Date
March 16, 2008
Participants
John Carroll, Dominic Hutchinson, Simon Hutchinson, Edward Nathan, Kevin Nieman, Wayne Smith, Steve Tucker
Winners
Open
- Winner: Wayne Smith
- Runner up: Steve Tucker
Mary Jane
- Winner: Simon Hutchinson
- Runner up: Edward Nathan
Report by Kevin Nieman
The tournament started with seven players vying for flicking greatness. Here's is what happened:
Group A - Steve Tucker v. Dominic Hutchinson
The match began with an early goal for Steve as he pushed forward in a relentless attack. “I felt it was important for me to get a goal in the first five minutes,” said Tucker, the only Gunner fan in the club. By the end of half-time, Tucker had scored again to make it 2-nil, and it might have looked like a walk-over if it weren’t for Dominic’s stingy defense. Steve noted, “Dominic had some excellent defensive flicks forcing me to keep up the pressure on him.” In the second half, Dominic made several beautiful touch-up flicks, but he could not capitalize on his opportunities in Steve’s end. One final goal from Steve ended the match 3-nil in Steve’s favor. “I kept up the pressure to prevent Dominic’s counter-attacks,” Steve said, “and unfortunately, Dom couldn’t convert his offense to score a goal.” When pressed for comment, Dominic said, simply, “Steve played well. I played poorly.”
RESULT: STEVE TUCKER wins 3-nil
Group B - Simon Hutchinson v. John Carroll
Next up, we had the eldest Hutchinson against John Carroll in a tightly-fought match. The first half was played in a “nervy manner,” Simon would say later. John agreed, saying, ”There was lots of chaos in the first half.” The first half ended scoreless, and the second half began with both players flicking more comfortably and relaxed. John scored off a free kick with eight minutes left in the match, chipping the ball into Simon’s net to make it 1-nil. Simon came back to tie the game 1-1 with a ground ball into John’s lower left corner. Carroll made attempts to increase the score but two brilliant saves by Simon’s keeper held the pair at a 1-1 draw.
RESULT: DRAW 1-1
Group A - Wayne Smith v Dominic Hutchinson
The second Group A match of the day was All-Wayne, All-The-Time, as an unfortunate Dominic was subjected to the Mercy Rule within the first twelve minutes of the first half, ending the match 4-nil in favor of Wayne. Despite this, Dominic felt good about his overall play. “I felt I played really well,” Dominic said. “I did put constant pressure on Wayne, and I made four really good saves.” Wayne nodded. “In fact, he made a save exactly eight seconds into the match.” After Wayne’s third goal, Dominic was given one of Wayne’s leather golf gloves because Dominic was accidentally banging his hand against the keeper or the goal. The glove was used during Wayne’s last goal, which Wayne says was the best. “Lovely chip over the keeper,” Wayne said.
RESULT: WAYNE SMITH wins 4-nil
Group B - Kevin Nieman v. John Carroll
Next in Group B was a game that began with each player stranding his keeper on separate occasions in the first half. As fate would have it, neither player was able to capitalize on the opportunities. John remarked, “We were both playing with reckless abandon and we were both gambling on the long ball.” With a clean sheet in the first half, Kevin created the first scoring attempt by stranding his keeper yet again. John took the ball and literally walked it in for the goal. Kevin laughed. “I just don’t know when to stop pulling out the spare. You’d think I’d learn by now.” Kevin had his chances, but a lapse in concentration led to a second goal by John at an unbelievable angle. “I just misjudged the angle and my keeper wasn’t positioned correctly,” Kevin said, shrugging at the final score.
RESULT: JOHN CARROLL wins 2-nil
Group A - Wayne Smith v Steve Tucker
Wayne was frustrated in the first half, as Steve would later attest. "I think I made eight saves in the first half alone," Steve said. According to Wayne, “I out-shot Steve, but then he’d go on offense very quickly, catching me out of position. That happened about three times.” Not surprisingly, Steve scored first and the half ended 1-nil in the Gunner’s favor. In the second half, possession was nearly 80% in Steve’s favor, but Wayne managed to equalize quickly. Steve answered making it 2-1, but it was a goal by Wayne that he described as “not my best opportunity by a long shot,” that secured the 2-2 draw. “It was a tiring game,” Wayne sighed. Steve agreed. "This was a different game from my last with Wayne. Fun game."
RESULT: DRAW 2-2
Group B - Simon Hutchinson v. Kevin Nieman
The match's first highlight came when the referee called Simon for a hand-ball in his penalty area. Nieman scored from the penalty spot to make it 1-nil. "The PK call surprised me," Kevin added, "but I am fortunate for the goal." Simon pushed forward relentlessly, but the score remained 1-nil at the half. Switching sides, Simon appeared determined to equalize, but his offense often broke down. "I came short on flicks," Simon said, "And every time I broke through the shooting zone, I'd give away a free flick." Then, Nieman scored the final goal which Simon said was "the best goal scored against me today." It was a rare clean sheet victory for Nieman against the elder Hutchinson. "We often play to a draw," Kevin added, "so it's nice to come out with a win this time."
At this point Edward Nathan arrived, but since the groups had finished, it was decided that he would play-in for the Mary-Jane Tournament.
SEMI FINALS:
Wayne Smith v. Kevin Nieman
John Carroll v. Steve Tucker
MARY JANE TOURNEY:
Edward Nathan v. Dominic Hutchinson
Dominic Hutchinson v. Simon Hutchinson
Simon Hutchinson v. Edward Nathan
SEMI FINAL: Wayne Smith v. Kevin Nieman
Wayne started off with a chip shot over Kevin's keeper from the right side to the left post for a goal. Kevin had to laugh. "He always nails me with those chips of his." However, Nieman refused to concede defeat. On a charge toward Wayne's goal, Wayne blocked out Kevin's forward figures with the ball in a shoot-able position. To Wayne's amazement, Kevin flicked a figure from 2 ½ zones away to knock the ball into Wayne's figure and force a corner. "That was a fantastic flick," Wayne commented. The corner failed to produce a goal, but Nieman proved that this would be no easy match for Smith. The second half was an up-and-down affair and Nieman's shots (one over Wayne's net and one saved by Wayne) kept Wayne on his toes. Then, Wayne scored to secure the victory. Wayne said, "Kevin deserved better than the 2-nil score. His offense was very good."
RESULT: WAYNE SMITH wins 2-0 and advances to the Open Final.
MARY JANE PLAYOFF: Edward Nathan v. Dominic Hutchinson
Edward, coming late on the day, started the Mary Jane Tourney scoring the first goal when Dominic stranded his keeper. Unlike previous matches this day, Edward played slowly and tapped the ball in for the goal. 1-nil Edward. Dominic held the score at 1-nil at the half, but conceded a PK goal to Edward in the 2nd Half to make it 2-nil. Unfortunately for Dominic, Edward followed up with a quick goal to make it 3-nil, and then a final goal with one minute left in the 2nd half to score the Mercy Rule win. Dominic commented about his effort. "I was playing pretty well," Dominic said, "but I'd get a shooting foul [in the offensive zone] almost every time. It was frustrating."
RESULT: EDWARD wins 4-0
SEMI-FINAL Steve Tucker v. John Carroll
The first goal was a controversial one. Carroll's keeper was left stranded and Tucker's shot was actually stopped by Carroll's keeper leaving the ball dead on the goal line. According to the rules, this was called a goal. "I'm filing an official protest," John said, smiling. With the match 1-nil to Steve, picked up the pace and the match play was quite even. "Even the midfield play was even," Steve said later. The half-time score ended unchanged. After the half, the even play continued until Carroll stranded another keeper and Steve pounced on the opportunity. "The two stranded keepers were the difference in the match," Steve said. The game ended with Steve advancing to the Final.
RESULT: STEVE TUCKER wins 2-nil to advance to the Open Final.
MARY JANE PLAYOFF: Simon Hutchinson v. Edward Nathan
Simon scored in what was a trend this day. Edward stranded his keeper, and Simon made certain to knock it in properly to go up 1-nil. Despite the goal, Simon was not happy with his play. "I made several frustrated exclamations," Simon said, presumably referring to missed opportunities. But the half ended 1-nil to Simon. The second half was a bit more chaotic. Edward equalized with a long shot goal that surprised Simon. With the 1-1 score, Simon pushed ahead. "Ed played well with his curled shots, but I played fast and frustrated his defense." Edward's keeper made some good saves, but it was Ed's all-forward strategy that opened up his defense for the game-winner by Simon, a through the middle that chipped Edward's keeper.
RESULT: SIMON HUTCHINSON wins 2-1
MARY JANE PLAYOFF: Simon Hutchinson v. Dominic Hutchinson
The final qualifier for the Mary Jane was a derby between the Hutchinsons. Dominic noted, "I need to Mercy Rule [my Dad] in order to earn 2nd Place." It was a daunting task, as Simon opened up the scoring with yet another stranded keeper goal. "I just kept applying pressure on him, "Simon said. Throughout, Dominic's keeper saved him from certain doom, saving 4 or 5 shots in the first half alone. The half ended with Simon up 1-nil. In the second half, Simon scored a chip shot goal to make the score 2-0. Dominic advanced up the field and scored a goal with four minutes left to go, but it wasn't enough and Simon became the Mary Jane winner.
RESULT: SIMON HUTCHINSON wins 2-1 to become the MARY JANE WINNER.
THIRD PLACE MATCH: John Carroll v. Kevin Nieman
The battle for third place in the day's tourney started with a bizarrely-angled goal fired by John into Kevin's net making it 1-nil. "I did not expect it to go in, and I wasn't even preparing myself for it." The action was back-and-forth, and Kevin drove down the pitch towards goal. Kevin took a shot from the left and scored, tying the game 1-1, which was the score at the half. The pace of the game challenged John's play, and he later mentioned, "I could only string together three passes before Kevin stopped me. It was quite frustrating." Then, with the seconds ticking down to zero, John lined up a corner try. From the left spot, John flicked the corner, and slammed the rolling ball with a second figure to score with only three seconds left on the clock. Kevin just shook his head in disbelief as time ran out. "I'm still recovering from that last shot," John said. "I think both of my goals were very lucky." Kevin added, "It was an emotional game, full of end-to-end action, but I had lapses in concentration and John took advantage. Good game."
RESULT: JOHN CARROLL wins 2-1 to secure THIRD PLACE in the OPEN.
OPEN FINAL: Wayne Smith v. Steve Tucker
Wayne scored two goals in the first five minutes, setting the tone for the match early on. Steve said, "In the past, a two goal lead by Wayne would have gotten to me, but no longer." Steve finally scored and the half ended 2-1 in Wayne's favor. "I had a beautiful touch," Wayne said, "and the fast pitch made for a rip-roaring game." The goals kept coming in the second half, but this time, it came from Steve. With the ball on Wayne's penalty spot, Steve flicked a figure all the way from his defensive zone to chip the ball over Wayne's keeper to score, making it 2-2. It was easily one of the best flicks of the tournament. The fast pace seemed to throw Wayne off his strategy at times, but not before scoring another three goals. Steve could only muster one more goal, and the match ended with the score, 5-2, making Wayne Smith the tournament winner. "It was another exciting game," Steve said afterwards, "but it was another loss. It wasn't my best game, but it was good. One of the best." Wayne concurred, saying "That was some fun."
RESULT: WAYNE SMITH wins 5-2 and becomes the OVERALL OPEN WINNER.
STEVE TUCKER secures SECOND PLACE OVERALL.
Group A
| Pos | Name | Pl | W | D | L | F | A | GD | Pts |
| 1 | Wayne Smith o | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 6 | 2 | 4 | 4 |
| 2 | Steve Tucker o | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 5 | 2 | 3 | 4 |
| 3 | Dominic Hutchinson m | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 7 | -7 | 0 |
o Players advancing to the Open knock out rounds
m Player advancing to the Mary Jane
| Steve Tucker | 3 | v | 0 | Dominic Hutchinson |
| Wayne Smith | 4 | v | 0 | Dominic Hutchinson |
| Steve Tucker | 2 | v | 2 | Wayne Smith |
Group B
| Pos | Name | Pl | W | D | L | F | A | GD | Pts |
| 1 | John Carroll o | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 4 |
| 2 | Kevin Nieman o | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 3 |
| 3 | Simon Hutchinson m | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 3 | -2 | 1 |
o Players advancing to the Open knock out rounds
m Player advancing to the Mary Jane
| John Carroll | 1 | v | 1 | Simon Hutchinson |
| John Carroll | 2 | v | 0 | Kevin Nieman |
| Kevin Nieman | 2 | v | 0 | Simon Hutchinson |
Open knock out rounds
Semi finals
| Wayne Smith | 2 | v | 0 | Kevin Nieman |
| Steve Tucker | 2 | v | 0 | John Carroll |
Third place
| John Carroll | 2 | v | 0 | Kevin Nieman |
Final
| Wayne Smith | 5 | v | 2 | Steve Tucker |
Mary Jane round robin
| Edward Nathan | 4 | v | 0 | Dominic Hutchinson |
| Simon Hutchinson | 2 | v | 1 | Edward Nathan |
| Simon Hutchinson | 2 | v | 1 | Dominic Hutchinson |
| Pos | Name | Pl | W | D | L | F | A | GD | Pts |
| 1 | Simon Hutchinson | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 2 | 2 | 6 |
| 2 | Edward Nathan | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 5 | 2 | 3 | 3 |
| 3 | Dominic Hutchinson | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 6 | -5 | 0 |