No machine can replace me.

The boys are back and with a handful of new Frothers making their full debuts: Aaron, Shand, Yash, Patrick, Farshid, Ian, and Doube. Doube in particular came in clutch, filling in for Ryan in goal.

The Frothers were having the majority of possession and chances against div new boys, the Geckos. The rust did show for the Frothers though, and the first goal came through a combination of a missed header and the Geckos winger ghosting in. Shooting low, Doube could only get a foot on it.

0-1

More of the same followed, Frother chances, a Gecko goal. This time it was a hopeful shot from outside the box that, combined with a slick playing surface, resulted in a parried shot that feel to the Gecko’s player, jammy.

0-2

Luckily, it didn’t take long for the Frothers to get into the swing of things. A corner delivered in by Evan took out the keeper and found a late run by Aaron at the back post. After years of corners with no results, we are finally entering proper Sunday League status with being lethal on the deadballs.

1-2

The worm had really turned, and the luck was finally starting to go the Frother’s way. Pressing for more goals, the ball found Shand on the wing. Was it a cross? Was it a shot? The pros make these things one-in-the-same, and Shand managed to find the back post.

2-2

The Frothers almost took the lead within the first half, Aaron received the ball inside the opposition half, put the foot down, and was all of a sudden through on goal. Should he curl it? Should he chip it? The end result was not quite either and could only go wide. But the end result was the Geckos’ defense questioning why they decided football was meant to be fun.

Halftime

The Frothers were back in the game and the lights were on. Time to bring it home.

Pouring on the pressure all half, it was coming. Shand narrowly missed two headers, and several near chances went begging. The xG was steadily creeping. A foul right on the edge of the box was just the opportunity that the Frothers were looking for.

Lance stepped up and caught the keeper trying to get a head-start, thinking he was going over the wall. A low-driven shot to the other side of the goal found the back of the net and has opened up the door for several blazed set-piece attempts from Lance for the rest of the season.

3-2

The last 15 minutes appeared to drag-on, but the Frothers managed to keep their composure and take the 3 points, or at least the grading win… Maybe not the smartest result.

Man of the Match

The debutant Evan Doube putting on the gloves the first time of asking and even kept a clean sheet in the second-half. The added bonus of bringing Patrick for the ring-in meant that he also absorbs all that kudos too.

Dick of the Day

The other Evan, Evan Hanson, for continuing his streak of head injuries. This time it was catching a clearance to the head and going down. You can take the boy out of the US of A.