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Hachioji Park, Sat 4th February. The Saitama Jets returned to the top of Division 2 with a hard-fought win over a tough Maritizio side at Hachioji Park.
Sloppy second-half finishing from Mark Eite and Nate Gildart made this a closer game than it needed to be, and the Jets even had to ride their luck a little towards the end as Maritizio hit the bar and striker Vernon Gill blazed over.
The game started well for the unbeaten Jets when Sasaki's accurate pass was picked up by in-form Nate Gildart, who was upended as he bore down on goal. Gary Garner slotted the penalty away for his sixth goal of the season. The Jets should have added a second when a good move saw Loren release Eite, but the captain's shot ballooned horribly over the bar. Maritizio's physical play then cost them dear again, as Loren was taken down, and Tomo Kobayashi's accurate free-kick floated past everyone and into the far corner.
Maritizio pulled a goal back against the run of play, when their corner was not dealt with properly, and the Jets' attempts to clear the ball saw it given to a Maritizio midfielder, who hooked it it from close range. Just before half-time, the Jets restored their 2-goal lead after fine work from Ryan Loren. He broke from deep, evaded a couple of challenges and released Gildart, who held off the defender and finished crisply in the bottom-left corner. It was his eigth goal of a great season, and many of them have come via Loren.
The second half was not much of an advertisement for TML division 2 football. It was a nasty, bruising battle, and only occasionally did a football match threaten to interrupt the aggro. The Jets certainly had chances, with Eite and Gildart both guilty of a lack of conviction in front of goal. Fraser Gould in the Jets goal kept out a couple of decent Maritizio efforts, and dealt well with a barrage of crosses and long balls. He couldn't keep Vernon Gill's effort out, however, which set-up a nervous last few minutes for the men from Saitama. There was still time for Maritizio to hit the bar, but they couldn't find an equalizer.
The second-half was very much 'backs against the wall' defending from the Jets, but if we can still win when we aren't playing well, the future looks bright indeed.
Report - GG
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