The two biggest games of the season: Preparation and plyometrics

The final blues league game against Worcester University is now essentially a shoot out for the title. Our victory over Bedford on Wednesday was complimented, rather unexpectedly, by Worcester dropping points against bottom of the table Northampton such that we were able to make up some lost ground and put ourselves back in with a chance of topping the final league tables. Granted Worcester are nominally still in pole position, needing only to hold us to a draw to finish above us, but we have been given another opportunity and the hope for a triumphant climax to the season will ensure that we will do everything in our power to get the victory. As far as I’m concerned this is just an important as the Varsity match. This is the culmination of everything we have done and put in place for the best part of the last year. This goes back to the last game of last season when we gained promotion, to the selection of the new committee for the upcoming season, through to the trials, the pre-season and every game last term. We have worked so hard and have overcome so many obstacles to put ourselves in this position and it will be a fitting tribute not just to the quality of our own team but the overall quality and excitement of the league in which we play that the title is to be decided in one single ‘winner takes all’ match. As we near the culmination of our BUSA season and the imminence of the varsity match becomes ever more apparent Martin Keown has decided to conduct our Sunday evening training sessions exclusively at the David Lloyd fitness centre, focussing on various circuits of plyometrics, weight training and spinning classes. This week we conducted exercises more specific to American football then traditional ’soccer’, encompassing a renewed focus on the mechanics of our running styles. However a rather worrying development, which raised numerous questions about the nature of team bonding at Arsenal, was Keown’s suggestion that in order to encourage greater confidence and a more relaxed attitude for one particular member of the squad, striker and social secretary Alex Toogood should somehow ‘arrange’ for said individual to spend some time in the company of ‘ladies of the night’. Its certainly doubtful that this rather dubious arrangement was the key to Thierry Henry’s success and Mr Toogood seemed somewhat bemused that such tasks were considered to fall under the remit of his responsibilities as social secretary. I’m sure more conventional and acceptable methods of building confidence and team spirit will be employed in preparation for Friday and we certainly hope that we will gain our rewards out there on the pitch.by Paul Rainford (Blues' Football Captain)