Due to the restructuring of the league, this was our second visit to Taunton Vale in what seemed to be a very short space of time. Our team selection this season has been defined by a significant flux of players, due to challenges with numbers, dad duties and injuries. But what this squad lacks in stability, we make up for in heart, soul, perseverance… and frequently blood and guts.

After our draw earlier in the season, we arrived with high hopes. But it soon became apparent that Vale were fielding a strong team.

Vale piled on the pressure, right from the start, with a seemingly constant barrage of attacks into our D. Despite some valiant defending and strong clearances by Arthur, Elliot, Tom and Steve, there somehow appeared to be one too many attackers to mark. Consequently, goalkeeper Luke was on the receiving end of numerous shots on goal - resulting in many great saves. But even still, Vale were 4-0 up by half-time.

The half-time talk reflected on our passing, which could certainly have been less panicky, more measured and accurate. The significant number of wayward passes had resulted in us loosing possession frequently and finding ourselves in the firing line of yet another strong counter-attack.

Straight after half-time, Chard were caught napping and a fifth goal went in for Vale. But at no point did our heads go down. As the second half progressed, Chard began to string together more accurate and well-timed passes. Mike, Ed and Rich battled to gain some dominance in midfield. Isaac and Ollie continued to launch speedy runs up the wing… and hurtled back in the blink of an eye to support in defence. Archie, taking a break from training for the Winter Olympics, showed great confidence in holding strong on the ball, while also impressing the Russian judge with his pirouettes. His usual sniping partner, James, offered words of encouragement and support from the bench, whilst resting his smorgasbord of age-related ailments. Congratulations to Elliot on his man of the match performance, once again adeptly stepping up into the 2nds defensive line.

But even despite our best efforts, Vale scored one more goal shortly before the final whistle, resulting in a 6-0 defeat for Chard.

Another defeat in what is proving to be a tough season. But it was very encouraging that Chard actually grew stronger in the second half. There is every hope we will begin to reap the dividends after the Christmas break.