The squad for our first Risden Wood 11-a-side Tournament match this coming Sunday at the Met. Police Ground in Chigwell is as follows: A.Keeper !, Stuart Dorward, Paul Woolston, Steve Cokell, Paul Ellerker, John Beasley, Eric Ibekwem, Chris Akinrele, Nick Vertigans, Tony Speller, Vernon 'Kizza' Nxumalo, Colin Bester, Foysol Ahmed, Tem Adil, Chris Morrish, Anthony 'Ant' Roberts, Myron Mc,Kay & Gary Cokell.

The Tournament rules are that a maximum of seven substitutes can be named (and used), although it is NOT 'roll-on, roll-off' as in our 7-a-side matches.
Even though we only have enough shirts for five substitutes, we have named a squad of 18 in case players have to drop out on the morning of the match. If they all turn up and one or two players end up not getting a game, we will make sure they are named in one of the 7-a-side squads the following week (subject to availability).

There is also a Player Registration rule which involves a list being sent to the organisers seven days before the date of the match of all players we wish to use in the Tournament, although new signings can be added with four days notice for subsequent matches after this one.

At the moment, we have no goalkeepers available whatsoever for this match as Simon Jackson has to go to a Christening (although he was initially supposed to be playing cricket for Radlett in the next round of the Evening Standard Trophy anyway), Darryl Johnson is still having to work every Sunday and Russell Beeden will be up in Manchester for four months from this Sunday onwards...not that he would have gone in goal for the First Team anyway ?. We have contacted our former keeper Shaun O'Neill, who now plays in Senior Saturday football only for Sawbridgeworth Town in the Essex Senior League, and he is happy to help us out for our Tournament matches that are being played in Harlow (which is where he lives), but not for any games in Chigwell (due to family commitments in the afternoon). The only other possibility is to try and get Everest's goalkeeper from last season to play, and we are currently working on that. Hopefully it will not end up with an outfield player being forced to go in goal, but Gary Cokell has been named in the squad ahead of others just in case that happens.

As for outfield players who are unavailable, Terry Moore cannot play as it is his Work Golf Day, Conor Mc,Govern will still be on holiday, Andrew Warmerdam has family commitments, Derek Dorward is working, and Robin Pryke has now confirmed that he will not be risking his dodgy ankle in this Tournament and will not play again until September at the earliest. He will be seeing a 'specialist' about this long-term problem shortly.

If any players drop out of the squad of 18, the following players will be named as replacements (in order of preference): Chris 'Nugget' Beeden (If he is not visiting his girlfriend in Portsmouth), Daniel George, then any other Reserve Team players who may be available to help out at short notice.
We will not be able to use any more new players for this match who decide to join us between Monday 11th July and the date of this game because of the Tournament's 7-day player registration deadline.

Please note that this game is a 10.30.a.m. kick-off, so we want all players to arrive at the venue by 10.00.a.m. at the latest.
If you are NOT making your own way there, please meet at the Southbury Leisure Centre at 9.15.a.m.

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I'll do my best to get there. I probably won't know until Sat pm. Iwill call you to confirm.

Myself and Ant Roberts will be there.

Regarding the goalkeeping situation, I will e-mail Shaun to see if he is prepared to play at the last minute if Darryl cannot play, but when I spoke to him last week he said that he would only be able to play in our matches in Harlow because Chigwell is too far away from where he lives and he has family commitments in the afternoon (or the wife needs the car ?)

I spoke to Gary Cokell last night who said he would go in goal if we cannot get a proper keeper, but then he may have to work on Sunday himself.
We definitely do NOT want another situation where certain outfield players decide not to play on Sunday in case they end up in goal.

In the meantime, I would therefore advise Stuart to try and find out if Danny Cole (Everest's keeper from last season) is registered to play in the Tournament for anyone else, and if he is not, whether he would be interested in playing for us (at least in this Tournament). I have put his name down on our registration sheet just in case, but I have NOT put down Colin's mate ('Oz') who played 7-a-side last night.
Danny Cole is NOT registered with Broxbourne Athletic, but he may well be for either Goffs Oak (a Saturday side) or The Wheatsheaf, who are also both in the Tournament.

I had a chat with the Broxbourne Athletic Manager yesterday and he told me that the only ex-Everest players they have signed up (to play for them in the Tournament and in Division Six next season !) are Richard Bates, Paul Morrison, Bobby Randall and Karl Randall.

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I CAN DEFINATLEY MAKE SUNDAY!

Excellent !

I didn't get round to e-mailing Shaun anyway.
Been too busy this morning getting some work done for a change !

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