Having drawn against Benson the previous week, Grove Challengers White Under 10’s team had a lot to do to prove that they had what it takes to step up to the Challenge. With new players integrating with existing ones, and a sloping pitch at the Summertown Tigers’ home ground, this promised to be an uphill struggle.

The game started well - the ball stayed firmly in the Summertown half, with William Humphries and Thomas Hannaby crossing shots into the penalty box at every opportunity. Everyone could feel a goal coming, and it wasn’t long before Harvey Stilwell crossed a nice ball over to Thomas, who then crossed it straight onto William, who planted it in the back of the net. It was only another few minutes when another superb cross from William to Ben Hartle gave Ben the opportunity to secure his first goal ever in a league game, much to his parents’ delight. Later in the game, Thomas was brought down in the goal area and Grove was awarded a penalty; William put the ball on the spot and took five steps back………the Ref blew his whistle and, with a power strike straight down the middle, William secured his second goal of the game leaving the Summertown Goalkeeper on the floor. The score was 3-0 and Grove piled on the pressure with Ben creating ever more chances. With barely three minutes left on the clock, Summertown came back breaking through Grove’s Midfield, but defender Jackson Cook closed in on the Summertown striker, took the ball away and kicked it decisively into the Summertown half, where it found Ben waiting in position; Ben turned on the spot and slipped it past the keeper to get his second goal. With the clock ticking on the first half, Grove’s play came together as defender David Gregory passed the ball to Harvey in midfield, who in turn passed it to Thomas who went through all the opposition players to flick onto William who scored a well-deserved hat trick just before the half time whistle blew. The First Half finished 5-0 to Grove The second half gave a slight advantage to Summertown as the pitch sloped downhill to the Grove goal, but the ball remained stubbornly in the Summertown half. Thomas, who had been itching to get on the score sheet, had his chance when a corner taken by Ben floated into the box and, with a glancing header, Thomas put it in the top left corner, well out of reach of the goalkeeper. There followed a dangerous moment as Sunmmertown broke through Grove’s midfield. Again, Jackson closed down the striker and cleared the ball, only for Summertown to strike from the rebound, leaving Grove Keeper Toby Brady to come off his line and sweep the ball up safely.

The rest of the second half continued with Grove dominating the game and it wasn’t long before Thomas scored another, and created another chance for Ben to score his hat trick of the game. The game at this point stood at 8-0 which was testament to David and Jackson providing a solid defence and Thomas, Harvey and William sweeping up the midfield. The last two minutes of the game ended with a flurry as William scored two more goals before the final whistle. The game ended with a final score of 10 – 0 to Grove Challengers White.