A Sunday In Swindon - Miracle Monks

After two consecutive postponements, The Monks were back in action this Sunday. But all was not well in the cloisters. Even Monks need to party from time to time and, with a number of players away on a Stag Weekend, along with two pulling out on Saturday night, manager Shaun Smith was left with a bit of a dilemma on Sunday morning. A starting line-up with seven changes from the last game, the 2-2 draw at Mario's and, to make matters worse, their opponents were table-topping Casuals FC who were coming into the game with a 100% record, not having conceded a single goal in their three games. A tall order.

Shaun opted for a change of formation to accommodate the players he had at his disposal.
The change worked to a certain extent. The game was close but Casuals took the lead, but The Monks persevered with their new formation and it paid dividends when Maher Ali equalised. With 5 minutes remaining in the half and the score still 1-1 goalkeeper Ben Pres pulled of a couple of "worldies" to keep it all square. Unfortunately, the saves weren't the only thing he pulled. His hamstring went with them, presumably because he didn't have his suspenders holding it together (see here for details), forcing yet another change. Luckily for The Monks they had another keeper in the squad. Step up the Karate Kid, Jesse Seward-Nice.

HT Casuals FC 1 Jovial Monk 1
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​The second half was end to end stuff (see, I told you to go and watch) and Casuals had a couple of chances repelled by the Karate Kid, including a one of one with the Casuals forward clean through but somehow Jesse managed to stop him and keep the score level. With 15 minutes left, more changes were required. Ellen De Generes (nee Keegan) came off with Josh Riggs, who scored twice against Swindon Wanderers in the Cup, going up top and The Gaffer coming on into the centre of defence. Casuals were applying plenty of pressure now but the makeshift defence, backed by the flying Karate Kid, were standing firm. Then, with 10 left on the clock, Robbi Ali got in on the act, slotting home to put The Monks in front. 1-2.
The Monks had to withstand plenty of Casuals pressure between then and the end of the game but with some sound game management they managed to pull it off.

FT Casuals FC 1 Jovial Monk 2.

A superb win for The Monks which sees them sit fourth in the table, now just four points adrift of Casuals but with a game in hand. Next Sunday The Monks entertain Purton Redhouse at Lambourn. The big question is, will the seven missing players from this week get their place back? There's only two places to find out. The first is to be at Lambourn Sports Club, Bockhampton Road, Lambourn, RG17 8PS at 10:30 on Sunday 24th October. #WatchTheMonks, the second is to tune in to this blog next week #ReadTheMonks