MATCH REPORT; Madison 0 Vasco 3

Madison Celtic's adventure in the SASL second division came to it's expected end with a 3-0 loss to the newly crowned champions Vasco Da Gama. A season that started brightly with the Celts holding their own in the league went south after the break with the Madison bhoys gathering only 2 points out of a potential 27. The game itself was very typical  of the games that the Celts have had this year. An opening 25 minutes that was very even with the home team giving as good as they got. A strong Madison defensive line really blunting an aggressive Vasco attack that had scored 41 goals though this season. The Celtic midfield had lots of possession in these early parts of the game with John B, Roniildo and Rob dealing with the lions share of the battle. With only one lonely striker it was perhaps too much to expect an onslaught on the Vasco penalty box but chances were few and far between. One of the significant failings of the team this season has been an inability to score when the game is balanced or even when we have periods of domination. This pattern has shown itself in many games this year and this match was no different. The first sign that the game was turning in a negative direction was when the increasingly picky ref started to get to the Madison players. When the players get more focused on  the refs decisions than the game then we are in trouble. Some loose defending allowed Vasco to get some great scoring chances and it needed some big saves from Hulk to keep us on a level pegging. However, after a good solid 30 minutes the pattern consolidated when the ref gave a dubious free kick to Vasco just a few yards outside the box. Even though the box was packed with Madison players you have to give credit to the Vasco striker who curled an unstoppable shot into the top right hand postage stamp of the net. One nil down and though you couldn't argue that it was against the run of play it did seem rather unjust. The halftime whistle came with the team feeling disappointed with the score, but even more annoyed at the somewhat mercurial ref. The second half saw Vasco start to turn the screw on the home team with more and more chances coming their way. The Madison midfield was still trying hard but at times looked like five individuals running with the ball rather than a cohesive team. The simple out ball to a team mate was rarely used as the ball was smacked away as though it was a ticking time bomb. With that lack of love for the ball coming from the Madison players it was perhaps no surprise that Vasco grabbed another  goal. A nicely worked move down the Madison right ended with a cracking shot past Alex into the  net. On the sidelines you could tell the Vasco management and friends were greatly relieved that they had got this second goal and tied up the points. The visitors relaxed after this and Madison had some of its best play in the second half but any thought of a revival were quashed when Vasco scored yet another fabulous goal to round off a great win for the new champions.
A disappointing end to the season for the Celts, but Vasco played well and are worthy champions. I'll do a more detailed analysis of the season after Hurricane Sandy has passed but for the moment I just want to thank the whole squad for playing through a tough season. We will be back!

Man Of The Match; Some great saves by Hulk in the first half, some solid defending by Edimar and Edison throughout the game and some great running by La Boca up front but MOM goes to John B for holding the midfield together and always being available for the out ball.

Many thanks to LOTB for taking the great pics during the game!