T
he Under 15s found
themselves up against a
Malvern team that had played
together for a year already, so
it was always going to be
tough for this inexperienced
King's side. But there were some excellent
individual performances, particularly from Ryan
May, Archie Watts and Francesco Roggia.
Connor McKenna was man of the match for his
outstanding game in goal - Ryan May was the
King's goalscorer.
It was a much improved performance against
Wycliffe, and we were unlucky to trail 2-0 at
half-time, having created good chances for
Ryan May and Jack Ferguson. Jonny Parsons'
long-range effort was tipped onto the bar and
we missed a penalty before Wycliffe added a
third. We clawed two goals back through
Parsons and Archie Watts, but couldn't find an
equaliser, and Wycliffe broke away to score a
fourth two minutes from time.
It was a committed display against Monmouth
that showed commendable spirit in conditions
that made our normal passing game all but
impossible. Up against well-organised
opposition in their second season together, we
battled hard and competed well all afternoon.
The following week we enjoyed our first win in
the Mercian League, a victory against Clifton
that we achieved in great style, scoring two
early goals to take a well-deserved lead.
Clifton responded from the penalty spot, but by
half-time we led 3-1, and we went on to
dominate the second half, scoring two further
goals, Jonny Parsons ending with a hat-trick.
In the first half against QEH Bristol we struggled
to cope with strong opposition, but after the
interval it was a much improved performance,
and a goal from Jonny Parsons saw King's take
the second-half honours, with Connor McKenna
making a string of excellent saves.
In our final match we allowed a confident
Marlborough team to establish a comfortable
lead early on, which meant we were always
playing catch-up. In the second half we
tightened our defence, and scored two good
goals through Jonny Parsons and Conor
McAndie.
The Under 16s had two matches, losing early
on in the season to Blundell's, and then
suffering a rather heavy defeat on the last
Saturday of term to Marlborough. Aluredian
81
Under 16s & 15s
Round-up
For the girls, September 2009 saw success in the inaugural Independent
Schools FA Girls' South West six-a-side, hosted by King's, with the Under
15s winning their age group, and the Under 18s competing well.
Off the pitch King's footballing brothers Joe and Archie Watts attended the
Independent Schools Leadership Camp at St Bede's School, Sussex. Both
found the experience challenging and informative and have put some of the
skills learnt to good use back at King's.
The 2010 campaign marked the end of an era for King's College football with
the retirement of Dr Brian Lewis after 36 years' involvement at every level of
football at King's. His calm yet effective motivational team talks inspired
players to achieve, and his touchline presence, camera at the ready, will be
missed.
Jonny Parsons outpaces the
opposition during the Under
15s' 5-1 win over Clifton