The league leaders and title favourites Tadcaster Albion
were in town and on paper the task facing Staveley Miners Welfare at Inkersall
Road was massive. The Brewers have won 20 of their 27 games so far this season
(drawing 4 and losing just 3) are two points clear, have scored 83 goals in the
process and feature players with football league and even champions league
experience ….but fortunately football isn’t played on paper...
...Staveley Miners Welfare squared up to the task by making two
changes to the starting line up with Chris Baugh coming in at right back and
nineteen goal forward Courtney Hastings partnering Dan Fletcher up front.
Staveley got the game underway but it was Tadcaster that
made the early running. A neat one two between Josh Greening and James Beadle sent Greening down the Tadcaster right, where on reaching the area he cut
inside and clipped a teasing left footed cross which was too high for James
Beadle to even attempt to head, landing on the opposite byline with Adam Baker,
but the resultant cross came to nothing.
It was evident from the opening exchanges that Staveley were
going to have to get used to not having the lion’s share of possession and with
former Worksop Town favourite Connor Sellars pulling the strings, Tadcaster had
already fashioned several crossing and shooting opportunities. Sellars himself
pulled a shot wide of the far post before his side took the lead in the
eleventh minute When…
…James Beadle under pressure from Ash Rawson managed to find
Connor Sellars who also under pressure from Rawson, found Jason Mycoe who took
a step forward and hit a speculative drive from 25 yards which flew into the
far corner of Nick Siddons goal…Rawson had also tried to close the shot down.
Staveley MW 0 – 1 Tadcaster Albion
They say that you’re never more susceptible to conceding a
goal than when you’ve just scored and that’s exactly what happened to Albion as
right from the kick off Staveley fashioned a golden opportunity to get
themselves immediately back into it with their first real attack. Courtney
Hastings was the beneficiary of an unfortunate bounce off Liam Ormsby and he
wriggled clear of three defenders to lay the ball off to Steve Carty who, burst
into the box to be felled by Andrew Milne and was awarded a penalty. Courtney
Hastings put the ball on the spot, sent the ’keeper Gary Stevens the wrong way
but missed the target.
Undeterred the Trojans kept at it and started to get a
foothold in the game, creating a few half chances here and there, and went
close through a Kieren Watson effort blocked on the line and a Courtney
Hastings header from Adam Scott’s scooped pass across goal, which Gary Stevens
needed to claw out and at the back Matt Varley and co dealt with anything the
Brewers threw at them, reasonably comfortably.
A scuffed clearance from Gary Stevens fell at the feet of
Steve Carty in the 26th minute but his first time effort on the open
goal was intercepted by Gregg Anderson but he could only succeed in finding the
feet of Courtney Hastings who, in the mood to make amends for his earlier
penalty miss fired a shot just narrowly wide of the far post.
Around the half hour mark that man again Connor Sellars
picked out James Beadle with a superb cross field ball which split the Trojan
defence allowing Beadle to control and volley the ball towards goal but was
brilliantly saved by Nick Siddons.
Despite being a goal down Staveley were more than in the
game but it did look like being “one of those days” when another penalty
awarded for a trip by Gary Stevens on Adam Scott as he tried to take it round
the Albion ‘keeper was missed by Kieren Watson (or more accurately it was
saved).
HT: Staveley MW 0 – 1 Tadcaster Albion
Not only had Staveley missed two penalties they were also
forced into two changes either side of the interval when firstly Dan Fletcher
who had scored 2 in 2 since joining the club was the victim of a cynical
challenge on halfway when he was about to start a promising attack and secondly
Ash Rawson, who left the field having put so much into the first half was
perhaps not fully fit from the previous game where he was also substituted
through injury.
They were replaced by Jamie Brown and Matt Robinson who was
making his first team debut following some top drawer performances for the
under 21s. Brown went to left midfield moving Kieren Watson upfront and Robinson
slotted in at right back moving Chris Baugh into midfield.
Making that many changes to a side that was holding its own
was hardly the perfect scenario to start the second half with but the reshuffle
sparked a revival in fortunes and contributed to what arguably would become the
best “half” of the season…
On the 53rd minute Tadcasters Gregg Anderson
failed to clear his lines and succeeded only in handing the ball on a plate to
Adam Scott whose first time pass landed nicely into the path of Kieren Watson
who coolly slotted it under the onrushing Gary Stevens for a deserved
equaliser.
Staveley MW 1 – 1 Tadcaster Albion
The Brewers are not top of the league for no reason though
and despite Staveley having most of the half up to now, Nick Siddons had to be
alert to palm away Josh Greenings volley from 12 yards out after being found by
his older brother Johnathan – once of Manchester United.
Other chances came and went for both sides and with twelve
minutes to go the tide turned back in favour of the home side where but for
“man on the post” Jordan Armstrong defending a corner Jamie Brown would’ve
given Staveley the lead with a goal bound effort from the edge of the area.
They didn’t have to wait long though as with nine minutes to
go Kieren Watson pounced on a dawdling Gregg Anderson ricocheting the ball to
Jamie Brown who strode forward before releasing a perfectly timed through ball
to Courtney Hastings who rifled it under Gary Stevens. Much to the delight of
his team mates, management and the fans, who were excellent throughout the
night.
Staveley MW 2 – 1 Tadcaster Albion
From then on the result was never in doubt as Staveley with
Mohammed Tijani now on in place of Adam Scott showed they had learned from last
week (away at Nostell) and slowed the pace, took it to the corners and
controlled the game right to the final whistle, where they deservedly received
an ovation from the fans as they left the field!
FT: Staveley MW 2 – 1 Tadcaster Albion
Attendance: 208
SMWFC line up: 1.Nick Siddons.2.Chris Baugh.3.Charlie
Oglesby.4.Ash Rawson.(17.Matt Robinson).5.Matt Varley.6.Richard Mintoft.7.Adam
Scott.(16.Mohammed Tijani).8.Steve Carty.9.Dan Fletcher.(12.Jamie
Brown)10.Kieren Watson.11.Courtney Hastings.
Subs Not Used: 14.George Johnson.15.Lewis Naylor.
