A thrilling, rollercoaster encounter at Ludlow Stadium this morning saw Rushall Village U14s come out on top with a 4-3 victory against Shrewsbury Town, a result that lifts us into the top half of the MJPL table in 44th place out of 93.
The first half was everything we’ve been working towards. Calm, composed and playing proper football: quick, intricate passing on the deck, taking an extra touch when needed and dominating possession. We looked a level above and were rewarded with two excellent goals. Even when Shrewsbury started with the goal, we stayed in control and thoroughly deserved the 2-1 lead at the break. Some of the celebrations were worth the admission money alone!
The second half, unfortunately, was a completely different story. Almost from the restart we abandoned everything that had made us successful in the first 45 minutes. Instead of keeping the ball on the floor, we started launching it long and playing exactly the way the opposition wanted. Within ten minutes we were level, both goals preventable: the first cut straight through the middle of the pitch with barely a challenge, the equaliser coming via an unlucky ricochet off a player after Rudi tried to clear it and after we’d failed to stop the initial danger. The third was a scrappy corner where we lost markers, didn’t attack the ball and were second to everything.
With just over ten minutes remaining and the game slipping away, changes were made. Credit to the boys who came on and to those who stayed on the pitch; the last portion of the game saw us rediscover our identity. Ball down, passes crisp, movement sharp, and two well-taken goals later we’d turned 2-3 into 4-3. A huge character win.
Player takeaway: we are good enough to dominate teams when we play our way for 80 minutes, not just 40. The standards in MJPL are non-negotiable; every player who steps on the pitch has to perform at their maximum or changes will be made. Sundays are for learning from mistakes, Saturdays are for winning while playing the right way.
Massive three points, huge resilience shown in the end, and a special mention to everyone who dug in when it got tough. Top half of the table in December; who saw that coming back in August? Proud of this group. On to the next one! 💛🖤
