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Photos: Vivan Jayant
Sheffield Hallam scraped past a gutsy York side in a closely fought encounter between the two sides.
Within minutes it was evident that the match was to be a clash of two rather different playing styles. A physically larger Hallam side played a much more physical game, attempting to use size to their advantage by trying to outmuscle York’s defence and riding their luck with some vicious body- checking.
York on the other hand, sought to play a more flowing game based on patient build-up play in the attacking third and explosive counter-attacks.
Sheffield struck first, but York drew level within seconds, with the energetic Chris Menon winning the ball from the restart, sprinting upfield and feeding Andy Chalmers, who promptly slotted home.
York had the better of possession in the first quarter, but Hallam looked more dangerous on the counter-attack, scoring from a quick break, taking York by surprise.
Following this, York rode a wave of pressure from an aggressive Hallam, and looked to be struggling to find their rhythm, however York delivered a sucker punch as the ball was cleared up to Chalmers who found Chun on the left wing, who, despite the angle and distance delivered an absolute bullet of a shot, beating the Hallam keeper at his near post.
York then scored again, winning the ball straight from the restart, with in-form striker Andy Chalmers finding the net in a scramble at crease to make it 3-2 to York before the first break.
The second quarter saw a more subdued start from both sides, a start which benefitted Hallam as they scored from range, taking advantage of York’s lacklustre marking.
The goal seemed to inject new energy into both sides and both created a number of chances before Sheffield converted from a scramble at crease, however, York were straight back in it within no time, with a clearance finding Andy Chalmers who ran in from the right wing and finished from close range to complete his hat-trick and put York back on level terms on the stroke of half-time.
An explosive restart from York saw Menon and Chun running the game, with penetrative runs and astute distribution of the ball resulting in a number of chances for York.
Hallam however, weathered the storm and eventually scored from a quick break to make it 5-4 towards the end of the third quarter. York continued to probe for a goal, but the York players seemed to sense the game could be slipping away from them as they left the pitch at the last break.
The deep rumble of a military jet over the 22-acres brought with it a sense of foreboding as the players returned for the final quarter, both teams knowing the game sat on a knife edge.
The match restarted with two Hallam defenders aggressively clattering Menon straight away, but shortly afterwards, in a beautiful move, Chun received the ball in the attacking third, and, running back towards his own goal, lifted a sublime pass into Chalmers, who swivelled and fired in a low-angled shot into the bottom left-hand corner to bring York level.
The chances came thick and fast as both teams pushed for a winner, most notably when York’s Billy Rooks looked to have suicidally given the ball away, before redeeming himself with an unbelievable one-handed save.
Soon after though, with a long-range shot nutmegging an unfortunate Rooks, Hallam had the ball in the net again, and started becoming noticeably more physical. York gave as good as they got though, the pick of the bunch being a fierce, no-nonsense challenge from Scott Nuckey right in front of his own goal to keep York in the game.
However, a visibly tired York side conceded again after affording Hallam too much time on the ball, taking the score to 7-5, despite all York’s possession.
Finally though, York’s pressure paid off as Menon scored from a scramble at crease to set up a thrilling finale. However, Sheffield managed to kill the game off, playing the ball around the back, with the York forwards playing catch with Hallam’s defence and keeper at the final whistle.
It was a desperately close game throughout, and York manager James Agar showed his frustration after the match to his team. He commented: ‘We were unlucky to lose this game, we were the better side, and with the progress we’ve made as a team it’s very disappointing to be losing this game’.
His team will certainly be feeling similarly frustrated, and will be hoping to convert positive performances such as this into positive results in future.
Vision MOTM: William Chun