Izu at Double for Lions

Three Lions FC opened up the Division One title race by defeating league-leading West Brom Strollers 3-1 at Wembley Stadium. Everything had looked like it was going according to plan for the leading Strollers when they took a first minute lead through Lee Hughes. Izuka had set his Lions team up in determined fashion, though, and they weren’t to be behind for long. Zlatan Izuhimovic scored the equaliser on nine minutes with a clinical shot in the penalty area. Lawrie Cunningham was to become a victim to a competitive challenge and will be out for a further ten days or so. The Lions were gradually getting on top of their in-form opponents and began the second-half in similar fashion. The goals eventually came in the final twenty minutes as Izuhimovic added his second with a peach of a header before Luis Carlos Almeida shot home a third goal which would leave the Strollers with no way back. Dinkydave was upset about the ‘ridiculous challenge’ which left Cunningham out of action but sent out a chilling warning that they are ‘still top of the table’ and ‘don’t intend to move.’ The lead is down to two points while Three Lions FC move into fourth just a point out of the promotion places although Izuka was quiet after their impressive victory.

Legends of Arsenal seized on the opportunity to gain ground on the leaders by disposing of Liverpool 2-0 in a routine win. Liverpool never troubled the visiting goal in the entire 90 minutes and once again a manager used the baffling tactic of naming no substitutes. It was to be the Legends of Arsenal side who would suffer an injury as Rufus Bignell was replaced by Ginel Aluna. It never threatened to have an impact on a well-drilled Legends side, though, and Ralf Kron opened the scoring after a clever free-kick from Demetrio Delpiano. LOA enjoyed plenty of chances but were to only add one more goal following a breakaway move which led to Zenon Zagajewski beating Grobbelaar in goal. The defeat could have been worse for Liverpool in a lacklustre performance and Buttons will have to work some magic and quickly to get his side close to competitiveness as they sit seven points from safety. Josef will have been happy to get his first win as LOA manager under his belt and with a five point gap between them and fourth they look well-set for a serious promotion tilt.

Manchester United created numerous chances in their home match with The Vikings but, in the end, had to settle for a 2-2 draw. Eric Cantona wasted no time in putting the hosts in front with a sweetly-struck penalty on two minutes. An injury to John O’Shea forced a reshuffle in the United rearguard but they still managed to spend most of the half on the front foot. Where they encountered problems, however, was their inability to take the chances they created and they were to pay the full penalty on 30 minutes when a breakaway move allowed Anastasios Tassiopoulos the opportunity to beat Foster and level the game. The Vikings caught United cold at the start of the second-half as they were awarded a penalty which Tassiopoulos had no hesitation in smashing into the back of the net. Berbatov then went off for United before The Vikings hero Tassiopoulos also suffered an injury which blighted the game. United were to have the final say on proceedings when Cantona finished the game as he started it by planting a penalty past Lees. Eaglesrjh was happy with ‘a decent draw’ but bemoaned his sides luck with ‘another injury to a key player.’ Still, they are well-placed in fifth only three points behind their opponents on the day who will also be pleased with their position.

Jamesfreeman put in a Manager of the Round performance but was ultimately frustrated once more as his side were held 2-2 at Juventus. Mairthin Foley shot the hosts ahead on 15 minutes as the game enjoyed a bright first 45 minutes. Tropical Thunder equalised through their captain, Jake Minto, as he powered in a super header from a Damiano Grimaldi cross. Annoyingly for the visitors, though, only eight minutes after getting back into the game they allowed Alberto Morante too much time and space to get off a long range shot which beat Ikhala and restored Juve’s lead before half-time. The second-half retained the to-and-fro nature of the game but there was to be only one further goal. It came for the visitors as Charlie Willysson headed home from a Bertrando Baiocco cross to ensure both sides would be going away with a point apiece. Jamesfreeman said simply ‘another draw’ as his side chalked up their fifth tie of the season to leave them just above the relegation zone on 11 points. Juventus are three points better off in mid-table and SuperJuve will know their season can still take any direction with some crucial matches to come.

Goals Aloud showed some terrific form in front of goal to beat Newry City 3-1 and improve their chances of avoiding the drop. Newry enjoyed the lion’s share of possession in the first-half but weren’t as penetrative as their hosts. The result was a 2-0 half-time advantage for Goals Aloud courtesy of some slack marking from corners by the Newry defence. Bruce Weatherstone was the first beneficiary as he shot home on five minutes and the lead was doubled when Rowley Kinsella hit a carbon-copy goal on 19 minutes. Both sides had other chances in the half but there was to be no further score as the sides trooped in for their interval. Goals Aloud added an insurance goal on 52 minutes with Dustin Digby finishing off a pass by Dan Ruffer, this coming after some nice passing left Newry chasing shadows. To Newry’s credit they did create a couple of chances in the second-half in an attempt to get back into the contest and were rewarded when Clint Dickson headed in on 85 minutes. It proved nothing more than a consolation goal, though, and Newry sit in tenth and embroiled in a fight for points to avoid a relegation scrap later in the season. Goals Aloud made up ground courtesy of the win and find themselves two points adrift of both Newry and Tropical Thunder who signify safety.

Kirkbride Strollers put in an excellent display in defeating Pahang United 1-0. An injury to Kilian Strongbow was a bad way to start the game for the visitors and they never really got to grips with the contest from that point on. Kirkbride enjoyed four openings in the first-half and finally got the goal they deserved when David Proctor beat the exceptional Richert in goal on the stroke of half-time. The second 45 minutes proved a quieter affair as the Strollers sought to protect their goal advantage with Pahang seemingly unable to put anything together attacking-wise. Kirkbride find themselves progressing up the table nicely as they stretch their unbeaten run to five games; now on 13 points Jazza will definitely be setting his sights on the top three rather than the bottom three. Pahang are also on 13 points but are going through a winless run that TrueBlue will be keen to reverse and quickly.