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(Old Lady Submission) Team Reports Starting at the top of the club and despite some mixed results, the 1st XI (under the new captaincy of Ritchie Taylor) are currently a very credible third in their first season in the heady heights of the second division. They are certainly noticing a step up in calibre of opposition but some particularly strong home performances have helped them up the league in a year which started with survival as the number one priority. Cup success has been harder to find but the draws haven't been kind as they have faced last year's division one champions (Old Salesians) twice and lost out by a single goal on both occasions. It has been very much a 50/50 season for the 2nd XI (captained by Steve Pisano) so far this season as they have won five and lost five games without picking up a single draw on the way. To add some colour to the statistics, four of those five defeats have been by a margin of a single goal so a little more luck in the second half of the season is needed if they are to climb above their current position of eighth - especially in a year when three teams are set to fall to the third division. They have, however, made it to the quarter finals of the Surrey Cup so fingers crossed that the boys can make a final. 3rd XI captain (Ayyaz Ishaque) was targeting 20 points as the number needed to avoid relegation this year so you can imagine what an achievement it has been to have already accumulated 25 points at Christmas and to be sitting (not so) pretty at the top of the league. The biggest potential threat to their position is Ally Pally who currently have three games in hand and even in these early stages they look strong contenders to take the single promotion spot. But if the boys keep up this momentum going into 2004 then it might just be possible that we will have a team in the first division next season. The regionalisation of the 4th and 5th (which we voted against) hasn't gone particularly well for the lower end of the club as both teams have been placed in very strong leagues and look likely to step down unless they can string a few wins together in 2004. The 4th XI have won one, drawn one and lost eight whilst the 5th XI have not struggled with inconsistency as they have lost all eight of their league games this season. Despite the results, I am told that morale could not be higher and what they are currently lacking on the pitch, they are more than making up for in the bar afterwards. Off the pitch… Thanks to Ayyaz, the club hosted a very successful Horse Race Evening in November in Deacon's in the city which was both well supported and a lot of fun…especially for the winners. Special thanks go to John Hodges and Mr & Mrs James Taylor for their helkp on the night. The next event will probably be a Sports Quiz in the New Year so please make every effort to show your face and support your club. The club won an unexpected accolade last year as we were awarded the Ladbrokes Fair Play title. The award is a credit to the club so let's work hard this year to retain it. Looking forward to 2004 and thoughts turn to touring. The regular Easter Tour this year will be visiting the beautiful city of Madrid and Ayyaz is currently canvassing for tourists so if you haven't got your name down then I strongly advise getting in contact with him (ayyaz.ishaque@bankofengland.co.uk) and securing a place. The Bank will also be visiting Portugal later this year as the Central Bank's tournament (Eurofoot 2004) visits Lisbon in early July. The tournament is hot on the heels of the national Euro 2004 championships and the exciting news is that the semi-finals and final of Eurofoot 2004 will be played in the 65,000 capacity "Luz" stadium which will host the Euro 2004 final as well as England's group matches against France and Croatia. For further details on securing a place (current Bank employees only I'm afraid), please contact Peter Willsher (peter.willsher@fsa.gov.uk). Many people have noticed the lack of web-site updates this year which has occurred due to a number of reasons (which I shan't bore you with now) but it is hoped that the service can be resumed soon. In the mean time, league tables and fixtures can be found on the well maintained league web site (www.southernamateurleague.co.uk). That's all for this update so on behalf of the committee can I take this opportunity to wish you all a VERY MERRY CHRISTMAS and a PROSPEROUS (AND WINNING) NEW YEAR!
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