South 3rds' rearguard action against relegation failed in a manner common to the end of most such unsuccessful ventures - a touch chaotically. The dying embers were played out with no goalkeeper and not because we had pulled ours for another outfield player in a last desperate throw of the dice (no subs denied us that option) but because Lino was off the field injured.

It was little better amongst the ten outfielders, with a right-back with 60% mobility playing centre-forward, an attacking midfielder with 90% mobility playing right-back and a defensive midfielder also with 90% mobility still in the middle as there was nowhere much left to ‘hide’ the walking wounded. The injuries to Lino and Jan were both hamstring pulls, and in many ways "hamstrung" sums up both this match and the entire season.

We were hamstrung in this game not just by the injuries (such things happen) but by the aforementioned lack of subs to cover such an occurrence. This was galling because twenty-four hours before the start we had twelve confirmed, and none of these had dropped out. The problem occurred in the 2nds, where two players (no names, no pack-drill) texted Ron to say they were in fact unavailable, one as he had a charity work commitment that he wasn’t previously aware of (!), the other as he was on holiday (!!!). We lost JT and Rasmus from our side to fill the holes, with Ron agreeing to double-up for us in return as all the 4ths and 5ths players had already made other plans for the morning. Ron did play well, to be fair to him.

The ‘having no subs’ thing has been a theme and a bane throughout the entire season (not just for us but amongst most of our higher men’s teams), as even when everyone gets through a match without injury they are still significantly less fresh than opponents who often rotate thirteen or fourteen bodies [to be fair to Nomads they also had a bare eleven on this particular day and coped rather better than we did]. The other season-wide aspects that undermined the 3rds' chances were an inability to collect points on our own turf, this match meaning our final home record is an appalling 1-0-10, and the nine game losing run that we kicked off the league season with. Despite much improved form since, the deficit built up in those weeks was too large to overcome.

What is that you say? The season review is for the skipper to make at the annual dinner, give us a report on the actual match? OK, OK...

Well, it started well enough. The opening twenty-odd minutes were extremely even, with both sides trying to work an opening but not really looking like penetrating the defences. There was one clear chance for us when a beautifully executed round-the-corner pass from Dave put Rob in for a shot, but the Nomads' keeper was up to the task. We were quite a way into the game before a short was awarded, going to Nomads. They took a shot which deflected off their own man, wrong-footing our defence and keeper but going narrowly wide. Fairly soon after we won our first short, and from it took the lead. Rob fired a shot towards the post, Ali was on the scene to deflect, the ball going in via the inside of the heel of the defender on the post. 1-0 up in a must win game felt good, but there was a long while still to play.

Things began to turn against us when Jan felt a sharp pain in the back of his leg and declared his hamstring as having ‘gone’. Now semi-mobile, the only option was to be sent up to hang around the Nomads' circle, just as Dave had done to spectacular effect at Peterborough the week before. As a consequence we temporarily saw the unusual sight of Rob at right-back. It went from bad to worse soon after as Joe took a firmly-struck ball to the side of the foot/ankle, leaving him hopping around. With limited time left in the opening period we scrambled to half-time, still ahead but with some head-scratching to do about how to try and get through the next 35.

A re-jig moved Joe to right-back, but the more important discussion appeared to have taken place amongst the Nomadic horde as they set about us with a renewed impetus, taking a stranglehold on territory and possession. The heavy pressure resulted in a short, which was converted with a straight strike. It was beginning to slip away...

We were no longer getting up field much, so it was imperative to make the most of any opportunities we did get. And there was one clear chance and another half-chance that will generate ‘if onlys’. The clear one came after an early ball from Rob just beat the stretching Nomads sticks and found Jan in the circle. He collected, turned and found himself with just the keeper to beat and Rob racing up on his right, calling for a square pass. Jan weighed up his options and decided he was a better bet at finishing the opportunity [career goals scored: Jan < 10, Rob 200+. Hmm]. The Nomads' keeper comfortably dealt with Jan’s flicked shot. The half chance was a ball in from the right flank that dropped for Paul. He collected but was in a bit of a crowd and didn’t connect with his shot.

These were made particularly costly as we fell behind when Nomads converted a short with a looping near-post deflection. There were some defensive sticks in the vicinity, but the first attempt to take the waist-high ball missed and the second was behind the line so its success was incidental. It looked like the gap would be extended a few minutes later, as a sweeping Nomads move saw the ball worked around Lino and swept with lift towards a seemingly gaping net. However, a stick appeared from nowhere to make an extraordinary mid-air reverse stick pick to keep the shot out, with the loose ball being smuggled clear. The stick may have belonged to Coops, although I can’t be sure (in no way did he bang on about this at teas and indeed for the rest of the day, oh no).

As time ticked down on the game and our season we had little option but to throw bodies forwards. And with five minutes left we were thrown a lifeline as Rob got the ball in the circle, attempted to round the keeper and was felled, going down with a Bartonian roar of pain, once again outdoing all the genuinely injured parties for decibels. A penalty flick was awarded to the astonishment of the Nomads' goalie. JFK - I’m sorry, Dave (DCS?) - took responsibility and showed no nerves with a powerful and accurate finish into the bottom left corner.

Level again but needing a win and with little time left, we threw even more bodies forward, which ran an obvious and probably necessary risk of being caught on the break. With ninety seconds left an aerial down the left channel got through and it was suddenly three-on-one. Nomads worked it neatly, passing to the back post and sweeping in as Lino hurled himself across his net in desperation. As if the relegation-sealing goal was not enough, Lino’s hamstring went twang in the process, leaving him on the deck. He eventually got to his feet, but was never going to play on, leaving us with the unhappy and slightly surreal sight of our goalkeeper standing behind the goal, clinging on to the astro fence and grimacing in pain.

We survived the remaining time without conceding a fourth and retreated to The Red Bull on Barton Road for their excellent spread of pizza and chips, eaten outside in the glorious spring sunshine. It certainly felt like the end of the season. We had a pleasant chat with the Nomads there, who had the good grace to turn up.

On reflection we regarded this as a game we could have won, particularly if we had had eleven fit players for the entirety, but one we also may well have lost even in that circumstance. i.e. it was a pretty even encounter. The same had probably applied with regards to our win in our first meeting with Nomads back in November, which with a neat symmetry was where our season and points tally had finally got under way. Plus a number of other games, some prior to getting off the mark but more afterwards as we adapted to playing in Div 4NW. Oh well, there is always next year and a return to Div 5NW to look forward to.