Eaton Bray Lions AFC - End of Season Report 2005/2006

Posted on June 5, 2006

The final matches of the season were played in early May and the team managers have written end of season reports.

Under 9 Boys

This is the 2nd year the team have been together and on the whole another quite successful season. This year we took on 4 more players, so have had a big squad to choose from. We played in Div 2, after just missing out on qualification to Div 1. Our final league position was 5th our of 10 with a record of won 8, lost 9 and drawn 1. All the boys have played to the best of their ability, and we certainly have been involved in some great matches. I would like to thank all 15 boys for their commitment throughout the season, as well as the brilliant support from all our parents. All I can say now is that we are looking forward to September when it all starts again.

Adrian Bush - Manager

Under 10 Boys

The U10's played in Division 1 of the Chiltern Junior Sevens League which comprised 40 teams overall and four divisions. It was thus a superb achievement to finish second in the top division for the third consecutive season. Not only that, but we reached the Cup Final (where we were Cup holders) but sadly lost to Hitchin Town.

We may increase to two teams next season in the final year of 7-a-side or instead go straight to 11-a-side. We do need just 3 more players to achieve either option, so any year 5 boys (2005-6) who are interested would be most welcome. Please contact manager, Tim Sanders.

Under 12 Girls

Our first season as EB Lions only girls side, has been an exciting new challenge. We have come up against highly experienced sides and another start up team like ourselves, with mixed fortunes. Our high spot of the season was a thrilling 5-4 home victory over the then League leaders Leighton Utd with what seemed like most of the village watching and cheering us on. We finished 3rd place in our small League with the two more experienced and bigger clubs above us. At the end of the season, we can say we have learned a lot, improved considerably and can look forward to the new season with plenty of confidence. Not at all bad for a team of girls that had never played football before!

The team are looking for 2 or 3 new players for next season. Players need to have been born between 1.9.93 and 31.8.95. Any girls who are interested should contact manager, Julie Fox giving name, phone number, email address, date of birth and details of any footballing experience.

Under 12 Boys

This was our first season at 11-a-side and the team benefited from a hectic pre-season schedule to help us get to grips with the offside rule. A superb early run of results saw us top the league after the first third of the season, but once again we showed inconsistency with poor results mid-season.

Later we gained some great away wins and signed off with a home win which secured us a mid-table finish (7th in Division 4 of the Chiltern Youth League). This was a great achievement for our first season at 11-a-side considering our squad size and catchment area.

Vince Moriaty - Manager

Under 14 Boys

We started off strongly, winning our first match against Kempston Raiders. During the season we had a huge win against Bedford Grasshoppers and wins against Houghton Wanderers and Limbury Saints. The matches we lost were usually very close and we also drew two matches. We were encouraged to see how closely fought the matches were this year and have great hopes for next season. Unfortunately the attitude, enjoyment, abililty and commitment of the boys was not reflected in their league position (9th in Division 5 of the Chiltern Youth League).

Dave Kirkwood - Manager

Source: Focus, June 2006