By Gavin Lennard

Both clubs had been looking forward to the inaugural league clash between their respective sides and Ruts manager Brian Kerwick was fully aware that Shalford were a strong, creative side who finished a very credible 4th in the SILW Premier Division during the last campaign.

Kerwick had been pencilling in and amending his team sheet regularly ahead of this match as he was forced to prepare without many of his regular players owing to Scott Ryder’s wedding (which we are pleased to report went very well!)

The opening exchanges of the match were relatively even before Shalford took the lead on 13 minutes. A well delivered corner was met at the far post by a firm header from Shalford’s Arthur.

During a bright spell midway through the first period the Old Ruts created four good openings in succession. Firstly Lee Poulter rose superbly to meet a cross and was unlucky to see his header narrowly miss the target. Unfortunately for Poulter he also injured his neck in the process and despite forcing Shalford’s keeper Coles into action with a fine shot five minutes later he then had to be replaced by Kevin Foster on 35 minutes.

Shortly after Andy Flanagan created space in the Shalford area and having turned cleverly saw his shot well saved.

Foster then had a 25 yard effort turned away for a corner by Coles and here ended the Ruts most prolonged creative spell of the match!

Within minutes a Ruts attack was thwarted and as play rapidly switched to the opposite end of the field young Tom Hughes pulled his opponent's shirt in the area. referee Dominic Spena pointed immediately to the spot and Shalford’s Muirhead promptly converted the resulting spot kick, leaving the Ruts with a 2–0 deficit at the interval.

Overall the second period passed with less incident. Ruts keeper Matt Bramley was forced into making the occasional save, although the Ruts rarely mustered any serious threat towards the Shalford goal.

Ruts Manager Brian Kerwick was quick to acknowledge his team’s work ethic, first class commitment and strong determination (well done lads you, were all a credit to the club). Despite the defeat, and perhaps ironically, Kerwick may have created a few selection dilemmas for himself during the process as a number of the players impressed.

Well done too to Shalford on their victory – I am sure both clubs will look forward to the return fixture at Poplar Road later in the season. The Ruts can now set their sights firmly on the 25 remaining league fixtures.

By Phil Rea

With regular first team players back, much was expected from the Old Ruts in this game. But Horsley are a tall and experienced outfit who finished 5th in the Premier Division last year so it was to be a real test for the newly promoted Ruts.

Horsley started the brighter and utilised their height to the full, using long throws and set pieces to put the Ruts defence under pressure. The Ruts, playing in an unfamiliar 3-5-2 formation, finally succumbed to a set piece when Horsley's outrageously tall number 6 out-jumped Phil Rea from a corner to make the score 1-0.

The Ruts looked very rusty and were unable to string any real passes together. Horsley then made it 2-0 after the defence failed to clear on two occasions. The visitors were punished again before the interval when a Horsley player clinically rounded the keeper for 3-0.

With nothing to lose, the Ruts came out with a better frame of mind in the second half. Courtney Sewitt should have made it 3-1 on 50 minutes when he had only the keeper to beat, but shot wide. Rea also went close from a corner, but although the momentum had swung in the Ruts favour, it was still 3-0 and time was running out.

The increased possession finally paid off on 60 minutes when Jimmy Wilkes scored his and the team's first goal of the season after a great passing move. At 3-1 the Ruts could smell a comeback, but within a minute of the restart the Ruts usual playmaker Ryan Brown turned villian after losing possession deep in his half. He and the team were shown no mercy as the Horsley striker struck the best goal of the game from 25 yards.

At 4-1 that was the nail in the coffin, but despite pulling two goals back through Alan Morley and Rea during the last 20 minutes, luck was with Horsley when they won a dubious penalty late on which of course they finished with their usual potency to seal the match 5-3.

This defeat left the Ruts near the bottom of the table, where many of the team are not used to being, especially manager Brian Kerwick. It will take a lot of hard work to win games in this league, but the manager believes his side has the right people to get results. It's time for the players to stand up and be counted, starting this Saturday at Unis Old Boys.

By Alan Whiter

After successive defeats on the first two weeks of the season, the Old Ruts travelled to Unis OB looking to secure their first three points of the current campaign.

A few changes to the starting line up saw Craig Wellstead replace Matt Bramley in goal and Matt Crowley take over from Ed Reynolds at right back.

The game started at a furious pace with Unis having the greater percentage of possession but failing to create any clear cut opportunities. The Old Ruts managed to settle down after the first ten minutes and began to play some good football which resulted in several attempts on the Unis goal.

Alan Morley went close on four occasions in the first half with his efforts either sailing high, wide or being saved by the Unis keeper who was on excellent form. Alan Whiter then saw a shot cleared off the line.

Unis came back at the Ruts towards the end of the first half but the Ruts back four of Crowley, Phil Rea, Matt Everett and Marc Hawley managed to snuff out any openings. Both teams went into half time unable to break the deadlock after a fast and open first half.

The second half again saw Unis have a fair amount of possession but as with the first, they failed to make any real impression on Wellstead’s goal. The Ruts stepped up the work rate in midfield and played an excellent passing game. Jimmy Wilkes and Steve Nash made an impact down the flanks for and the partnership of Whiter and Ryan Brown in the centre of the park continued to make chances for the Ruts front two.

The breakthrough came in the last twenty five minutes after some good pressure from the Old Ruts. Whiter slipped a through ball to Morley whose shot was deflected just past the post. From the resulting corner, a scuffed shot fell to Whiter who neatly laid it into the path of Morley who finished neatly from close range.

Unis immediately came back at the Ruts but never looked like scoring until a dubious penalty was awarded to them after their striker went down quicker then Jordan inside the penalty area. The spot kick was neatly dispatched by the Unis captain to make it 1-1.

It looked like both teams would have to settle for a point until Whiter managed to secure all three for the Ruts in the last few minutes. Receiving a pass on the edge of the box, Whiter saw his first effort rebound back to him off a central defender, but his second flew into the top corner of the net. The Unis keeper managed to get a hand on it but was unable to keep it out.

The Old Ruts will have to capitalize on their numerous chances in future in order to climb up the league table this season.

This Saturday they have a break from league action when they visit Division One outfit Burymead in the League Cup first round.

By Jimmy Wilkes

With manager Brian Kerwick on a scouting trip to north Wales over the weekend, stand-in manager Howard Meredith was keen to get a good performance out of the lads to stake his claim for the gaffer’s role next season.

After a few inspiring words in the changing room, the Ruts went out with all guns blazing and their dominance soon paid off with a goal for forward Kevin Foster who'd been called up from the reserves. A neat bit of one touch football around the Burymead 18 yard box saw Foster calmly slide the ball past the oncoming keeper - little did he know he would be picking the ball up from the back of his net on several more occasions during the course of the next 80 minutes.

With Alan Whiter and Ryan Brown dominating in midfield and feeding the ball out to Steve Nash and Courtney Sewitt on the wings, it wasn’t long before the second goal came, this time for Richard Lines who wasted no time in turning and blasting the ball into the top corner.

Two more goals followed in quick succession for Nash and Lines before the half time whistle gave Burymead a chance to lick their wounds before coming out for another pounding in the second half.

Straight from the whistle the Ruts picked up where they had left off as skipper Alan Whiter got in on the act with what will be the easiest goal he will score all season after a defensive mistake by Burymead allowed him to score from a yard out.

5-0 to the Ruts and this gave Meredith a chance to stamp his mark on the game by replacing Nash, Foster and Brown with Ed Reynolds, Scott Ryder and James Fenton. The fresh legs gave the Ruts an extra bit of zip about them and three more goals soon followed - one from Ryder, who was glad to get on the score sheet and put his woeful pre-season behind him, and two from debutant James Fenton.

The game was well and truly over at 8-0 before the back four of Neil Marshall, Phil Rea, Matt Everett and the talented Jimmy Wilkes had their first defensive duties of the day, which was easily dealt with and ended up in the safe hands of keeper Craig Welstead.

All in all a good result for the Ruts, but manager Brian Kerwick won’t be fooled - there will be plenty more matches to play before he can dream about lifting any silverware at the end of the season.

By Ed Reynolds

This weekend saw the Old Ruts take on Yateley, a team unbeaten and sitting joint top of the table.

It was the Ruts first home game of the season and it started brightly with both teams looking to take the initiative early on. The first clear chance fell to Yateley after the Ruts failed to clear their lines. The ball was pinging around the Ruts penalty area and finally dropped to a Yateley player who forced keeper Craig Wellstead into an excellent, if not slightly unconventional, double save.

Yateley pressed on, sensing a slight unease amongst the Ruts defence. After some good work down the right, Yateley's forward picked up the ball on the edge of the Ruts area and hit a low drive to the left of the keeper. Wellstead was equal to this and produced the save of the match, diving full stretch to tip the ball around his post for a corner.

The Ruts had learnt their lesson and the team tightened up in midfield and defence to allow Yateley no space to play. Slowly the Ruts began to dominate and with 35 minutes on the clock made the breakthrough. Yateley, under growing pressure, were reverting to punting the ball out of defence and on this occasion the clearance was met by an almighty return header from Phil Rea. The ball was won by Alan Whiter who lobbed a tricky ball over the Yateley defence, leaving Richard 'The Beast' Lines in a three-way battle for the ball with a defender and the goalkeeper... no contest. Lines won the header which hit the post and now had a slightly easier 50-50 battle for the rebounding ball... again, no contest. Holding off the defender, he smashed the ball from close range into an empty net for 1-0. The Ruts then took control of the game until the half-time whistle.

The Ruts began the second half as they had finished the first, applying early pressure and going close twice. Reece Smith, on for the injured Lines, was proving to be as much as a handful as the man he replaced and along with Courtney Sewitt were causing problems for the defence. Yateley realised that they had to make changes if they were to get anything out of the game and pushed forward in numbers, throwing everything they had at the Ruts. The pressure continued for about 15 minutes with the Ruts soaking it up and occasionally attacking on the break.

Pressed tightly in their own half the Ruts broke down a Yateley attack and after some neat one touch football on the right, Neil Marshall played a ball down the line to Sewitt. He turned his man brilliantly, leaving him for dead and quickly made his way to the byline, finishing with a perfect cross between defender and keeper for Marshall, who had continued his excellent run from right back, to slot home at the far post. The goal capped a man of the match performance from Marshall in his new role at right back. His only blemish of an otherwise perfect performance was a late booking for kicking the ball away.

The second goal took the wind out of Yateley's sails. Then Jimmy Wilkes picked up the ball just inside the halfway line and ran at the Yateley defence. With a three on two situation and with Ed Reynolds free after he had made a brilliant run down the right, Wilkes made the selfish decision to go for goal and from 25 yards out hit a shot well wide of the target, much to the disgust of Reynolds & Co. This was to be the final attack of an enjoyable and well fought game.

The shaky start to the season has been forgotten and after this performance the Ruts have proved they can and will be a force to be reckoned with this season.

By Gavin Lennard

Old Rutlishians were forced to make wholesale changes to their line up for the second time in six weeks. Mark Kerwick and Jeremy Capper were both tying the knot to their partners on opposite sides of the country and they swept the Gaffer Brian Kerwick and many of their Ruts team-mates along with them to enjoy their respective celebrations.

Despite the enforced changes stand-in manager Howard Meredith was pleased with the strength of his line-up and encouraged the Ruts to attack and unsettle their opponents.

In the opening 10 minutes Woking struck the upper post with a header and narrowly shot over the bar with a fine strike. However, within minutes of the early pressure being soaked up, the Ruts started to create opportunities for themselves as Alan Morley and Reece Smith harried their opponents whilst Alan Whiter and Ed Reynolds started to control the midfield.

On 20 minutes a long throw was neatly flicked on by Whiter into the path of Morley, who blasted home a low volley from 12 yards for 1-0.

Just minutes later Morley was involved again. After tormenting the full-back he unselfishly (yes, the words 'Morley' and 'unselfish' in the same sentence!) laid the ball in for Smith who deftly created an opportunity for himself but was up-ended before he could strike and referee Phil Gasson immediately pointed to the spot. Morley duly converted the penalty to give the Ruts a 2-0 lead.

Deep into stoppage time at the end of the first half Ruts keeper Craig Wellstead was adjudged to have been time wasting on the edge of his own area. Gasson awarded Woking a free kick and cautioned Wellstead for throwing the ball away. This event proved even more costly when the Woking number 8 struck the short lay off from the free kick into the Ruts goal to reduce the Woking deficit to 2-1 at half time.

The Ruts created scoring chances in abundance in the second period, but whilst the score remained 2-1, the visitors were always in the game. Matt Crowley in particular made several vital interceptions to prevent a Woking equaliser. As time went on Ruts spurned at least five decent opportunities to wrap the game up with Morley, Kevin Foster and Smith all spurning chances.

In summary it was a BIG team performance in the circumstances and from a personal and club point of view, it was very pleasing to see the Ruts field two 16 year olds (Smith and Tom Hughes) for the 90 minutes and add 17 year old Luke Creates for the last half hour. Hopefully this bodes well for the future.

Senior players Whiter, Jimmy Wilkes and Neil Marshall all played extremely well and young Smith played intelligently throughout. However, Meredith awarded Morley the Man of the Match award much to the delight of those who have named him in their Dream Team!

By Marc Hawley

Old Rutlishians came into this league match looking to keep their good form going, but the game started slowly with both teams making silly mistakes.

Ruts keeper Craig Wellstead had to make a couple of good saves and a blistering run from Marc Hawley saw a clever shot come back off the post. On the half hour mark Jimmy 'Whizzer' Wilkes had to leave the field with a calf injury and was replaced by a worse for wear looking Scott Ryder!

The half time whistle blew with the match still in the balance. Ruts manager Brian Kerwick must have said some inspirational words because the Ruts came out strong in the second half and it wasn't long before they took the lead - a break down the right and a good cross found Alan Whiter whose simple header made it 1-0.

The Ruts kept pushing on looking to finish the game. Phil Rea picked up the ball in his own half, panicked and toe punted the ball forward! The willing running of Richard Lines made a woeful clearance into a good pass! Lines lobbed the goalie for 2-0.

Eversley started to attack and Brian decided it was time for some changes - Courtney Sewitt replaced Reece Smith and Luke Creates came on for man of the match Richard Lines. Eversley won a corner which found a free man in the box, but his header only found an alert Marc Hawley on the post and the Ruts were saved! Wellstead then rolled the ball out to Hawley who looked up to see a more sober looking Ryder making a run. A superb 70 yard pass from Hawley saw Scott round the keeper and tap the ball in for 3-0.

The full time whistle went and the Ruts left the field happy and still hot on the heels of the leaders.

By Steve Nash

We turned up at the ground thinking we must have the wrong place, the changing rooms were old and tatty and the pitch was the worst I have played on in a long time. There were bare patches and parts of the grass that looked like it had not been cut since the beginning of last season, let alone this one. The pitch also had a nasty bobble on it, which we all noticed as we warmed up and prepared for the game.

The Ruts kicked off and the game started quite scrappily at first, with them probably getting the better of the early play, but the Ruts defence weathered the storm comfortably. Things evened out very quickly with the two in central midfield, Alan Whiter and Steve Nash battling hard to get a hold of the ball and spread it around nicely as usual. Courtney Sewitt and Reece Smith were battling hard and running down the wings. Richard Lines and Scot Ryder were running their socks off up front when a chance finally arose - a flick on to Lines was dealt with crudely by the defender who handballed it deliberately to stop Lines having a one on one with the keeper. A yellow card was the decision, the wrong one in my eyes - you could see that this ref was going to be a pain in the grass from early doors.

The oppo also had some good chances with their little four foot forward, with his low centre of gravity he was quite a tricky little customer, especially when he was playing like he had ice skates on, not football boots. But Craig Wellstead made some good saves in goal and looked quite comfortable and also did his usual job of organising everyone and verbally bullying the oppo, manager, subs and supporters. Good stuff!

The defence of Marc Hawley, Phil Rea, Neil Marshall and Matt Crowley still looked comfortable at the back until - yep you guessed it - the ref got bored and felt it was time to get his book out again when Rea tripped one of the oppo on an attack and could not sweet talk his way out of it. Then shortly after that Nashy swung a leg at the ball and a midfielder ran into it twice and he also received a yellow card. Sewitt came close with a good free kick later on in the first half, which the keeper saved, and Lines drove another effort low and just wide. End of the first half - 0-0.

After Brian Kerwick's half time team talk and no substitutions, the Ruts came out and dominated early on, winning everything and passing the ball well from the back to the middle to the front. Ryder was unlucky not to put the Ruts ahead with a bit of ball on head juggling, which ended up going just wide. The oppo also had a one on one, which Wellstead saved well with his feet. The ball ended up bouncing and bobbling around in the middle of the park when Nashy jumped up to header and caught the ball with his trailing hand. The ref blows up and goes to his pocket to produce a second pathetic yellow card and then the red. Nashy was asked to leave the pitch, which he did so graciously. The Ruts did well to stay on top of the game with such an influential player dismissed.

The midfield pulled together well and everybody worked twice as hard for the last 30 minutes, still producing chances. A substitution was made and Ryder came off to be replaced by Kevin Foster who, when he got the ball, attacked the defence and drew some fouls which ran the clock down.

The final whistle blew and the final result was a well earned and hard battled 0-0 draw. A fair result on the day, the Ruts probably being the happier of the two teams who kept a good six game unbeaten run going, especially with 10 men, a terrible pitch and a card-happy ref.

When players tried to track down the ref to ask about a few decisions after the game he had apparently left sharpish due to a two-for-one deal at Spec Savers that he didn’t want to miss.

By Scott Ryder

The Ruts kept their seven game unbeaten run going on Saturday afternoon against league leaders Yateley. The kick off was delayed for 30 minutes due to traffic problems on the A3 and the loss of Jimmy Wilkes' sat nav system. Despite the three players at the ground on time (Alan Whiter, Scott Ryder and Matt Crowley) feeling confident they would be able to keep the Yateley team at bay until the rest of the lads arrived, the ref decided it would be better to wait.

The late kick off left no time for the excellent warm up that the Ruts fitness trainer usually puts the lads through prior to the match. It didn’t show however as the Old Ruts quickly got into their stride and to the impartial spectator it looked like the Yateley side had the less than perfect preparation to the match.

The central midfield duo Whiter and Steve Nash closed the ball down well and started using the width of the park well by finding Ed Reynolds and Wilkes on the flanks.

The Ruts put some good passing moves together and the front two of Ryder and Richard Lines held the ball up well to bring the midfield into the game. The breakthrough came in the 22nd minute when a well driven corner by Whizzer Wilkes was met by the head of Nash at the back post for 1-0. Nash also connected with another Wilkes corner two minutes later, but as the ball was slightly out of reach for his head, Nash decided to use his hand to put the ball in the net “hand of God style”. This left the ref with no choice but to issue a yellow card.

Yateley couldn’t deal with the pressure of long throws and flick ons down the right hand side, and on the half hour mark this proved to be telling. Crowley launched another ball in to the box and it was brought under control by Ryder. He turned his man then dummied a pass to Wilkes which earned an extra yard of space. This enabled a powerful low drive to the bottom left hand corner of the net and put the scoreboard to 2-0. The rest of the first half passed without major incident and the Ruts went in at the break felling pretty confident.

As expected Yateley came out all guns blazing in the second half. The back four of Crowley, Phil Rea, Neil Marshall and Marc Hawley weathered the storm well but with the constant pressure a Yateley goal was inevitable. They worked the ball well down the left wing and delivered a perfect cross for the front runner who had stolen in between Rea and Marshall. Some might say poor marking on the defenders part, but that is for them to think about in the cold light of day. This left an exciting 25 minutes to play with both teams looking to get the all important next goal.

The Yateley linesman made things a bit difficult for the Ruts strikers with more than a few dubious decisions, but a few chances did appear. One of the best ones fell to Reynolds making a lazy run in to the Yateley box. A good ball from Lines found his man but Reynolds' shot hit the side netting. Reynolds is still looking for the elusive goal that he hopes will kickstart his career. There is a rumour that he once scored in the Primary Boys Season of 1985, but this has never been substantiated.

Wilkes also found himself in on goal but a last ditch effort by a Yateley defender deflected the ball wide for a corner. A half chance also fell to Ryder after he had managed to get between two defenders with some good work, but his right foot powder puff strike pea-rolled towards the waiting keeper.

Barry Wigley in the Ruts goal had a strong game and made his presence felt by commanding the defence and making some last ditch saves at the feet of the Yateley strikers. The Ruts played the game out for the last 10 minutes by keeping the ball well in all areas of the park and it came as a welcome relief when the ref blew the final whistle.

This was a solid Ruts performance and they now have the same amount of points as the league leaders but with a slightly lower goal difference pushing them into third place. If they can keep this momentum going over the coming winter months as the ground gets heavier, then things look good for the end of the season.

This match report cannot go without mention of one other incident. This took place in the Yateley clubhouse after the match when Craig Wellstead and Phil Rea went head to head in a sandwich and chip eating competition. Wellstead favoured the 3-4-3 formation (3 cheese & pickle, 4 ham and 3 chicken salad) while Razor Rea packed out the middle of the park with an unorthodox 2-7-1 set up. Jury is still out on the eventual winner. At time of going to press we understand a re-match has been scheduled for the next home game when they take each other on in the old classic hot-dog eating challenge.

By Matt Crowley

On a cold and wet Saturday afternoon, Unis Old Boys visited Poplar Road to play the league leaders. It was Top v Bottom, David v Goliath and many expected this match to be a walk in the park for the table-topping Ruts.

However, it was obvious from the start that it was not going to be an easy afternoon as Unis began much the brighter side. They were clearly up for a scrap and looked anything but a side that had only picked up one point this season. They were passing the ball around well and the Ruts looked stunned as Unis created a few early chances.

The home side were finding it difficult to get in their stride until a downpour midway through the first half seemed to level the match. With 'captain marvel' Alan Whiter leading by example, the Ruts slowly began to take over possession and put a few moves together of their own. This possession was to pay off after 35 minutes when a perfectly drilled corner from the sprightly Scott Ryder was tucked away at the far post by Nick Raggett.

The 1-0 scoreline was a little harsh on Unis as they had been the better team for most of the half, but they would eventually pay for poor finishing and missed chances. When you are at the bottom sometimes things just don't go your way and the frustration was beginning to show. Former Old Rut and journeyman Nick Munroe saw the visitor's best shot of the half fly over from just outside the box.

After some harsh words from Gaffer Kerwick the Ruts started the second half in a more positive fashion. They were finally beginning to play some decent football and the quality of passing on show was looking more like that of the league leaders. The game should have been done and dusted midway through the half when Alan Morley found himself with time and space in the box. Sadly it seemed he had too much time and hesitation led to the ball be fired at 100mph into the side netting.

This could have been disastrous for the home side as moments later the normally dependable Ruts defence went to sleep. A mix up led to a Unis forward crossing the ball to an unmarked team mate in acres of space and he duly converted over the helpless Craig Wellstead.

At 1-1 it was anyone's game and it was time for both teams to fight for the win. It was encouraging to see that despite playing badly for long periods, the Ruts still had the desire and will to get the three points. Instead of self destructing after the equalizer they moved up a gear and began to press the Unis back line. A defensive clearance from Matt Crowley fell to the lively Ed Reynolds, who then found Morley in space and he wasn't going to make the same mistake twice. 2-1.

For the rest of the game Unis huffed and puffed but the Ruts held firm to take an unconvincing three points. On hearing the final whistle, relieved Ruts manager Brian Kerwick said: "That will do me, picking up three points when you're playing badly will win us the league".

It was not a classic Ruts performance but it keeps them top of the Premier Division. Come the end of the season it's results like this that can be the difference, but the Ruts will have to improve if they want to stay at the top.

By Gavin Lennard

Following a below-par display and a narrow victory in last week's League match, the ORs knew that a much improved performance was needed against a strong Horsley outfit who had inflicted Ruts last League defeat upon them exactly three months ago to the day.

Since this date the Ruts have put together an impressive run of nine League wins and a draw (which has seen them climb to the top of the table) and in between they also managed to secure a first round League Cup victory. The only big blip during the same period was a disappointing Surrey Cup performance which saw the OR's exit this competition at an earlier stage than they had done for several years.

In his pre-match team-talk manager Brian Kerwick laid it on the line to his players and everyone was in no doubt that a significantly improved display was required.

Kerwick also made several changes to his starting line up and the bench was exceptionally strong with Matt Crowley, Steve Nash, Richard Lines and Tom Hughes endorsing the fact that there would be no room for complacency. Equally positive was the news that Marc Hawley and Ryan Brown are on the brink of return following lengthy lay-offs.

The Ruts came out of the starting blocks with all guns blazing and they created at least five good openings in the process. Alan Morley, Scott Ryder and Lee 'Trigger' Poulter all went close with Trig in particular giving the Horsley defence the runaround at times, most notably with some outstanding ball control and passing.

It is fair to say that Craig Wellstead was by far the least busy of the keepers during the period, although in saying that he was far from redundant and thwarted several half chances during the half.

On 28 minutes the impressive Poulter put the Horsley right back under pressure on the left wing as he committedly charged down an attempted clearance. Poulter reacted quickest to the loose ball which was spinning towards the corner and promptly delivered a quality cross towards Ryder and Morley who had both made strong supporting runs. Morley seized the opportunity to convert from eight yards and make it 1-0 to the Ruts at the interval.

Although the Ruts were on top for most of the period the defensive line up of Neil Marshall, Darren Everett, Phil Rea and Jimmy Wilkes dealt with everything that came their way. Equally impressive were the midfield displays of tireless captain Alan Whiter, who secured the possessional advantage alongside the 3 'R's of Raggett, Reynolds and Ryder. Okay - so everyone has had a mention and I can now return to the finer points of the game!

The 2nd half was a contrast to the first with Horsley throwing everything at the Ruts (including the kitchen sink). Legendary clubman Wellstead (who has so fondly named himself 'HMS Cleansheet') did absolutely no damage to his reputation with several excellent saves, most notably a superb one-handed block to turn the ball out of harms way for a corner and earlier a commanding one on one block and save following a defensive error (the less said Phil!)

The Ruts did create chances themselves, although they enjoyed far less possession than the first half. On 75 minutes the pressure the Ruts defence had been experiencing was relieved when Ryder placed a superb left wing cross into the Horsley area. Somewhat surprisingly the recipient was Ed 'Dutch Orange' Reynolds who met the cross powerfully with his head (apparently this is the first goal Ed has scored since playing in the Rutlish quad playground circa 15 years ago!)

At 2-0 Horsley had several opportunities to reduce the arrears, most notably a long range effort that narrowly fizzed wide and an excellent header which hit the crossbar. The Ruts also had a justified penalty appeal turned down after Poulter was upended.

Nash replaced the injured Morley and young Hughesy replaced Everett in the final 20 as they helped the OR's progress further in the competition.

In summary it was a good game to watch and both sides were a credit to Intermediate football. Referee Trevor Wenden should also be praised for applying a large amount of common sense which ultimately allowed for a largely free flowing game with no cards shown.

Naming the Ruts man of the match was difficult as it could have been anyone from five or six players. But for his all round contribution on the day and one hell of a first half performance Lee 'Trigger' Poulter pleased those who have him in their Dream Team - well done Trig.

By Phil Rea

The previous encounter with last season's enemy saw the Ruts on the wrong end of a 4-1 drubbing. Blame for the defeat is regularly placed on then captain Phil Rea's shoulders for being red carded in the first half, but two own goals scored by Whizzer Wilkes and Richard Lines on that very day are never mentioned??? Smokescreen springs to mind.

Like last year the Ruts entered this fixture sitting proudly at the top of the table, whereas Ockham - unlike last year - have only managed to put three points on the board. The loss of some of their senior players and manager were used as excuses before the game.

However, any passer by watching the first 20 minutes of this match wouldnt have put the Ruts as the higher ranked side. It was Ockham that started the strongest and more determined, winning almost every tackle and passing the ball nicely while the Ruts ran around like headless chickens.

"Get out the changing rooms" screamed Alan Whiter after three minutes.... most of the team were nursing hangovers from the previous day's Golf Day shenanigans, and the bobbly pitch and strong swirling winds made it very hard for the Ruts to get any rythym.

Although Ockham were on top the Ruts did manage to restrict them to a couple of long range efforts and by midway in the first half, slowly but surely the Ruts were taking a grip on the game.

The Ruts goal came on the 30 minute mark, and what a goal it was !!!! After a few great opportunities from set peices, Rea finally connected properly with one and sent the ball across the face of the box onto an oncoming bicycle kick from Steve Nash which left the keeper with no chance. A truly great goal that looked completely out of place in this scrappy game.

Ockham were shell shocked by this effort, but didn't give up and shortly after almost snatched an equaliser, but were thwarted by Rea's goal line clearance.

The second goal for the Ruts came shortly before half time. Paul Hull's great vision and pin point pass found Lee 'Trigger' Poulter who superbly chested the ball past his marker and smashed the ball home.

Unfortunately the in-form Trigger was soon replaced by The Whisky Man (Scott Ryder) who looked like he had spent the night in a cement mixer.

The second half saw Ockham get one back within five minutes after hesitation at the back allowed the midfielder making a late run to score.

But it was Alan Morley's superb "smashit" effort on 60 minutes from a ridiculously tight angle that made it 3-1 and settled the game.

The Ruts dominated in all areas after this, although to Ockham's credit they didn't give up and always looked like they could cause problems up front with their pace.

But it was Hull's trickery and pace - well, over a yard - that drew a foul in Ockham's box late in the game. Morley placed (yes, placed) the spot kick beautifully in the corner to put the game beyond reach.

The Ruts will enjoy their Christmas festivities all the more knowing they sit on top of the tree. Halfway through the season and 2006 looks bright - the future is yellow and blue!

By Ed Reynolds

2005 ended in disappointment for the Ruts after an unexpected loss at the weekend. Pyrford were the visitors who put an end to the Ruts winning run with a fine defensive display after an early goal.

Pyrford started the brighter of the two teams and were awarded a free-kick deep in the Ruts half. A ball in from the left found a Pyrford defender at the far post and despite being surrounded by Ruts defenders, he managed to head a looping ball, from an acute angle, into the net.

Apart from almost scoring again in an identical move, Pyrford didn't threaten the Ruts goal again and for almost 80 minutes they were on the defensive.

Striker Alan Moreley could - and should - have equalised within minutes of the restart. Matt Crowley put a great ball over the defence for Morley to run onto. He had so much time and space he hesitated, thinking he must be offside. By the time he'd realised what was happening he was closed
down and 'smashed it' wide.

Two superb saves from the Pyrford keeper denied Phil Rea and a close range goal from Ed Reynolds was disallowed for offside.

It was Scott Ryder though who was to be - unfairly some might say - the fall guy. He can jump an open drawbridge... or fall out from a car... but he's the unknown striker, who can't score from afar... Or near for that matter. It wasn't to be Ryder's day as he squandered numerous clear goalscoring
opportunities, including a scuff, a well wide shot and one cleared off the line.

Manager Brian Kerwick made changes in the second half, using all three subs and tinkering
with the formation, pushing more and more men forward, but the Ruts were unable to breakdown the Pyrford defence.

The only real highlight of an otherwise depressing game came from a sublime piece of individual skill. Reynolds, surrounded by Pyrford players, brought the ball down beautifully and managed to pick out a team mate with a clever back heel... magic!

The Ruts are going to have to find their shooting boots and return to winning ways if they are to win this league.

By Alan Whiter

The first league match of 2006 saw the Old Ruts return to winning ways with undoubtedly their best footballing performance of the current campaign. Horsley were the unfortunate visitors to Poplar Road and faced an Old Ruts team looking to prove their worth at the top of the table after a dismal performance the week before.

Previous encounters between the two sides had always transpired to be tightly fought affairs but this match broke the mould with the home team playing quality football for the full ninety.

The Old Ruts were forced to make a change in goal as the ever reliable Craig Wellstead - who was taking full advantage of the newly passed 24 hour drinking law - was replaced by Wayne Alderman between the sticks. Striker ‘Smasher’ Morley was also out due to an untimely trip to the dentist but was replaced by Lee ‘Trigger’ Poulter who passed a late fitness test.

Both teams started off brightly but the Old Ruts created the better chances in the opening exchanges. The game had hardly got going when the Ruts opened their account with some great build up play that found Trigger with the ball at his feet 40 yards from the Horsley goal. A swift turn and shot caught the keeper off his line and the ball sailed over him for 1-0.

This gave the Ruts more confidence to get the ball down and play while any half chances created by Horsley were comfortably dealt with by Alderman in goal and the Ruts back four of Matt Crowley, Phil Rea, Neil Marshall and Marc Hawley. The second Ruts goal came a few minutes later when a Horsley corner was cleared by Rea to Jimmy 'Whizzer' Wilkes on the left wing. An early ball to Trigger was then superbly laid into the path of Scott ‘The Water Man’ (for this week at least) Ryder who smashed home his first goal from an acute angle.

The Ruts continued to dominate the play and could have increased their lead on several occasions if it had not been for the busy but very able Horsley goalkeeper. The inevitable third goal came after some great play from Tigger ended with a back heel to Ryder who hit a thunder bolt from 30 yards that sailed into the top corner. The first half ended with the Ruts in total control and three goals up.

The second half started as the first ended with the Ruts in fine form and the midfield of Steve Nash, Alan Whiter, Neil Raggett and Jimmy Wilkes pulling the strings and creating more chances for the front two.

The Ruts got their fourth from the penalty spot after some great close control and skill from Trigger ended up with him being brought down in the box by a Horsley defender. Trigger picked himself up to take the penalty (even though his strike partner was on for a hat-trick) to find the top corner giving the keeper no chance.

The Ruts manager made changes and on came Richard Lines, Ed Reynolds and Kevin Foster who were all itching for a piece of the action. The fifth goal was scored by Nash after Raggett won another header in the midfield. The ball was played across the box and Nash finished neatly from six yards out.

Number six came soon after when a quick break from the Ruts caught Horsley cold. The ball ended up with Whiter on the edge of the box who played a ball out to Foster on the left wing. Foster got into the box and played a superb ball across the goal to find Trigger who finished emphatically for his hat-trick.

Manager Brian Kerwick had every right to be pleased with his team as every one of his fourteen man squad could have claimed the Man of the Match award. The honour went to Trigger after a sublime display of touch, skill and determination that was rounded off with three quality goals.

The Old Ruts will look to continue this form when they visit Ripley Village this weekend.

By Lee Poulter

A grim Saturday afternoon saw the Old Ruts turn up at the home of third place rivals Ripley Village.
Manager Brian Kerwick knew a win would finish Ripley's title chances, but had an early blow to deal with as midfielder Nick Raggett aggravated an injury from the previous week during the warm up. He was replaced and the team was shuffled around to accommodate.

The Ruts started the game on top as they were to be throughout the game, but few notable chances came from their hard work. The work rate of the midfield duo Steve Nash and Alan Whiter never relented, but with Ripley putting every man and his dog behind the ball the final ball didn’t come too easily.

Lee Poulter had the first real chance on the half hour when he controlled a pass from strike partner Scott Ryder around the last defender only to smash it ‘Morley-esque’ straight down the keeper's throat.

Later in the half Ryder broke clear of the defence and attempted to lob the keeper, but instead passed it to him and that was all the excitement for that half.

The second half saw much of the same with Ripley doing very little in the way of attacking but instead continued to frustrate their opposition. The injured Poulter was replaced by Alan Morley, who was eager to win his starting place back after missing the previous week because of his manky teeth, but not even Magic could find a way through the stubborn defence.

With 15 minutes left, up stepped Nash, the ball seemingly stuck to his feet he walked through the defence and finished very neatly for 1–0.

This woke Ripley up finally and with just a few minutes left they decided to have a shot which was a very good one and had to be dealt with by the now freezing Wayne Alderman in goal. It was a very alert save for someone who must have been thinking that he came to watch rather than play.

A game of very little to write home about just fizzled out to a very deserved win for the Ruts who had to use all their belief to grind out the victory. Ripley set out their stall to frustrate the league leaders and they achieved that, but come April it will be 1–0 victories such as this that we can hopefully look back on as league clinchers.

An all round good game and what could be a priceless goal from midfielder Nash won him Man of the Match.

By Richard Lines

Having scored twelve goals and conceded none in their last three games, the Ruts were looking to notch up a fourth straight win with Ockham being the visitors to Poplar Road.

With injuries to the front pairing of Lee Poulter and Alan Morley, Scott Ryder and Richard Lines were to head the attack. These weren't the only changes manager Mr Kerwick was to make - with Neil Marshall absent the apprentice Tom Hughes was to come in alongside Phil Rea at the heart of the defence, and Nick Raggett returned from a knock to play in the middle of the park.

With a slight wind blowing it would be important to play on the deck, which the Ruts did from the start. Ruts showed early on that Ockham would have to be on their game if they wanted a chance of getting anything from their visit.

With the Ruts closing down early from the front, not giving Ockham anytime to settle, surely it was only a matter of time before the Ockham keeper was picking the ball out of his goal. Little did he or anyone else expect it to be from the Ruts' right back though. Some good work by Steve Nash on the right drew in Ockham players to give space for Matt 'the teacher' Crowley to collect the ball and fire in a cross-shot to which the keeper could only fumble into his goal. Detention could have been the shout from the Ockham manager. 1-0.

The second goal and last of the half was to come after Captain 'Marvel' Whiter found Crowley on the right, who wasted no time finding Lines on the edge of the box. Back to goal, he swiveled and unleashed a cracking left foot volley only for the keeper to pull off a good stop. Unfortunately for him he could only parry the ball into the path of the onrushing Raggett who fired into the roof of the net from a tough angle. 2-0.

Ryder was replaced by Ed Reynolds just before the break after over-stretching closing down an Ockham player. The remainder of the first half would see the Ruts dominate but fail to capitalise in the final third.

The boy Hughes was working well with Rea, and Wayne Alderman in goal was starting to think he'll probably not have a quieter game all season. Space was appearing all over the pitch allowing time for Marc Hawley to get forward and link well with Jimmy Wilkes, both putting in some good crosses from the left flank. Nash was placed up top alongside Lines for the second half and after pressure from the front two, Nash was able to rob the Ockham centre half of the ball and slot in to extend the lead to three. The Ockham players were really hoping this would be the 'Last of the Mohican' they see.

Lines then ghosted past the left back and put a good ball into the box. Reynolds found a valuable yard of space in a packed Ockham box to poke home from close range. 4-0.

With Raggett in fine form and Whiter as usual a constant thorn in the backside of the Ockham midfield, the game was as good as over. The fifth and final goal was to come following Crowley and Reynolds combining well and releasing Lines behind the now weary Ockham defence. A dangerous ball into the box found the industrious Nash who finished well to cap a Man of the Match display.

5-0 and with Hersham RBL slipping up at home to Ripley, the gap between the top two increased to five points. The Ruts will now be looking forward to next week's tricky looking trip to Eversley.

By Alan Whiter

The Old Ruts looked to extend their lead at the top of the table on Saturday with the visit to Poplar Road of their closest rivals in the league, Hersham RBL.

The Ruts were determined to get back to business in the league with the gaffer virtually having a full strength squad to choose from. The only exception was Scott ‘Lineker’ Ryder who was again sidelined with a big toe problem.

The conditions were far from perfect for a classic match. The first half saw the Ruts having to defend a gale force assisted onslaught from Hersham as they looked to capitalise on the blustery conditions. Hersham played some good football but failed to create any real clear cut chances. Time after time, the Ruts goalkeeper Gavin Coutts and back four of Neil Marshall, Phil Rea, Richard Lines and Jimmy Wilkes stoutly dealt with any danger conjured by the Hersham front line.

The Ruts battled hard in midfield with Ryan Brown managing to get the ball down on a number of occasions and creating two good chances for Alan Morley, the best of which saw Morley flash a thunderbolt just wide from the edge of the area.

The Ruts weathered the storm until half time and with the score at 0-0, the half time team talk was upbeat and the Ruts came out with all guns blazing for the second half.

The Ruts dominated right from the start of the second 45 minutes with the defence still looking confident in handling anything thrown at them by Hersham. The Ruts midfield of Steve Nash, Alan Whiter, Brown and Nick Raggett out-battled the Hersham middle and started to create some good chances.

The first Ruts goal came after some great skill by Lee Poulter to put his strike partner Morley through on goal. Morley finished from outside the box with a wind assisted shot that left the keeper standing and with more luck then judgement, found the top corner of the net. Within minutes the Ruts were two up when a slip by the Hersham centre back found Poulter with a run on goal from the half way line. Poulter showed great poise and skill to finish past the keeper from 20 yards.

Hersham pulled one back almost instantly after their left winger, who had been their most dangerous player so far, managed to beat Marshall and fired a shot passed the helpless Coutts between the Ruts sticks. This kick-started the Ruts back into gear and they immediately took control of the game once more.

After a few half chances, Poulter found himself in a foot race with the Hersham keeper who was charging out of his area to clear a through ball. Poulter won the race and superbly rounded the keeper, steadied himself and slotted the ball home from an acute angle to restore the Ruts two goal lead. Hersham had no reply to the Ruts dominance and the fourth and final goal came after another quality delivery from Brown’s free kick resulted in the ball dropping to the feet of Morley who clinically finished from two yards out.

This was an all round great team performance from the Ruts, however the Man of the Match award went to the ever versatile Richard Lines for yet another outstanding performance in yet another position for the Ruts.

The Ruts will look to extend their lead at the top of the table when they entertain Worplesdon in the league this weekend.

By Richard Lines

By losing to fourteen the week before
For Worplesdon this week was set to be a chore

Marshall, Rea, Lines and Hawley at the back
Ruts should not have had any problems with their attack.

Raggett and Wilkes playing down the wings,
these boys will be looking to pull a few strings.

With Poulter working, Courtney came back from injury,
he certainly won't end up taking things gingerly.

Brown continued in the middle with Whiter,
Ruts would start much the brighter.

With two the week before,
we were hoping Morley would come up with a few more.

With Ragget and Sewitt adding to Morley's great opening goal,
Would the Ruts win this at a stroll?

Morley was on fire, he was showing great desire
His hattrick was to follow with two more, his new fiancee looking on in adore.

Worplesdon continued to show fight, but this was not going to change their plight
With the Ruts back four dealing with the odd attack, Coutts in goal could have had time for a snack.

Some more was to come from Morley, Brown often sending him through superbly,
Morley's tally for the half was seven, the Ruts were in heaven.

Nine was the lead at half time,
Kerwick must have thought his team were sublime.

Young Luke Creates replaced the injured Lines at the break,
Ryder on for Raggett too, the crowd would have plenty more to view.

The formation was to change to three-four-three, all the Worpleson keeper might try is a plea.

Courtney Sewitt was to get his hatrick followed by a fourth with a cool little flick,
this lad's got all the tricks.

Two more for Morley as he continued his goal scoring,
I think someone heard Coutts snoring!

Nash came on late for Phil Rea,
this is turning into a bit of an essay.

Marshall adding one to this scoreline, the Ruts were just devine.
Brown had a good game, much to manager Kerwick's acclaim.

Fitting the final goal came from Ryan Brown,
Fair play to Worplesdon who never put their heads down.

Morley rightly Man of the Match, he was the best of a good batch.
Next week is a big semi-final, it may not all rhyme but let's hope we win in normal time.

By Steve Nash

On the morning of March 4th the Old Rutlishians were playing away to Woking Park in the semi final of the League Cup. We turned up at the ground in Woking in good spirits and looking forward to the game.

Whilst getting changed the opposition were getting prepared by playing some loud music which, as I could make out, was 'The Village People's Greatest Hits' and the Petshop Boy's 'The Golden Years'.

We all got warmed up and knew what we had to do, but as soon as the whistle blew we found it hard to get hold of the ball and play it around. Woking started much better than us and played some nice football and were rewarded when a lofted ball through the middle fell between two Ruts defenders to a Woking striker who took his chance well. The rest of the first half stayed pretty much the same with us battling to try and get hold of the ball without much luck. We managed to create a couple of half decent chances but couldn't make them count.

At half time Brian Kerwick gave us a well deserved rollocking. I think we all knew that we weren’t playing well enough individually and as a team with a few exceptions. Myself not included.

We started off the second half better but still managed to concede a poor early goal due to bad marking. No-one gave up though and we battled harder in the second half but it just seemed destined to be one of those days when nothing would go right. I think the problem was that big game players weren't able to perform because they couldn't get hold of the ball (not for the want of trying) but we just couldn't make an impact on the game which meant the forwards had nothing to work with and were just feeding on scraps. I would like to be able to blame a lot of it on the bad condition of the pitch, but truth be told I've played on a lot worse pitches than that and played better and came away victorious as I'm sure the rest of my team mates have!

I would like to tell you about some more exciting points to this game but I’m struggling to remember any to be honest. At the end of the day the better team won and we can't dwell on this, we have to concentrate on what's most important to us and that's winning the league. We know we are the best team in this league - our results and stats of the season prove that. So come on lads, lets turn up next week more determined and focused than ever to win this league for Brian, Gavin, everybody that freezes their bits off watching us every week rain or shine, everyone associated with the club, ourselves and each other.

By Lee Poulter

With a below average performance the previous week, the Ruts knew that they had to raise their game on the penultimate home fixture of the season against a Shalford team boasting an early season victory over the league leaders.

The wind was always going to make conditions tough for both teams and with the home side having that first half advantage were looking to pile on the pressure. They achieved this but were unable to create any real clear cut chances and it was Shalford who took a breakaway lead via the penalty spot midway through the half.

The Ruts soon bounced back with Lee Poulter unable to get any dead ball chances out of the hands of Ryan Brown. Brown subsequently drifted in a lovely free kick that Nick Raggett finished off with much class.

Late in the half it was the strike duo who teamed up as Alan Morley found space in the channel and drilled the ball across the box for Poulter to cooly finish.

It wasn't exactly the performance or scoreline the Ruts wanted at half time and they all knew that their second half performance needed to be much better. Better it certainly was and with the defence of Phil Rea, Neil Marshall, Richard Lines and Jimmy Wilkes looking very comfortable at the back, the midfield quartet of Alan Whiter, Brown, Raggett and Steve Nash found the time and room to pull all the strings, managing to utilise the ball much better than early on.

Raggett thought he had bagged his second when drilling the ball at goal only for the Shalford defender to clear off the line, although later TV replays clearly showed that the ball was a good yard over the line!

With this Shalford got into the game more and had chances of their own, and Coutts in goal had to be on his toes a few times. The Ruts got the initiative back when Poulter beat his defender out wide and knocked over a cross which eventually fell to Brown who finished neatly. Moments later a messy goal saw Raggett tap in for his deserved second. Rags could've gone on to grab his hat-trick but opted to trip over his own size 11s ( had to get that in Rags).

With the game coming to a close at 4-1 the Ruts can look back on a second half display of great class that won this game and something to take onto the remainding four fixtures to sew up this championship. Even man of the match Ryan Brown couldn't be heard moaning during the entire second period.

With half of the team missing for the final home fixture of the season due to the selfishness of midfield maestro Whiter deciding to do the honourable thing and get married, the Ruts will be looking to there replacements to come in and take over where the 'squad' left off.

Have a good stag Al!

By Matt Crowley

Winning any league is not an easy task. It takes a combination of elements to finish a long season at the top of any group of teams. You obviously need a certain amount of talent, fitness and commitment but you also need resolve, strength and a certain amount of fight. With seven first team players away, others carrying knocks and yet another new starting eleven it was always going to be a tough league fixture for the Old Ruts against a resolute Ripley Village.

The first league meeting between these two teams had been a tight 1-0 victory for the Ruts and it was obvious from the outset that this game was going to be just as close. In the first half both sides had chances but it was the home side that got the breakthrough. With Steve Nash and Nick Raggett working hard in midfield it wasn't long before the ball broke to Alan Morley upfront. After riding a couple of tackles and showing considerable strength he created an angle and slotted the ball home under the Ripley keeper. 1-0.

To be fair to Ripley this just seemed to spur them into action. They began putting together a couple of good moves and eventually won a penalty when Darren Noonan was adjudged to have fouled a Ripley player in the box. This was a little harsh on Noonan who was working hard and having a good game at the heart of the Ruts defence. In the end, however, it came to nothing as the ball was blasted against the post and the Ruts defence saw it rebound safely away from the penalty box.

Manager Brian Kerwick was relieved to get his side in at 1-0 and during the break urged his side to keep it tight and defend their slender lead. Things were made harder for the Ruts with the loss of both captain and prolific goalscorer Lee Poulter and centre half Noonan, both to injury. Mike Lines and youngster Troy McGuigan were brought on in their place and both were to play their part in the second half.

The game was a similar affair in the second period with both teams having chances. Ripley were not going to lay down and give up but it was the Ruts who added to their lead on 60 minutes. Good work from Alan Morley saw a cross put over into the box and Steve Berry was on hand to drill the ball home. 2-0. It wasn't too long before a third was added. Man of the Match Morley was now on fire as he created his own space down the left hand side and then fired a shot from an acute angle into the opposition net. 3-0.

The Ruts showed all the resolve they needed to take them three points closer to the title. On a day when players had to stand up and be counted there were plenty of strong performances. The Lines brothers were strong at the back, Marc Hawley and Courtney Sewitt provided pace on the left hand side, Berry was a handful on the right and both Nash and Raggett worked tirelessly in the centre of the park. Manager Brian Kerwick got what he wanted and with his full squad available for next week's trip to Woking Park the league title is within the Old Rutlishians grasp.

By Phil Rea

The Ruts travelled down the A3 to sunny Milford & Witley this Saturday and there was a cup final atmosphere in the air. Brian’s Boys were sitting 10 points clear at the top of the league, but Milford & Witley - who had played three games fewer due to a good Surrey Cup run - could still mathematically win the league by two points if they could overturn the Merton Road based outfit.

The Ruts had thrashed Milford & Witley 4-0 at Poplar Road earlier in the season. However, the “Milfs” had quietly been creeping up the table and boasted the second best defensive record in the league (bettered only by the Ruts I might add) so there was an uncertainty before the game if they may be fielding a stronger side.

Captain Marvel Whiter (or should I say Tina Turner) was still buzzing from his recent Stag Do in Vegas (where he enjoyed dressing up as a woman on more than one occasion) won the toss and decided to go for a positive start by kicking downhill with the wind and sun at our backs.

With the game being called off last week, there were doubts over four or five players fitness levels. Some of the more mature members of the team hadn’t played for three weeks and with “Chain smoker scamp” Hawley and “Forever young yet been around for years” Trigger turning out with the customary bed head, redeye and glazed look, there must have been concern in the manager's mind that we may not be prepared for this game.

Unfortunately the advantage of the wind, sun and large slope didn’t seem to help the Ruts much and it was Milford & Witley who started slightly better. The back four of Marc Hawley, Phil Rea, Richard Lines and Neil Marshall were the busier, but to be fair were also looking very comfortable, not to mention dashing and handsome (well, apart from Hawley and Linesy.)

Ryan "Kebab Legs" Brown was missing from the centre of the park this week due to suspension. But Steve “Tattoo” Nash (who by the way has become a born again Christian) partnered Whiter in the middle, with The Veteran Ginger Ninja Wilkes on the left and Raggy on the Right.

Both sides seemed a little hesitant to overstretch themselves, knowing that any mistake could mean losing the league. Apart from Morley’s customary 30 yard “smashit” there was little else to talk about in the first half.

”Three points is what I want please….One…ok….not a loss…thank you” was the short but to the point message of Brian’s team talk.

Milford & Witley’s supporters seemed to quadruple in the second half (this was probably due to the Grand National finishing) but it seemed as though every middle aged man that lived in Milford had turned up after the interval along with their own opinion of the ref…. This was a big game for them and luckily for us they weren’t really up for it.

The second half saw an improvement in possession for the Ruts. Rags was noticeably making an impression down the right making two or three mazy runs (with his pace) and on one occasion crossing the ball nicely only for Morley to narrowly head over.

Whiter was clearly up for this game, very vocal and was working his little nuts off. And it was he who broke the deadlock on 50 minutes. Surprisingly it was Whizzer who made the goal and deserved the plaudits, as he served it on a plate for Whiter to tap in from three yards. Now I say surprisingly as he was easily our worst player in the first half, but to give him credit, he kept on battling away (mostly with his own touch) and the boy is a winner, and 10 years and three kids later he is still doing the business in the firsts.

The goal prompted the Milford & Witley manager to throw on another striker, making it two up front for them, so wasn’t really a massive problem. The Beast was as usual playing well and attacking anything that went near the ball, but it was him and his fellow centre back Rea who were guilty at times of giving silly fouls away around the box.

Milford & Witley had some height and threw men forward, and they used their keeper to launch them in. The Ruts stayed disciplined though and our wee Scottish keeper got on his tippee-toes a few times and punched away anything that came near…. much to the anger of the ageing crowd.

Trigger replaced Scott Ryder on 70 minutes only to run the length of the pitch and then get substituted for Steve Berry. A truly great performance by the legend known as Trig, almost as good as his performance the previous night (ask him about this one).

The last twenty minutes was a case of backs to the wall as they threw all they had at us. But we held our line and defended strongly.

A relieved scream from Brian could be heard at the final whistle, and with that the hopes of the Milfs vanished.

A job well done by the Ruts - nothing flash, just a good old one nil victory that leaves us only needing two points from two games to secure the title.

A rare one liner from the Wee Coutts brought a chuckle to the changing room post match after he was asked if he meant to punch the ball away so feebly past his own post during the dying moments of the game.

“I wooden nay be playin at this level if I wer six foot tooo," said Coutts in his soft Glaswegian accent.

A man of very few words we thought, but oodles of confidence….

By Gavin Coutts

The Ruts went into their penultimate fixture knowing that two points from their remaining two games would secure the Surrey Western Premier Division title. However, Kerwick’s boys had no intention of waiting until the last game to secure the trophy as revenge was on the mind because Woking Park & Horsell had given the Ruts a gruesome lesson in grit, determination and hard work several weeks earlier in their League Cup semi final victory and were to prove tricky opponents once again.

Despite the change of venue, Woking Park & Horsell somehow managed to find a dimensionally challenged battlefield with which to exploit their rather one dimensional long ball attack. The Poplar Road boys lined up with two changes from last week's win with Paul Hull and Courtney Sewitt filling in for the absent Jimmy Wilkes and Alan Morley who were off hunting easter eggs in far off fields.

The game was eagerly contested in the early stages with both sides trading jabs, but the knockout blow came on the 20 minute mark in controversial fashion. A quick free kick was taken from 25 yards and dispatched into the far corner despite Coutts’ best fingertip efforts to keep it out. The Scottish keeper was insenced as there had been no indication from the official that the ball was in play or whether the kick was direct or indirect. The official line from the man in black was "I didn’t blow and had let the Woking players know that if they wanted to take a quick free quick they could do so." However, he failed to inform the defending team of Woking’s intentions.

The Ruts were naturally shell-shocked but did well to pull themselves together and create a few good chances towards the end of the half with Hull spurning two good shooting opportunities and Phil Rea going close with a header.

The second period started brightly but was becoming all too predictable with Woking Park & Horsell now relying heavily on their long range attacks. With the game getting stretched the Ruts found it hard to get their well-oiled midfield into the game but on the few occasions they did they managed to create some half decent chances for the front two.

A change of tactics was needed and Kerwick duly obliged by sending Richard ‘The Beast’ Lines up front to fight fire with fire. It was a bold move but one that paid off as the Ruts equalised. With Lines’ presence in the box creating panic in the home ranks, captain Alan Whiter somehow managed to prod in from a goalmouth scramble after a dangerous free kick from Hull. It was no more than they deserved.

With six minutes to go Woking Park & Horsell got themselves in front after Coutts was bundled over after claiming a long ball in the six yard area. The loose ball was scrambled home for the winner. It was probably no surprise as the Ref had let several earlier challenges on the opposite goalkeeper go uncautioned and duly signed off a miserable 90 minutes for the official and the Scottish number one.

The Ruts tried in vain to get back on level terms but found it a bridge too far on this occasion and could be excused for sometimes feeling as though they were playing 12 men.

In a hard fought contest players from both sides should be commended in giving 110% and now the boys will have to clinch the title with one more point from their last fixture next week.

By

Report to follow...