The Setup
Larkfield Archives U9B 03~04 are part of the Larkfield Football Club which Incorporates Larkfield Boys, Larkfield Juniors, Larkfield Youth & Larkfield Girls.
Adam / Martin
This season, that had started so positively, with such hope, had ended up so disappointing. We felt that our squad was better than last year and it is; yet we are further away from what we consider to be our immediate rivals than we were last year. We had a tough cup run; yet reached the semi finals, no mean feet. Many teams would happily have settled for what we had achieved this season, 4th in the Premier division and Challenge Cup semi finalist, but we had expected more. Were our expectations too high? Maybe, but given what we had achieved the previous season we had no reason not to aim high. If we had to put a finger on our lack of improvement it was consistency and even though we created plenty of chances it was the lack of goals that proved decisive.
Enough dwelling on what went wrong or didn't go right let's look back at the pluses from the season, and let's not forget our team is made up of a group of 8 and 9 year old boys.
The boys achieved much this season, 4th in the league, semi finalists in the challenge cup, we defeated Coxheath a rare event this year, we dumped Borough Green out of the cup, we played some stunning football at times, we scored some incredible goals, and every player made a positive contribution to the team.
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Home fixtures
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Ground :
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Kickoff :
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Arrival time:
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Team Colours
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Main Strip :
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Yellow / Black
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Second Strip :
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Action Pics
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You look that way i'll look the other way
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Where's the ball
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Adam strikes an impressive pose as he ponders the tactical plan devised over long hours of scheming....................
as you can see, not everyones is fooled.
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Ryan B throws in
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Players play, spectators ...er..spectate..actually they don't .. they kick every ball.
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On the attack
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Mitchell to Ryan C
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Levi takes, Gareth and the Ryan's are waiting
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LB09 v Leybrne 03_04
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Half Time Talk
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Alex has the ball but 3 leybourne players want it back
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The Team Management
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Adam Capper (Mgr)The Guvn'r
Football runs in Adam's blood, his support for Chelsea knows no bounds, he was heard to say during the boys first get-together in 2001 that Chelsea were the only team to follow, unsurprisingly a large number of boys appeared the following week in the `correct kit'.
Feared by everyone, his `press-up' punishment for boys who don't pay attention is often carried out by the watching parent as they hear their surname being screamed across the park at the offending squad member.
Adam wants all his teams to win games, he looks for the players to acquit themselves well in every game, and he expects his squads to fight to the final whistle. Whilst losses are part of the game, defeat to a team that we should have beaten does not go down well. (More parents are seen doing press-ups)
Larkfield through and through, Adam is keen to see Larkfield teams at all levels do well and competing for honours in league and cup.
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Glynn Vaughan (Coach)The Quiet One
Glynn sees much but says little, normally because he cannot get a word in edgeways, he is keen to extol the virtues of playing the simple game, looking up and using the width of the pitch.
How a Tottenham supporter got to run a team with a Chelsea fan is unknown but one supposes a large amount of Stella going in a certain direction was involved.
The traditional `Vaughan' warm-up has the boys mincing round the pitch, we are assured that this behaviour is perfectly normal, although there are rumours that ballet outfits have been seen in the back of his car.
Glynn like Adam, is keen to see the squad develop their playing skills, he believes in playing the right way, learning to treat the ball as a friend and not something to be hoofed from one end of the pitch to the other. A good passing movement, with a well-taken goal as the end result, is guaranteed to bring a smile to his face.
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Debra Norden (Admin)Miss Moneybags
You know when the end of the first game is approaching when you can hear the rattle of the subs tin from halfway across the field, quickly followed by the words “£4.00 please”.
Debra got conned into being treasurer by Adam (why did nobody warn her?), `could somebody do me a favour', asked Adam one Saturday back in the depths of time, `and collect the subs today'. Debra responded positively and with a knowing smile Adam said `Thanks'. Two years later and she is still collecting the subs, phoning parents when Adam cancels 6.00pm training at 5.30pm and generally running around for him.
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Martin Norden (Admin)gofer
Happy that his son was playing football and his wife was running around playing treasurer, Martin was pleased that he could watch the games in peace and quiet. However, the first newsletter that came round soon put paid to that, the words `please let Debbie and Martin know' appeared at the bottom of the letter. How had he got involved?
Now there is the monthly meeting to attend, the match statistics to be maintained, the opportunity to help out at training (Adam needed a goalkeeper to make up the numbers!!), the newsletter to be written etc etc.
Remember, this could happen to you if you volunteer to help set up the goal posts before a match. You have been warned.
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A History
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"A more comprehensive history can be found by clicking 'Full History' right.. sub section are below this....."
"I personally am going to wait until they make the film"
In the Begining (by Martin)
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The team was founded during the summer of 2001 when training was set up for a new group of under 7 children. The plan was to provide a full year of training mixed with friendlies and tournaments prior to commencing the season 2002/2003 as under 8's.
From the original group of children, a number were selected to play with Larkfield Juniors U8's, this meant that they were playing a year above their actual age group.
The experience for these children was invaluable, although they didn't win many games they learnt a lot about what was required from them the following year when they commenced their playing in their correct age group.
In the summer of 2002 those children who played a year up rejoined the remainder of the squad and the teams were drawn up for the forthcoming 2002/2003 season.
Tournaments featured prominently during that summer with the boys reaching 4 finals and one semi final from the 5 entered. Unfortunately runners up medals prevailed as a winner's medal proved elusive.
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The Squad
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Squad with Sponsor Cliff Pantony (Enterprise Coachworks)
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The squad lined up for the 2003/2004 season as follows;
Louis S - Goalkeeper, Gareth V - Defence, Ryan C - Midfield,
Jordan P - Defence, Robin D - Defence, Daniel B - Midfield and team Captain
Alex N - Midfield, Adam D - Midfield, Kieran W - Midfield,
Ryan B - Midfield Levi A - Attack, Mitchell W - Attack
Every player made a positive contribution to the team
Louis
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Louis made some stunning saves, he even scored a goal, it's a thankless job being in goal but he does it with a style of his own.
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Gareth
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Gareth made some telling interceptions and scored some great goals, getting on the end of Levi's corners.
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Ryan C
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Ryan was the master of midfield, stopping opposition attacks and setting up our own, his vision was second to none.
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Jordan
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Jordan proved to be an excellent all rounder, great in defence yet capable of starring in attack and putting the ball in the back of the net.
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Ryan B
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Ryan B supplied the crosses from the left hand side and got on the end of those from the right proving a good bet with either foot.
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Kieran
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Kieran proved very adaptable either in midfield, defence or attack, none of us can forget his headed goals and contagious enthusiasm.
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Levi
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Levi was everywhere, his crosses and corners provided ammunition for the rest of the team, and his shooting provided some of our most stunning goals
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Mitchell
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Mitchell our striker, proved once again that he could mix it with anyone, his hard work chasing down the ball, his never give up attitude and his priceless goals
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Alex
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Alex in midfield was wicked on the wings, his crosses provided chances for the others, and his work rate at covering back was excellent, he even scored a few goals
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Daniel
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Daniel our captain, quick on his feet, poise and balance on the ball, those curling free kicks, his contribution was huge, capable of playing anywhere and scoring great goals
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More Action Pics
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Mitchell heads for goal but is outnumbered
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Louis observing the game
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No Honestly !.. They really are our managers!.. They always cry like that
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Mitchell scraps
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Kieran throws, Gary & Glynn watch
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I've got it! No I've got it! ...er.. you got it?
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Hmm, not impressed
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