Nomads leave Kettering with no place to go

"Be physical" was the message of Grant Carlin and Andy Sellers' pre-match talk, "don't be nice, make sure your basics are good and we'll get a result." Yet, a 5 - 2 defeat to a poor Nomads side was to be the result of the day; Kettering's performance certainly left something to be desired.
Kettering took the lead quickly, though. Captain Grant Carlin's quick thinking from a free-hit led to the ball being passed around the Nomads keeper for a 0 - 1 advantage within minutes. However, the lead wasn't to last, as Nomads equalized from a counter-attack, which overloaded the Kettering defence. This was to be a recurring theme throughout the game, as Kettering's ball retention was poor all over the pitch and Nomads were always quick to take advantage. Meanwhile, Kettering looked sloppy. Half the team seemed to prefer attempting to stop the ball on their weak side; Sellers threw an ariel straight into the opposition dugout and the away team only won one short corner - to no outcome. Even though Cambridge were hardly world-beaters, Kettering looked worse. Gone was the intensity from last week. A third goal by the home team - a reverse stick to the near-post - wasn't the end of the barrage. The fourth and final home-team goal of the half came just before the whistle. 4 -1.
A change of ends and firm words from the more experienced players brought a better second half. That being said, Cambridge struck first, deep into the half after a long spell of end-to-end play. The scorer was gifted all the time in the world to pick his spot from the top of the 'D' and he stuck the ball in the top left. More end-to-end play allowed Kettering to be patient, with some good transferring and build-up play that will serve the KM1s well throughout the coming season. Kettering's second goal came from Carlin taking a free-hit quickly again, delivering the ball to Jacob Tattershall, who provided the assist for Lewis Pywell's tap-in. The game petered out, ending at 5 - 2.

MoM: Grant Carlin

DoD: Matthew Coe (for allegedly shouting "come on then" immediately before conceding the third goal - which didn't happen)