xo
Match Report by Seth.
2nd XI 1-0 FC Nelson Loco Steamers
Location: Neale Park
Goals: Own Goal
Match MVP: Ed Johnson
In a highly anticipated clash between FC Nelson Loco Steamers and Tahuna 2nd XI at Neale Park, both teams, having been promoted from Division 3 last season, were looking to make their mark in the higher division. This fixture had a reputation for being a tightly contested affair, and this week was no different. However, Tahuna, plagued by injuries, were determined to kickstart their season and secure some much-needed points.
The game began with both teams evenly matched, but Tahuna struggled to find their rhythm, with misplaced passes and the uneven pitch surface causing difficulties. In an attempt to dominate possession in midfield and up front, Tahuna made a tactical change, switching from their usual 4-at-the-back formation to a 3-5-2 setup. However, Loco Steamers proved to be well-organized and effective at disrupting play, with their big striker doing an outstanding job upfront, holding up the ball and involving other players. Despite a few chances for both sides, there were no clear-cut opportunities early on.
Loco's strategy revolved around getting the ball wide and delivering crosses into the box for their taller players, but Tahuna's defense and goalkeeper managed to keep them at bay. Unfortunately for Tahuna, an injury forced a reshuffle in their lineup, causing some confusion as the team had to reset, highlighting a recurring issue they need to address moving forward.
At halftime, the score remained 0-0, reflecting the tight nature of the match thus far. However, Tahuna emerged from the break with renewed energy, stringing some passes together and creating some promising chances. The best opportunities fell to Gus, who tested the Loco goalkeeper with two one-on-one situations and also had a golden opportunity to convert with an open goal, but was unable to find the back of the net.
Loco Steamers, while maintaining competitiveness, resorted to long-range efforts, with few shots on target. Their best chance came from Mark Sheehan, who spotted Tahuna's keeper, Will, off his line and attempted a first-time shot from a considerable distance. Unfortunately for Loco, the strike narrowly missed the target, sailing just over the wrong side of the crossbar.
As the match seemed destined to end in a draw, with both teams having been evenly matched for the majority of the game, a late twist unfolded. With only a few minutes remaining, James Munday delivered a long free-kick into the crowded penalty area. Gus rose above the defenders and managed to get a vital touch on the ball, which deflected off a Loco defender and looped into the net, giving Tahuna a late lead. They successfully held on to their advantage until the final whistle, securing their first points of the season.
Looking ahead, Tahuna faces a challenging test in their upcoming fixture against Wakefields 1st team. They will hope to build on their hard-fought victory and carry the momentum forward as they continue their campaign in a strong second division.
Match Report by Will.
3rd XI 2-2 Nelson Suburbs Rovers
Location: Avery
Goals: Sayha (1), Kodie (1)
Match MVP: Wayne Patric
I got mixed feeling about this game. On the one hand yay great come back from 2-0 down and a bit WTF that we went 2-0 down.
Formation-wise a back 5 was supposed to stop them having free men in the box, but that's where there goals came from. 2 mistakes ( well it was a combo of 3 or 4 mistakes) We had the bodies there but we switched off and didn't engage and it cost us 3 points. I thought the formation was good, I even thought we played it well, then they scored and it went to custard a bit. But again I didn't think we were particularly under it. But then they scored again......same thing. Hard lesson, but one we have to learn.....if you can't touch the player you are marking....you're just watching him. Don't get upset if I sound growly....that's what I'm here for....to point out what we need to fix.
Captain, don't change the formation when I'm on the pitch if you do tell me or consult me. We slipped back into a diamond and that was OK, but I can't have back seat drivers, that's how you crash the bus...........is that all my moaning done....I think so, no hang on, another thing about the formation that got totally ignored (maybe not enough legs to do it) was when attacking I said I wanted to swamp their box when we were attacking kinda the same thing when I was punting balls up to Pedro. When we were attacking the wide guys stayed out wide and the central guy didn't get into the box. I wanted the ball to be a turd and you guys to be flys (it's an analogy I'm not calling you flys), there were too many times we were getting good possesion and no one in the box to receive the ball. This should have worked like when someone got down the line and crossed the ball 4 guys in the box to finish it. If you're not the guy putting the ball in I want you in the mixer trying to score. We can work on this at training. Pedro is good at getting a ball under control and laying it off, so when I was punting the ball up to him you midfielders didn't realy show for him or run through their lines for the flick on. I will go through this stuff at training to show you how it works. Moaning done now to the good stuff.
So positionally I thought we were good and held the shape for the first 20, I like that formation and thought we played OK, we even played our usual Diamond well. The work rate was awesome, our attitude was awesome. Our chat was pretty good, but we've gotta learn to not let it get cluttered because if you're one of those guys that shouts for everything, sooner or later players are just going to consider you background noise and ignore you. The only way around this is to show at training and get to know the guys around you, gain their trust, show them what you can do. If you are shouting for the ball you better have your next pass ready. OK it's been mentioned a few times......we are a team, if you are going round 3 or 4 players before passing you are holding onto it too long. We should be 1 touch to get it under a quick look and 1 pass to the guy who's free and then run into space to receive it. Midfield, I need you to run your guts out when you are out there, both directions. I see you going mental going forward but when we lose possesion just walking back. We have subs for you to have a rest but you have to be mobile in both directions or the formation turns to shit. We should defend from the strikers hassling their back line.
All these things are the little differences we can bring to our game......but they are also the difference between winning and losing.
Now......2-0 down at half time, I wasn't worried because (sounds stupid) but I thought we were playing well and it was just a question of time before we scored. Once we pulled it back to 1-2 they lost their resolve and we did kind of boss it from there, great job Sayha for turning the tide. Then who'd have thought Kodie would step up to smash it home for 1 point. My immediate thought was WTFs my right back doing up there? But hey if you are going to score like that........I've got nothin....great job Kodie.
All in all I'm happy with that, because what I haven't mentioned is all teams have an off day. The difference at the end of the season is we turn those off days into 1 point instead of none. On off days we make those mistakes, keeper doesn't get a strong hand on it, striker doesn't convert a chance, defender leaves someone open, keeper doesn't get into the head of the penalty taker making him hit the post. But winners get something out of those games.
Great job and a point for our hard work.
Match Report by Colin.
Tahuna 4th XI 1-1 Nelson Suburbs Athletico Suburbia
Location: Tahuna
Goals: Brad (1)
Match MVP: Brad
A beautiful day for football at KFC park as the 4th XI took on Suburbs Athletico. Overnight rain and overcast conditions setting the stage for a fierce battle. A win would see the Pink Knights move above Athletico on the points table and they looked to make this happen with a few line-up changes.
After passing his gloves onto Daniel and sitting out the last two games Zach made his on-field debut on left wing, saying after the game that he didn’t feel ‘completely useless’ or ‘that much out of place’. Adam pushed up into striker to cause some havoc in Suburb’s defence with Banic covering centre back and Justin covering Banic’s usual right back position.
The game started just like it had the last few weeks with Tahuna dominating possession with quick solid passing controlling the pace of the game but unfortunately once again unable to turn this pressure into goals, until Suburbs conceded a corner. The initial ball in was cleared out of the box and rolled towards Brad, who about was about 30 yards out from goal. He took a touch and put his foot right through the ball sending it screaming towards goal, catching the keeper of his line and scoring what is the sole contender for goal of the season.
Suburbs piled the pressure on after this and would have scored if not for Brad’s solid defending and Dan being in top form in goal, pulling off multiple top class saves right before the half time whistle.
The second half saw both teams getting their fair share of time on the ball but neither side capitalising on their possession until the suburbs managed to get a through ball to their striker who managed to knock the ball past our advancing keeper to draw the game level. Suburbs enjoyed a period of domination for the final 10 minutes hunting for a winner but resolute defending from the team ensured that they never found one with the game ending 1-1.
Considering this team put 20 goals past us last season this game was one hell of an improvement. We meet them again in 2 weeks for the first round of the 4th division cup which will be a must-see game.
MOTM went to Brad for his insane work effort in defence and scoring an absolute beauty of a goal from distance.
Match Report by Zach.
TFC Breakers 2-6 Nelson Suburbs FC Swans
Location: Tahuna
Goals: EJ (1), Shan (1)
Match MVP: Michelle Hay
Can you guess what happens when you mix two weeks of no games with 8 of your players being away?... That's right folks, you guessed correctly - The Breakers took to the pitch to verse Saxton Swans with just 12 players. We started strong and played our hearts out, we were even two goals up (from EJ and Shan) within the first 20mins. Alas, with some bend-it-like Beckham corners and stuck-in-the-mud (literally) defense, by half time we were 4-2 down.
Our positive half-time vibes were short-lived, when the Swans started the second half with a re-gigged line up and full attacking strategy. The Breakers started going down one at a time. Hamstrings, calves, ankles... and just like that, we were playing 10 v 11. Our defense held up as best they could, with midfielders running their hearts out and strikers making the most of every opportunity, but it just wasn't enough.
Bad news: final score 6-2. Good news: we got to actually play a proper football game! No rain, no bye, no under 17's team - just some classic, fairly evenly matched, good spirits, football. They won't know what's hit them when we meet again with the rest of our team back on deck in the second round of the season!
Honourable mentions go to Arin, still recovering from a cold, who played a stellar game in her goalie debut, putting those volleyball skills to the test! Anita, who had basically come straight from the airport after a trip to the USA; those who rocked their "dance floor" tactics to muck up the Swans strikers; and Mon, who stayed on the pitch shimmying around even after being injured.
Player of the day went to yours truly, perhaps for surviving the whole 90mins without vomiting/passing out while playing right back?... Not too shabby for my 3rd game back at outdoor football after a 6 year "retirement" period. I'm so glad I kept my boots and have found this awesome club. Thanks to Jenna and Marissa for their organising of the game, all the legendary Breakers who played (and those who supported through the group chat), as well as Taylah who came down to ref.
Match report by Michelle Hay.
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