21/09/2026
⚽ Central Tornadoes U14s 3 v 3 DUFC Sharks U14s ⚽
After a midweek match against Central Scorpions, where the Sharks struggled to find their rhythm, we faced another tough game against another Central side!
The two games were like chalk and cheese! Today, we kept things simple and played some superb football. For the first 20–25 minutes, it was all Sharks! The kids were calm and composed on the ball, pressing from the front and playing some lovely football. We deservedly went 0-1 up through one of Oskar’s trademark 20-yarders!
As the half went on, the Sharks lost a bit of that composure and the game became scrappy and Central levelled for 1-1.
As always with the Sharks, the effort and battling were unbelievable, but Central had the better of the play towards half-time. On the stroke of half-time, they went 2-1 up. Really unfortunate.
The message at half-time was simple: get back to playing our football, keep the ball moving and focus on quick, one and two-touch passing.
Central started the second half strongly, but the Sharks gradually started to get hold of the ball again, with some lovely play out from the back!
Some smashing link-up play between Albs, Jay and Logan saw Logan loop a great searching ball over to Rocky, who burst forward, took one touch and struck a superb half-volley past the keeper for 2-2!
The Sharks continued to push and were dominating the play, but Central remained a threat on the break. With 15 minutes to go, they got the ball into our box and, despite the Sharks putting bodies on the line, the ball once again fell kindly for Central, who took the lead for 3-2.
Unbelievable character from the kids! They kept pushing, playing some great football and spending much of the final 15 minutes camped in Central’s half!
We created chance after chance, and with five minutes to go, we won a corner. The ball was whipped in, the keeper managed to get a hand to it, only to see Jack B come flying in at the back post to slot it home on the volley for 3-3!
The kids continued to push for the winner and were so unlucky not to take all three points, but we walked away with a well-deserved point against a quality side.
🏆 Player of the Match – Oskar
Scored a cracking goal, but his work rate in CDM was equally impressive! Some great tackling, quick passing and a real presence in the middle of the park throughout the game.
🏆 Parents’ Player – The Blaney Twins - couldn’t be separated!
Scarlett was defensively brilliant in the first half! At half-time, I asked her to try and release the ball a bit quicker from the back, and she only went and listened to me (proud coach moment 😂). She continued winning the ball back as normal, but added some perfect passes down the wing and through the middle. Brilliant performance!
Jack B was just an engine! Winning balls, being a menace, covering the whole pitch and never giving Central a moment’s peace! Topped off a superb performance with a lovely goal to level the game for the team!
A great team performance and a massive improvement from midweek! The football we played today was superb at times, but what impressed me most was the character the kids showed to come from behind twice and keep pushing for the win.
If we continue to play like that, we’ll give any team problems!
Well done, Sharks! 🦈
The Sharks are proudly sponsored by Cofton Holidays and Skinners Autos.
