TWO
POINTS SLIP AWAY FOR FIRST TEAM
Fixture:
Heyford Athletic V's Stanion United
Venue:
Nether Heyford Playing Field
Competition:
Northants
Combination Premier Division
Result:
2:2 (Half Time: 2:1)
Heyford
Goal Scorers: Nick Brown, Steve Hair
Line
Up:
|
1.
|
Nick
Inwood |
|
2.
|
Joe
Gartland |
|
3.
|
Paul
Curley |
|
4.
|
Paul
Currier |
|
5.
|
Nathan
Lacey |
|
6.
|
Paul
Farmer |
|
7.
|
Steve
Hair |
|
8.
|
Nick
Moore |
|
9.
|
Bruno
Nyamudzadza |
|
10.
|
Daniel
Woods |
|
11.
|
Nick
Brown |
|
SUBS
|
|
|
|
Ben
Nickels (on for Bruno Nyamudzadza) |
|
|
Ben
Richards (on for Daniel Woods) |
|
|
Matt
Gernon (unused) |
|
|
Justin
Bradstreet (unused) |
Match
Report (Courtesy of Mick Butcher)
On
an overcast and blustery day, the first team entertained Stanion
United with a very real prospect of three points against the
unfancied Corby district outfit.
Joe
Gartland and Paul Farmer lined up in a new look defence, with
Steve Hair moving up into midfield. The pacey Nick Brown was
also introduced into the starting lineup.
The opening exchanges were fairly even. The long balls of a
nervous and unsettled Heyford team being countered by some useful
looking diagonal through balls into the heart of the Heyford
defence which, whilst needing alert attention were generally
dealt with comfortably.
Nick Brown opened the scoring for the home side after intercepting
a Stanion clearance just outside their penalty area, he carried
the ball back into the box before releasing a low drive past
the keepers right hand to bring visually obvious relief to Manager
Paul Smith.
The goal clearly settled the team who began to improve their
passing game. It was Stanion however who struck next with the
equaliser coming on twenty minutes. After a scrappy exchange
out on the Heyford left, the ball broke to the Stanion No. 2
whose low cross into the penalty area was not cut out, and a
powerful strike from close in gave keeper Nick Inwood no chance.
Heyford retook the lead within three minutes, courtesy of a
Paul Currier free kick out on the Stanion right, met with a
looping Steve Hair header over the Stanion keeper and into the
net.
The rest of the half was played out with no further score or
notable chances from either side. The team were trying to improve
their passing game but all too often were reduced to long balls
over hit in the following wind.
Half Time: Heyford Athletic 2 Stanion United 1
The first five minutes of the second half opened with some sustained
pressure from the Heyford front line which may well have increased
their lead. Firstly Bruno almost getting a foot to the ball
from close in, followed shortly afterwards by a Daniel Woods
strike being cleared off the Stanion line.
Heyford could not make this earlier pressure tell and the following
period saw perhaps Stanion's best period of the match, pushing
Heyford back into some slightly panicky defending, but the line
held.
Bruno gave way to Ben Nickels on 68 minutes and together with
some positional changes, the boat appeared to be steadied.
Further chances to make the game safe came Heyford's way, firstly
on 73 minutes, a Daniel Woods corner from the Stanion right
was cleared off the line and then on 76 Minutes a driving run
by the same player whose dangerous low cross was only just cleared
for a corner by the Stanion defence.
Woods was replaced on 80 minutes by 16 year old debutant Ben
Richards, to inject some fresh legs into the match. Still the
Heyford chances came, on 85 minutes Paul Currier saw his run
and shot blocked.
It is always a concern that there is a price to pay for missed
chances and it came on 88 minutes. A Stanion free kick 20 yards
out on the Heyford right, was fired (with pace) straight at
keeper Nick Inwood who somehow contrived to palm (or punch)
the ball into the roof of his own net.
Full Time: Heyford Athletic 2 Stanion United 2
Match
Summary:
It
does not help to say that the result was a fair reflection of
the overall play. The Managers are forced every week to make
changes and the team has not been able to settle as a unit all
season. There were three objectives today: 1.Three Points, 2.Three
Points and 3.Three Points. We did not get them against a team
that we needed to beat. What effect this will have come next
April remains to be seen. The team has potential but needs to
be settled into a regular unit.
Man of the Match: Nick Brown
Tireless,
tricky and always looking to do more than just hit the long
ball, Nick can be at the centre of the teams improvement, if
we can get him every week.
