“I’m really enjoying playing with this team!” This was the quote of the day for the All Tool Legion by captain Paul “Tebow” Steinbrecher. Apparently, he and his team really enjoying playing with each other judging by the first quarter.
All Tool took to the offensive with great aggression and aptitude from the initial whistle. Pass, pass, score was the theme, and the Slaintes had no answer for it. Tebow, co-captain Steven Schmid, and Jerry Miller fired from all angles, putting a hefty load on the scoreboard. Slainte sub-goalie Erin Clapper had her hands full, blocking all shots on net with the exception of a single goal made by Schmid off of a 65. By the end of the first, the Legion had gained most of their total score for day.
Slim McGinn’s is a tough team and did not take the opening barrage lying down, their defense took the challenge on and took to keeping the ball to the center of the field. Offensively, in the second quarter, each team managed a point a piece through the many hardnosed scuffles. At half, Slim’s was alive and ready, and All Tool had come down from their initial berserker rage of the first quarter.
The Legion stuck to the basics in the third quarter and put the ball over the bar instead of driving the ball deep against a steadfast Slim’s defense. With captain and star fullback, Matt Ebert, out for the quarter, the Slim defense locked together in a virtual shield wall with Davidson Kane holding the backline. Tom Hereley consistently cleared the sliotar and drove one for a point from midfield. Andy McKee had the usual display of shutting down all on-coming volleys, stopping the expert drives made by Katy Hambrook and her captains. If there is one aspect of this game that shone more than the rest, it was the All Tool Legion passing, this beautiful team cohesion further proved Tebow’s voiced adoration of playing with his team.
Slim McGinn’s turned it up to 11 in the fourth quarter. Danny Mac McAuliffe with Ian Doherty, both swift and gritty for the last fifteen, consistently dove the ball deep and over the bar. A hard bashing to the back of the net by Patrick “Backdoor” Burke changed the outlook of the game, Slim’s saw their chance to catch-up and possibly win. But the All Tool Legion remained a spectacle with such plays as a crossfired weakside point by Jerry Miller, and they kept the Slaintes win-fever suppressed. Final score – All Tool 1-13 (16) to Slaintes 1-6 (9).
by Ivan Baker