[visiongallery set=72157630049987878]
Photos: Oliver Todd
After the draw between Langwith and Goodricke in the previous match, both Halifax 3rds and Derwent 1sts had booked their place in the quarter finals. Although part of the edge had been removed from the game, there was still much to play for, as the winner of the game would win the group, and therefore avoid the worrying prospect of facing James 1sts in the Quarter Finals.
With the pressure slightly relieved, Derwent produced one of their best performances of the tournament to date, running out 2-0 winners over Halifax, in a game which they largely dominated. Halifax showed great resilience, and battled hard, but in the end the superior quality of their opponents told.
Derwent enjoyed the perfect start, as they opened the scoring with less than five minutes on the clock. Captain David Kirk picked the ball up 25 yards out, before surging forward and thundering a drive past Shin Murata to give his side the lead.
They almost doubled their lead minutes later, as the impressive Alex D’Albertanson cut in from the left and curled his shot onto the bar, with Murata left stranded. The rebound then fell to Kirk, but was excellently blocked by some brave Halifax defending. In the early stages, Halifax’s main threat was coming from corners and crosses into the box, but centre halves Tom Brandreth and Andy Jeffreys dealt with this effectively.
Again D’Albertanson caused chaos for the Halifax backline, beating one before beautifully setting up Kirk, who proceeded to miss a golden opportunity, skying his shot. At the other end, Sean Cole was looking dangerous down the right wing, displaying quality in hanging over some threatening crosses.
Derwent though were playing some good football passing the ball around nicely, and Jeffreys nodded narrowly wide from a corner. This was followed by D’Albertanson having a goal disallowed for handball, undoing his hard work in steering an excellent finish past Murata.
Seb Treasure was largely untroubled in the Derwent goal, but Halifax still remained in the game. Ricardo had a shot well blocked by Sam Earle, and a curled effort from Keiran Gennoy right on half time, drew the first save from Treasure. At half time though Derwent led courtesy of Kirk’s early goal.
Early in the second half Halifax had their best opportunity to level the scoring. A freekick broke invitingly to Joe Knott, but from close range he could only fire his effort into the side netting, much to the relief of Derwent’s defence.
Derwent continued to pose danger though, and had a big penalty appeal, when Kirk was felled by Murata in the area. Despite appearing as a penalty to the naked eye, the referee waved away the appeals, and the ball then fell to Ollie Harrison, who drilled an effort from distance only inches wide.
D’Albertanson though remained the best player on the pitch, a purposeful run saw him fouled right on the edge of the area, but Kirk’s freekick was blocked by the Halifax wall. D’Albertanson though finally got the reward for his efforts with about ten minutes left. Sven Sabas flicked the ball into his path, and after a magical first touch, he marvelously struck the ball into the back of the net.
Halifax continued to play neat football, and provided a good test for Derwent, but were unable to carve out many clear openings. That proved to be the main difference between the two teams, as Derwent created numerous chances. A teasing cross by Kirk from the left narrowly evaded the onrushing Sabas, but the victory was already ensured. The full time whistle signalled a 2-0 Derwent victory, but the College Cup journey will continue for both sides.
David Kirk was delighted with his side’s display, and commented: “It was a great response from last week’s defeat, we put in a much better performance. Another clean sheet, and we could have scored more.”
Despite his side’s loss, Halifax captain, Andrew Wallace took the positives out of the game, saying: “It never quite fell for us today, we played well but they were a bit more clinical than us.”
Vision MOTM: Alex D’Albertanson