The first round of the league cup saw the Ironsides drawn away to Horsley. The Ironsides looked the better of the two teams for much of the first half, and were unlucky not to take the lead on several occasions, but some quality goalkeeping from the Horsley keeper kept the game level. The deadlock was broken in the first half when a Horsley defender was deemed to have pushed an Ironsides player in the box, leaving the Home team's dugout scratching their heads. Ernie Kendall scored the penalty with conviction, and the Ironsides went into half time 1-0 up. The second half saw very few chances, but a controlled display from the Ironsides. The game was halted by a horrific challenge on Roy Smithen, who was knocked unconscious for several minutes, before returning to his feet, eager to play on, but the Ironsides management thinking better of it. The referee deemed the challenge fair, and not so much as a free kick was awarded. A penalty miss from Horsley mid way through the half gave the Ironsides more confidence that they could see the game out, but in the last 15 minutes, a corner to the far post was headed back, and put in from close range to give Horsley a barely deserved equaliser. The introduction of Tony Eden and Paul Bussetti to the game didn't have a great effect on the overall performance, and in the dying moments of extra time, Theo Parker missed a great chance to give the Ironsides the win, but the game was ultimately destined to be won or lost on a penalty shoot out. Unfortunately, the Ironsides continued a remarkable run of never winning a penalty shoot out on Saturdays, and will have to look to the league and Surrey Cup for success this year.
For the record, I think it would be unfair to single out individuals in the team who put themselves forward to take penalties, but if you are interested in seeing Ian Peddle, Martin Taylor and Tony Eden embarrass themselves from 12 yards, or if you simply are looking to improve your penalty taking technique, and need advice on what NOT to do, the video of the shootout is available on YouTube on the Battersea Ironsides channel, accessed from the BIFC website.
