This was the last game of the First Phase and it brought Cines IMF to La Marina, a pitch which seems to be turning into the home ground of Bonus Weeks even though they are supposed to be based on the astro-turf of Albir. Well done to the League for finding another way to make things as difficult as possible for Bonus Weeks to play good football.

With Rich Billam, Chris Griffen, Ross Musk and Adam Musk all away, Dave Mold suspended and Carlos Parkin ( hamstring ) and Lawrence Mentesh ( groin ) injured, Bonus Weeks drafted in Wayne Notman in net and welcomed Paul Smith into the squad for the first time this season.

It was a warm and sunny start to the match but the atmosphere changed for Bonus Weeks after 20 minutes when the No.10 of Cines IMF struck a fantastic shot from fully 35 yards out which swerved enough in the air to completely wrong foot the keeper. It was an unstoppable first goal of the game and it rattled Bonus Weeks a little, but despite Cines IMF playing some good football Bonus Weeks were more than a match for them, they held firm at the back and crafted several chances themselves, the best in the first half being a dipping volley over the crossbar from Mark Dooley and a shot from Adam Wilson which beat the keeper but also beat the outside of the right post.

However, the biggest talking point of the first half was the inexplicable actions of the referee. Lee Frape was elbowed in the face in his own box by a Cines IMF player, the referee started to make his way to the culprit and began reaching for his cards. However, the Cines IMF player that he should have booked instead said something to the referee. The referee then turned around and ran back up the pitch past the half-way line towards Adam Tauber who was lying on the floor after being kicked on his ankle. Amazingly, the referee then showed the yellow card to Adam who was absolutely dumbfounded as to why he was booked. The referee could not possibly have seen any incident himself as he was facing the other way when whatever happened happened. In other words, he completely let off the Cines IMF player who should have received at least a yellow card and instead booked an innocent Bonus Weeks player based purely on what the opposition player had told him. Scandalous is the only word I can use, I would like to use the one that begins with ‘c’ and ends in ‘heat’ but accusations of that nature will only taint our Team even more even though they may indeed be totally justified.

Is it any wonder that the English players lose their heads when they are faced week in and week out with such blatant favouritism to the Spanish Teams? We do need to improve on our discipline and stop rising to the bait, but the referees need to be stronger and not be so easily duped by the opposition who deliberately target our players.

So, the second half was looking to be another uphill struggle, but Bonus Weeks did manage to create several more chances but just could not get any of them to land on target. They did manage to bundle one goal in from a corner but it was rightly disallowed for a bit of pushing and shoving in the box beforehand.

It was therefore looking like the one goal would be enough for Cines IMF, but Bonus Weeks were finished off by a harshly awarded penalty which was duly converted by the Cines IMF No.10. With about 15 minutes left there seemed no way back for Bonus Weeks, and eventually their frustrations at the refereeing came to a head when Adam Tauber had a peck at an opponent in the 85th minute, leaving the referee with no alternative but to give Adam his second yellow card of the game and dismiss him from the field.

It finished 2-0 to Cines IMF, which to be honest, flattered them as Bonus Weeks battled well for at least a point. However, their biggest enemy is still contentious refereeing but Bonus Weeks are also guilty of re-enforcing their bad reputation on the pitch by letting their frustrations get the better of them on too many occasions.

The Second Phase begins next week, and, as Bonus Weeks will be in Division 2, maybe some better results early on will help them to get on with their football and stop them getting drawn into unnecessary flashpoints.

update van woensdag 12 december 2007  

Click on FCO Bonus Weeks for the games report.