With two extremely strong sides, the match between Halifax 1sts and Alcuin 1sts promised to be a thrilling encounter. It was Halifax who dominated early play after a free kick from Conor Brennan, taken from just outside the area just missed the top right corner of the net in the opening few minutes.
There was another free kick before the 25 yard line moments later, this time taken by Alex Tringham; a fantastic shot that was saved by Alcuin’s keeper Chris Boyd as he kept the score 0-0. Though out the first half, several more attempts from both Brennan and Tringham were made on goal, but often shots flew wide or Boyd made successful saves.
It didn’t take long however for Alcuin to pick up the pace and a shot from captain Phil Bowers really made keeper Jonny Sim stretch. There was also a great attacking run from Graham Kimber, who successfully dribbled round his opponents but the cross to Will Taylor was poorly timed. The defensive efforts of Taylor through intercepting and restricting Halifax’s attack were also essential to his team.
Both sides had countess scoring opportunities and shots on goal, but unbelievably, it was still 0-0 with just 2 minutes before the half time whistle blew. Then finally, a strike from Dom Petshack from the left of the pitch scored from an Alcuin deflection into the back right corner just moments before time.
The second half endured underwhelming performances from both sides. A free kick to Alcuin, taken by Will Taylor, flew over the bar and was no real threat to Jonny Sim’s goal. A tumble and stumble from Joe Smith added a little entertainment to the game but the spirits of both teams were somewhat dejected.
A free kick taken by Ashley Daly looked likely to bring the score up to 2-0, but his cross was not met with the necessary header on the post from his teammates. Phil Bower received a booking in the closing stages but apart from that, the second half was uneventful. Final score 1-0 to Halifax.
Tom Ragan, the Halifax 1sts captain commented how “it wasn’t a great match. We were scrappy but solid, yet didn’t push forward.” Ragan awarded Petshack man of the match for overall contribution and his goal in the first half.
Alcuin captain Phil Bowers, who was later voted man of the match by his team reflected on how their “game plan worked apart from the result. Halifax had a lot of possession and it was just an unlucky goal and deflection. I question the ref but in all fairness they were a good team. We didn’t really get into the game attacking-wise.”
nice review!