GAA London was well represented by nine teams across all the age groups and this is how they got on.
The theme for the day both amongst the players and supporters was orange. This was displayed to great effect as all 9 teams wore the same orange shirts emblazoned with GAA London and the name of our prestigious sponsors
12 and UNDER
WINNERS FOR THE SECOND CONSECUTIVE YEAR!
WINNERS FOR THE SECOND CONSECUTIVE YEAR!
The London 1 team consisted of,
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The results from the group stage were:
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The team progressed as group winners into the final where it met Birmingham 1 in a repeat of last year's final. In an entertaining and enthralling encounter, Khyal bossed the midfield area in his usual confident manner.
The score remained deadlocked until midway through the match when Sai intercepted the ball and passed it forward to Dilan who then proceeded to take it past the defender with his right foot and blast it past the keeper with his left. Dilan sank to his knees in celebration as he was mobbed by his delirious teammates.
London nearly added a second but a slick shot by Khyal was well saved by the Birmingham goalkeeper. As the match drew to a tense finish the defence of Kishan and Sai stood strong to the threat that Birmingham posed. Their partnership and understanding at the back was almost telepathic at stages as they made some brilliant tackles.
The goalkeeper Yash was called upon to make a couple of smart saves. Yash, the unsung hero of the team, should be applauded as he only conceded one goal in the entire competition.
Dhrew replaced Sai as substitute and his composed and disciplined defending was displayed once again, just as it had been in the group matches that he had played in.
The tension grew and it seemed that Birmingham had equalised but a sigh of relief encompassed the London support as the 'goal' was disallowed as the Birmingham player had encroached Into the penalty area.
The clock ticked down slowly but eventually the referee blew the final whistle. The celebrations began both on the pitch and amongst the fervent supporters both by pitchside and in the stands.
The Winners trophy was presented to the captain Khyal by, the MSA President, Dilip Parmar and each player also received an individual trophy.
In addition, DiIan was awarded the Golden Boot for the second consecutive year having scored the most goals of 6 in the competition.
OVER 40's
RUNNERS UP FOR THE SECOND CONSECUTIVE YEAR!
The London 1 team consisted of,RUNNERS UP FOR THE SECOND CONSECUTIVE YEAR!
| The results from the group stage were:
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In a very competitive and bruising contest, Leicester took an early lead. Both the forwards Rakesh and Shailesh ran tirelessly for the cause but were up against a very determined Leicester defence.
The defence of Ajay and Sanjay stood firm as Leicester seeked to extend their lead. With London now pushing forward at every opportunity in search of an equaliser, the inevitable spaces this created at the back were exploited by Leicester, as a swift attack made it 2-0.
It was now an uphill task for London. Vijay came on as substitute to replace Sanjay whilst Jitu kept London in the match with a stunning save.
In desperation Ajay moved forward and had one shot saved by the keeper. With only moments left in the match London were awarded a free kick on the edge of the area. In a training ground drill perfectly executed by Shailesh, he blasted the ball past the Leicester keeper making the score line 2-1.
However it was all to no avail as the referee blew the final whistle shortly afterwards. Both teams congratulated and commiserated eachother in a show of mutual respect.
On a lighter note, the Over 40's London 1 team will begin their preparation for the 2011 tournament next week. Their first training session will consist entirely of Penalty practise!
12 & UNDER
The other team, London 2, consisted of,
| Devan Vijay Bulsara (capt) |
| Milan Rajesh Parmar (gk) |
| Arjun Vijay Parmar |
| Shivam Hitesh Chauhan |
| Vishal Umesh Chauhan |
| Meeran Katten Chauhan |
They did well having won 2 and drawn 1 of their group stage matches.
16 & UNDER
The London team consisted of,
| Neal Ashvin Chauhan (capt) |
| Krishant Ashwin Chauhan (gk) |
| Vishnu Hitesh Chauhan |
| Neeraj Narendra Morar |
| Preyesh Satish Champaneri |
| Vasu Vijay Parmar |
In amongst some very strong teams, London did us proud but unfortunately did not progress out of the group.
The eventual winners of this competition were LEICESTER who beat Birmingham in the Final.
SENIORS
The London 4 team consisted of,
| The results from the group stage were:
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Eventually after a controversial decision that brought back memories of the 1966 World Cup Final, a London penalty kick was adjudged to not have crossed the line. It was left to the Luton 1 player to slot home the deciding penalty.
It should be noted that the team including the keeper and captain, Vinay, conceded no goals in the entire competition other than in the ill-fated penalty shoot-out.
Well done lads and unlucky!
The eventual winners of this competition were LUTON 1 who beat Leicester 2 in the Final.
Other Senoir teams
The London 1 team consisted of,
| Ashish Anil Pardiwalla (capt) | |
| Nishit Ramesh Solanki (gk) | |
| Kieran Rakesh Chauhan | |
| Minesh Natwarlal Randeria | |
| Nilesh Hasmukh Solanki |
In a very tough group that contained the eventually winners, they did well winning 3 of their matches.
The London 2 team consisted of,
| Prashant Raju Chauhan (capt) | |
| Rohit Pradeep Chavda (gk) | |
| Aasish Somchand Parmar | |
| Milan Deepak Patel | |
| Ritesh Pankaj Solanki | |
| Punit Prakash Chauhan |
In the same tough group as London 1, they won 2 and drew 1 of their matches.
The London 3 team consisted of,
| Shamir Parmar (capt) | |
| Milesh Chauhan (gk) | |
| Hiren Jayantilal Chauhan | |
| Ketan Jayantilal Chauhan | |
| Nilesh Ramesh Chauhan | |
| Dylan Prakash Chauhan |
In the group dominated by London 4, they won 2 and drew 1 of their matches.
OVER 40's
| Vijay Bulsara (capt) | |
| Vijay Parmar (gk) | |
| Katten Chauhan | |
| Jitesh Parmar | |
| Naresh Parmar | |
| Shashi Chauhan |
They did well beating the highly fancied Preston team but too many draws cost them a place in the final.
LADIES The eventual winners of this competition were BIRMINGHAM who beat Leicester in the Final.
Come on ladies, London are looking for players so we can enter a team next year! Please contact us for further information.
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Special Award Shashi Chauhan was awarded the Most Senior Player Award. I'm sure Shashi won't mind us divulging his age at a mind boggling 62. How does he do it? |
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Special Thanks GAA London and the coaching staff of Ajay Chauhan, Rakesh Chauhan and Kunal Chauhan would like to thank all those mums and wives who made and provided food and refreshments on the day.
Also special thanks to:
Nicky Chandrakant Chauhan who managed to secure for us the very eminent sponsor Sky Sports.
Priscilla Hasu Parmar who took photographs of the day.
Shashi Chauhan who provided Subway sandwiches for all our players.
Jasukhbhai Bulsara and Bharat Chauhan who made the orange flags for our supporters.
Balwant Chauhan and Narendra Chauhan who assisted the MSA on the day.
Also thank you to all our volunteers who helped make the day run so smoothly.
And finally a huge thank you should go out to the ORANGE ARMY made up of our supporters who attended on the day. They consisted of parents, wives, friends and family whose tremendous vocal support was greatly appreciated by all our teams.
Summary
GAA LONDON are proud to have achieved the following during the 2010 Mahasaba Tournament:
WINNERS 12 & Unders
RUNNERS UP Over 40's
GOLDEN BOOT 12 & Unders
SEMI-FINALISTS Seniors
WINNER Most Senior Player Award
Photos
Images of the day can be obtained via the following links….
http://picasaweb.google.co.uk/NONONSENSE010468/GAAFOOTBALLTOURNAMENT2010ASTONARENA?authkey=Gv1sRgCNXDxK_pgd-K_AE&feat=email#
Future
Mochi football returns in October 2010 and we will let you know more details closer to the time..
Contact Details
Ajay Chauhan 07947 354302
Rakesh Chauhan 07768 745352
Kunal Chauhan 07957 440981