Page 14 - Ashton & Backwell FC v Mousehole 130822

Match Report

Clevedon Town FC 2 Ashton & Backwell Utd FC 3

Scorers, A+BUFC 3 [SOLARI 21M; HARDIDGE 66M; CATTERMOLE (pen) 92M]
CLEVEDON TOWN FC 2 [FELTHAM 17M; KING 67M]; HALF TIME 1-1

It is 91 minutes into the match, the Stags have impressed on a very warm night and on
a dry pitch, with most of the possession, but still tied at 2-2. In the dying embers of the
game, they make a speculative move forward and for reasons unclear, perhaps an
unfortunate bounce, Camper handles in his own area, referee blows for a penalty.
Cattermole steps forward to take the spot kick, yet the referee takes an age to clear
players from the box, check with keeper Smith, all the time the pressure building on
Cattermole, Stags without a win in any competition. Yet when he eventually gets the go
ahead, he strokes it calmly into the bottom lef h and corner. Minutes later, full time and
Stags first win.

In many ways it is hard to understand why this added time tension was necessary when
the Stags were the dominant side for much of the match, they could and should have
put the game to bed much earlier, having been first in all departments. Yet the Seasiders
took the lead in the 17 minute when the ever-lively Feltham was given room on the
th
edge of the box to shoot and Coombes a mere observer as the ball caused the net to
bulge low on the right.
Stags equalised within four minutes, a free kick from a foul on Hardidge was well struck
by the outstanding White, only to hit the upright, but the ball fell to Solari whose crisp
strike made it 1-1. That would likely have been more if Pitt had not made a saving tackle
on Cummings in the home box or Smith’s fingertips not saved from another Solari shot,
a move that begun with Bishop deep in his own half via Newman to Solari.
Seasiders were not though passive spectators, Feltham remaining a threat and he split
the defence with a cross just before the interval, only for Ferris to head wide when,
unmarked, scoring seemed easier. And after the break Nicholson’s forty yarder required
Coombes fingertips to prevent a goal, Camm’s effort was deflected for a corner whilst
Man of the Match Oscar Pearce did the same to Ferris’s header. The home side did net
when Nicholson’s cross to King produced an effort that rattled in from the underside of
the bar, which was a frustrating equaliser when Stags, who had earlier seen efforts from
White and Cummings narrowly miss the target, had taken the lead a minute before with
a long cross from deep on the right from impressive substitute Joe Cattermole, steered
across the box by Solari for Hardidge to notch up another goal with clinical accuracy.
In the heat and on a hard and unavoidably dry, bouncy surface the game a was scrappy
but it was a credit to both sides as they produced a competitive (it is a very local derby)
and entertaining game. We produced our best 90 minutes of the season and should give
confidence to our lads to push on. Mousehole at home awaits Saturday.
MAN OF THE MATCH: PEARCE, TOOK CHANGE OF POSITION IN HIS STRIDE AND
POSITIVE IN DEFENCE AND ATTACK

Team: COOMBES, PEARCE , SOLLARS [SUB WALKER 83M], WHITE , HEDGES [SUB
NEWMAN 20M], BISHOP, CUMMINGS [SUB CATTERMOLE 64M], CONNOR SAUNDERS ©,
HARDIDGE [SUB PRICE 77M], CHARLIE SAUNDERS, [SUB PRICE 38M], SOLARI [SUB
MOORE 87M]