After their first scheduled game of the year fell victim to the weather last weekend, the A’s put in a great team performance on a typically Downs pitch to warm the cockles with a valuable 3 points on a chilly January afternoon.

Having been under pressure in the early minutes, Cowboys took control of the game and put together some great passing moves going forward – Carmine Notaro, Max Oliver and Ian Riddle all linking up well in the opponents’ half, but it took some fleet-footed wizardry from Brendan Tate to break the deadlock, as he weaved inside a couple of defenders and unleashed a pinpoint shot from the edge of the box, which went in off the post.

The lead was short-lived though, as a sudden bout of A.D.D saw Greyhound equalise within a couple of minutes. A less-than-vicious shot in the penalty box taking a deflection off Cowboys skipper Steve Williams and bobbling into the net like a bewildered pensioner getting on a coach. Ever-dependable though, Williams didn’t duck his responsibility for the goal, saying after the match – “Sanzo, that was your fucking man who managed to get the shot in anyway”.

Nonetheless, the Cowboys’ lead was restored before the break, Ian Riddle’s shot getting a deflection and looping into the corner. In this case though, the deflection was almost irrelevant. The shot was DEFINITELY already both on target, and unsaveable. If anything, the deflection only slowed it down, and stopped it breaking the net with it’s fierce velocity. Honest.

Also worthy of note from the first half – Will Sanzo made a late bid for Oscar fame, whilst on the receiving end of a (genuine) foul. However, his efforts would be more suited to the “best comedy” section, rather than “drama”.

After the break, Greyhound stepped it up and enjoyed the better of things, but didn’t create many clear chances. “Fingertips” Franck Wilks made one excellent save, and in front of him the defensive unit had a great 45 minutes – well organised and breaking things up well. Olly Black put in a man of the match performance as a one-man wrecking crew in the midfield.

It was tense towards the end, but the Cowboys held out to leapfrog their opponents in the league, with league leaders Hare on the Hill to come next weekend.

To round off a great afternoon, there were also very welcome returns for Jess Tate, Adam Birch and Paul Murray from the subs bench – all looking sharp and back to enjoying some Football after all three endured a pretty hellish first half of the season injuries-wise.

Great team effort, and great spirit from everyone (same thing goes for the opponents as well, to be fair). Looking forward to big things for 2012.

Skipper Steve Williams decided to make the match slightly more competitive, by making the Cowboys play into the sun in the first half. A tactical move as dazzling as the sun itself, which bore down on every Cowboys attack.

Easton came out of the blocks sharply and enjoyed the better of the posession and chances from the first whistle, and Ian Riddle put them ahead early on, capitalising on some woeful defending from a corner to poke the ball home from all of 3 yards.

The Cowboys pressured but were kept at bay for some time to follow, but Max headed home superbly at the near post from film-guru come tough-tackling midfielder Dave Owen’s pinpoint cross to make it 2-0 at the break.

Refreshed, and playing for ‘pride’ (see what I did there?), Lion came out strongly in the second half, and pulled a goal back, despite the offside flag being waved furiously by Olly Black on the far side of the pitch. The referee decided to over-rule his well positioned assistant though, to allow the visitors back into the game.

Their challenge was to be short-lived though, as fitness, work-rate and a bit of quality made the difference for the Cowboys, and Ian restored their 2 goal lead with a finish from close range.

Max scored a superb fourth, his second of the game, from long-range, before Ian concluded the scoring with a good finish to nail his hat-trick.

An excellent performance all-round – the back 4 will have more taxing days at the office, but were well-organised, and coped admirably with the oppositions ‘sorties’ into Easton territory – Kev Davis put in an excellent shift for the full 90, Ali Dale and Steve took control and dealt with everything thrown at them, and Will Sanzo impressed in the first half at left-back, clearly aware of the salivating Paul Murray watching on from the sidelines.

In the middle, the guys linked up well and interchanged between positions expertly to keep Lion guessing, and with five goals between them Ian and Max were (somewhat evidently) a constant goal threat going forward.

There were no fouls, or incidents of flared tempers, worthy of note in the game. Not one. Honest.

Riddle’s ‘cultured’ left foot hit both the goals in a 2-0 win, the second one a particularly spectacular volleyed lob from 20 yards.

Both teams were given a pre-match boost, with the news that there was no ref, and that the dashing Mr G. Boulton would be taking to the pitch to fill the void – strutting around the turf like an authoritarian Peacock on a poorly-maintained giant catwalk.

The Cowboys were quickest out of the blocks and Senor Riddle opened the scoring with a low shot into the corner. Ally Dale went close with a salmon-esque leap and header from a corner as well before the break, and the midfield were passing it round magnificently at times.

Having started the game like a man possessed, the Cowboys lost Striker Nathan Stokes though halfway through the first period to a foot injury, which would later prove to be a broken Metatarsal. Very nasty. Naturally everyone’s keeping everything crossed for a quick recovery. His departure did though, pave the way for wily veteran Ash Sands’ return to the side after more than a month out. Wicked to see the big man back.

The only other thing that really sticks out from the first half was County League-exile Goalkeeper Franck “Judas” Wilks absolutely clattering skipper Steve Williams. Somehow there was a breakdown in communication at the back between defender and keeper which left Williams a crumpled heap on the floor – a breakdown in communication made all the more confusing given Franck’s usual repertoire of calls. Somehow, either “AWAY”, or “FRANCK” didn’t make sense to messers Williams and Wilks. Either way – it was funny.

After the break, Ian deftly finished his second of the game after some good work by Ash, and Dave Owen put in a “noteworthy” challenge at the other end to ensure the score remained 2-0.

Solid performances front to back though, and some good Football played at times.

Win our two games in hand, and we’re just three points off the top.

Look out.

This year we’re going cosy and traditional…

BLING CROSBY

Trad winter knits and party hats blinged with a bit of sparkle!

DJs blending festive croons with tunes to shake your knitted backside
Mulled wine to warm your cockles
Mince pies – the festive crisp alternative
Chestnuts roasting over an open BBQ
Santa’s psychohohoanalysis – have you been good?
Raffle with way classy prizes
Tombola shaped like a Christmas pud
PRIZE FOR THE BEST KNITTED JUMPER AND/OR PARTY HAT

Saturday 17th December, 8pm til late, The Plough, Easton.

Get your tickets from your team rep or behind the bar at the Plough.  All proceeds to next year’s tournament.

If you don’t have a team there will be a few spares knocking about and Caz or Otam should be able to sell you one, or maybe they will just look at you blankly.

Over The Wall

Dir: Jesse Tate UK 2011 31 mins

This engaging documentary follows the endeavours of Bristol-based sports team Easton Cowboys as they return to the West Bank for a second time.   The film provides an insight into the realities of the occupation as seen by Palestinian and Israeli people and explores how football can build connections between communities across the world.

There is even a trailer:

Principal photography begins today on Flying Blind, the third film to be made in Bristol under iFeatures, South West Screen’s groundbreaking micro-budget filmmaking scheme.

An exciting cast of multinational talent includes Helen McCrory (recently announced in the new James Bond film Skyfall, also Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince as Narcissa Malfoy and Mrs Bean in Fantastic Mr Fox), Kenneth Cranham (Hot Fuzz, Valkyrie), French-Algerian Najib Oudghiri (Rendition) and Australian Tristan Gemmill (Casualty).

Flying Blind is headed up by young Polish director Kasia Klimkiewicz, whose short film, Hanoi Warsaw, won the 2010 European Film Award for Best Short. It is produced by Alison Sterling of Ignition Films, who co-produced the BAFTA-nominated short film Turning, which screened at over 20 other international festivals.

The screenplay credit is shared by Naomi Wallace (Lawn Dogs, The War Boys), Bruce McLeod (The War Boys), and Bristol-based writer Caroline Harrington (Radio 4 adaptation Beyond Black). Behind the camera is Polish Director of Photography Andrzej Wojciechowski, Kasia’s long time collaborator, and DoP on Hanoi-Warsaw.

Flying Blind is a passionate post 9/11 love story that confronts cultural, racial and sexual taboos. It tells the story of an impossible love: an older woman with a younger man, in a world where security is paramount and nothing is quite what it seems.

Frankie works for a major aerospace manufacturer, designing surveillance drones for the military. She’s at the top of her game and in total control of her life. When she meets Kahil, a French-Algerian student, much younger than her, she embarks on a passionate affair and for the first time in her life she utterly, thrillingly, loses control. One morning, when she arrives for work, she’s detained by security and told that Kahil may not be quite what he seems. She discovers that she has unwittingly crossed a line from control and security, into a nightmare world of suspicion and accusation. She now realises how little she knows of this man, yet her love for him proves stronger than her anger and mistrust, and she tries to find a way to protect her lover. Finally she discovers to her cost that betrayal always comes from those closest to us.

An Ignition Pictures/iFeatures production, Flying Blind is a South West Screen and BBC Films presentation in association with Matador Pictures, Cinema Six, Regent Capital and City of Bristol. Content Media Corporation plc is handling worldwide sales.

Producer Alison Sterling, of Ignition Films, said: “It’s been a long journey to get to where we are today and a steep learning curve, and I am so pleased that the project will now be realised. Our talented cast and crew are bringing Kasia’s cinematic vision to life, for this script which we hope has passion, tension and beauty.”

iFeatures Executive Producer Chris Moll said: “This shoot has a real international flavour, and demonstrates our commitment to forging collaborations between emerging talent from different countries. I look forward to seeing the team make their mark with this microbudget, which boasts a really exciting multinational cast.

“As with all the iFeatures movies, Bristol itself is also a leading character. The film will strongly feature the city’s glorious contrasts, from Georgian splendour to gritty inner-city suburbs bisected by a motorway, flyover all excitingly re-interpreted through Kasia and Andrzej’s lenses.”

Flying Blind commences principal photography today (7 November). It will be a heavily location-based shoot, utilising many different facets of Bristol including Clifton, the Downs, the Harbourside, Easton, Stokes Croft, and the city centre. The Fleet Air Arm Museum in Yeovilton will double for the Bristol Concorde museum and the manufacturing floor of the Airbus manufacturing plant at Filton where the lead character Frankie works.

South West Screen’s iFeatures scheme, backed by BBC Films, Matador Pictures and Bristol City Council, was launched in October 2009 with the aim of providing a pathway to features for the city’s most outstanding creative talent as well attracting some of the best emerging filmmakers from across the UK and Europe to the city of Bristol. Three films were greenlit in November 2010, and Flying Blind is the third feature to move into production. The first, In the Dark Half, received its world premiere at the Raindance Film Festival in London last month. The second film, Eight Minutes Idle, is currently in post-production

Xmas Party planning meeting: 8.30pm, Thursday 10th November, Plough. Can you help? – come along and join us.

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