MATCH REPORT; Madison 3 Hamden 0

On an unseasonably warm and sunny day the Celts closed out their long season with a great win against a feisty Hamden team. Even though they had played out a scoreless game the weekend before, this match was very different with many more chances and opportunities for both teams.
The game started late due to the late arrival of the ref but both teams were not slow off the mark to show that they were ready for business. Hard tackles from both teams showed that more than pride and bragging rights were on the line. Madison Celtic still had a remote chance of snatching the final promotion slot, if Guilford stumbled in their last game and Hamden wanted to show that their bottom of the league status was anomalous. Some early skirmishes at the beginning of the game made the early first half very even but as the 45 wore on Madison started to exert more and more control. Roniildo was doing his usual Captain America performance of running the full length of the pitch to get a shot on goal and then next minute back in defence breaking up an attack. Jodingo!! made an incredible tip of the toe clearance off the line when El Gato was well beaten. Carlos was also back in action after his nose break and was a little off the pace but still threatening when he had a glimpse at goal. Jorge and Tano pushed forward as often as they could but Tano's shots on goal were restricted by the sturdy Hamden defence. As the half eased towards its end it looked like the Celts were in full control and deserving of a goal. Then finally an opportunity came for that go ahead moment. Paulo breaking into the box along the goal line was tripped for a clear penalty. The ever dependable Roniildo stepped up to fire the ball past the despairing dive of the Hamden goalie. On up at the half and probably deserving of more. The second half saw Madison turn the screw on Hamden with more and more attacks on their goal. What little chances came to the Madison box were punched away by El Gato or cleared by Kris, Jodingo!! or La Boca. The Celts domination of the game was complete when the ever effective Safet headed down a great ball to Tano in the box. The little maestro took but a second to control the ball and hit a precision shot right into the right side of the net. After this goal the game got a bit unruly with first Fribeka hacked down in his prime and then Ruggerho karate chopped. David was also in the wars but kept a steady head. Tom A was allowed to play his usual calm defensive game and Ilhan came on to good effect at key points in the game. The coup de grace came with a fantastic lobbed shot by the irrepressible and prodigious Tano scoring Madison's third and his twentieth goal of the season! The whistle sounded to end a great win for the Celts and a great inaugarual season. We ended the game knowing we had caught Guilford for points and goal difference but they had a game to play.
As it turned out Guilford were handed three points on a plate by East Haven when they forfeited their last match. We finished third overall and it was a tough way to lose promotion. We really had our chances throughout the year to get the points we needed but we didn't take them. We can now look forward to next year with confidence and enjoy the long break until the start of the outdoor season in late April. Of course indoor season will start in January!

Man Of The Match; It's a tough one because Tano scored twice and got his 20-th goal of the season in this game, Jodingo!! and Tom A played great at the back, El Gato kept a clean sheet for the second game in a row and Ruggerho had a great second half before he was decimated. But for his consistent running, passing and overall good play the last MOM of the season goes to Roniildo!

Happy Thanksgiving everyone!