Middlesex - Tuesday 9th December: Middlesex Friendly Over 65s Festival

On a wet and windy Tuesday morning, seven fellow Leyton Orient Walking FC footballers traipsed over to the other side of London for a friendly over 65s tournament. The rain, thankfully held off for the entire morning, allowing players to discard their raincoats and umbrellas and concentrate on the task ahead.

First up were Uxbridge, a tricky first match. Indeed, with James in goal, Dooley at the back, Barrick in the centre, Inkpen and Baker on the flanks and Ridley up front, the team struggled to get a grip on the game as Uxbridge dominated possession for the first few minutes. However, gradually Orient began to settle down and start carving out chances of their own with Ridley firing a couple of speculative shots to get his eye in. Eventually Barrick passed to Ridley who turned, spotted Baker coming in from the left, sent in a pinpoint pass for Baker to fire the ball into the goal via the keeper and the post. 1-0 to the Os! Now could we hang on to this lead? The team continued to mark well out of possession and keep the ball well when on the front foot. Uxbridge were getting frustrated and finally managed to blast a shot towards goal that skimmed of Dooley’s shins and into the net. James had no chance. Orient continued to press for a winner with some long range efforts but it was not to be. Final score: Uxbridge 1 v 1 Leyton Orient (Baker).

The next game was against Bumble Bees. Gall replaced Inkpen as the team, buoyed by an excellent first game performance, began strongly, peppering the goal with shots from Ridley, Gall and Inkpen. Bumble Bees were struggling against a well drilled team with Barrick directing proceedings from the middle, Dooley solid at the back, Ridley troubling their shaky defence and Gall and Baker moving with intent up and down the wings. What could go wrong? Surely it was only a matter of time before Orient got their just rewards? Then a rare break from a Bumble Bee forward who was clearly running as he overtook Dooley. A whistle was heard as he fired the ball past the hapless James. That has to be a free kick for running, but no, the referee points to the centre spot instead! Orient continued to push for a deserved equaliser. A free kick was sent skimming just over the bar by Ridley in the final seconds before the final whistle. A disappointing loss to a team that should have been easy prey. Final score: Bumble Bees 1 v 0 Leyton Orient.

After a fairly lengthy break Orient lined up against Bee Stingers for their penultimate match. Captain Baker took himself off for the first half and positioned Inkpen in central defence with Dooley on the left. Once again Orient started strongly with every intent of finally getting a win under their belts. Ridley was on fire as he sent shot after shot at the Stingers goal. Either the keeper or the woodwork prevented the ball from from going in on a number of occasions. Gall and Barrick also had a go at goal before finally Dooley got in a good position. Turned his marker and fired the ball home with a wry look at Ridley as if to say ‘That’s how it’s done!’ In the second half Baker replaced Gall and then the team continued to push for a second to put the game to bed. Needless to say Ridley was in no mood to be outdone on the scoring front as he continued to work the goalkeeper with a barrage of shots from every available angle. Finally yet another shot rebounded off the keeper and out to the advancing Inkpen who calmly slotted the ball home. At last a victory to celebrate, even though Ridley was ruefully shaking his head on how on earth he hadn’t managed to score! Final score: Bee Stingers 0 v 2 Leyton Orient (Dooley, Inkpen).

With time ticking the team had to wait several agonising minutes before facing their final opponents, RIP Monday. The referee decided to play the game straight through without a break as our time on the pitches had to finish at dead on 1 pm. Dooley took a break as the teams kicked off for the final match of the tournament. The teams were in deadlock for most of the game with neither team managing to truly threaten each others goal. As the game progressed, inevitably Ridley spurned a couple of chances, but it was not to be his day. Dooley replaced Barrick for the final few minutes before the referee whistled up early resulting in a rather drab goalless draw. Final score: RIP Monday 0 v 0 Leyton Orient.

After the tournament Baker reflected, "This was a solid team effort with good contributions from every member of the squad. A special mention to Gall, who came into this tournament with a lot less experience of competitive football than the others, though you would never have guessed it from his assured performances throughout."

Leyton Orient squad: David James (Gk), Simon Baker (Cpt), Vincent Dooley, Steve Inkpen, Jon Barrick, Trevor Ridley, Walter Gall.

Goalscorers: Baker, Dooley, Inkpen.

© Copyright 2025 Leyton Orient Walking FC
Image used © 2025 Trevor Ridley