Today saw Rutherford take on Cleveland Hall Yellows in the first round of the cup. The pitch at Cleveland was in good condition, despite a slight slope and the drizzle had made the surface slick and ideal for quick passing. A full complement of players today for the first time this season after a late addition of Joe to the match day squad following his recent hand injury.

As far as teams and coaches go, I know Cleveland Hall the best, JB, the CHY coach was on my level 1 coaching course and we've kept in touch since. We've played them a few times in the league and friendlies plus I know two of their players from Gateshead RFU, so my opponent research was somewhat easier this week and it was a good chance to try out a 1-3-5-2 formation as it would match up CHY like for like. I also gave Max Johnson and our two strikers, Max and James some specific information. Max J was to go 1v1 against the CHY number 8 who I know likes to drop deep and turn and run. The idea being that he would either be bypassed and we take a large piece of their armour away, he would receive ball with back to our goal and play backwards or Max could knick the ball high and we'd be on the attack. Max and James were instructed to combine with each other and their central midfielders quickly and then move for the return pass in behind. Key message here was not to stand toe to toe with the big CYH centre backs.

Within two minutes Max J had combined with Elliott and put into the right channel where he was fouled. After picking himself up, he chipped an accurate shot over the keepers head into the CHY goal to get Rutherford off to a flying start. 1-0

The first half was fast paced affair with both teams playing very quickly, too quickly at times for my liking, as I would've preferred slightly more control and combination passes to draw the opposition out and then we play in behind. We work on this in training but execution in matches still needs some work. When we execute these patterns, we're unplayable. It's a work in progress.

25 minutes on the clock and Max scored his and Rutherfords second through a classic counter attack following a CHY corner which was cleared an played forward into the channel for Max to run on to from just inside his own half. Max's pace took him away from the CHY centre backs as we said it would and after a couple of touches to steady himself, he fired the ball into the back of the net. I was very please to see Max score such a goal as this as he missed a few carbon copies last Saturday which I know bothered him. We had a chat about this topic on Wednesday and we agreed that he would stay calm, stay focused and the next opportunity he had, he would hit the target and score. He did all these things and it showed great mental strength.

Edging towards full time and it looked as if Rutherford would go into the half time break 2 nil up but CHY scored from a free kick in fortunate circumstances.The shot hit the bar, then the post and eventually a Cleveland heal, taking the ball over the line. 2-1 at half time which was harsh on Rutherford as we'd dominated the half, had a goal not given which looked over the line and the free kick we conceded against was soft to say the least. That said, the Referee, a young lad, officiating only his second game at this format did well and kept good control over the game, always putting layer safety first.

The second half started the same as the first with Rutherford scoring pretty quickly though Max Johnson following and Elliott assist. I think it was safe to say Max was getting the better of the duel and responsibility I had given him as he never gave his opponent a moments peace and when he was in possession was a major threat. 3-1.

Changes were made throughout the game to keep players fresh and as a squad we out ran CHY comfortably, our strength in depth is solid and we have good options either like for like or if we decide to change formations. Connor and Joe on and it was down this side where the forth and final goal came from. A cross from Joe was cleared as far as Connor who returned the ball into the box which was headed home by the CHY centre back. After a conversation with Connor on the way home, it was decided that the ball was destined for the top corner and it was only right that Connor was awarded the goal. Who am I to argue?

4-1 was how the game finished and Rutherford progress into the next round.

A few notable mentions from me, firstly, thanks to Matty for helping out in Shaun's absence. Secondly to Aodan who I thought performed very well in goal and I wasn't the only one, Kelly and JB the CHY coach also pointed out his solid handling, positioning and distribution. Max, James and Max for really taking the information and challenges I set them onboard and executing them very well. Same could be said for Michael and Amir, who I asked to sit a little deeper and not get caught ahead of the ball in transition, again they did this very well with Amir controlling the game at times and Michael winning challenges and hitting the post with an excellent shot. Joe was brilliant in his return to the match and was praised by the coaching staff at CHY with one saying "Some of the skills he did were tremendous especially the Gazza step over that sent one of my players for a McDonalds happy meal". However today MoM, chosen by Matty was Sam Dixon, who said "Although 90% of the play was in the Cleveland half, I think big Sam stood out for me. First half he went toe to toe with number 20 and played him out the game. Second half he didn’t argue about playing on the left of a 3 and little to noting beat him. He covered the left wing backs well when the play transitioned and the number 8 didn’t beat him once in the second half. Well done Sam.

Rutherford AFC

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