Marshall and Carter Keall send Vets to defeat

The 2008-09 season finally crawled to a finish as the Veterans completed their one remaining fixture, going down 1-4 to Spencer. To be fair, Spencer fielded more than a few familiar faces after struggling themselves to raise an XI, and we welcomed back former stalwarts such as Simon Marshall and Chris Carter Keall.

Spencer enjoyed more of the possession in the first half, although they failed to make that count in the final third, and it was against the run of play that Ed Breton gave us the lead. It didn’t last long, Spencer equalising soon after and then going ahead in bizarre circumstances five minutes before the break. A typically powder-puff shot from Marshall dribbled apologetically towards the goal, watched with interest by attackers and defenders who wondered if it would give up of its own accord before someone stopped it. As Pete Shanks prepared to end the farce by kicking it into kingdom come, Carter Keall, behind him in the goalmouth and nominally on the same side, called for him to leave. He did. So did Carter Keall. The ball puffed and panted its way about an inch over the line before expiring. Marshall had scored from a record distance of ten yards. Spectators headed to the bar.

In the second half we created no end of opportunities, most originating with Breton, but gilt-edged chances were spurned by Stuart Sleeman (whose chuntering against the umpire’s decisions included the justification "I’m a judge … I’m paid to be impartial") and Jon Gray.

For Spencer, Marshall showed superb pace, judgment, stick skill and awareness. Dan Marshall that is. His father, panting and clearly suffering, substituted himself shortly after half time and refused pleas to come back, preferring to lean on the fence and chat up the umpire's wife.

Marshall younger scored a third when Shanks, determined not to make the same mistake twice, made a different one instead, diving to keep on a ball heading off and allowing young Dan to slot home. A fourth was just salt in the wound.