The start times of the group matches are basically 9:00 am and 15:00 pm.
However, in order to accommodate the opening ceremony, the game time of the opening match was postponed, as were other matches held on the same day.
At 10 am on August 11, with the referee's whistle, the 2007 China High School Football League National Finals Group G match between Guizhou Province Meijiang Middle School and Inner Mongolia Baotou Steel No. 1 Middle School officially kicked off.
There are no stands at the football field of Tianjin No. 9 Middle School, and the two out-of-town teams could not attract many spectators. There were only the coaches, substitutes, team doctors of the two teams, and a small number of teachers and students from Tianjin No. 9 Middle School who were responsible for reception work.
Of course, there was also a young reporter with a camera, probably an intern reporter from Tianjin TV, responsible for recording the news releases for this game.
Everyone wanted to see a high-level showdown between the champions of the two provinces.
However, the scene at the beginning of the game made the players and coaches of both teams look at each other in surprise, and the teachers and students of Tianjin No. 9 Middle School, who were neutral spectators, also burst into laughter.
It turned out that when Inner Mongolia Baotou Steel No. 1 Middle School kicked off, except for Lu Wenbin who ran across the center line to the opponent's half, all other players from Meijiang Middle School did not cross the half court.
Moreover, the defenders and midfielders all retreated within 30 meters of the goal.
For a team from Guizhou, there is nothing wrong with retreating to defend and preventing the opponent's opening fast break at the beginning of the game if they don't get the opening ball.
But what was unexpected was that Inner Mongolia Baotou Steel No. 1 Middle School, which got the right to kick off, did exactly the same thing as Meijiang Middle School.
Not only did they pass the ball all the way back, but most of the players did not run forward and cross the halfway line to attack, but instead retreated to their own half and prepared to defend.
As a result, most of the players from both teams retreated to their own half of the court, and only Lu Wenbin and a forward from the opposing team were left staring at each other near the center line. It was a rather funny scene.
Since Meijiang Middle School did not have the ball, it was understandable that they retreated to defense and waited for the opponent's attack.
But Baosteel No. 1 Middle School, which had the ball, did the same thing. Instead of attacking after the kick-off, they passed the ball back to the backcourt, passing it back and forth, which was very funny.
Obviously, both teams were wary of the risk of conceding a goal at the start of the game. Even Baosteel No. 1 Middle School, which had the ball, was overly cautious, as if they were afraid that the ball would be snatched away by the opponent as soon as they passed it.
Although this funny scene only lasted for more than ten seconds, Baosteel No. 1 Middle School realized the problem from the laughter of the audience. The player with the ball quickly ran towards the half of Meijiang Middle School, and other players also began to move forward and prepare for the attack.
But this funny scene jointly created by Meijiang Middle School and Baotou Steel No. 1 Middle School has been reflected in the minds of the audience on the sidelines. I don’t know how far it has spread and how many people have laughed at it.
If that reporter reported it, Meijiang Middle School and Baotou Steel No. 1 Middle School would be embarrassed.
After Baosteel No. 1 Middle School started the attack, the game finally returned to normal. Baosteel No. 1 Middle School, which had the ball, was responsible for the offense, while Meijiang Middle School tightened its defense.
Although the game returned to normal, Baosteel No. 1 Middle School still played very cautiously.
Although they are the champions of the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, this is their first time representing Inner Mongolia in the national finals. They have no experience and are not very strong, so it is natural for them to play cautiously.
As for Meijiang Middle School, they were originally playing a defensive counterattack. In addition, it was the first group match and the opponent's strength was unknown, so it was inevitable that they played conservatively.
Until 10 minutes into the game, neither side had a shot on target.
When Baotou Steel No.1 Middle School was attacking, all the players from Meijiang Middle School except Lu Wenbin returned to defense, and Baotou Steel No.1 Middle School had no chance to shoot at all.
When Meijiang Middle School launched a counterattack, all the players of Baotou Steel No. 1 Middle School returned to defend and tried their best.
Although Lu Wenbin's basic skills are very high, comparable to those of a professional player, he is only 17 years old after all, and it is his first time participating in the national finals. Lu Wenbin was a little nervous and did not perform normally.
In the first 10 minutes, Lu Wenbin only took advantage of one of the two counterattack opportunities and completed the shot. However, even this shot failed to hit the goal frame and flew over the crossbar.
Ten minutes later, Lu Wenbin gradually became more involved in the game and the nervousness in his heart gradually disappeared, and his performance became better and better.
Although through the formation positioning and the performance in the first 10 minutes, Baosteel No. 1 Middle School already knew that Lu Wenbin was the spearhead of Meijiang Middle School's counterattack, and his strength must be good.
However, Lu Wenbin only made one shot in two counterattacks, and his shot did not hit the goal frame, which caused the players of Baogang No. 1 Middle School to misjudge Lu Wenbin's strength and did not take it seriously.
Baosteel No. 1 Middle School did not know Lu Wenbin’s true strength, nor did they use multiple people to siege and block Lu Wenbin.
This gave Lu Wenbin an opportunity to perform.
In the 17th minute, Lu Wenbin got another chance to counterattack.
However, after he passed one player, his shot went wide of the goal post due to interference from the opponent's last central defender and still did not hit the goal frame.
This shot that went wide of the goal still did not attract the attention of the players of Baosteel No. 1 Middle School.
It is indeed difficult to take seriously someone you have never known and who has not scored any goals or made any assists yet.
Even if Lu Wenbin is a little faster and his dribbling is a little better, the game has just begun after all, and people who have never known him before will not feel as if they are facing a powerful enemy.
On the contrary, it was the attitude of Meijiang Middle School that kept defending and refusing to give in that gave the players of Baosteel No. 1 Middle School, who were originally feeling nervous, a reassurance.
Meijiang Middle School showed such a tactic and attitude right from the start, which proved that Meijiang Middle School was not strong enough. If they were really strong, they should stand up and fight the opponent openly instead of shrinking on the defense.
But now, only Lu Wenbin from Meijiang Middle School is roaming in the front, while the others are hiding behind to defend, as if they are afraid of being scored against.
Such tactics and attitude clearly show that this is a weak team.
The seeded team in Group G, Shanghai Datong Middle School, will definitely occupy one qualifying spot, while Inner Mongolia Baotou Steel No. 1 Middle School, Qinghai Province Xining No. 1 Middle School, and Guizhou Province Meijiang Middle School will compete for the other qualifying spot.
Since Meijiang Middle School is weak, Baotou Steel No. 1 Middle School may try to win against Meijiang Middle School, and then fight for a draw with Xining No. 1 Middle School, so that it will have a chance to compete for another qualifying spot.
As a result, the players of Inner Mongolia Baotou Steel No. 1 Middle School, who were originally very nervous and played very cautiously at the beginning, gradually became more confident. Even the full-backs began to rush forward to assist, and once they went, they never came back.
This approach naturally suits the wishes of the coaches and players of Meijiang Middle School.
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