NEXT MATCH:

Edmonton Rangers Summer Football Tournament

Sunday July 1st,

Oakthorpe School, Palmers Green

Meanwhile we continue training throughout the summer

Cup Final RECREATIVO U13s 0-3 Crown & Manor 25.5.12.

The Cup Final was to be our most difficult game of the season. Our opponents, Crown & Manor, are a formidable squad who annually fight it out for league winners and cup final medals. It would be a fitting contest to finish off the season - and whatever the score, we could hold our heads high after such a fantastic year.

The boys entered Market Road looking like real pros. Suited and booted like Reservoir Dogs. Already promoted and going into this game feeling unrestrained by nerves and tension, the lads simply wanted to enjoy this big occasion and still hopefully come away with some silverware.
Even though we were up against it, we went in at half time at 0-0. Superb defending, blinding saves and basic grit and determination kept us in the game. This was a proper cup final!

However all our good work was undone after the ref adjudged Sol to have pulled down a Crown attacker early in the second half and awarded them a penalty. They scored and the wind seemed to blow out of our sails. Despite a fight back, Crown seemed to be on top. Superior ball retention and passing won the day and another two goals meant that Crown & Manor would lift the cup once again.

And yet, despite the initial sorrow as we went up to collect our runners up medals, the boys began smiling again. They knew we'd given a decent account of ourselves and there would be plenty more games in the top league next season. And plenty of more chances to stay up amongst the elite teams in this league.
Hopefully, the whole evening became a memorable experience for our boys. It was heart-warming to see such a great turn-out as the boys were given their cup finalist and league winners medals. The lads should be immensely proud of all they have achieved this year.

Team: Milvydas Lukosius, Jaye Paul, George Wakefield, Sol Ruse, Waiel Hassan, Storm Gregory, Jaden Stephenson, Soulaiman Osei-Bonsu. Subs: Oisin Horgan, Ollie Goldblatt, Kobi Coker, Isaac Berck, Jermaine Mitchell.

End of Season Presentation 20.5.12.

We held our End of Season Trophy Presentation on May 20th. We had a fantastic morning, first a really good training session, then the U11s held the U13s to a 0-0 draw in a fiercely contested match. Our Kids vs Parents match resulted in a 2-1 win to the parents, many who will be going into work tomorrow feeling extremely sore!

As well as a trophy for every player we are delighted to announce our Parents' Player of the Season award, our Manager's Player of the Season award and our Players' Player of the Season award:

U11s Parents' Player of the Season: Ekow Coker

U11s Manager's Player of the Season: Ritchie Madden

U11s Players' Player of the Season: Cal Fitzgerald-McShane

U13s Parents' Player of the Season: Waiel Hassan

U13s Manager's Player of the Season: Jaye Paul

U13s Players' Player of the Season: George Wakefield

RECREATIVO U13s 0-0 Isledon Wolves U13s Challenge Cup (Recreativo win 4-3 on penalties) 4.5.12.

Togetherness. Team spirit. Determination. All this pulled us through an extremely tough semi final tonight and sets up a mouth-watering tie against Crown & Manor in the Challenge Cup Final. It tops a simply stunning season for our lads.

Isledon proved to be a brittle team to break down, especially when our star centre forward came off injured. However, Recreativo have displayed some true Hackney mettle of late and each and every player has performed to the best of their abilities.

After a pulsating match in which both teams showed true Cup spirit, the ref blew for full time which meant the tie would be settled with the dreaded penalty shoot out. Full marks to all the boys who volunteered to have a go!

We put away our first three penalties with aplomb, the Wolves keeper making a superb save on our fourth. Luckily they put their next one well wide. Jaden slotted home our fourth and Milvydas sent us into dreamland with a brilliant save! So that's it, we're in the Cup Final! And we plan to do this properly, shirts, ties and jackets and a pre-final night out. Who knows, show the same spirit as we did tonight and we might just sneak it....

Whatever happens from now onwards, it's been a brilliant season so far. Hats off to you boys!

Team: Milvydas Lukosius, Jaye Paul, George Wakefield, Jaden Stephenson, Waiel Hassan, Storm Gregory, Oisin Horgan, Soulaiman Osei-Bonsu. Subs: Kobi Coker, Isaac Beck, Ollie Goldblatt.

Angel Islington 0-1 RECREATIVO U13s 27.4.12.

Tonight we knew a point would be enough to win the Championship. It's been a long hard season for our boys down at the always freezing cold Market Road pitches. However, seeing the boys celebrate a win at the final whistle, spraying everyone with champagne, smiles and laughter, was worth all those wintry nights in the rain.

The boys will remember this night for a long time. Everyone has worked so hard this season.

It was an extremely tense game against a very good Angel Islington. And fair play to both their players and their coaches who shook hands at the end and wished us all the best.

Jaden unapologetically guzzled half the champagne at the final whistle, after his goal five minutes from time sealed a win for us and brought us the Championship. The parents felt the relief lift as the final minutes ticked away and finally saw us clinch the title after a solid Recreativo performance.

So that's the league over for this season. We now have a break this week before our semi-final in the U13s Challenge Cup.

A big thank you to the lads and also to the parents who have supported our club brilliantly. Recreativo FC....we salute you!

Team: Milvydas Lukosius, Jaye Paul, George Wakefield, Sol Ruse, Waiel Hassan, Storm Gregory, Jaden Stephenson, Soulaiman Osei-Bonsu. Subs: Oisin Horgan, ollie Goldblatt, Isaac Beck, Kobi Coker.

RECREATIVO U13s 1-1 Lyndhurst U13s 24.4.12.

Our penultimate league match of the season saw us play out a nervy, disjointed first half. Maybe it was the fact we knew a draw tonight was almost as good as a win, leaving us a point away from the title. But we will not speak about that any more until after Friday....

Tonight, we didn't really get going. Although, we took the lead (a fabulous strike from Waiel), we laboured through a first half looking like a long day at school had taken it's toll. However, Lyndhurst had their keeper to thank that we didn't grab another goal in the second half as he saved them on numerous occasions.

Lyndhurst struck back in the second half, a shot from way out that travelled as fast as a bullet into our goal, deflating us somewhat and giving them the lift they needed. A late scramble in and around the Lyndhurst box, but we couldn't get a shot past their excellent keeper. Still, a point was all we needed tonight, which sets us up nicely for a title-deciding game against Angel Islington on Friday.

Team: Milvydas Lukosius, Jaye Paul, George Wakefield, Jaden Stephenson, Waiel Hassan, Storm Gregory, Sol Ruse, Soulaiman Osei-Bonsu. Subs: Oisin Horgan, Isaac Beck.

RECREATIVO U11s 5-0 Chapel Boys 20.4.12.

The lads ensured a runners up place tonight after a 5-0 thrashing of Chapel Boys. What a superb way to finish the season, and boy, what a season it’s been! The brief was simple at the beginning of the campaign; stay in the A division if we could. But a few games in we realised we had one hell of a good squad, fighting tooth and nail, winning games and displaying some delightful football along the way.

We could not ask any more from our lads. They have been involved in some really tough games. But all have come through showing signs of becoming better footballers. We’ve certainly noticed improvement in all areas of the pitch.

Tonight’s game saw us smash home five great goals; a hat-trick for Ekow (reaching his season tally of 20) and a goal apiece for Felipe and Marlais. But it wasn’t just the goals that meant something tonight, as every player contributed to a superb team performance.

So that’s it for now. We plan a few more friendly games in the next few months and we have a great summer tournament to look forward to.

Well done Recreativo. Quite simply a brilliant season!

Team: Cal Fitzgerald-McShane, Jem O'Flaherty, Freddie Semper, Sal Whitehead, Ritchie Madden, Marlais Brown, Felipe Restrepo, Ekow Coker. Subs: Rory Hart, Aaron Benjamin, Stanley Billson-Smith.

RECREATIVO U13s 5-2 Regents Park U13s 17.4.12.

We have two more games left after this one and all talk of winning the title is banished as we concentrate solely on each game as it comes. Tonight, despite Regents playing some nice football at times, Recreativo took control. We were panicked before the game with both Storm and Waiel stuck in traffic on the way back from the golf driving range in Trent Park (a long story!), but the boys all put in another sterling performance. Waiel reached his 20th goal of the season with two strikes. Souliaman, Kobi and a brilliant effort from Oisin (with a low hard drive into the bottom corner), sealed the game for us 5-2.

Team: Milvydas Lukosius, Jaye Paul, George Wakefield, Jaden Stephenson, Waiel Hassan, Storm Gregory, Soulaiman Osei-Bonsu. Subs: Kobi Coker, Ollie Goldblatt, Isaac Beck.

Haringey Cosmos 0-3 RECREATIVO U13s 30.3.12.

A big bowl of pasta a few hours before the game was enough to energise our lads after seeing out the last day of school before two weeks of Easter holiday. We discussed the team line up as we scoffed down spaghetti, jumped into the car and headed for Market Road. Tonight's opponents, Haringey Cosmos, are new to the league, but can certainly give a decent account of themselves. However, we have hit a rich vein of form recently and extend our winning streak with one of our best performances of the year. It's taken a season of chopping and changing, but we've finally found a great balance to the team. Storm was our very own Scott Parker tonight, blocking, tackling and launching another forward move. Sol offered width and put in some great crosses before tiredness set in.

Yet from goalkeeper to Soulaiman up front, the boys didn't stop pushing forward, playing some scintillating football, forever moving, positivity flowing throughout the squad. Waiel got his 18th goal of the season, Kobi smashed home an absolute banger and Oisin sprinted into the Cosmos box to bury another with five minutes to go.
With Regents Park our next opponents, we are confident to keep this winning streak on track. Nice one boys!


Team: Milvydas Lukosius, George Wakefield, Jaye Paul, Sol Ruse, Waiel Hassan, Storm Gregory, Jaden Stephenson, Soulaiman Osei-Bonsu. Subs: Isaac Beck, Oisin Horgan, Kobi Coker.

RECREATIVO U11s 2-2 Isledon Wolves 30.3.12.

After a really great season, we are finally coming to the business end of the campaign. The flowers are blossoming, the leaves are bursting out of their buds and the summer isn't that far off. So we begin our final two games with a tough encounter against Isledon Wolves, and the fixture does not disappoint. Despite missing the ever hard working Sal (who's fractured a dreaded metatarsal!), the boys looked pretty solid tonight. Freddie has stepped up and made central defence his domain once again, which gives everyone a lift.

Marlais hustles and bustles and links up well with Felipe and Jem seems to get better and better with every game. And despite going 1-0 down, the boys keep pushing forward, resulting in a great goal for Ekow from a corner kick (in off his back?!).

We took a deserved lead in the second half, but had to settle for a point when the Wolves equalised from a corner with virtually the last kick of the game. Still, a win against Chapel in our final game will see us take runners up in the A division. Now, that would be a brilliant end to a fantastic season.

Team: Cal Fitzgerald-McShane, Jem O'Flaherty, Freddie Semper, Stanley Billson-Smith, Marlias Brown, Felipe Restrepo, Ritchie Madden, Ekow Coker. Subs: Rory Hart, Aaron Benjamin.

Islington Adrmiral Youth 0-1 RECREATIVO U13s U13s Challenge Cup 19.3.12.

Another proper football match, but a tense nervy finish that saw us defend a 1-0 lead and into the semi finals of the Challenge Cup. Up against a team from the top division, we can be rightly proud of the lads who played one of their best games of the season. Soulaiman led our attack tonight, and didn't stop running for the entire game, in a stand out performance.

Sol too, had one of his best matches, tearing up the right midfield and put in some superb crosses. His endeavour was rightly rewarded, Islington panicked into an own-goal after endless Recreativo charges.
There was a good balance to the team tonight, some exquisite passing and energy, with everyone involved, and of course some rock solid defending. Whatever the score, we are always happy that the boys put in so much effort.

And hats off too to our subs, who came on late into the game, slotted into their positions and saw out the remainder of the game. So it's into the semi finals! Get in there!

Team: Milvydas Lukosius, George Wakefield, Jaye Paul, Sol Ruse, Waiel Hassan, Storm Gregory, Jaden Stephenson, Soulaiman Osei-Bonsu. Subs: Isaac Beck, Ollie Goldblatt, Jermaine Mitchell.

Get Well Soon Fabrice Muamba!

Some of us were at White Hart lane this weekend and witnessed the dreadful scenes when Fabrice Muamba was carried critically ill from the pitch. Recreativo Football Club stand with the world wide football family in wishing a speedy recovery to this talented young footballer. Fabrice Muamba, our thoughts are with you!

RECREATIVO U13s 1-0 Hilal Rangers 13.3.12.

Winning the league, promotion, goals scored and against. Winning and losing. Sometimes it all becomes irrelevant. Especially when you reflect on what a golden time this is for our boys. They are hitting the teenage years, the final era before they go on to make something of themselves in the big bad grown up world. Whether they realise it or not, this is a precious time. Being part of the local football team and representing our community in fiercely contested football battles, sharing triumphant victories or painful defeats, will hopefully, stand them in good stead for whatever life throws at them in future years.

Football teaches our boys such valuable lessons for the future; team spirit and comradeship, fair play and friendship. Standing up and giving it your all, no matter what life throws at you. As our lads hit these tricky teenage years we hope football and keeping themselves fit will turn them away from booze and drugs. Blimey, it's going to be hard enough to motivate these boys to train when the girls are chasing after them!

Tonight's game was another tough test. Hilal Rangers had added a new group of players during the transfer window are certainly not the walk-over they once were. We took our full squad to the match so it meant a lot of substitutions, chopping and changing. However we were determined to give every one a game tonight and despite our disjointed performance we took the lead in the second half. Sol put in a great cross that Jaden bundled across the line. 1-0. Waiel worked every part of the pitch tonight, another stand out performance.

Despite an almost nervous performance, we took the three points by the skin of our teeth. We won ugly, but we did win. And despite the shaky nature of our victory, the boys left Market Road with their heads held high. Now, the journey home was a whole different story....12 of us packed into a van. We will save that yarn for another time. Well played everybody and well done!

Team: Milvydas Lukosius, George Wakefield, Jaye Paul, Ollie Goldblatt, Waiel Hassan, Soulaiman Osei-Bonsu, Storm Gregory, Kobi Coker. Subs: Sol Ruse, Jaden Stephenson, Oisin Horgan, Jermaine Mitchell, Isaac Beck.

RECREATIVO U11s 3-1 St Pancras 9.3.12.

We are under the floodlights once again, awaiting two players who are stuck in traffic, the ref's whistle at his lips ready to blow. Felipe and Aaron emerge from the darkness, coats and bags dragging on the floor as they race to ready themselves for kick off. We feel confident tonight and the lads get off to a great start with an early (own) goal to settle the nerves. 1-0 to Recreativo.

All the boys put in a decent shift as always, Felipe, Ritchie and Marlais passing the ball through midfield. Ekow's leggy runs scared the opposition and he capitalised on their errant defending and grabbed two well taken goals.

But our stand out player this evening was undoubtedly Freddie who kept their tricky attacker under wraps the whole game, standing up to his elbowing and pushing and snuffing out any foray he attempted into our half. Freddie will go on to be a great defender if he continues to put in the effort he showed tonight!
Overall, a fantastic win, that sees us move to second in the table. Well done everyone!

Team: Cal Fitzgerald-McShane, Stanley Billson-Smith, Freddie Semper, Jem O'Flaherty, Ritchie Madden, Felipe Restrepo, Marlais Brown, Ekow Coker. Sub: Aaron Benjamin.

RECREATIVO U13s 2-1 Angel Islington 5.3.12.

To be 1-0 down to the league leaders at half time (a team who haven't lost all season), yet to fightback and score two brilliant goals and take the three points, felt like quite an achievement. The boys can quite rightly take a bow tonight, showing a fierce determination to get back into this game and send us all home with huge smiles on our faces. It really was a game of two halves, the blustering wind against us and enabling Angel to boot the ball into our half and take an early lead.

Our pre-match team talk had suggested we ditch all thoughts of league standings, goal difference and the like. We asked the boys to remember why we play football. To enjoy it, to be involved in a passing game, to experience the thrill of moving the ball from one goalmouth to the other. And that's quite frankly what they did. Kobi came on at half time and began to enjoy the striker's role; holding the ball up, using his strength, bringing others into play. Ollie and Storm's passing from midfield kept Angel on the back foot. And as always George and Jaye shut everything as tight as a trapdoor throughout the second half.

Two goals for Waiel took his total up to 17 for the season and when the ref brought the game to a close, the Recreativo parents let out a huge cheer, having witnessed one of the best performances in the last few seasons. Next up, Hilal Rangers.

Team: Milvydas Lukosius, George Wakefield, Jaye Paul, Jaden Stephenson, Waiel Hassan, Oisin Horgan, Storm Gregory, Jermaine Mitchell. Subs: Ollie Goldblatt, Kobi Coker.