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AS MIREMONT v 2nd XI
4th November 2012
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If you've come here today looking for high-quality action photography of all the thrills and spills of Pionsat's match against AS Miremont, then you are going to be disappointed. This match was played in a driving rainstorm where my chief priority was to keep the camera as dry as possible following my adventures along the lower north shore of the St Lawrence back in early May
Add to that the fact that the football pitch is right at the bottom of a steep-sided valley where the sun would never shine anyway, and surrounded by trees, then I'm afraid that you have a recipe for a photographic disaster.
Yes, it was appalling weather and appalling conditions for photography, and it was probably even worse for the players out there on the field, who deserved a medal for turning up.
So we'll start by running through the team. No goalkeeper again as Matthieu is still out injured so François is with the 1st XI. It seems that Kevin has drawn the short straw this week. And in the warm-up, it looked like, well, I know I shouldn't tempt fate but it looked like he knew how to handle the ball too.
We had a defence of Malik, Fabien, Sébastien and Gaëtan, with a midfield of Valentin, Jérôme, Emeric and Bertrand. Christophe and Vincent were up front. On the bench was Didier.
No Jonathan after his heroic display against the Goatslayers the other week but apart from that, this was quite a good line-up.
We aren't long into the game when Pionsat score their first goal. It's a good ball out of defence by Malik right down the wing and Christophe, racing after the ball, does well to collect it.
He breaks inside and crosses the ball into the centre where one of the Miremont defenders clears the ball out. It reaches Emeric who heads the ball straight up into the air and as the ball drops down he volleys it in over the keeper's head into the back of the net.
What a way to start the game! What a goal! It was magnificent
And there's a beautiful ball again right out of the Pionsat defence right over the top to Vincent. He beats his marker in the centre of the defence and tries the aerial route over the top of the keeper but the keeper gets both hands to the ball, pushes it up in the air, onto the underside of the bar from whence, with Pionsat's usual luck, it bounces away to safety.
You have to feel sorry for Vincent - new to the team this season having come up from the juniors and desperate to score his first goal for the club. He was about half an inch away there.
The Pionsat players are relentlessly going forward and break once again down the wing, Emeric and Valentin combining well out there.
Valentin makes a little room for himself in front of goal slightly off to the right and plays the ball in - whether it's a shot or a cross it's hard to say but its too far in front of Christophe for a cross and too far away from the goal for a shot.
Nevertheless, up to now it's pretty-much one-way traffic, touch wood. I hope that Pionsat can keep this up.
Emeric scores a second goal and for once, fortune really does smile down on the Pionsat 2nd XI, and about time too, I have to say, after what's been going on for the last couple of seasons.
It's another ball over the top of the Miremont defence in the direction of Christophe who is miles offside. He does exactly the right thing by turning his back to the ball and raising his arms - "I'm out of the game" - and consequently there's no reason to stop the game for any foul.
All of the Miremont players stand around waiting for the referee's whistle which, of course, never comes. The only person to react is Emeric who runs onto the loose ball, exactly as the team ought to be doing and ought to have done ever since whistles were invented. Play to the whistle, Pionsat, just as Emeric does, and it's 2-0.
It's also worth mentioning another incident that took place in this game. I'm still going on about that awful refereeing decision at Cellule a few weeks ago
During a Pionsat attack late in the first half, one of the Miremont defenders making a suicide challenge receives a boot clear in the face which knocks him for six. Despite Pionsat being in a really good attacking position about 8 yards out, they kick the ball out into touch and shout at the referee to stop the game so that the player can receive attention, which he urgently needs.
Yes, contrast that with what happened at Cellule 4 weeks ago.
Another thing worth mentioning is that at long last, we have some direction in the Pionsat team. Christophe has been out there bellowing at his players. Bernard, who is running the line, is also shouting out the instructions, and Matthieu who has come along to encourage his little brother, is likewise calling out directions to the team.
All of this is giving the team so much more focus and they are actually playing like a team rather than a collection of random individuals. It's a much better performance than what we've seen over the last couple of years
Now I don't know what the Miremont trainer put in his teams's half-time Bovril but I wouldn't mind a drink of it myself, that's for sure. He's made a couple of substitutions, and his team has come out for the second half and gone down the field like a whirlwind battering away at the Pionsat defence. It's quite a dramatic change from the 1st half, I can tell you.
For 10 minutes Pionsat have their backs against the wall but eventually Bernard moves Didier (who has come on to give Jérôme a breather) to left-back, moves Gaëtan into the centre of defence and has Fabien drop back to sweeper.
With Sébastien and Gaëtan - two big guys - in the centre of defence they are putting in some towering headers out of defence. This steadies the ship quite considerably and eventually calm is restored, but not after some anxious moments
Up at the other end, Vincent finally adds his name to the scoresheet and the big beaming smile as he runs back to the centre-circle tells its own story. There's no-one out there more pleased than he is, and rightly so.
We've all been on at him throughout the game - follow the ball on - pressure the defenders - threaten the keeper - make them play the ball. On a wet, greasy pitch in these conditions at this level of football, anything can happen.
And sure enough, something eventually does.
Emeric has the ball and bursts clear through the Miremont defence, beats two or three tiring defenders and finds himself some space for the shot.
Of course, the ball is soaking wet and the surface is greasy and slippery and while the keeper manages to stop the ball, he can't hang onto it. It rolls away from him right into the path of Vincent running on, as we have been urging him to do throughout the game, and he taps it into the empty net.
Yes, Vincent should learn from this and if he keeps working on it, he'll improve his strike rate no end.
However the game is far from over and just two minutes later, Miremont pull one back, which they have been threatening to do for quite some time, it has to be said.
It's Miremont's turn to try the long ball over the top of the Pionsat defence and one of their players breaks free from his marker and finds the back of the net. Kevin has had a really good game in goal, making a few full-length saves, but there was nothing that he could do about that one.
As the match draws towards a close, the Pionsat players are again attacking the Miremont goal, with Valentin putting a high ball over the top of the defence.
It's headed on by Bertrand intio space and Valentin, running on, reaches the ball and has a shot at goal but puts the ball well over the bar. Still, you can't win a coconut every time, but pegging the opposition back in their own penalty area is the easiest way of protecting your own goal.
Seconds away from the final whistle and Vincent's arms raised in anguish tell you just how close Pionsat were to scoring a fourth goal.
Bertrand in the centre of midfield plays a really good ball to Valentin who plays it inside to Emeric running on, and his shot would probably have ended up in Clermont Ferrand if the bar hadn't been in the way. I'm surprised that the shot didn't bring down the woodwork
Well, well, well, what a famous victory for the 2nd XI.
I've been somewhat critical of the Pionsat defence in the past as you might have noticed, but today I have to say that they hardly put a foot wrong today during the entire 90 minutes, and didn't lose concentration once. This was the best that I have ever seen them play and if they can perform like this every week then they shouldn't have too much to worry about. Kevin in goal should be pleased with his performance.
It was also nice to see Emeric, unavailable for the 1st XI last night, turn out for the 2nd XI this afternoon. He drove the team on from midfield and it was quick thinking between him and Christophe that led to the second goal.
Vincent too - finally off the mark for the club. He needs to work on his positioning but that should come in time. It's a big jump up from junior football to leading the line in the seniors.
A very good performance all round from the team. They've crawled another place or two up the table with this win. I'm glad that I didn't miss it, even though the weather was positively atrocious.
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