BISJ Training

Luke embraced his new role of Central Mid-Fielder. For those of you who are wondering why he is not a striker (his natural position), this is the reason.

Centre mid-fielders play several roles on the field of play, depending on their particular strengths and the tactics of the team and are probably the most important in terms of setting up attacks. Their position enables them to have an all-round view of the match, and as most of the action takes place in and around their area of the pitch, midfielders often exert the greatest degree of control over how a match is played. This section of the field is often known as a team's "engine room", because great teams rarely succeed without skillful, commanding central midfielders.

They are the link between defence and attack, and must also defend when the opposition are in possession.

Luke is really enjoying this new role and is learning a lot about the game of football from his excellent coach.

JCFC Win 5 -3

Both sets of supporters were transfixed by a feast of end to end attacking football.

The hosts got off to a flyer against a shell-shocked opposition side with two goals in the opening six minutes from Captain Luke Wilson.

Ryan picked out Jack's brilliant run and the defender drew their goal keeper and squared for Wilson to slot into an empty net.  Excellent play! 1 - 0.

Barely two minutes later, a marauding Jack forced Ibrahim to back up and picked out Wilson racing on the outside, before he slotted it in from 6 yards. 2 - 0.

Unsurprisingly, it was Wilson who picked out Kareem, who passed to Faisal to slot under the goalkeeper for his first goal at home. 3 - 0.

But the opposition staged a sensational second-half comeback to turn the game on its head and scored 2 in quick succession.  Our defence were told to wake up by the disgruntled supporters. 3 - 2.

Team talk before kick off

Kareem made it 4 - 2 after 33 minutes with a precise finish and the opposition looked like they were mouting a comeback.

With 4 minutes remaining, the opposition worked a corner well and the ball found their number 8 who headed in from close range. 4 - 3.

Wilson added the final touch with a clever finish in the 35th minute, cutting inside a defender and drilling a low shot into the corner. 5 - 3.

BISJ Highlights

Highlights video of the excellent BISJ Mini-Tournament.

Selection Process.

At the end of the tournament the players were sat down whilst the coaches deliberated about their selection.  All aspects of training, fitness and match play were considered.

This was a tense moment for the boys and their parents.

They first had the difficult job of telling all the players how they performed.

I am delighted to say that my son was selected!  We are so proud of him!!!

So Proud!

Match 3 was Team A Vs. Team D.

I think this was the most important match of the tournament for Team A.  This was the last chance to impress the coach for the final selection.  Some players from Team B had already showed their proficiency and I was pretty sure that some would be selected. 

Here We Go!

The match ended in a 6 - 1 win for Team A.  Captain Luke Wilson again played Central Mid-Field, a

position he was becoming more comfortable in every kick of the ball.

Great Goal!

Again he controlled the flow of play from this position and showed his understanding of the game.  At no stage did he seem panicked or rushed and gave the impression to enjoy every moment.

The goals were fast and furious.  Most involved the dynamic striker turned Mid-Fielder.

It was a fantastic tournament thoroughly enjoyed by all the players and supporters.

Final Whistle - Did I do enough?

Match 2 was Team A Vs. Team C.

This was also an extremely competitive match with some of the players vying for a place in the final 10 from Team C in my opinion.  Captain Luke Wilson again played Central Mid-Field. 

Nice Control.

He seemed to control the flow of play from this position and showed that he has a great engine and fantastic speed.

He unselfishly passed the ball with such precision to make the opening goal a sitter for the number 10.  The second was from a great flick after dribbling passed two defenders.

Looking for support.

The opposition got one back from a terrible mistake from the defender number 3.

After a quick restart Wilson flew through the field to put in a great cross which was netted by the Number 7.

Nice Pass to set up the first goal.

The match ended with a 3 - 1 victory to Team A, who again put in an dazzling performance to cement their authority on the tournament.

BISJ Mini-Tournament

A round-robin tournament was set up by BISJ on Thursday, to finalise the team that was going to represent us in Bahrain on the 13th and 14th January.  It was made pretty clear by the head coach that no position was safe and depending on the outcome of this mini-tournament (and how the players played of course), would depend on who made the team.  I will cover each match separately, since they were all excellent. 

Great Turn about to happen

Match 1 was Team A Vs. Team B.

About to leave him for dead!

This was an extremely competitive match with all the players vying for a place in the final 10 in my opinion.  Captain Luke Wilson changed positions and played Central Mid-Field.  He was given specific instructions to go back and help defend if needed and assume the role of striker, when necessary.  A role he tackled with great enthusiasm and speed.  He laid on a fantastic ball for the only goal of this match.

Ma-asalama - Get ready for the cross

The match finished with a 1 - 0 victory to Team A, who put in an outstanding performance to cement their authority on the tournament.

Great cross for the only goal.

Video Highlights for JUFC Vrs JCFC

 

Highlights from the 2 -1 victory against Jeddah United Football Club.  Captain Luke Wilson scoring both our goals.

Jeddah United FC Vrs Jeddah City FC 1 - 2

The first half was very tight, with neither team gaining control of the match.  Jeddah City were winning the possession game and seemed to be the better team, but kept getting blocked by Jeddah United's huge defence. 0 - 0.

A resolute performance by Captain Luke Wilson, put the visitors ahead in the 6th minute of the second half.   A slick passing move involving Jack, Nour and Luke, allowed him to take the ball down the right wing and shoot from an amazing angle, propelling the ball in the top left hand corner. 0 - 1.

Pre Match warm up - Fantastic flick to get round

A free kick awarded to the home side, allowed them to get back into the match, with a great strike from their number 7, about 2 minutes later. 1 - 1.

The pressure from our team was excellent and another goal was just around the corner.  Amir worked tirelessly in defence and put in a really solid performance.

Jack hoofed the ball up field, straight to their defender and Luke did a fantastic run to steal the ball from him, he executed a wonderful turn and scored again making it 1 -2.

The final whistle blew and we were worthy winners.

Victory!

Highlights Video to follow.

BISJ Do It Again 4 - 1

Captain Luke Wilson's fierce strike in the 2nd minute, put the home side ahead.  BISJ controlled the game throughout the first half with some extraordinary precision passing and control. 1 - 0.

A second came just before the half time whistle when Luke passed to Majed on the other side of the field, then made a great run to the edge of the box, to receive a fantastic pass from Majed and slot the ball firmly in the back of the net. 2 - 0.

The visitors started the second half with a bit more promise and some nice play, but BISJ took control again and Faisal scored a magnificent goal from just outside the box. 3 - 0.

Great dummy to get past the defender.

Their earlier pressure eventually told, though, as Mohammed scored a goal in the 60th minute. 3 - 1.

Luke Wilson scored again to secure victory for BISJ and condemn strugglers GISJ to a third straight defeat. 4 - 1.

Fantastic fluid play from our side.  Can't wait till Thursday's match!!!

JCFC Scratchy Win 1 - 0

After a thrilling BISJ match earlier in the day (see previous), you could easily tell that the 6 players on the BISJ team who played this match for JCFC in the evening were a little tired.

In fairness they did run their hearts out in the early game and only had a break of 30 minutes before this kick off.

The goal was a text book move with some nice fluid passing from Luke, Nour and Kareem.  They were in complete control as Kareem played Nour  into space on the right and he duly squared for Luke to slide home from six yards.

The rest of the game was defending, which we did ok.

Obviously we will not get away with that performance on Tuesday when we play our biggest rivals Jeddah United Football Club.

BISJ Confound the Opposition Again.

In a game weighed down with bad refereeing decisions (in this authors opinion), I am pleased to report that BISJ 1st Team came out with a remarkable win against a knotty opposition.

The other side went 1 up from a penalty which was awarded because our goal keeper handled the ball outside the box.  Now correct me if I am wrong, but that should have been a free-kick and a yellow card for our goalie.  Since you would have needed a x48 Magnification to see if he was actually out of the box, personally I would not have given it. 0 - 1.

We quickly came back with a great run and 5 consecutive passes, from Luke and Majed, with Majed shooting from close range. 1 - 1.

Luke scored a blinder which was eventually (after about 4 minutes), given as off-side, with a free kick awarded to the opposition from close to our box.  I thought that was a shocking decision, since Luke was in their box waiting for a corner?  Anyway the opposition scored from said free-kick, (because most of our players were still arguing with the referee), making it 1 - 2.

Half time whistle blew and I am not too sure who were more bewildered the players, coaches (both of them), or the supporters.

During the second half Luke, Faisal and Majed all scored, all goals disallowed for various offences.  Luke's being offside and I haven't got a clue about the other 2, neither does anyone else I hasten to add.

Run through to score a fantastic goal.

Then a frustrated Luke took the ball from our goal keeper, whilst keeping it shouted at the ref "Oy Look, they are all in front of me", proceeded to run through them all and scored a brilliant goal making it 2 - 2.

In the final moments a free kick was awarded to our side for a foul on Luke, (which was easily a penalty).  Luke took the ball and shot it in the top left hand corner making it 3 -2.

Luke was awarded the man of the match but immediately gave it to the referee!

BISJ 1st Team Storm To Victory Again

Luke led his team to a thrilling 8 - 0 win at the Conti on Sunday.

A breathtaking 6 goals from team captain Wilson put BISJ firmly at the top of the division.

Great Corner to Set Up Majed

The first goal was fantastic, Luke produce a run that Linford Christie would have been proud of, slotting the ball in the back of the net after only 21 seconds.

The other 5 came in quick succession making it 6 - 0 at half time.

Majed and Saif scored 2 and 1 respectively in the second making it 8 - 0.

A great team performance by our team and keep it up!

JCFC Training and a Friendly Match.

After a tiring 2 match practice with BISJ, it was on to JCFC for training and a match.

The training mirrored the stuff that was done in Scotland, with control and discipline being top of the agenda.  The training session went quite well and it was enjoyed by all the players.
The teams were picked and the game kicked off.

Training Scotland

The match started pretty tentatively with both teams settling down quite early on.  It looked like it was going to be a draw with neither side being able to control the play.

After a quick change in the order of the team, Luke's team began to control the match.  The fluid play was quite entertaining.

One - Two Training

Luke scored the first goal with a screamer from 20 yards.  1 - 0.

Ryan scored the second goal from a penalty.  Excellent strike.  2 - 0.

Nour scored the third goal with some great one - two football between him and Luke. 3 - 0.

Luke  scored the fourth goal with some impressive dribbling past the defenders.  4 - 0
Excellent entertaining football all round.

BISJ Play A Friendly Round-Robin Tournament

Ok, I know the rugby result wasn't quite what was expected, but never mind!

The First team took on the Second team in the first friendly tournament.  The game ended in a 5 - 0 Win for the First team.

Let's Go!

Two minutes in Luke Wilson headed his team into the lead from the centre of the penalty area, when he connected with a fine cross from Fawaz from deep on the right wing. 1 - 0.

With 8 minutes on the clock the First team went further ahead, when Faisal fired his first for the team from a 10 yard free-kick, having been fouled by Mohammed, and two minutes later Fawaz got the next one from the penalty spot after Mohammed fouled Luke. 3 - 0.

Luke took the ball from deep within his own half and eased passed the defenders taking a great shot with his left foot to make it another great goal. 4 - 0.

The First team dominated from the kick-off, with Luke taking Faisal's swinging corner on his right foot, slotting it in the back of the net from fairly close range. 5 - 0.

This was an excellent game and both teams worked really hard and passed the ball with accuracy.

Two Captains Go Head To Head!

The First team took on the Third team in the second friendly match.  The game ended in a 7 - 0 Win for the First team.

The Third team started pretty promisingly with some nice fluid play.  They passed the ball well and their movement off the ball has improved.  So well done to them!

The problem was it became a master class of excellent football, when the First team got in their stride, which I have to admit seemed to take a while.

It was 4 minutes before Luke Wilson beat his JCFC team-mate Ryan and fired home the first goal, with a fantastic strike from his right foot. 1 - 0.

Wilson's deflected shot hit the post and rattled in, in fairness the goal keeper had no chance. 2 - 0.

The Referee played a good advantage as Wilson was fouled out on the left, but Faisal picked up the loose ball and drove into the area before laying the ball back to the edge of the box for Fawaz to stroke home for the next one. 3 - 0.

Faisal took a great cross from Luke on his chest and bobbed the ball into the back of the net with a great strike.  4 - 0.

Wilson's corner was floated into the box and came off Ahmad who scored his first of the tournament in his own goal.  5 - 0.

The First team took control and completely out-classed and out-played their opponents.  The precision passing from Faisal, Fawaz and Luke proved too much for the Third Team, who appeared to have given up by now.  Luke's shot from 6 yrds, nearly knocked the goal keeper off his feet as it soared into the back of the net.  6 - 0.

The final goal and the goal of the tournament if you ask me was brilliant in execution.  Faisal crossed the ball, Fawaz dummied it and left it for Luke to strike.  Luke hit it in the top right hand corner and it actually moved the goal.  Excellent shot.  7 - 0.

Again both teams played very well and it was an excellent match.

England Batter France.

God knows I hope it’s the same result in the rugby!

After a new tyre and the drive from hell we finally made it to the home ground of the French team.

The Under 15 French team started really strong scoring 4 goals in the first half.  They completely out played us in all areas of the pitch.  It was a bit of a shock how big and strong the home team were, but at least we played with heart.

The French supporters were in good voice albeit quite annoying.  What is this Roast Beef Rubbish?

Half Time France 4 England 0.

Captain Luke Wilson had some harsh words for his team in the dressing room and when they came on for the second half a few positional changes were evident.

Luke put Mateo (ok he is not English, he is Argentinean, but I am claiming him) in defence and let Oliver move out of midfield and move up front with him. 

The whistle blew and we played quick one touch football.  Luke scored 9 goals in total some of them were fantastic.  The French seemed to be on the retreat for the whole half.  You could have heard a pin drop in the French End.

Full Time France 4 England 9

la victoire est douce

BISJ Open with a 6-1 Stunner!

A superb performance by Captain Luke Wilson sealed a comprehensive triumph for a inspired BISJ.

Pre-Match Training

There appeared to be nothing their Goal Keeper could do about Wilson's strike 4 minutes in when he powered home a 35-yard free-kick opening the score line. 1 - 0.

Then Malek crossed for Luke, which he flicked to his left foot and slotted home in the 9th minute from close range. 2 - 0.

A cross was intercepted by Fawaz to earn the Greens a corner and when Abdul swung it in, Malek knocked it into his own net.  2 - 1.

Wilson controlled the ball brilliantly and then left the Green defenders trailing before calmly chipping the ball straight over their Goal Keeper, who did an impressive run to close him down.  3 - 1

Luke scored a 30-yard screamer to give the home side another fantastic goal to cheer.  4 - 1.

Substitute Ryan floated over a corner, which was met by Fawaz and flicked on by Malek, to Wilson, who powered home a header from close range. 5 - 1.

Luke was on for a super hat trick when he pulled the ball back unselfishly to give Malek a clear shot making it 6 - 1.

In fairness it ended up a mauling of the Greens and BISJ looked impressive throughout.  Great opener and I can't wait for the next match.