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FA Premier Reserve League (South)

Tues 31 August 1999

Arsenal 3 (2) Derby County 0 (0)

Arsenal 

                             Lukic
Allan Mcleod    Brian Mcgovern   Rhys Weston      Ashley Cole
Alberto Mende   James Harper    Paulo Vernazza   Julian Gray
                 Omer Riza        Christopher Wreh

Derby

Doherty, Jackson, Dorigo, Porter, Elliot, Boertien, Bridge-Wilkinson, Murray, Robinson, Christie, Harper

Goals

9 mins good finish by Wreh after a rebound in the area

20 mins 20 yard beautiful strike by Gray from the left corner of the area, after being put through with a clever cross field ball by Mendez (only seconds after a near disastrous back pass by Gray that left some moaning about a player they were lauding seconds later!!)

58 mins point blank shot by Riza, which he struck straight at the goalie but thankfully with enough power to beat the young keeper

Subs 

45 mins Evatt for Dorigo (Derby)
69 mins Lee Canonville for Harper
72 mins Guillaume Norbert for Mendez
        Rickards for Porter (Derby)
78 mins Graham Barrett for Riza

Bookings

Arsenal - Cole, Grey, Mcleod, Riza. Weston
then on 85 mins Vernazza lashed out by kicking on of the Derby defenders in the mush (silly boy) and was sent off. You could see the frustration, as he kicked the door on his way to the dressing room, no doubt because a 3 match suspension will have blown any chance he had of making the 1st team and with two minutes left of normal time, Julian Gray got a second yellow card for a clumsy challenge on the halfway line, leaving us with nine men for the five minutes that remained (3 of injury time)

Impressions

Although it has to be considered that this wasn't a particularly strong Derby side (I assume WHU will give our reserves a stronger test next Tuesday), I though Ashley Cole again looked sharp at left back, joining in the attack on a number of occasions and getting into great positions down the left flank. Most of our midfield inspiration came from the clever through balls of Alberto Mendez and the highlight of the game was Julian Gray's strike on goal.

Also Graham Barrett (although I am somewhat biased) did well in difficult circumstances, coming on with only ten minutes to go and most of this was spent sending players off. Despite this fact and our one/two player disadvantage, he managed to find space on the left and played two balls across the goal from the byline that cried out for better contact from the players running on to them, for certain goals.

Unfortunately there was no-one who stood out to the extent that they are crying out for a first team place, but then most of this group of players are still quite young, some only recently graduating from u-19 football. Five bookings for Arsenal, two sendings-off and at least a couple of Derby players booked, it seems that the recent common sense displayed by refs has yet to filter down, as this was far from the dirty game it sounds, played in good spirit, with only Vernazza's red card being really necessary!!

Bernard Azulay

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