Band of Brothers…the CTSA version….

CTSA FC went into this game on the back of a good victory against Palace the week before, but knew they would be up against a strong Coventry side who beat them 2-0 at the end of last season. Dan Palmer captained the side for the second time and co-managers Joe Comper and Rob Lowndes lined-up in front of him alongside Ben Blackmore and Tyler Jones, in what is becoming a settled back line. In the Midfield, Mitch Moylan and Chris Douglas were the wide men, with James and Callum Murray in the Centre. Marco Quasimodo and Ashley Comper started up top.

Goal number one!

The CTSA struggled to settle into the game, with Coventry having a lot of the ball early on but failing to carve out any good opportunities. As the half wore on, however, Crawley settled much more, with Chris Douglas causing problems down the left hand side. It was Douglas who eventually broke the deadlock, outpacing the full back to get himself in on goal and calmly slotting into the far corner. Within minutes, the CTSA doubled their lead, this time through Moylan. Ashley laid the ball off to Mitch on the edge of the area, who got his shot off and the ball eventually snuck under the keeper to send all 5 of the home supporters wild!

…and Mitchy Moo gets number two!

At 2-0 Crawley seemed to be cruising, but Coventry were not giving up and soon reduced the deficit. A well taken shot from the edge of 18 yard box found it’s way past Palmer and into the bottom corner. The game got to half-time, still 2-1. The CTSA boys were feeling positive and confident that they could improve even more- but sadly, this did not come to fruition. Shortly after the break, Coventry were level. A shot from inside the area pin-balled off of various players before eventually being smashed in to the back of the net – 2-2. With the game all square, an early contender for miss of the season from Quasimodo. Ashley was released down the right, reaching the ball ahead of the keeper and looping the ball across finding Marco, who somehow managed head wide leaving many at the club searching for photos and even offering financial rewards for such evidence!

With around 25 minutes to go, Coventry took the lead for the first time. Some desperate defending again saw a collection of ricochets inside the Crawley box and unfortunately the ball ended at the feet of a Coventry striker who made no mistake in finding the net. After the goal, Coventry shut up shop and didn’t allow Crawley time and space to find an equaliser. Temper flared towards the end following a 50/50 tackle but both sets of players were a credit to their club in defusing the situation. The clock ticked away but Coventry had done enough to take the first three points of the season.

Not quite a third….

A good, competitive game of Football between two strong sides. Everyone made their way to Redz where they enjoyed a Burger and Chips before entering the stadium…where Crawley got their own back on the Sky Blues!

Words by Joe Comper, CTSA Community. Pictures from Michael Hulf- and more fantastic pics can be found here:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/michaelroberthulf/sets/72157634913759933/