End of Year Awards and Wrap up 2012

The 2012 Season was a strange one- no cancellations, a raft of new players and the return of some older ones, a huge squad and yet we were scratching around for players in the end. We had our best finish in the league for 3 years, but still only just staved off relegation. It was our worst finish in the cup ever; still enough highlights  in the season to make it all seem worthwhile with the game against Meke which will go down in Salmon folklore as one of the great escapes. (If i ever get time ill recount the other great games in our folkore!)

The defining moments were the two night defeats against Naenae (5-0) and Petone (5-1). They were two lacklustre efforts immediatley after we had secured good victories- had we won them, and both games were winnable, we could have challenged for a top four finish. I say this every year but if we can reatin the same team, put in soem training and take personal responsibiltiy for fitness over the break - we could make a good fist of getting back into the top four, if not the top two and challenging for silverware next year.

Here are the Salmon season awards for 2012

Best ‘in game’ – Highest Scorers in MOM point system

Tie-

Richard Martin (10 pts)

Michael Ashby (10 pts)

Goal Scorers

Golden Boot

Craig Ireson-23 goals

Silver Boot

Matthew Fulton- 6 goals

Steve Westcott – 4 goals

Sam Mills – 3 goals

Danny Culling – 1 goal

Max Rashbrooke- 1 goal

John Hudson – 1 goal

‘Steve Austin Bionic Man’ award

To Callum; consistently the shortest man on the field and out jumping everyone & bonus points for his Naked 400 winnning exploits

Lisa Simpson award for Attendance

Tie: Matt Fulton and Craig Ireson- 17 appearances each

The Who is Max Rashbrooke award for rarest Salmon:
Max Rashbrooke (2 appearances, and these still netted a goal and some MOM points!)

Supporter of the Year

Kahu Kirikiri

Injured in the preseason Kahu came to two games, seeing us whip BNU and then reffed for us against North Wellington.

Best Opposition

Island Bay JJs

Hard and fair, two draws was a good result against them

Worst opposition

Really? Naenae were shocking-no nets, a ref who couldn't run, an assault, a sh*t ground, a dubious penalty in the last game- a horrible club. To be fair however they did react appropriatley against their guy who punched Ashby and that is to their credit, but last time we were on that ground Kahu had his ribs broken, so there must be something about them.

The young guys from Meke and North Wgtn were lippy and arrogant- what is about the youuth of today? Sam and Callum weren't like that however!

Game of the year

Winner

6-5 versus Meke

It had it all really, mutliple come backs- a 40 metre chipped goal, hissy fits, a penatly denied, poor goalkeeping and a cracking free kick- plus a Salmon victory!

Runners up:

5-1 vs Naenae

Probably the most consistent performance all year.

3-3 vs Island Bay

Many felt like this was a loss; in fact it was a very hard fought and well earnt 1 point.

Assist of the Year

Ashby's slalom run against Naenae which ended him tangling with the tackler, only to be punched in the jaw. The free kick was converted and Ashby played on. The assailant didn't.

Goal of the year

Craig's Free kick against Meke- OK the wall was poorly placed but it was a bullet drive from 25 yards which sealed a classic victory.

Runners Up

Fultons tap in header after a lung busting run vs Island Bay- great build up work from Callum, led to a great run and pinpoint cross from Steve W.

Craig's first of the season and the 2nd against Uni  at Melrose- Danny and Steve did all the work but the finish, a top of the box screamer was nice- it was only a consolation goal however

Steve W's aforementioned 40 metre chip from a throw in against Meke- great vision and it set us rolling on the 2nd half fight back

Steve W's scything run and shot vs Brooklyn- Craig set him off and he collected and lashed the finish just inside the box

& now for the big awards

Player of the Season
Richard Martin
Consistently one of the best players on the park from either team- his athleticism and attitude kept us in many games much longer than we should have been, and in many cases his heroics brought us home the points.

Runner's up
Callum Crane

The Tasmanian Devil was a standout at right back, showing great technique in tackling, heading and passing.

Michael Ashby
No goals but lots of hard running and positive attitude- plenty to suggest his best is still yet to come and that the elusive net will be found!

We used to have a most improved award, but some felt it was a kind of backhaned compliment, if we still awarded it i think it would go to Ashby.

Craig Ireson

23 goals from 17 games? A pretty good return. He set a few up too, only a few though.

Fresh Fish-Best newcomer

It was close and there were plenty of good newcomers this year; Steve W must also be mentioned for some great skill and power in midfield but over the course of the season it came down to:

Callum Crane

Runner's Up

Ashby

Steve Westcott

Sam Mills

Fulton

Spirit of the Salmon (tie)
Dave Armstrong/Adam Holloway
Runner's up
Richard Martin
Craig Ireson

Inaugaurated into the Order of the Salmon 2012- (Lifetime Membership)

Steve Jessup

2012 Awards-Brief recap

Another great night on Saturday (and another Father's Day spent nursing a sore head).

Special Mention must be made of the Tasmanian Tiger Callum Crane who went one better that Ashby's Silver in the Nudey 400 last year and won.
Thats right we have the fastest naked runner in the club- well done Callum

A full run down of team awards will be posted soon, but to recap the major awards:

Player of the Season
Richard Martin

Runners up
Callum Crane
Michael Ashby
Craig Ireson
 

Fresh Fish
Callum Crane

Runners Up

Ashby

Steve Westcott

Sam Mills

Fulton

Spirit of the Salmon (tie)
Dave Armstrong/Adam Holloway
Runners up
Richard Martin
Craig Ireson

Inaugaurated into the Order of the Salmon 2012- (Lifetime Membership)

Steve Jessup

Match Report- Cup Play off 2012

Capital Division Ten- Play off for 7/8 Places

Naenae Unify 3- Wellington United Salmon 3

(Half time 1-3)

Naenae Park

Scorer:
Craig Ireson (3)

MOM Points

Craig Ireson- 3 pts

Michael Ashby- 2 pts

Richard Martin – 1pt

SALMON SHARE THE SPOILS, AS RUBBISH PITCH RUINS THE LAST HURRAH

This was such a bizarre game it is worth writing up in full.

With the 22 man squad at full stretch salmon only just managed to field a fit 11 at game time, relying on ex-keeper Sami to take the gloves (freeing Rich Martin to mid field) and Sunday Blazer Mataio. With Dave Armstrong having to leave at half time to catch a plane to Auckland and James Stewart on injury watch, we knew from the outset 11 players wasn’t going to be enough.

Naenae Park had clearly seen better days, with three or four huge mud puddles in the centre, although the wings seemed in good nick. We got underway and made immediate headway down the left, with Ashby running smartly onto through balls from Sam, Mataio and Rich in the middle. It didn’t take long for the breakthrough, as the sticky pitch made it hard for Naenae to clear and Craig pounced on a loose ball just inside the box and chipped home over the keeper for 1-0.

The home referee soon evened things up when Naenae pushed down the right and into the box for the first time, the striker seemed to be clipped by Callum’s tackle and the penalty was awarded-although he himself admitted it was no such thing. The podgy striker made no mistake for 1-1.

But Salmon were on form- a Mataio through ball drew the keeper out wide and left, and Craig ran through to guide the ball into the empty net from 18 yards for 2-1.

Salmon were dominant now, especially down the left as Dave and Ashby kept working hard to create chances- Ashby had a great shot after a long run forward and earned a corner, and then soon after he scuffed a pass to Craig, and as the defence held off in expectation of the second attempt he chipped a great shot against the cross bar, surprising everyone.

Naenae must have sensed Ashby was the danger man because the next time he ran forward he was clattered from behind and, as he fell, he tripped his assailant. The red mist descended and what was an innocuous 50-50 became a serious assault- the guy jumped up and punched Ashby in the jaw; then stood over him like a maniac. All hell broke loose, but to the Salmon’s credit we kept it tight, and to Naenae’s credit they realised the severity and he was given his marching orders.

We made them pay immediately as the free kick was whipped in to the 6 yard box by Craig, and the keeper totally misjudged the speed, palming it into the net for 3-1.

With Dave due to fly to Auckland at half time we proceeded to try and make them pay but could not manage a fourth.

In the second half we started brightly again- Callum got goal side down the right and put some good balls across, Sam was played in a few times and Ashby kept up the running-Naenae pulled one back after about 20 minutes, it was well finished but was against the run of play.

When James pulled up lame after  25 minutes salmon lost all shape, on a normal pitch its hard to play with nine- on a quagmire its nigh on impossible. To our immense credit we managed to keep them out for about ten minutes but with ten to go they equalised and then we were just holding on-Their finishing was dire though-they had plenty of chances to win it. At the whistle it was 3-3 – if we had 11 men we would have trounced them, with 9 we only just managed to hold on.

Salmon finish 7th equal in the cup

Or last equal if your'e a pessimist.  A tough end to the year, we were scraping for players in the Cup and it showed, being held scoreless in the three round robin games and being beaten 1-0 by the fairly dire BNU Plague- The play off game was a mess- we staggered to a 3-3 draw with only nine players against ten man Naenae (They had a player sent off for assault- very Naenae). The way they played made you scratch your head at the fact that they drilled us 5-0 earlier in the season- how on earth we managed to let them do that ill never fathom.

Overall  a fun season- a reasonable finish in the League but a dismal cup-but the league was competetive and mostly close and, as always, the Salmon have potential if not the polish.

Salmon finish 6th in League

Salmon finish 6/8 in Capital Division Ten. A bit dissapointing as we were only about 4 points of finishing 4th, but a measly 6 points earned from the last 15 on offer meant the League run petered out.

Still having finished in the botton two in the previous two seasons, so at least there has been an improvement- and 17 points in total from 14 games is a lot better than the 11 we earnt last year.

4 match reports in one!

Mega synopsis of the last 4 weeks:

Waterside Karori Meke 7- WU Salmon 3

(Halftime 3-2)

Benburn Park, Karori

Scorers:
Craig Ireson

Matthew Fulton (2)

MOM Points:

Matthew Fulton (3)
Lane Nichols (2)

Tom Murphy (1)

Short synopsis

It was a chilling arctic wind and a waterlogged pitch which met the hardy Salmon who trekked to the cloud city of Karori for the rematch of the epic first round match in which Salmon snuck home with a free kick in the dying minutes. Alas, it wasn’t to be- despite taking the wind Meke got three early goals including an own goal from poor old James.

Salmon finally woke up with a tap in from Craig, set up by Mataio (our friendly ring in, now playing outfield as Richard Martin made a last minute dash to the game). The second was set up by Craig but finished off superbly by Fulton- 3-2 at the break- the second half stayed 3-2 for an age, but salmon struggled into the wind and failed to really penetrate. Steve Westcott made a mad dash to the line and was brought down but no penalty was given (Dave probably had sleet in his eyelids weighing them down). Meke scored another 4 and Fulton finished with a spectacular second from distance and a tight angle to pick up man of match. Had we started better and kept them scores in the first half then we could have won.

Naenae Unify 1- WU Salmon 4

(Halftime 0-2)

Benburn Park, Karori

Scorers:
Craig Ireson (2)

Steve Westcott

Matthew Fulton

MOM Points:

Louie McDougal-Moore (3)
Richard Martin (2)

Callum Crane (1)

Short synopsis

One of the games of the year- a rubbish pitch, no nets, a thrown together team and a biased ref in gumboots, but we played some of the nicest, most controlled footie of the season. Steve Westcott popped a ball over the top and Craig bet Sam to the ball, rounding the keeper to score after ten minutes. Then ring in Jonathon Hudson played a superb ball through for Craig to latch on and drive home for 2-0 at the break. Steve Scored a calm finish form the top of the box after 60 or so, then on a rare foray forward Naenae scored after Callum diverted a cross into the goal (and he played so well otherwise!) then Naenae came at us, but the defence was stout and measured. We broke away right at the end to win a corner and Fulton scored with his head with the last play of the game- A very good performance

Wellington United Salmon 1- Petone For Sure 5

(Halftime 1-2)

Wakefield Park

Scorer:
Craig Ireson

MOM Points:

Matthew Fulton (3)
Max Rashbrooke (2)

Richard Martin (1)

Short synopsis

Max’s debut and a good one at that- We were a bit rubbish early on again, and conceded a couple of goals to the old route one- then Lane failed to notice me hanging 5 metres off side so I got to score an off side one on one- Given how many times I am called up each season when on side I don’t mind taking the odd one like that.

What else? A game we could have won and they were definitely not 4 goals better, but good on them- they took their chances and wanted it more.

We went out for a few pints afterwards and Sunday was a long and far too bright day.

North Wellington 7 -Wellington United Salmon 2

(Halftime 5-0)

Newlands Park

Scorers:
Craig Ireson
Max Rashbrooke

MOM

Tom Haig- 3 pts

Stephen Jessup- 2 pts

Ashby-1 pt

The no nets thing must be catching! Any way they got them in the end and we were only delayed 20 minutes while we waited. Again this is a head scratcher- we played some very nice football but conceded 5 goals to their tidy forward ‘Jono’- The second half was ours, with a Craig poach from a keeper’s spill off Steve W’s long shot and a Max tap in form a double nutmeg corner- but them we conceded too late goals to blow the score out.

Again another game where we could have gotten a result if:

1.      We’d put away a couple more chances (Craig had two, Danny had one, Fulton and Ashby each conspired to miss the same chance!)

2.      Paid a bit more attention at defensive set pieces and eliminated silly errors along the back to make it more difficult for them to score.

In fact that’s the story of the season- compared to the past two years a HUGE improvement- but really we are left with what could have been. Just oen more win and draw would have seen us in fourth place, instead we are left once again just above the relegation zone.

We have tough cup draw (Norths, Meke, Plague) but have been the underachievers of the division I think- so time to toughen up and start achieving!

The cup is different- its one shot, and the game can change in an instance- the most important thing is to start well and make it damn tough for them to concede- oh, and Ashby- this would be a good time to get your debut goal mate!

Salmon avoid losing like the Plague

Wellington United Salmon 2- Brooklyn Northern United 1
Halftime 1-1
Newtown Park

Scorer:
Craig Ireson (2)

MOM Points
Adam Ray -3
Dave Armstrong 2
Callum 1

We won! Nuff Said? oh, alright- The Plague put up a pretty good fight, but were fairly toothless up front. We dominated and played nice football but couldn't put them away until about 12 minutes to go. it got pretty niggly becuase it was so close byt Dave did a damn fine job with the whistle, as well as putting a good shift in as left back in the first half. Both goals came from Craig- first was after their right back coughed up possesion (needlessly) after Ashby put him under some pressure- Craig pounced and driled the ball home. Second was via a long ball from Nic, which bisected the last man and Keeper- Craig took it off them and despite being fouled by the keeper managed to stay upright to prod home into an emptty net from 6 yards.

Overall a fun game BNU are good guys and came back for a beer in the club, but really we did it tough when we mostly outpassed and outplayed them.