A spring frolic in March

The game had everything.

Ten goals, crazy hockey, controversy, great finishing, comedy defending, and some very questionable tackling.

With the backdrop of Covid-19 and potential shutdown of any activity to provide respite, two teams set about having some fun in the face of the impending doom. In March. Only none of the teams in question came from March. Confused? Dom clearly was, and made his own way to Wisbech only to find that Wisbech don’t play there at the moment. They share a March pitch.

Once the confusion abated and we had a full quota of umpires and players, a rather entertaining game of hockey ensued. Wisbech started busily, pressuring Nomads from the off.

However, there was a taste of things to come as Nomads broke at speed, exploiting the swathes of space behind the high Wisbech line. The hard-working Mel put the breaking Dom in on goal, just as defender and keeper converged. For not the only time in the game Dom drew the tackles, shifted the ball late, and felt the full-force of said defending in the midst of a Wisbech sandwich. Happily for Nomads the ball squirted out of the melee for Gianluca to slot into the empty goal.

Credit to Dom, he dusted himself down and returned to the fray, unlike one of said Wisbech defenders. Within minutes a second goal followed for Nomads as Luca found space again behind the Wisbech midfield, transitioned to Mel, he crossed the ball straight to a Wisbech defender, who obligingly kicked it into the goal.

Even better followed, as two more similar goals ensued, one from an outrageous Mel aerial (who knew), finished again by Gianluca, and one for Lloydy off another Wisbech intervention.

A mere 4-0 lead after about 20 minutes to Nomads, then. After being disappointed to draw from a leading position (1-0) against Peterborough last week, they felt full of confidence this time.

But this is a Wisbech team who clearly don’t know when they are beaten. And, on the day, an obliging Nomads! In the blink of an eye, Wisbech scored one, then another, just before half time. Dom got absolutely clattered again, this time not even remotely marginal, and somehow Wisbech maintained a full 11 players on the field. But one thing was for sure as we emerged for the second half, there was a game on here, one where anything could happen.

Sure enough some very strange things happened, as Nomads proceeded to play some defence splitting passes to Wisbech strikers in and around the Nomads D. Two such examples were received gratefully by our old nemesis (Big Fella) up-front for Wis, who finished both expertly, it must be said. Suddenly it was 4-4 and all decorum about Nomads’ play had long since departed. Helter-skelter stuff, though occasional breakaways still opened chances for Nomads, and a resulting short-corner (routine no.2) was slipped home by Lloydy, once again picking out a Wisbech defender's stick for unerring deflection into his goal. 5-4 up, but we all knew anything could happen from here. It did. Luca took the ball round the keeper, but lost his bearings and took it off the end of the pitch. Mikey nearly got carded (which would have been some achievement) and the helter-skelter continued. After one more poor passage of Nomads defending the ball rolled rather apologetically into the corner of the goal and a 5-5 parity reached.

Which, amazingly, was how it stayed for all of the 5 minutes to the end of the game. Frankly, I think we were all exhausted physically and mentally, ready to shake hands (or pump elbows) and head for a pint.

And well done to Wisbech. It takes some spirit to come back from 4-0 down in the first half of a game (I’m sure I have never done it). Though it has to be said we did contribute rather to our subsequent capitulation. Despite all that (and with more than a tinge of regret at not winning), it was an entertaining way to spend a Saturday afternoon, with plenty of play to also admire, from both sides.

Despite letting in five, John made plenty of good saves, and kept out on ‘certain’ goal that might have lost us the game. I thought Luca and Mel were excellent up front, especially first half. Both tailed off later (Mel with hamstring, Luca with delayed hangover), and young Dom (youngest and lightest player on the pitch) put up with a fierce Wisbech buffeting to play his significant part in the contest. Mikey also stuck with it well and got stuck in, and none of Mel, Spence, Morty, Paul or Woody got a card. Remarkable.

DoD shared between Dom (I’ve gone to Wisbech) and Luca for running the ball past the goal and off the pitch with a post clubbing brain-freeze, we assume. And we collectively choose to forget some of our own passes in and around the D in that second half!

All good fun though! Fingers crossed we get to finish off the season with a home win v Louth next week. See you there, and then. Inshalla.