HARPENDEN II: 1
ST ALBANS IV: 0
18.9.04

The Blues Twos ended their pre-season on a positive note with a 1-0 victory over their illustrious neighbours from St Albans, and are in good shape going in to next weekend’s league opener with Bishops Stortford.

Fielding a host of chances from the side that drew so bravely with West Hampstead a week earlier, the blues suffered an early setback when debutant Toby Pickard was despatched to the stand having popped a shoulder out after just two minutes. His replacement, Rob Arnsby, was also labouring – from a bad back – so in many respects the numerical disadvantage that 10-man St Albans had begun with was virtually alleviated. The game was an open affair for the first half, with possession pretty much shared and resulting in few clear chances for either side, although when pressed in to action, Blues' stopper John Allen was unfazed. His pre-season performances have demonstrated that returning regular keeper Ben Brind won’t be able to afford too many errors this season – pressure for places is something all sides will be hoping for over the coming months.

At half time the onus was on retaining possession and helping each other out with the passing, as the first half had seen too much sloppy or overambitious passing that gave the recipient plenty of work to do to get it under control, let alone do something with it. “80% of getting the ball under control is done by the bloke making the pass, and we simply weren't doing ourselves any favours” commented skipper Fraser Tant. The passing was noticably better in the second half, with Dan Pickard linking well with pace-ace Chris Parsons on the right and veterans Niall McAlister, Ben Thompson and Pete Kneale keeping things ticking over in midfield.

The game’s only goal came midway through the second half, when a broken down penalty corner fell to Parsons on the by-line. His cross beat everyone and fell kindly to Tant, who made no mistake from 5 yards. St Albans strode forward trying to snatch an equaliser, but defenders Dave Munton and Andy Lunn were resolute and secured a clean sheet for Harpenden's second string.

So, the blues head to Bishops Stortford next week in a confident frame of mind, keen to exact revenge on the Barry Manilow Tribute Act after a defeat in the corresponding fixture last season.

Dan Pickard:
Pace and skill on the right

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