The Bandits were looking forward to this friendly match with the newly formed London Titans. It gave valuable practice and welcome respite from the tension and stress of fixtures in the GFSN league. The Bandits latest tactic for avoiding their notoriously slow start was to turn up 10 minutes after the kick-off time! Motorway closures, heavy traffic and the need to consume large amounts of MacDonald’s food products had resulted in this tardy arrival.

Having enjoyed and been impressed by the changing facilities at Birmingham and against the Leftfooters, we were brought back down to earth as the facilities at Old Dear Park had not yet been built! Hopping around in the mud in your undies was the order of the day, although some people seemed right at home.

An icy northerly wind and heavy rain welcomed the teams onto the pitch and to be fair impacted the play from both sides in a first half that was subdued for some periods. The late arrival of the team minibus seemed to help Brighton start more quickly and the Bandits took the lead when Daryn Vanstone latched onto a through ball that opened up the Titans defence. His well timed first touch shot being driven low into the lefthand corner of the net.

The Bandits were looking comfortable with Jason Hall playing at centre half. This split up the Steve Taylor / Paul Smith golden pairing that has provided the backbone of so many Bandits performances this season. Good work and taking more time on the ball started to show benefits when the Bandits doubled their lead further into the first half, with Matt the Manager tapping in a Daryn Vanstone cross from the right.

The first half ended 2-0 to the Bandits. The second half brought a few tactical changes, with centre half Jason Hall moving into the nets and goal-keeper Mark Hyndman replacing the manager as centre forward. With the wind in their favour, the Titans pushed more people forward and created one or two chances. Jason Hall bravely saving at the feet of a Titans forward who was clear through on goal at one point. The Bandits continued to look dangerous breaking out with speed and missing the goal by inches on a number of occasions. The match ended 7 minutes early, at 2-0, with a worrying injury to Matt Haywood who had fallen awkwardly in soft muddy conditions.

Many thanks to the Titans for an enjoyable game in tough conditions and for our slap up buffet at the Richmond Arms after the match. We look forward to a meeting in Brighton later in the year. The Bandits Man of the Match was Lee Towsey for his commitment and work rate in tough conditions.