In dry and sunny conditions that finally signified the start of spring, Linslade Galaxy U12 Flamengo kicked off against Heelands. Flamengo had won their previous three matches and were therefore in a confident mood against Heelands, a team which had struggled as late.

The first five minutes demonstrated the difference between the two teams as Galaxy had attack after attack, and at least 4 corners, in this early passage of play. However, a combination of solid defending, wasteful finishing and bad luck saw the score remain goalless.

Nevertheless, it was only a matter of time before Flamengo's dominance resulted in goals. In the end Flamengo scored three in the first half and then a further 11 in a remarkable second half performance.

There were some great goals amongst these, including several involving great interplay between Arthur and Charlie P (when they took it in turns to score), a couple of mazy runs from Elliot, and a real piledriver from Marcus to demonstrate what a fierce shot he has when the opportunity arises!

There was also a moment of class from Charlie W, who no only dealt with a defensive duty, but then delivered a beautiful forward pass, leading directly to a Galaxy goal.

Micah himself proved what a great attacking asset he is to the team with two goals of his own. Nathan also had a couple of chances to score, but more than made up for not getting on the score sheet by controlling what was at times a congested central midfield.

In defence Tom, Charlie W, Cameron, Ashton and Jasper didn't have a great deal to do, but they nimbly mopped up any Heelands counter attack to ensure that Flamengo also finished with a clean sheet.

Finally, a special shout out must be given to the Heelands team. Whilst they were clearly second best in the match, they didn't stop trying until the end, had a few talented individuals, and as a team played the game in the spirit of fair play.

So, onwards and upwards for Flamengo. Claiming a top two position appears very hard (and is out of their control), but if they keep winning their matches, then who knows!

The goal scorers today were:

Charlie P: 5
Arthur: 3
Elliot: 3
Micah: 2
Marcus: 1

The assists today came from:

Arthur: 3
Elliot: 2
Charlie P: 1
Charlie W: 1
Marcus: 1
Micah: 1

The Players Player of the Match was Charlie, with the Gartec Manager's Player of the Match being awarded to Arthur for getting a hattrick of goals and assists.