Absorbing first clash

A BEAUTIFUL late-summer's evening, the sweet smell of freshly-cut grass hanging in the air and a handsome quarter-moon rising from the east. The atmosphere at the Corbet Field was a little too surreal for a proper football match.

The fierce, electric atmosphere usually generated by Vale Rec and Sylvans was missing, along with well over a dozen first-choice players, at Tuesday night's Martinez Cup.

But despite the privation of skill and subtlety, there was still plenty to absorb the two camps and salient points for Ray Blondel to consider and for Tony Vance to pass on to Tristram Morgan when the latter returns from Australia a week tomorrow.

Vale followers must have been heartened by their team's performance. The champions were expected to be combative and organised; the competitiveness of their under-strength line-up was slightly surprising.

Vale's Jody Bisson was the more resolute of the two goalkeepers - the battle for the number one jersey between Matt Oliver and Paul Ozanne will be a compelling contest at St Peter's - and their centre half, Mark Elliott, was easily the best defender on the pitch. Winger Andy Chamberlain looked at his brightest and most dangerous since re-signing 14 months ago.

Had Morgan been there, he would have learned of the importance of John Nobes retaining his interest and enthusiasm. Though not yet, in my view, fully match-fit, Nobes, after 12 disappointing months caused by injury and a personality clash with Morgan's predecessor, Richard Packman, looked as strong and assured as he has done for a long time. Vance gave him back the captain's armband and that old confident swagger returned.

The promising form of Elliott and Nobes must have heartened watching island manager Steve Ogier, who could regrettably find himself phasing out veteran stopper Stuart Polson soon in view of the Northerner's injury problems.

As is the way of things in modern-day Guernsey football, the most disenchanting feature of the match was the scarcity of imaginative forward play and profligate finishing, although little Mark Ogier was troublesome enough to suggest a worthy summer acquisition and Neil Clegg, despite a series of rushed mishaps in front of goal, at least got into good positions and proved a popular target man.

Sylvans needed more punch, Vale lacked shape and neither side's passing was crisp or purposeful. It was, nonetheless, a good workout, a spar to raise expectations of perhaps an unexpectedly close title race to come.

At the end of 90 minutes, both teams appealed for extra time to be waived and for the match to go straight to penalties.

New Guernsey Football Association chief executive Mark Le Tissier refused to acquiesce and told the teams that they had to abide by the existing rules and quite rightly so.

And shock news: Mark's brother Kevin, football's most prominent loveable rogue, was in trouble with the officials in his first match as uncle Ray's new assistant.

Fourth official Geoff Ogier provoked Kevin's ire by insisting that only Blondel, as the 'nominated coach', was allowed to occupy the technical area in front of the Vale dugout.

I accept that Ogier was blameless and was merely applying the rule as it is laid down, but isn't it high time that the GFA reconsidered that crazy law?

Fifa drew up the technical area rule with the professional game in mind and it has no place at our amateur level. Application of the rule, which is so spasmodic and inconsistent as to be laughable, serves merely to infuriate assistant coaches.

I'm with you on this one, Kev. Brother Mark should be as well.