Rampant Fever claim opening day victory
After a grueling pre-season, which was comprised of 3 emphatic defeats, there was an air of caution amongst the Seoul Fever ranks prior to kick off in their opening day encounter with INTs, in a repeat of the opening fixture from last season. These fears were soon put to rest as Fever dominated proceedings from start to finish with a tight passing game and showcasing some ruthless finishing, along with a disciplined display in defense.
New recruits Alex Rowe and Peter Sheerin were paired together in attack with a midfield of Sebastian Auger and David Pegg on the wings with the familiar central midfield unit of Carl Garthwaite and Gareth Fannin. The defence was comprised of a mix of old and new, with Greg Cross and Dan Argueta being joined by new signings Simon Williamson and Danny Kempson, with Andrew Ritchie between the sticks. Auger was captaining the side for the first time in Filip Pusniks absence, and looked to lead by example by embodying all the qualities manager Dennis Byrne demanded before kick off by driving forward, tracking back and always making himself available to receive the ball.
The game got underway in a typical high octane fashion, with both sides trying to force the issue and squandering possession all too frequently, but it was Fever who took the initiative, slowing the pace down and making the ball do the work, with Rowe tirelessly working the channels and Sheerin dropping deep to link play and retain possession. A number of players looked rusty, with some misplaced passes and heavy touches interrupting the initial flow of the game, but after a short adjustment period, things began to click. Fever, without ever having a natural centre forward in their history, were now looking like the complete package, as the teams intelligent movement and accurate passing put INTs on the back foot. Before long, Fever found a way past the INTs rearguard, as an attack which began in the Fever defense lead to Garthwaite combining with Rowe before the latter demonstrated his eye for goal with an assured strikers finish to give the hosts the lead. 1-0 Fever.
This alleviated any pre-game nerves and the confidence spread throughout the team, with Garthwaite and Fannin combining well with player maker Auger on the left and Pegg on the right. Sheerin’s physicality was causing INTs all kinds of problems and he finally got his rewards for his persistence with a powerful finish after combing with Rowe. 2-0 Fever.
The only negative point of the period was the enforced substitution of Danny Kempson, who had to be withdrawn through injury, with Ritchie looking comfortable in goal and the new partnership of Argueta and Williamson looking solid.
INTs upped their work rate in the second period, trying to reduce the deficit, and committed plenty of men forward but this left them vulnerable at the back and allowed Greg Cross to get forward with regularity. On one such attack, livewire Rowe beat his man, getting to the byline where he pulled it back to the onrushing Garthwaite who slotted past the goalkeeper. 3-0 Fever. This proved to be the only goal scored by either team in the second period, which saw Fever come close on a number of occasions, and when INTs had any sniff of goal they found that Ritchie in the Fever goal was equal to anything they could produce. Dan Argueta picked up an injury and Greg Cross recieved a booking for a challenge from behind in the other notable incidents in the period, as it drew to a close with Fever leading the tie 3-0.
With such a lead established, Fever were able to experiment with personnel and formation, with the industrious Benny Ho, fearless Taeho, old stalwart Pallos Levente and two newcomers, James Seymour and Young Sam entering the side, along with striker Tyler Wilding. Wilding offered a different threat to the withdrawn Sheerin, using his pace to good effect with his movement disorientating the INTs backline. After a few neat exchanges the ball fell to Auger on the outside of the box and he unleashed a vicious drive which rebounded back off a defender, with Wilding following it up with a dipping strike that cannoned back of the foot of the post. Auger drove in a few corners which caused havoc in the INTs defense, but the Fever offence couldn’t capitalize. Gareth Fannin continued to battle hard in the centre with Garthwaite looking hungry for goals, advancing far up the field on every opportunity he could. Wilding was proving a nuisance, and soon he claimed an assist as his effort could only be pushed away by the keeper, with Garthwaite waiting to claim his second goal of the game. With that, he has now already equaled his total goal tally for the whole of last season. 4-0 Fever. With a 4-0 lead, Fever were in dreamland but still remained diligent in defense, as the imposing figure of Simon Williamson, along with the rest of the backline, were eager to secure a clean sheet. New strikers Rowe and Sheerin were both already off the mark, and soon Wilding was to open his account for the season. In yet another demonstration of awareness and intricate passing, Fever had advanced into the INTs half, with Fannin exchanging passes with Garthewaite before feeding the ball to Auger out on the right who fired a fierce diagonal first time cross into the on rushing Wilding who finished with an assured header past the flailing keeper. 5-0 Fever.
The game drew to a close with Fever triumphing 5-0. Manager Byrne was full of praise for the whole team, finding it difficult to choose a Man of the Match, but opted to give the award to Greg Cross, who has begun this season in the same ilk in which he finished the last. Last season Fever beat INTs 3-1 on the opening day, in a scrappy incoherent affair, but the same couldn’t be said for today, with Fever worth every part of their 5 goal superiority, having played at a high tempo throughout and looking very confident and well balanced all over the pitch. Competition for places will be fiercer than ever with returning club captain Filip Pusnik and Dan Lappin both available next week, as the starting XI and all the substitutes staked their claims for a spot against rivals HBC.
New recruits Alex Rowe and Peter Sheerin were paired together in attack with a midfield of Sebastian Auger and David Pegg on the wings with the familiar central midfield unit of Carl Garthwaite and Gareth Fannin. The defence was comprised of a mix of old and new, with Greg Cross and Dan Argueta being joined by new signings Simon Williamson and Danny Kempson, with Andrew Ritchie between the sticks. Auger was captaining the side for the first time in Filip Pusniks absence, and looked to lead by example by embodying all the qualities manager Dennis Byrne demanded before kick off by driving forward, tracking back and always making himself available to receive the ball.
The game got underway in a typical high octane fashion, with both sides trying to force the issue and squandering possession all too frequently, but it was Fever who took the initiative, slowing the pace down and making the ball do the work, with Rowe tirelessly working the channels and Sheerin dropping deep to link play and retain possession. A number of players looked rusty, with some misplaced passes and heavy touches interrupting the initial flow of the game, but after a short adjustment period, things began to click. Fever, without ever having a natural centre forward in their history, were now looking like the complete package, as the teams intelligent movement and accurate passing put INTs on the back foot. Before long, Fever found a way past the INTs rearguard, as an attack which began in the Fever defense lead to Garthwaite combining with Rowe before the latter demonstrated his eye for goal with an assured strikers finish to give the hosts the lead. 1-0 Fever.
This alleviated any pre-game nerves and the confidence spread throughout the team, with Garthwaite and Fannin combining well with player maker Auger on the left and Pegg on the right. Sheerin’s physicality was causing INTs all kinds of problems and he finally got his rewards for his persistence with a powerful finish after combing with Rowe. 2-0 Fever.
The only negative point of the period was the enforced substitution of Danny Kempson, who had to be withdrawn through injury, with Ritchie looking comfortable in goal and the new partnership of Argueta and Williamson looking solid.
INTs upped their work rate in the second period, trying to reduce the deficit, and committed plenty of men forward but this left them vulnerable at the back and allowed Greg Cross to get forward with regularity. On one such attack, livewire Rowe beat his man, getting to the byline where he pulled it back to the onrushing Garthwaite who slotted past the goalkeeper. 3-0 Fever. This proved to be the only goal scored by either team in the second period, which saw Fever come close on a number of occasions, and when INTs had any sniff of goal they found that Ritchie in the Fever goal was equal to anything they could produce. Dan Argueta picked up an injury and Greg Cross recieved a booking for a challenge from behind in the other notable incidents in the period, as it drew to a close with Fever leading the tie 3-0.
With such a lead established, Fever were able to experiment with personnel and formation, with the industrious Benny Ho, fearless Taeho, old stalwart Pallos Levente and two newcomers, James Seymour and Young Sam entering the side, along with striker Tyler Wilding. Wilding offered a different threat to the withdrawn Sheerin, using his pace to good effect with his movement disorientating the INTs backline. After a few neat exchanges the ball fell to Auger on the outside of the box and he unleashed a vicious drive which rebounded back off a defender, with Wilding following it up with a dipping strike that cannoned back of the foot of the post. Auger drove in a few corners which caused havoc in the INTs defense, but the Fever offence couldn’t capitalize. Gareth Fannin continued to battle hard in the centre with Garthwaite looking hungry for goals, advancing far up the field on every opportunity he could. Wilding was proving a nuisance, and soon he claimed an assist as his effort could only be pushed away by the keeper, with Garthwaite waiting to claim his second goal of the game. With that, he has now already equaled his total goal tally for the whole of last season. 4-0 Fever. With a 4-0 lead, Fever were in dreamland but still remained diligent in defense, as the imposing figure of Simon Williamson, along with the rest of the backline, were eager to secure a clean sheet. New strikers Rowe and Sheerin were both already off the mark, and soon Wilding was to open his account for the season. In yet another demonstration of awareness and intricate passing, Fever had advanced into the INTs half, with Fannin exchanging passes with Garthewaite before feeding the ball to Auger out on the right who fired a fierce diagonal first time cross into the on rushing Wilding who finished with an assured header past the flailing keeper. 5-0 Fever.
The game drew to a close with Fever triumphing 5-0. Manager Byrne was full of praise for the whole team, finding it difficult to choose a Man of the Match, but opted to give the award to Greg Cross, who has begun this season in the same ilk in which he finished the last. Last season Fever beat INTs 3-1 on the opening day, in a scrappy incoherent affair, but the same couldn’t be said for today, with Fever worth every part of their 5 goal superiority, having played at a high tempo throughout and looking very confident and well balanced all over the pitch. Competition for places will be fiercer than ever with returning club captain Filip Pusnik and Dan Lappin both available next week, as the starting XI and all the substitutes staked their claims for a spot against rivals HBC.