RISBOROUGH RANGERS 0-1 AYLESBURY UNITED: REPORT...

Red Kite Omen Ensures That Rangers Pay the Penalty Against the Ducks

Risborough Rangers 0-1 Aylesbury United

A red kite turned, soared, twisted and saw to it that United striker Lea Coulter tumbled over the long, lean outstretched right leg of Rangers goalie Jack Brooker to earn the guests at the Windsors’ garden party a first period penalty which left-defenceman Jake Bewley converted with a confident left boot to produce what would turn out to be the winning goal of a hard fought contest. Rangers battled manfully though, despite managing fewer attempts at goal than their higher ranked visitors and even struck the goal-frame twice with fine individual strikes by Martin Griggs and later by the impressive replacement Lol Clark.

THE SPOOKY RED KITE...

Tackles were fierce on occasions as the rain-dampened and therefore somewhat slick turf offered the opportunity for aggressors to ‘slide forth and upend’ but credit to the players for not reacting with any real retaliation because two or three challenges were rather naughty. First Rangers’ huge, bearded ‘centre-half’ Joel Read scythed in, then United’s tall centre-back Ryan Kinnane committed one and finally Duck replacement Ollie Stanbridge vented vengeance on Read, so that all three miscreants needed lectures by the stern main official who stalked the garden party with a mean determination and bellowed a lot like a bouncer outside a Broad Street night club in Birmingham. 

THE LINESMEN APPEAR TO BE ABOUT TO AUDITION FOR PLACES IN THE CAROLINA PANTHERS' CHEERLEADING TEAM...

Certainly Aylesbury created more scoring opportunities with number 10 Sonny French often in the mix but Bewley from a left-wingback kind of position was always prominent on offense, so it was fitting that he should be the game-winner and he also had a late second-half strike ruled out for offside following a slick Duck move. Home goalie Brooker, despite conceding the penalty, made a few decent saves actually and maybe highlighted that the Ducks lacked a poacher, despite some threatening lead-up play. Skipper Jack Wood, not a bulky customer in any way, was influential for his team from a central defensive position and read the game well, whilst right-side player Gavin Hinds-Cadette was often in a good deal of space on his flank and was always supportive of his attacking colleagues. 

HOGG IS DOWN...
WHAT A PIG TO MISS THE REMAINDER OF THE GAME.

Home midfielder Ash Yearwood was a busy chap and he was involved in a score of tackles but they were generally well timed and he was so successful at breaking down United’s attacks and setting his team up for some possession, that subsequently I turned to an Aylesbury supporter and mentioned Yearwood’s destructive contribution, only for the stadium announcer then to reveal that the ‘crowd’ was 115 and that Rangers’ ‘man-of-the-match’ was, er, Ash Yearwood. I saw the only other person I’ve come across named Yearwood, American singer Tricia live in Birmingham a number of years back and despite being known mainly as a country singer, she possessed a fine voice…

THE RANGERS' DUGOUT...

THE DUCKS' BIRD-HIDE...

Coulter had set up Ollie Hogg for a low shot early on which home ‘keeper Brooker shovelled round an upright but in attempting another shot shortly afterwards, Hogg was hurt and soon replaced by Greg Williams. The substitute was quickly involved, heading well wide from a French free-kick and then in a melee following another French free-kick he was pounced at by Brooker a few yards from goal as he turned to shoot and the ball was diverted for a corner. Wood had already flick-headed a French delivery wide but when he rose to glance a right-flank flag-kick towards the far corner of goal, it took a smart goal-line clearance by Rangers’ Taylor Collins to keep the scoreline blank. Home forward Lamar Mason-Williams had foraged with little real service and strike partner Jack Kibble’s effort couldn’t be quibbled about.

ANOTHER HIGH BALL IS CONTESTED...

MASON-WILLIAMS & BEWLEY...

COULTER SITS IN PROTEST, MAYBE AT BREXIT, MAYBE NOT...

Risborough had managed only a dragged shot wide by Gary Rymer thus far and a decent effort too high by Griggs but after a French shot had deflected off a colleague wide of the target at the other end, Brooker tripped Coulter and Bewley calmly despatched the resulting penalty to Brooker’s right for what would be the only goal of the game.

0-1 NOW...

READ HAS TRANSGRESSED...

KINNANE HAS TRANSGRESSED TOO...

Rymer did pass to Griggs for a curling 25 yarder from inside-right which clipped the outside of the left upright but still it was Aylesbury who were making a better fist of attacking and after Brooker tipped a curling free-kick by French over his goal-frame, a right-side corner was headed forward by Ranger Alex Collard and volleyed from a yard or so out near the right post by Kinnane but the ball cannoned off the face of the crossbar to safety. Read’s wild foul was followed by a French free-kick which drifted low and wide with Brooker a mere spectator and after a clever touch by Ranger Griggs, Collins rapped an angled drive into the Aylesbury side-netting, just prior to the break.

KINNANE: GLIMPSES OF GOOD WORK ON THE BALL AS WELL AS STRONG DEFENDING...

RYMER & STANBRIDGE: BOTH GRAFTERS...

During the interval some people grasped mugs of hot tea like it was November, others swigged beer, like they had strolled over from the abandoned cricket match with nothing else to interest them but a kickabout, whilst I remained in my wooden hut to keep as dry as possible. Due to replacements being introduced, it was clear that the second-half would not be quite as uninterrupted as the first period but United substitute Bruno Brito tested Brooker early on with a rising effort from 19 yards. Kinnane and the busy Stanbridge committed their wild challenges and then, quite out of the blue, Clark strode forward and struck a 30 yard shot which wafted, withered and waned as it struck the right post with visiting ‘keeper Jack Sillitoe flying but only grasping fine rain with sweaty gloves. 

WOOD LISTENS AS STANBRIDGE IS TOLD OFF BY THE HEADMASTER...

AN AYLESBURY COACH POSES FOR HIS AYLESBURY HALL OF FAME PORTRAIT, TO BE HUNG ON THE WALL OF THE CLUBHOUSE... 

"WHAT YOU DOING THIS EVENING?"
"DUNNO. MIGHT BUY YEARWOOD A PINT..."

A fine Aylesbury move involving Hinds-Cadette, Brito and naturally French ended with Bewley netting from close range but a linesman’s flag was waving with gusto on the sideline. This led to Risborough’s most forceful period of the game and in truth it was their best chance to regain parity but first Clark’s shot was well off target, before Sillitoe spilled and then reclaimed a decent Griggs free-kick delivery then from a cross, substitute Dan Rawson’s header was turned onto the crossbar by the flailing Duck-gloveman. Following those efforts, a late Clark shot was deflected to Sillitoe but by then United had finished more strongly and really ought to have made the game safer.

CLARK: IMPRESSIVE HALF...

Brooker fumbled and then grabbed Brito’s low drive, French made a bit of a crumbly croissant of a far post effort from Brito’s left-side centre and Brooker managed to hold onto a French skidder from 18 yards at the second attempt. Right at the death, Brooker made two fine saves to deny Reece Cameron and then French, whose name keeps cropping up. Cameron’s shot from the left side of the penalty-box was well parried by the goalie and then he stopped French’s 17 yard shot as he recovered his composure and position.  

GORDON: ENTERED TO CHEERS FROM THE 115...

A decent workout for both teams and Rangers would certainly have been pleased to restrict the tufted Ducks to a single goal and that was due mainly to ‘keeper Brooker, centre-back Dave Newton and of course the massive Viking of a defenceman Read. Yearwood didn’t shirk those tackling duties, just as French was always in the thick of the action for Aylesbury, who really should wear duck-egg blue, surely, rather than the orange of the African red river hog, for Ollie is one of their players after all, but that’s another issue…

YEARWOOD: THE ONE MOMENT HE WASN'T TACKLING SOMEONE...

THE WRESTLING KIBBLE (10)...

And the red kite soared, swivelled and seared above my car to guard my journey back up the rain-hammered M40 to Solihull…

SQUADS:

RISBOROUGH RANGERS:

JACK BROOKER, BILL HARRISON, JUSTIN HOCKLEY, DAVE NEWTON, JOEL READ (CAPT), GARY RYMER, MARTIN GRIGGS, ASH YEARWOOD, LAMAR MASON-WILLIAMS, JACK KIBBLE, TAYLOR COLLINS, DAN RAWSON, JUSTIN GORDON, DOM PAVLOPOULOS, LOL CLARK, DANNY GRAY. 

AYLESBURY UNITED:

JACK SILLITOE, GAVIN HINDS-CADETTE, JAKE BEWLEY, JACK WOOD (CAPT), RYAN KINNANE, ALEX COLLARD, OLLIE HOGG, JORDON FREDERICK, LEA COULTER, SONNY FRENCH, HARRY JONES, REECE CAMERON, BRUNO BRITO, GREG WILLIAMS, OLLIE STANBRIDGE.