JG writes: Last time I visited Wormwood Scrubs, it was to visit my son, on the first day of a two and a half year sentence for gentleman's fisticuffs at Tottenham-Arsenal. He told me he'd look out of the cell and watch the Sunday football spread out across the adjoining park and wish he was out there playing for Recreativo again. So it was with slight trepidation I walked up past the Victorian prison and onto the scarred muddy pitches, thinking about the boys banged up in there and appreciating the simple and relative freedom of driving across London to play a game of football on a freezing Sunday afternoon. Today's opponents: Bacardi Sagna in the Super Cup Quarter Final.
The opposition certainly worked out a lot quicker than us that the key to this game was to play the match on the flanks. That's where there was still enough grass to grip your studs into, stay upright and make headway. Otherwise, the pitch was a mud bath.
3-0 down after half an hour, we managed to pull back two goals (Joe H and Ben C getting on the score sheet) and downhill in the second half with the wind behind us, we made more of a game of it. Five minutes to go and renewed Recreativo pressure looked like a late equaliser was on the cards. However, a last minute opposition break resulted in another goal for Sagna. Game over.
Not the end of the world after another decent Recreativo performance. Plenty of new faces in the team and good vibes throughout. And at the end of the day that's what we all want. Still, a win wouldn't go a miss next game. Hard luck boys. Well played.
Team: Radu Atlas, David Perrett, Joe Dunthorne, Kelvin Brown, Jimmie Gregory (Paul Cowie), Ben Chambers, Tom Perrett (Mo Salam), Joe Haley, Aaron Gayle, Adrien Allio (Valentin), Dan Hare.