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All in all a very competitive game last night in Fermoy. It was a shame that the ref saw fit to get involved with the game as much as he did early on and a blanket approach to playing the advantage every time isn't always to everyone's liking. When that blew over the football ensued and to be fair to both teams they tried to play it right up until the final whistle. Both teams seem to have put a big effort into preseason and looked sharp fit and physically very capable but like ourselves Fermoy looked short of a few players. Whats been very noticeable this season is that there is no real mid table status about the MSL Premier and there will be a lot of teams that will take points of each other. Home advantage and as many 3 points at home will be crucial throughout the season for a lot of sides. Apart form Avondale who seem to tick all the boxes there will be points there for clubs to pick up and I can the the bottom half of the table being very tight and depending how perennial nearly men Mayfield, along with UCC and Corinthians fare against the lesser sides as such this season its an added dimension to the league itself. There seems to be a lot of transition this year at some clubs such as the Hall, Everton and Midleton and maybe this transition could play a part who knows. Mick Devine looked very solid last night and was able to take the sting out of the game when we were pressing late in the second half. Both sides had chances with both enjoying good possession but Fermoy did look a bit jaded towards the end. Mick pulled of 3 great saves in the last 15 minutes and was very instrumental in the final stages of the game. In fairness to the ref he ensured changes to be made quickly throughout and never let the game die as a contest which can happen in preseason a lot. Both teams mixed it well throughout the game and both were guilty of the odd heavy handed tackle but nothing to much to worry about. Technically I think we looked very comfortable on the ball and moved it very well when we needed to. Fermoy did lose shape the odd time when the ball was played but id say lack of game time and the few changes made exacerbated that to an extent. Leeside as a club are progressing and learning as they go with the encouraging aspect of it all is that everyone at the club are buying into the new ethos and proving very fast learners indeed. Big changes are taking place in terms of personnel and club structures and its an exiting time and its great to be part of it. Every fixture we play against good MSL premier teams helps us get used to the physical and technical demands of the long season ahead. Very few teams will enjoy coming to little Island this season and like most clubs if we can get our heads around travelling I expect us to do well. A few more additions are needed and some have already been added today but the club are on the lookout for a few more technically minded players having lost 2 to UCC recently. We hope to add a bit more depth to the squad prior to the league campaign and our ethos and style of play is helping us make fans and attract the right sort of player needed at the club.We see the Keane cup as a way of looking at these players and if suitable helping them bed into the squad. All in we are looking forward to the season ahead and with the 2 or 3 more addition planned we'll be a real handful.
Originally Posted by zicorossi
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