dudes here's the match report for our victorious outing on saturday last. and yes, we only sing when we're winning. i mean, who the hell wants to do a match report when we get beaten 7-1?? pat sweeney, that's who. pat did a report on the boca match (our first game) and that report will be on the webpage when (if) i get a new one up and running. Save Chip 4-3 Do it for Edwina (9th November 2002) ------------------------------------------------- Out with hoovers, foul throws, sex scandals and half time dumps, and in with the new look Chippers in their shiny new kits (they'll never be this white again) and their first victory of their second Superleague season. Saturday last saw Chip take on 'Do it for Edwina' on a wet surface in UCD, watched by one or two lost students and the odd dog. Donning the navy and white for the first time, Save Chip put memories of the last 3 defeats aside and are now hopefully back to winning ways. As the team assembled, Wardy insisted that for the 90 minutes, a full-length mirror be placed on the sideline so he could "catch glimpses of meself in me new kit". Thankfully his wish wasn't granted and he was able to concentrate on doing what he does best: Talk a lot and spur on his team-mates to victory. Players in the dressing room before the match gasped as it appeared Leinster and Ireland rugby hooker Shane Byrne was pulling on a Chip shirt, but as it happened, it was only Furry sporting his latest mullet hairstyle. There were early worries out on the pitch as the opposition wore navy blue also but, credit to the players, they were able to distinguish between the two for the duration of the game. After the warm up, the ref lined up the Chip players on the edge of the box to "examine their studs", in reality he just wanted to read all the nicknames as he felt the studs. "I pity the fool that touches my foot" announced our own Mr.T, Paddy Thornton from further down the line. The captains were called for the toss; Furry and the referee enjoyed a chuckle about Horgan's "camp" white jacket. Strangely enough, neither Pat Sweeney's pink headband nor Brian Walsh's green earmuffs were mentioned. A tad unfair it seemed. The Edwinas started with only 9 men on the field, scraping the full 11 together after 10 minutes had elapsed. Chip were up for it from the start, piling on the pressure and playing some good football, building from the back in style and looking busy in midfield. Early points of note include Kim receiving an elbow in the face which went unnoticed by the ref. Soon after, Ward received the ball wide on the left and beat the midfielder before flicking a ball over the top for Gitzer to run onto only for the ref to give offside; not the last bad decision he would make that day. Ward in general had a busy first half, and almost played Furry through but for an outstretched arm of a defender. Kim and Eddie were moving well down the right, and a chance was created for Ward but he was blatantly pushed in the back as he was about to meet the cross. No penalty given. Another half chance fell Ward's way as he got his overhead kick on target but the keeper saved comfortably. Furry also had a chance with a dipping volley but unfortunately for the skipper, it lacked the accuracy needed to break the deadlock. Then the inevitable happened; Chip fell asleep and the opposition scored a breakaway goal. It's happening far too easily this season it seems. Following the opening goal, the inspirational Furry was involved in an incident where he was "given a belt" by an Edwina attacker. Furry's response was instant: "I think the ball was there. I kneed him in the groin. Take that you c***". Then of course came that controversial incident where Furry was carrying the ball forward and the strikers had made runs but Furry still held on to the ball. The front men stopped dead as Furry screamed "Make a run!" "We're offside, release the ball!" "Make a run!" "We're offside!" "Make a run!" This went on for what seemed like ages and was very funny from the sideline. Wardy and Furry have agreed to disagree on the entire incident. Furry eventually ran into a brick wall of defenders and had to settle for a corner. The corner was cleared and Edwina set off on a rare attack. It seemed things were beginning to fall apart for Chip as once again they were hesitant at the back and conceded yet another soft goal. Down but not out. The navy and whites flooded forward once again, determined to get one back before the half time break. "Fast Eddie" lived up to his name with a great solo run, beating 2 men before being hacked down in the area. Well, when I say "hacked down", I obviously mean he took a dive, but the ref blew for a foul in any case. Gitzer slotted home the resulting penalty, a vital score just before hard time. It was a just reward for all the pressure Chip had been heaping on a relatively shaky Punters defence. 2-1 at half time and an injured Furry was replaced by Eoin who played on the left wing. Not long into the second half, the opposition had a good laugh when Gitzer blocked a booming clearance from point blank range...with his nose. He went down in a heap but was soon up and about, and had the last laugh as five minutes later he took aim and scored the goal of the game with a 30 yard dipping volley, which proved too good for the backpedalling keeper. Chip had pulled this one out of the fire, but were soon on the back foot once again. Step up keeper Alan Carroll who kept the score at 2-2 with two great saves in a 10 minute period when the Edwinas were threatening; one a tip over, the other a great save with his legs to turn it round the post when it seemed their striker was certain to score. Unfortunately our injury worries weren't over, as left-back Paddy Thornton's game had come to an end, as he shouted "Lads, I have to come off, I can't see a thing", running to the sideline. "eh...Paddy, we're over here.." replied the bench, from the opposite side of the field. With Paddy's obvious eyesight problem affecting his play, Chip were forced to make a substitution and also make some tactical switches. Horgan went to the right wing as Sweeney moved to right back, Sir Pat giving an accomplished display in defence in the final stages. Eddie went to left back and Kim was switched from the right wing to the left. This proved to be a masterstroke as Kim had a very eventful last period of the game. Horgan and Sweeney won the ball on the right, releasing Ward through the middle. It was worked up the left to Kim who received possession on the left of the area and cut inside to create a shooting chance, and took full advantage when it opened up for him. He found the bottom corner and we were on our way to victory. Kim also had a hand in Chip's fourth goal, as Ward won possession deep in the opposition's half, finding Kim with a quick pass inside who in turn found Gitzer who finished in style with a low shot. From two down, Chip had scored four in an amazing turnaround. As the celebrations had barely ended, the ref announced there were only 30 seconds left to play. Chip duly fell asleep again and conceded their third. The midfield didn't close down an attack and let Edwina score, giving them hope of rescuing a point. With only seconds remaining, Gitzer cleared his lines from midfield and booted the ball deep into the opposite half of the field. As it rolled towards the endline and an Edwina defender raced back to retrieve it, one of their midfielders was outraged, "Oi! Ref! You can't bleedin' do dah! Book him for time-wastin'!" The ref just laughed at the ignorance of it all and a few seconds later blew the final whistle. Rumours that hat-trick hero Gitzer ran away with the match ball screaming "it's mine, it's mine!!", chased by the entire Edwina team have yet to be confirmed. As it's hoped most of the "regulars" will return next week, all that's left to do is thank the guys who filled in at the last minute (Alan, Brian, Mark, Gitzer and Eoin) and helped secure our first victory of the campaign. Here's to many more memorable victories this season. We'll dedicate this one to last year's top scorer James Carroll, many miles away touring Korea. The number 9 shirt is at the bottom of the kit bag gathering mould as we speak, but rumour has it Skip'll be back in action this side of Christmas. Chip face Random Punters next weekend. (BH) Team: Alan Carroll, Eddie Furlong, Brian Walsh, Mark, Paddy Thornton, Kim, Furry, Gitzer, Stephen Ward, Pat Sweeney, Mick Dempsey Subs: Brian Horgan, Eoin