Match Commentary

Staff vs. Postgrads vs. Undergrads

Chemistry 5-a-side Challenge Cup - Wednesday 10th June 2009

By Tom Leonard

The Sports Hall was set alight with skill and unskill, finesse and unfinesse, as the staff, postgrads & undergrads locked horns for the inaugural 5-a-side Chemistry Challenge Cup!

With a rather overpowering smell of gloss still drying on the back of the numbered shirts the games began with Arselona of the staff coming from 2-0 down to sink Dyslexics United 3-2...there were huge cheers, groans & howls all round!

The second match saw the sleeveless Sturm Grads torpedo Academico Madrid 4-1. Grads-Hoppers Zurich, started impressively, again at the expense of Dyslexics Untied, who were knocked out of the tournament after a 5-2 defeat.

With both pitches now available the atmosphere was electric...the 4 fans who had turned up to watch certainly thought so!

A closely fought 2-2 draw between Barely Utd & Sturm Grads ensured Semi-Final progress for the latter, though Barely Utd grabbed top spot thanks to some free scoring against Academico Madrid in their final group game!

Finally in Group A, Arselona were thrashed 11-3 by Grads-Hoppers in the last game, both having already qualified - one team setting down a marker, the other conserving energy!

The Semi-Finals were tense affairs & Sturm Grads crumbled under the pressure, 5-3 the final score, Gradshoppers Zurich controlling the ball far better & taking any chance on goal! In the other semi final, the superior conditioning of the staff team won out over the knackered Barely United undergrads 4-1. Indeed, Arselona had put together some nice combinations in their game time, Adrian Mulholland & Craig Butts proving the perfect poachers following up Craig Murray's battering ram shots!

And so the final, Grads-Hoppers Zurich Vs Arselona...would it be as non-competitive as their previous meeting?...well, not quite, the staff battled hard, scored one, however 7 disappeared into their net & when the final whistle came everyone was glad of a much needed breather!

It was a good night & all concerned look forward to doing it again in the Autumn Term!

Cheers to all that made it such a success!