football rambles

 This was another good performance that could have easily been turned into 3 points by the home team against a strong Wroxham side, who are doing pretty well in the league. Both sides had plenty of chances in the first half, but it was Wroxham who struck first with a goal from Asa McGeachey on the 23rd minute. It was a pity as Downham had been playing well and passing it around with confidence in the first half. Up front Charlie Royle was causing all sorts of problems for the Wroxham defence, with him back in a wide position rather than the more central position he's been playing lately. It was Royle who equalised on 34 minutes with a fantastic strike from distance that gave the keeper no chance. The second half saw chances few and far between with both sides cancelling each other out. One positive is that in this game Downham held their own against one of the stronger teams in the division and this came on the back of a win away at Stanway on Saturday.  

 A bright day for November saw us take a trip to the seaside to see Heacham take on Soham Town Rangers in the Eastern Counties League. A trip to the beach, followed by some excellent brewed on the premises beer at the Fox and Hounds (a rum infused bitter and a samphire infused stout) was followed up by a trip to the game. Going into the game Soham were on a rich vein of form and they seemed to have brought more fans than Heacham, who are struggling at the end of the table. In the opening encounters Soham seemed more up for it, but Heacham seemed to be playing the ball around with more aplomb. However, there was a feeling of inevitably when Soham took the lead through Taffari Passley after 10 minutes. Heacham fought back though and just before the half hour mark Toby Hilliard levelled things up from a corner. The rest of the half was end to end stuff, but chances were few and far between. Heacham came out firing in the second half  and were on top for most of it as Soham grew m...

 It hasn't been an easy start to life for Downham in the Isthmian Division 1 North, so when they took on Tilbury on Wednesday night, it really was a bit of a six pointer as Tilbury are also struggling at the wrong end of the table. Downham started off shakily and were under pressure for the first 15 minutes. However, they grew into the game and a couple of tougth tackles from Jake Miller, who returned to the team laid down a bit of a marker. For the rest of the half Downham were the dominant team, however a questionable penalty on 37 minutes saw them back on the back foot as Tilbury took the lead. Downham came out firing in the second half and with better finishing could have been ahead before Owain McQuaid fired in an equaliser with a decent half volley with 30 minutes to go.  Downham continued to give a spirited performance and were unlucky not to make the pressure count. Despite the number of injuries and the fact that the majority of the players are playing at a much highe...

 The two teams went into the game yesterday having been on very different runs of form. Gorleston had won 3 of their last 4, whereas Downham had lost their last 5 games. Downham had also been forced into making 7 changes for this game, whereas Gorleston remained unchanged. Therefore, I went to the game with quite low expectations of a home win. However, Downham started off lively enough and created most of the chances and looked the most likely to take the lead in the opening 15 minutes. Nevertheless, you know how it works when your the off-form team against the on-form team - and Gorleston took the lead through Joe Marsden on 17 minutes. The rest of the first half was a bit of a damp squib. Downham pressed but with three short and slight forwards against a tall strong Gorleston defence were unable to put enough pressure on to create any meaningful opportunities. The second half saw Downham come out firing and they created some good chances, but still suffered from a lack of streng...

.... and at the end there are a few more homages to PSG heroes and obviously being the current Champions of Europe - the Champion's League Trophy.

 The next part of the tour takes you through the back rooms of what goes on at PSG including the places where the TV commentators hang out; the medical room; the changing room and the media room. You also get to go down the tunnel and experience what it is like to come out on to the pitch at Parc De Princes.