Gravesham Schools' Football Association U12s District Boys 2017 / 18
KENT CUP AND FRIENDLY FIXTURES
The team have entered the Kent Cup which is played on a League basis. The first two teams from each group will qualify for the semi-finals of the A.B. Taylor Trophy and the next four teams will qualify for the quarter-finals of the Holy Cross Trophy.
Saturday 30th October, 2017. KENT CUP.
Old Southfields Playing Field, Nursery Mews off of Cedar Avenue DA12 5JT 10.00 kick off
Gravesham 4 Bromley 3 (Scorers: Osomo, Holness, Kindred, Day)
Gravesham U12s played their first match together as Gravesham used Old Southfields Playing Fields as a home venue for the first time.
Bromley started strongly but Gravesham soon started to gel and after 4 minutes Simon Osomo had a shot well saved by the Bromley goalkeeper. Gravesham began to grow in confidence and defenders Joe McManus, Max Shoolbred and Danny Midgeley worked well to dampen any threats that Bromley created. Damien Finney then had a well taken finish ruled out for offside before he made a good pass in the 8th minute for Simon Osomo to run onto and coolly finish. After 18 minutes Osomo crossed in from the right hand side and Matthew Holness superbly drove the ball into the bottom corner from 10 yards. Three minutes later Myles Kindred shot found the back of the net, coming off of a Bromley defender. Gravesham were now playing some good football and Ashdon Day made the score 4-0 with an explosive shot from outside the visitor's penalty area. Gravesham were now playing well and the various combinations in midfield including Liam Skeiky, Joe Mcmanus , Myles Kindred and Miller Chapman were dominating the game. However, Bromley were awarded a penalty for handball a minute after Gravesham had established a 4-0 lead so the score at half-time was 4-1 to Gravesham.
After 5 minutes of the second half Gravesham nearly increased their lead when Ashdon Day's well struck free kick from outside of the penalty area was superbly saved by the Bromley goalkeeper. However, Bromley were beginning to threaten more and Gravesham goalkeeper, Archie Aldous, was being called into action more frequently and had to make some good saves. Bromley were then awarded their second penalty which was ferociously struck given Gravesham's goalkeeper no chance. Bromley were now in the ascendancy and soon scored again to make the score 4-3 with 15 minutes of the match to go. Both teams had chances to score but in the end there were no more goals and the final score as 4-3 to Gravesham.
Saturday 14th October, 2017. KENT CUP.
Longhill High School, Rottingdean, Sussex. BN2 7FR 11.00 kick off
Brighton 3 Gravesham 1 (Scorer: Finney)
Gravesham made a slow start to the game conceding goals in the 4th and 8th minutes to give Brighton a 2-0 lead. Defenders Max Shoolbred, Joe McManus and Danny Midgeley were kept busy and goalkeeper Archie Aldous needed to handle the ball well to keep the scoreline to two. However, it was not all one-way traffic and Gravesham created a few opportunities of their own. Indeed the visitors scored the best goal of the game after 20 minutes to half the deficit. Liam Skeiky made a superb pass switching the ball from the left hand side of the pitch to the right where Myles Kindred received it and released Damien Finney to drive the ball into the bottom corner of Brighton's net. Gravesham were growing in confidence and were disappointed to concede a third goal on the stroke of half-time.
In the second half Gravesham enjoyed greater possession. Taylor McAllister made a good debut and Max Shoolbred made some positive forward runs from defence to cause Brighton problems on the right hand side, whilst Miller Chapman worked well on the opposite side of the field. Matthew Holness took a free-kick outside of the penalty area which just missed the target. Gravesham created some good chances and Simon Osomo was unfortunate not to score on a couple of occasions, whilst Myles Kindred had a shot well-saved and Ashdon Day finished calmly, only to see his effort disallowed for offside. However, despite Gravesham's efforts they were unable to score again and the final score finished 3-1 to Brighton.
Saturday 4th November, 2017. FRIENDLY.
Old Southfields Playing Field, Nursery Mews off of Cedar Avenue DA12 5JT, 10.30 kick off
Gravesham v Swale
Game cancelled as Swale were unable to field a team.
Saturday 25th November, 2017. KENT CUP
Meridian Sports Ground, Charlton Park Lane. SE7 8QS 10.30 kick off
Blackheath 1 Gravesham 2 (Scorers: Kindred, Osomo)
Gravesham U12s put in an impressive performance on a bright, crisp morning. Gravesham played the first half with a slope advantage and the sun in the opposition's eyes and used these advantages to play a mixture of short passing and more direct football, causing Blackheath a number of problems. Liam Skeiky was unfortunate to see a shot go just wide of the post after 15 minutes, and Simon Osomo also came close to scoring. Gravesham were enjoying the majority of the play with Matthew Holness orchestrating the midfield well. However, Gravesham were unable to convert their possession into goals until the 25th minute when Myles Kindred received the ball inside and to the right of the penalty area before superbly driving the ball into the Blackheath net. Blackheath too looked dangerous on the attack but Gravesham went into half-time with a 1-0 advantage. Gravesham continued their positive start in the second half and it did not take long before Simon Osomo had doubled Gravesham's lead, by stroking the ball home from eight yards out. However, Gravesham had to endure considerable pressure from their hosts with Joe McManus, Dan Midgeley, Max Shoolbred and Miller Chapman all making strong contributions in defence. Blackheath did score with 15 minutes remaining when one of a number of tall players headed home from a corner. However, Gravesham continued to work tirelessly for each other all the way from defence to attack where Ashdon Day and Damien Finney continually pressed Blackheath when they had possession. Gravesham were also grateful to goalkeeper Archie Aldous who made a string of excellent saves including one from an extremely powerful shot with the score at 2-1. In the end Gravesham can be proud of a well-earned 2-1 victory.
Saturday 16th December, 2017. KENT CUP.
North Kent v Gravesham.
Match postponed as the Patrick Haugh match against took priority.
Saturday 6th January, 2018. KENT CUP.
Old Southfields Playing Field, Nursery Mews off of Cedar Avenue DA12 5JT, 10.30 kick off
Gravesham 0 West Kent 4
Gravesham came up against a very strong West Kent side and only on rare occasions played the good football that they have shown themselves to be capable of. Gravesham had a lot of defending to do in the first half, and a mixture of dogged defending some near misses and some good goalkeeping from Archie Aldous meant that West Kent only went into half-time with a 1-0 advantage. In the second half Gravesham continued to find themselves under a lot of pressure and Archie Aldous was forced to make a number of good saves. However, despite his best efforts West Kent went on to win the game 4-0.
Monday 5th February, 2018. DEVELOPMENT MATCH
Sittingbourne Community College, Swanstree Avenue, Sittingbourne. ME10 4NL. 6.30pm kick off
Kent Schools FA U11s 3 Gravesham U12s 1 (Scorer: Day)
Saturday 17th February, 2018. KENT CUP
Danson Sports 4G Astro - Perry Street, Crayford , Dartford DA1 4RB
North Kent 2 Gravesham 4 (Scorers: Osomo 3(1penalty), Skeiky)
The sun came out at Danson Sports FC as Gravesham U12s played North Kent in their final league group match of the season. Gravesham started brightly and were unlucky not to take the lead after 5 minutes when Simon Osomo broke though the North Kent defence but was unable to beat the home team's goalkeeper. Three minutes later Gravesham's goalkeeper Archie Aldous made a fantastic diving save to prevent North Kent taking the lead. After 11 minutes goalkeeper Aldous executed a long kick which Simon Osomo was able to run onto and this time beat the host's goalkeeper to give Gravesham the lead. However, two minutes later North Kent equalised from a powerfully struck free-kick. Gravesham were playing well with Matthew Holman, Myles Kindred, Miller Chapman and Liam Skeiky gaining the upper hand in midfield. With nine minutes of the half remaining Simon Osomo was fouled by the opposition's goalkeeper and a penalty was awarded. Simon took the penalty himself and confidently converted to restore Gravesham's lead.
Seven minutes into the second half Simon Osomo completed his hat-trick by following up well. Within a minute, however, North Kent had scored to make it 3-2. North Kent then put considerable pressure on Gravesham with a series of dangerous corners but the Gravesham defence of Danny Midgeley, Joe McManus and Max Shoolbred defended admirably to deny them an equaliser. Then with just 7 minutes remaining Liam Skieky collected the ball outside of the penalty area and his sublime shot flew into the top corner for the goals of the match. Gravesham now had a 4-2 advantage which they deservedly maintained until the final whistle. Gravesham finished third in their league group which means they will be in the Quarter Finals of the Holy Cross Trophy.
Saturday 24th February, 2018. KENT CUP. HOLY CROSS TROPHY QUARTER-FINALS
Old Southfields Playing Field, Nursery Mews off of Cedar Avenue DA12 5JT. 10.15 kick off
Gravesham v Thanet
Match postponed - frozen pitch
Saturday 3rd March, 2018 KENT CUP. HOLY CROSS TROPHY QUARTER-FINALS
Old Southfields Playing Field, Nursery Mews off of Cedar Avenue DA12 5JT. 10.15 kick off
Gravesham v Thanet
Match postponed - pitches covered in snow
Saturday 17th March, 2018 KENT CUP. HOLY CROSS TROPHY QUARTER-FINALS
Old Southfields Playing Field, Nursery Mews off of Cedar Avenue DA12 5JT. 10.45 kick off
Gravesham v Thanet
Match postponed - pitches covered in snow
Saturday 14th April, 2018 KENT CUP. HOLY CROSS TROPHY QUARTER-FINALS
Old Southfields Playing Field, Nursery Mews off of Cedar Avenue DA12 5JT. 10.30 kick off
Gravesham 4 Thanet 2 (Scorers: Osomo(3), own goal)
On a bright morning Gravesham and Thanet played out an entertaining quarter-final with both teams playing some good football. Gravesham took the lead, however, following some direct play in the seventh minute when goalkeeper Archie Aldous kicked a long ball for Simon Osomo to run onto and score. Ten minutes later the visitors equalised following a corner. Thanet then enjoyed some good periods of play but Gravesham scored two goals in the last three minutes of the first half to give them a 3-1 advantage. Firstly Max Shoolbred made a strong run before passing to Simon Osomo clinically finished. Then, with a minute remaining, Thanet were unfortunate to concede an own goal.
In the second half Thanet continued to cause Gravesham difficulties and were denied by a couple of good saves from Archie Aldous before they reduced the deficit to 3-2 from a penalty in he 35th minute. Gravesham made the game safe after 42 minutes when Simon Osomo's shot found the back of he net following a deflection off o a Thanet defender. Gravesham now face Bromley in the Semi-Finals of the competition.
Saturday 14th April, 2018 KENT CUP. HOLY CROSS TROPHY SEMI-FINALS
Bromley FC, Hayes Lane, Bromley. BR2 9EF
Bromley 2 Gravesham 1 (Osomo (penalty))
Bromley started brightly playing a lot of possession football but Gravesham gradually began to establish themselves onto the game and thought they had taken the lead before a goal was disallowed for offside. Bromley then took the lead with a shot from outside of the penalty area. In the second half Gravesham dominated possession and created a number of good chances which they were unable to convert. When Bromley did break goalkeeper Archie Aldous made a couple of fantastic saves. With ten minutes remain Gravesham were awarded a penalty after a foul on Damien Finney. Simon Osomo stepped up and powerfully converted the penalty to equalise. However, Bromley went on to score a winner in the last minute to win the game.
PATRICK HAUGH TROPHY
The team entered the Patrick Haugh Trophy which was played on a knock out basis and is open to associations in the South East area.
Saturday 18th November, 2017. Round 1
Hythe Sports Pavillion, South Road, Hythe. CT21 6AR 10.00am kick off
Shepway 0 Gravesham 2 (Scorers: Day, Skeiky)
Shepway made a strong start and were unfortunate not to take the lead, hitting the post within two minutes of the start. However, Gravesham began to settle into the game and nearly took the lead after ten minutes when Simon Osomo's free-kick was well taken by the Shepway goalkeeper. Gravesham then began to use the ball more creatively and started to stretch the Shepway team with some good passing movements. From one such attack Matthew Holness passed the ball wide to Simon Osomo and his pass into Ashdon Day was well converted by the Gravesham forward to give the visitors a 1-0 advantage after 22 minutes.
In the second half Gravesham started well and created a couple of chances for Simon Osomo to increase their lead. Mid-way through the half Gravesham were awarded a penalty after Ashdon Day was fouled, but the penalty was well saved by the hostr's goalkeeper. Another good move saw Myles Kindred's shot from the edge of the penalty area fly narrowly over the crossbar. Gravesham did manage to double their lead when Liam Skeiky finished well with ten minutes remaining. Gravesham suffered a few injuries following some heavy tackles and finished last five minutes with only eight players. However, Gravesham absorbed Shepway's pressure well and goalkeeper Archie Aldous was able to comfortably deal with any Shepway shots.
Saturday 9th December, 2017. Quarter-Finals
Old Southfields Playing Field, Nursery Mews off of Cedar Avenue DA12 5JT, 11.00 kick off
Gravesham v Canterbury. Match Postponed due to a frozen pitch.
Saturday 16th December, 2017. Quarter-Finals
Simon Langton Grammar School, Nackington Road, Canterbury CT4 7AS. 12.00 kick off
Gravesham 2 Canterbury 0 (Scorers: Osomo, Day)
Gravesham's re-arranged match took place on the 3G pitch at Simon Langton School in order to ensure that the match went ahead, and following a widespread frost this seemed to have been a sensible decision. Gravesham started the match brightly and took the lead after five minutes when a cross from Matthew Holness was controlled and then well finished by Simon Osomo. Gravesham doubled their lead five minutes later when Ashdon Day was played through and ran on to coolly place the ball past the advancing Canterbury goalkeeper. The remainder of the half was an even contest with both sides creating a number of half-chances, but the score remained 2-0 at half-time.
The second half saw both sides continuing to play some good football. As the half progressed Canterbury became increasingly dangerous forcing Gravesham goalkeeper Archie Aldous to make a number of important saves to ensure Gravesham progressed into the semi-finals of the competition.
Saturday 27th January, 2018. Semi-Finals
Old Southfields Playing Field, Nursery Mews off of Cedar Avenue DA12 5JT, 10.30 kick off
Gravesham 1 North Kent 3 (Scorer Day)
North Kent started the game brightly and looked threatening, although Gravesham came close to taking the lead after six minutes when Ashdon Day was unable to convert an opportunity. However, Gravesham did take the lead after 10 minutes when Ashdon Day ran on to a fine through ball from Joe McManus before clinically finishing. Midway through the second half North Kent equalised from a corner. Gravesham worked incredibly hard in a competitive first half which ended 1-1. In the second half North Kent again started sharply and took the lead after 39 minutes, again from a close range header following a corner. North Kent extended their lead to 3-1 four minutes later. The rest of the match remained very competitive and although Gravesham applied a lot of pressure in the last ten minutes they were unable to break through to reduce the score at the final whistle.
The team entered the Patrick Haugh Trophy which was played on a knock out basis and is open to associations in the South East area.
Saturday 18th November, 2017. Round 1
Hythe Sports Pavillion, South Road, Hythe. CT21 6AR 10.00am kick off
Shepway 0 Gravesham 2 (Scorers: Day, Skeiky)
Shepway made a strong start and were unfortunate not to take the lead, hitting the post within two minutes of the start. However, Gravesham began to settle into the game and nearly took the lead after ten minutes when Simon Osomo's free-kick was well taken by the Shepway goalkeeper. Gravesham then began to use the ball more creatively and started to stretch the Shepway team with some good passing movements. From one such attack Matthew Holness passed the ball wide to Simon Osomo and his pass into Ashdon Day was well converted by the Gravesham forward to give the visitors a 1-0 advantage after 22 minutes.
In the second half Gravesham started well and created a couple of chances for Simon Osomo to increase their lead. Mid-way through the half Gravesham were awarded a penalty after Ashdon Day was fouled, but the penalty was well saved by the hostr's goalkeeper. Another good move saw Myles Kindred's shot from the edge of the penalty area fly narrowly over the crossbar. Gravesham did manage to double their lead when Liam Skeiky finished well with ten minutes remaining. Gravesham suffered a few injuries following some heavy tackles and finished last five minutes with only eight players. However, Gravesham absorbed Shepway's pressure well and goalkeeper Archie Aldous was able to comfortably deal with any Shepway shots.
Saturday 9th December, 2017. Quarter-Finals
Old Southfields Playing Field, Nursery Mews off of Cedar Avenue DA12 5JT, 11.00 kick off
Gravesham v Canterbury. Match Postponed due to a frozen pitch.
Saturday 16th December, 2017. Quarter-Finals
Simon Langton Grammar School, Nackington Road, Canterbury CT4 7AS. 12.00 kick off
Gravesham 2 Canterbury 0 (Scorers: Osomo, Day)
Gravesham's re-arranged match took place on the 3G pitch at Simon Langton School in order to ensure that the match went ahead, and following a widespread frost this seemed to have been a sensible decision. Gravesham started the match brightly and took the lead after five minutes when a cross from Matthew Holness was controlled and then well finished by Simon Osomo. Gravesham doubled their lead five minutes later when Ashdon Day was played through and ran on to coolly place the ball past the advancing Canterbury goalkeeper. The remainder of the half was an even contest with both sides creating a number of half-chances, but the score remained 2-0 at half-time.
The second half saw both sides continuing to play some good football. As the half progressed Canterbury became increasingly dangerous forcing Gravesham goalkeeper Archie Aldous to make a number of important saves to ensure Gravesham progressed into the semi-finals of the competition.
Saturday 27th January, 2018. Semi-Finals
Old Southfields Playing Field, Nursery Mews off of Cedar Avenue DA12 5JT, 10.30 kick off
Gravesham 1 North Kent 3 (Scorer Day)
North Kent started the game brightly and looked threatening, although Gravesham came close to taking the lead after six minutes when Ashdon Day was unable to convert an opportunity. However, Gravesham did take the lead after 10 minutes when Ashdon Day ran on to a fine through ball from Joe McManus before clinically finishing. Midway through the second half North Kent equalised from a corner. Gravesham worked incredibly hard in a competitive first half which ended 1-1. In the second half North Kent again started sharply and took the lead after 39 minutes, again from a close range header following a corner. North Kent extended their lead to 3-1 four minutes later. The rest of the match remained very competitive and although Gravesham applied a lot of pressure in the last ten minutes they were unable to break through to reduce the score at the final whistle.