The FOF team - match day thread

[RaySmith]

Well done lads -you did your best, and that's what's most important.

And good for Danny -organising it, and reporting on here.

You can only get better, if you can get some training together going. Well, at least you've now met each other!

[FFCAli]

Sounds like a great day  -  Congratulations to our team!

[Jonaldiniho 88]

Think my three assists have gone unreported. Haha. Fun day boys and hope to catch up with u again.

[fulhamben]

What I need to know is, who is going to get the sack, as their position is untenable. It wouldn't feel like job done if we didn't sack somebody.

its all about stability nowadays. doesn't matter how bad you are, apparently its better to keep them on and just hope that a miracle happens and you improve ten fold in the two months that you don't actually have any matches in.

[dannyboi-ffc]

Ok here we go. First of all I just want to say that despite the disappoint of the results I had a great day meeting some top blokes and making some new fulham friends which is what it was mainly about.

The tournament was a bit of a shambles, so many teams were no shows meaning it was reshuffled into 4 groups of 3. You played both teams once and the top two made the quarter finals. The bottom team from each group however didnt go home, those 4 played in what the organiser called the europa league which ridiculously the winner won a trophy and medals.

In our first game we played against Barcelona and they were literally like Barcelona. They were a team that play in 3 leagues a week there according to the ref and were super fit. They battered us 15-2 with rweller86 and Jonaldinho bagging our goals. That sounds terrible but they also beat the other team in our group 13-1 so that puts it into perspective. I think they went onto win it but they were defo in the final when we left

So next game was winner takes all and in the end it was decided on fitness. Our lack of fitness proved costly as they werent better than us, we just struggled to track back when losing the ball a bit like a team of Matthew Briggs. So we lost that one 5-2 with ffc2004 and joseffc getting on the score sheet.

So we were knocked out and into the europa league which is why riether posted into the semi's. I think it was pretty clear we would have gone through if the fixtures were different. If we had played the average team first when we were fresh then we wouldve beaten them but after being run ragged by Barcelona whilst the average team got a rest we just couldnt recover, there was only 2 mins before we had to play again.

So into the europa we go and the semi final was our first triumph! The other team had had enough and went home meaning we got a buy through to the europa league final (sound familiar).

So in the final we go 3-0 down and with 4 minutes to go we manage to get it back to 3-2 with goals from ffc2004 and jose. I hold my hands up, with a minute to go I turned someone and was through one and one but fluffed it and it was probably our best chance to equalise. We also lost the keeper for the last 5 minutes after the ball hit him in the face proper hard. He was ok Im pleased to say which is the main thing. In the end we were playing at walking pace as our fitness just wasnt there, the other team were around 18/19 so again thats what the difference was.

So we may have came home like big losers to some people but I felt we were the biggest winners on the night. It sounds cheesy but I came home with 6 more friends than I went with and had a great time. Some stormed off at the end and seemed to fail to understand that but we were never going to be an instant success. After all we literally were 7 strangers 

With more fitness I think next time will be a lot better and this has highlighted to me just how unfit I am. I cant move right now lol. So I'm determined to make myself fit again and next time that one on one at the end will end a lot differently in my opinion.

Sorry to let ya down guys but your used to that with the first team lol.

they always do a losers cup in these things, just to keep the day going. and unfortunately you always get teams with the odd semi pro players in it. for next time ill make myself available for selection and try and get a game against my lot aswell to get everyone up to speed

Are you serious about that or joking? Because we are going to lose potentially 3 players now through other commitments so there will be a space if you want it for next time?

[FFC1987]

Ok here we go. First of all I just want to say that despite the disappoint of the results I had a great day meeting some top blokes and making some new fulham friends which is what it was mainly about.

The tournament was a bit of a shambles, so many teams were no shows meaning it was reshuffled into 4 groups of 3. You played both teams once and the top two made the quarter finals. The bottom team from each group however didnt go home, those 4 played in what the organiser called the europa league which ridiculously the winner won a trophy and medals.

In our first game we played against Barcelona and they were literally like Barcelona. They were a team that play in 3 leagues a week there according to the ref and were super fit. They battered us 15-2 with rweller86 and Jonaldinho bagging our goals. That sounds terrible but they also beat the other team in our group 13-1 so that puts it into perspective. I think they went onto win it but they were defo in the final when we left

So next game was winner takes all and in the end it was decided on fitness. Our lack of fitness proved costly as they werent better than us, we just struggled to track back when losing the ball a bit like a team of Matthew Briggs. So we lost that one 5-2 with ffc2004 and joseffc getting on the score sheet.

So we were knocked out and into the europa league which is why riether posted into the semi's. I think it was pretty clear we would have gone through if the fixtures were different. If we had played the average team first when we were fresh then we wouldve beaten them but after being run ragged by Barcelona whilst the average team got a rest we just couldnt recover, there was only 2 mins before we had to play again.

So into the europa we go and the semi final was our first triumph! The other team had had enough and went home meaning we got a buy through to the europa league final (sound familiar).

So in the final we go 3-0 down and with 4 minutes to go we manage to get it back to 3-2 with goals from ffc2004 and jose. I hold my hands up, with a minute to go I turned someone and was through one and one but fluffed it and it was probably our best chance to equalise. We also lost the keeper for the last 5 minutes after the ball hit him in the face proper hard. He was ok Im pleased to say which is the main thing. In the end we were playing at walking pace as our fitness just wasnt there, the other team were around 18/19 so again thats what the difference was.

So we may have came home like big losers to some people but I felt we were the biggest winners on the night. It sounds cheesy but I came home with 6 more friends than I went with and had a great time. Some stormed off at the end and seemed to fail to understand that but we were never going to be an instant success. After all we literally were 7 strangers 

With more fitness I think next time will be a lot better and this has highlighted to me just how unfit I am. I cant move right now lol. So I'm determined to make myself fit again and next time that one on one at the end will end a lot differently in my opinion.

Sorry to let ya down guys but your used to that with the first team lol.

they always do a losers cup in these things, just to keep the day going. and unfortunately you always get teams with the odd semi pro players in it. for next time ill make myself available for selection and try and get a game against my lot aswell to get everyone up to speed

Are you serious about that or joking? Because we are going to lose potentially 3 players now through other commitments so there will be a space if you want it for next time?

Pending dates etc, I might be able to come play if you need numbers.

[dannyboi-ffc]

When I work out the date of the next game/ tournament I will let you know

[rogerpbackinMidEastUS]

Well done chaps., must have been down to my pre-match "Skype team talk"  ?

2 questions.
Can someone post a picture of the runners up medal.
What colors was our goalie wearing.

It would be nice if I could sponsor the team in some way, perhaps pay for a St Johns Ambulance
to be beside the pitch just in case.

Whatever happened to 3 points for a goal and 1 for a corner ?

[ffc2004]

We never even got a team photo, I don't think I could even stand for one now

[SouthfieldWhite]

Some of the team stormed off at the end???
That don't sound good

First time together was always going to be tough especially at a 5 a side tournament

At most tournaments, if you get knocked out the main one, you go into a plate competition


I'm sure yesterday will only benefit you for the next one.

Maybe start playing in a few friendlies before you go into your next tournament, even against other foffers.

My junior team had a tough tournament ourself with some of the best sides in Surrey there, we played 6 won 5 drew one  so we had a good tournament

Good luck in your next one if you decide to enter one, personally I prefere 11 a side to 5 a side

[Jonaldiniho 88]

Some of the team stormed off at the end???
That don't sound good

First time together was always going to be tough especially at a 5 a side tournament

At most tournaments, if you get knocked out the main one, you go into a plate competition


I'm sure yesterday will only benefit you for the next one.

Maybe start playing in a few friendlies before you go into your next tournament, even against other foffers.

My junior team had a tough tournament ourself with some of the best sides in Surrey there, we played 6 won 5 drew one  so we had a good tournament

Good luck in your next one if you decide to enter one, personally I prefere 11 a side to 5 a side

We definitely lacked match practice and organisation was probably our biggest failure. It was a good to meet some of the posters on here and nobody stormed off afterwards (unless they are talking about me which I don't think is the case) The tournament was badly run and we were kept waiting for so long by the end it all kind of fizzled out. It would have been nice to grab a beer but we were all pretty pooped and the WAGS were probably more than ready to leave. If I'm about for the next one I would love to play and think we have learnt from our shortcomings (and massive lack of practice).

[SouthfieldWhite]

Some of the team stormed off at the end???
That don't sound good

First time together was always going to be tough especially at a 5 a side tournament

At most tournaments, if you get knocked out the main one, you go into a plate competition


I'm sure yesterday will only benefit you for the next one.

Maybe start playing in a few friendlies before you go into your next tournament, even against other foffers.

My junior team had a tough tournament ourself with some of the best sides in Surrey there, we played 6 won 5 drew one  so we had a good tournament

Good luck in your next one if you decide to enter one, personally I prefere 11 a side to 5 a side

We definitely lacked match practice and organisation was probably our biggest failure. It was a good to meet some of the posters on here and nobody stormed off afterwards (unless they are talking about me which I don't think is the case) The tournament was badly run and we were kept waiting for so long by the end it all kind of fizzled out. It would have been nice to grab a beer but we were all pretty pooped and the WAGS were probably more than ready to leave. If I'm about for the next one I would love to play and think we have learnt from our shortcomings (and massive lack of practice).

Dosnt help when it's a badly run tournament, the junior one I was involved in yesterday was well run as are most junior tournaments.

As I said I'm sure you'll be better prepared next time and hope you all carry it on

And having a beer afterwards should be a rule to playing;-)

And what's that all about bringing the wags along, another no no ;-)

[dannyboi-ffc]

Yeah the tournament was a joke. They told us to be there for 1 which we all were, it was supposed to start at 2 and didnt start until gone 3. So we had warmed up, then stood around and tightened up and then had to play. It just took too long to get going.

The WAGS probably had more of a laugh than us just by watching us suffer lol. It was nice to see them getting along in the good fulham spirit.

As for no one storming off, ok thats a bit strong now I think about it. Probably more fair to say one person was a lot more disappointed to not do well than the others and I was just pointing out that it was the first time we had even met let alone played. And despite the results we all got along really well and I thoroughly enjoyed everyone's company. I felt proud in a weird way to play with a team of fulham fans. I have never done it before and it was a joy. Thats what it was all about for me, yes we can and will improve and in time set our sights higher than just a bit of fun. But if meeting fellow fans and having a laugh was second to winning then maybe our fof team isn't the best fit.

All in all it was a great day and its a shame we didnt get photos.

[Jonaldiniho 88]

I don't think I'd bring the mrs again not because she didn't enjoy laughing at me but I didn't enjoy it that much. Haha. When I usually play we just get ten and pick teams and play with no ref. it's less competitive and if one team is walking it you can swap a player. Coz the you get the pitch for an hour by the end everybodies slowed down a bit so you get more time on the ball.

[SouthfieldWhite]

That's what's it's all about, playing with fellow fulham fans and getting along

When I first joined the supporters team, I didn't know any of them, but through it I met some great blokes .

Turning up to play other supporters kitted out in a Fulham kit, was the best next thing to actually playing for the real team.

We travelled all over the country playing other supporters team before going on to watch Fulham that afternoon

We also had some decent players but more importantly they were a great bunch who also liked a beer or 10

[Woolly Mammoth]

Gents. If I may be serious for once. You use yesterday's defeats and any disappointment, as a strength to overcome future hurdles. It's character building, and tests your resolve.
Nevertheless, lessons can be learned, whether it's fitness, organisation, perpetration. It was your first time together, and the poorly organised    Tournemount obviously did not help at all.
I imagine it was always going to be tough, as you were competing against teams that had played together.
But it's a start, it's just the end of the beginning, not the beginning of the end.
It's not the man in the fight, it's the fight in the man.
So once you recover from any disappointment, and sore muscles, you will come back stronger. Once you side with a man, you stick with him through thick and thin. Your future victories will taste a little sweeter after yesterday's experience.
I wish I could help you, and play myself, but shrapnel in the left peg, sustained from the Korean War in the fifties, has slowed me down, and it still gives me Gip, when either it's cold or about to rain, or when Fulham lose, which means I am in discomfort 90% of the time.
However, enough of me, it's you that counts, and you must stand up and be counted.
Your team motto should be " Strength and Honour ".
You measure a man how he gets up off the canvas not how he goes down .
So don't let me down, or Danny down or yourselves down, or the rest of your chums in this forum, but most of all, you owe it to yourselves to bounce back.
Thank you and Goodnight.

[Nero]

What I need to know is, who is going to get the sack, as their position is untenable. It wouldn't feel like job done if we didn't sack somebody.

its all about stability nowadays. doesn't matter how bad you are, apparently its better to keep them on and just hope that a miracle happens and you improve ten fold in the two months that you don't actually have any matches in.

Of course, I never thought of that, standard procedure.

What is needed in these situations is a scapegoat

[fulhamben]

What I need to know is, who is going to get the sack, as their position is untenable. It wouldn't feel like job done if we didn't sack somebody.

its all about stability nowadays. doesn't matter how bad you are, apparently its better to keep them on and just hope that a miracle happens and you improve ten fold in the two months that you don't actually have any matches in.

Of course, I never thought of that, standard procedure.

What is needed in these situations is a scapegoat

something along the lines of blaming the previous manager?

[Woolly Mammoth]

What I need to know is, who is going to get the sack, as their position is untenable. It wouldn't feel like job done if we didn't sack somebody.

its all about stability nowadays. doesn't matter how bad you are, apparently its better to keep them on and just hope that a miracle happens and you improve ten fold in the two months that you don't actually have any matches in.

Of course, I never thought of that, standard procedure.

What is needed in these situations is a scapegoat

Or an escaped Goat

[Woolly Mammoth]

What I need to know is, who is going to get the sack, as their position is untenable. It wouldn't feel like job done if we didn't sack somebody.

its all about stability nowadays. doesn't matter how bad you are, apparently its better to keep them on and just hope that a miracle happens and you improve ten fold in the two months that you don't actually have any matches in.

Of course, I never thought of that, standard procedure.

What is needed in these situations is a scapegoat

something along the lines of blaming the previous manager?

I don't think on this occasion there was a previous Manager, but I am sure we will find a mug, I mean some Fall Guy, to be the Fall Guy.