Mighty Shane 2-2 B52 Carnegies
In the blistering Taipei heat, Shane recovered from the opening day defeat and put in a strong performance to draw 2-2 with B52.
First half: control without a cutting edge
Shane started the stronger side, putting together numerous exciting attacking moves to threaten the B52 backline.
What was missing was a cutting edge.
The sides went in 0-0 at the break, but Shane were encouraged by their control of the game. That came largely from their dominance in midfield and their ability to break quickly.
Second half: a setback and a quick response
The second half soon brought a setback. A neat through ball put B52 in on goal, and they took a 1-0 lead.
It was a lead they barely deserved, and Shane were not deterred.
The equaliser came on 58 minutes. Midfield debutant Robin picked out fellow debutant Daniel with a smart ball. The winger showed quick feet to round two defenders, then curled an accurate finish into the far corner.
Taking the lead
Buoyed by the goal, Shane pushed on. And just three minutes later they took a deserved lead.
Breaking quickly on the counter yet again, Oli dribbled from the halfway line and committed the last defender before slotting in Ethan.
He took the ball in his stride and finished confidently, giving the keeper no chance.
The sucker punch
Shane were in control and playing with confidence. The sucker punch came soon after, as B52 scored against the run of play again and finished ruthlessly.
Shane pushed for a winner but couldn't quite finish B52 off, and had to settle for a draw.
It wasn't quite the result we wanted, but it was a very good performance overall and a huge improvement on the loss to Red Lions.
Player of the match
Daniel Boyden had a debut to remember.
He scored a fantastic goal and was the most dangerous player on the pitch, consistently beating defenders and opening up space going forward.
Special mentions
Ethan continued to impress in his new role up front. He scored with an excellent finish and worked hard to get into good positions throughout.
The other three debutants, Michael, Seb, and Robin, all played very well.
They contributed in defence and midfield and have already proved themselves valuable first team players.
They cut out numerous opposition attacks and were composed on the ball, launching counter attacks with accurate passes into midfield.
Looking forward
There is plenty here to build on. The weather will only get cooler from here, which should help us see out games like this one, and we still have players to come back from long summers off.
Keep performing like this and the results will follow.
Up the Shane.
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