HINCKLEY AFC 4-4 RACING CLUB WARWICK: FULL REPORT & IMAGES...

Eight Goals In Undulating Evening At St John’s Park

Hinckley AFC 4-4 Racing Club Warwick

Alex Price, the Racers’ usual skipper had car problems en route to this game and thus some of his passengers suffered a less than pleasant journey to the match. Yet Warwick sped into a 0-2 lead within ten minutes of the start of this feisty encounter but had relinquished their advantage to the power and skill of Knitter Steve Hart by the interval. Then soon after the restart the striker, built like a light heavyweight boxer, netted his third goal and finally assisted skipper Luke Richards to leave AFC 4-2 ahead against a somewhat deflated crew of Warwick players. However, the visitors proceeded to offer the game its undulating appearance by storming back with a fine strike from forward Wade Malley and a late penalty by skipper and scallywag Martin Slevin. So the score moved from 0-2 to 2-2, to 4-2 and finally to 4-4: all very neat, rounded and tidy. RCW have now netted four goals in two successive matches on the road and yet have been rewarded by only one point…  

NOW THIS IS RARE: MARTIN SLEVIN IS STILL...

Striker Luke Cole was keeping goal for the guests and soon sluggish AFC reactions to two counter attacks by RCW saw them caught twice just prior to the ten minute mark, when first Sean Kavanagh then Trea Bertie punished them clinically. However, Hart then began to resemble Roy Race, the comic book hero of Melchester Rovers, by taking things into his own capable hands in adversity. He burst past RCW defenders Martin Hutchcox and Jamie Coleman like a tenpin bowling ball rolling past two annoying skittles to net his first, he cleverly and nonchalantly tucked home his second and then repeated the dose to Hutchcox and Coleman soon after the restart. The big guy’s surges were reminiscent of Alan McInally’s when he was at his best at Aston Villa and yet some deft touches on the ball with his wand of a left boot belied his physical stature. Enough about Steve though, for he might annoyingly keep showing these words to his mates…

LUKE RICHARDS WILL KICK OFF...
WELL, HE'S WEARING THE NUMBER 9, HE'S CAPTAIN, IT'S HIS GAME AND THE BALL IS PROBABLY HIS TOO...

Bertie’s pace was also crucial for RCW and he was soon racing after a through-pass which home goalie Carl O’Neill beat him to. Hinckley had actually begun the game in a more lively fashion than the Racers and Hart had released Josh Burniston on the left to serve Richards with a chance to head a goal but the skipper, criminally in far too much room between Coleman and Ryan Billington, the RCW left-back, headed his effort wide of the left upright. Strangely, the opening goal stemmed from a creditable punch clear by Racer Cole and a loss of possession around 35 yards from the RCW goal by, er, well, Hart, actually… The demon-like Rich Powell dispossessed the striker and humped a pass towards the right where Bertie outpaced home defender Mitch Tomlinson to gain access to the ball. His right-side centre was perfect and there was Kavanagh, lurking at the far post unmarked to nod an easy goal past the totally helpless O’Neill.

LUKE COLE: NORMALLY CENTRE-FORWARD, NOW BETWEEN THE STICKS...

SHOCK FOR HINCKLEY...

Before the Hinckley fans had finished their grumbling, growling and grizzling their team was two goals down. Malley fed the ball towards the edge of the 18 yard box from central midfield through the inside-right channel, the recipient Rich Powell cleverly shoved a pass inside for Bertie to latch onto in a crowd and he beat the advancing O’Neill with a low poked shot into the right side of the net. 0-2 and the grumblers were reduced to mumbling and were then too shocked even to gurgle slightly.

THE CROWD JOSTLES FOR POSITION TO WATCH CARL O'NEILL TAKE A GOAL-KICK.
GLAD I WAS ON THE OTHER TOUCHLINE...

Following a free-kick by Slevin, the ball sprang left to Kavanagh and his low angled shot was blocked for a corner by O’Neill at his near post but that left-side set-piece from Slevin saw Joe Carter’s far post header blocked. O’Neill’s save proved to be crucial for the hosts and marked a rejuvenation for them; first Richards freed the fleet-footed Kai Tonge at inside-right but Cole raced forth to block well then from the ensuing corner, Hutchcox’s clearing header was lashed way over the target on the volley by James Williams’ left shoe from 10 yards. Enter Rambo Hart… The ball was hacked forward by a Knitter, Hart controlled it with foot, neck and knee in quick succession then surged at Hutchcox and Coleman from deep, leaving them stranded like NFL defensive backs, beaten by a rushing New York Giants’ full-back, before Hart’s neat dribbling and dummying skills took him round the grounded Cole and allowed him to convert easily from a slight angle on the right. Lovely stuff… 

STEVE HART: RAMBO WITH MITTENS...

Elliott Powell, at right-back for Warwick, was then exposed by some wing-play from Burniston on the Knitters’ left-flank, whose low pass inside to Josh Willis saw the midfielder’s shot rise over both goal-frame and trees. A deep free-kick by influential AFC playmaker James Jepson saw home defenceman Rich Munday nod the ball some yards past the right upright but it WAS Thursday, I guess… All Warwick offered during those difficult moments was a poor Slevin free-kick from 25 yards which dipped too late, following a push by Munday. As Hinckley attacked again though, Richards dived to head a fine Willis cross from the right past Cole but his effort was disallowed by a wagging offside flag, before the Knitters regained parity through Hart.

SLEVIN TRIES THE AUSTRALIAN METHOD. HE SPITS ON THE BALL, AFTER TAMPERING WITH IT USING HIS NASAL JUICES AND SLIDING HIS THUMBNAILS ACROSS THE SURFACE.
HIS FREE-KICK WAS WAYWARD.
THAT WORKED THEN...

Jepson fed Tonge on the right and his sleek run took him past Billington and along the byeline, from whence he passed back for Willis to shoot goalwards but the alert Hart, near the left stick, conjured up a deft flick of a foot to divert the ball inside the upright. Richards attempted to grab the ball from the back of the net but Cole was in his way, naturally and unpleasantness became rife, naturally and both miscreants were cautioned, er, naturally...

HART: A FIRST-HALF BRACE...

AH, THE JOY OF PARITY...

RICHARDS IS BANNED FROM NET FIGHTING...

Kavanagh did respond for the shaken visitors but O’Neill claimed the forward’s low drive after the Racer had moved inside from the left flank. Hart set up Tonge for a clear 15 yard shot at inside-right which rolled past the left post, before the home spectators gave Coleman stick for haplessly conceding a corner under pressure and then Hart’s neat feet set up a shot from inside-left for himself but the ball hurtled into Hutchcox’s buttocks and away for a corner. Finally, before the interval was signalled, a fine Richards run, jinking past Elliott Powell, set up a chance for Tonge at the far post but Billington slid in for the delivery as well and the ball skidded away to safety.

The opening period had been eminently watchable, with four goals to savour and some fine individual contributions, none more so than that of the imperial Hart. Certainly Jepson had quietly gone about his midfield business for AFC, although much could be heard from his defensive colleague Rich Lavery, who wouldn’t see out the ninety minutes… Burniston and Willis had looked effective in the Hinckley midfield and Tonge had proved to be quicker than his marker, Billington. Carter had battled hard for RCW, Slevin had commanded in midfield but Rich Powell’s contribution had been invaluable. Stand-in ‘keeper Luke Cole had suffered problems with his kicking though, as well as taking abuse from the vociferous home fans… Nice.

THE SECOND PERIOD BEGINS...

A volleyed pass by Burniston was the catalyst for AFC’s third goal and Hart took up possession at inside-right, again faced by Coleman and Hutchcox, which sounds like a 1970s TV cops series. Again the two defenders were evaded by Hart’s ability on the ball and the striker’s left boot dragged the ball away from their challenges to allow him to score low again and leave Cole helpless.

3-2: A HART-TRICK...

An attack by RCW saw Slevin feed Bertie on the right but Tomlinson’s challenge led to the ball bouncing off Bertie for a goal-kick, before crucially Lavery was cautioned and then Slevin’s pass again offered Bertie a chance at inside-right but as he nudged the ball on, O’Neill crashed into him and despite RCW’s appeals for a penalty, the officials were unimpressed. A Billington error led to a pass by Hart to Tonge, who ran for the byeline to win a corner off the head of Coleman but in truth, Burniston was unmarked around the penalty-spot at the time… Soon though, Hart was proving his effectiveness again and Elliott Powell was beaten on his defensive flank by the burly forward, who reached the left byeline and chipped a delicate near post cross towards Cole, who, er, kind of misjudged the trajectory and got into a mess, like he had been attempting to remove his Christmas trimmings from the ceiling and they had all simply fallen upon him, and there was Richards, playing the predator, to lash the ball into the net from a yard.

UNPLEASANTNESS...

4-2: GOAL FOR RICHARDS...

Carter was deservedly cautioned for a rash foul, a Jepson free-kick was nodded forward and Hart smashed a volley from 5 yards past the near, left upright, Richards nearly got onto a smart Hart pass at inside-left and a fine cross from the left by Burniston was nodded wide by the well positioned Tonge. That miss would prove crucial, for immediately following Elliott Powell’s substitution by John Blunsom, a corner for the guests led to Coleman (not Blunsom, as I incorrectly mentioned on the video clip) retrieving the clearance and swinging a cross-field pass left to right where Malley took possession near the right byeline. From there he moved inside slightly and delivered a fine, rising, curled and angled left-boot drive which arrowed into the far corner of the net. 4-3 and maybe the game wasn’t over, with just 12 minutes or so remaining…  

CARTER IS BOOKED...

MALLEY (9) HAS MADE IT 4-3...

A Burniston drive struck Hutchcox’s butt, something the Racers’ defender used to some effect during the evening, Cole raced from goal to reach a low pass before Richards could and Hart was relieved of his duties to be replaced by Jack Sutherland. Lewis Hudson replaced Billington for Warwick, before the rather quiet Kavanagh made a move centrally towards the 18 yard line but a push by Lavery, just inside the penalty-box gifted Warwick a penalty. Kavanagh had tumbled and was prostrate, Lavery was cautioned for a second time and was dismissed, then Slevin took responsibility for the spot-kick and despite the fact that O’Neill dived right and reached the shot with his gloves, the ball went into the net and with three minutes plus added time remaining, the Knitters had dropped a stitch and the Racers had stolen a point.

SLEVIN HAS SCORED HIS PENALTY, JUST ABOUT...

Hutchcox was intriguingly not shown a yellow card for a couple of challenges late on, as he and Coleman were forced to display their experience and resolution with some important headers and tackles from then on. A low Bertie shot rolled well off target and then Malley and Jepson were involved in an escalation of shoving and arm-windmilling, so much so that Slevin, like the kid who doesn’t want to be left out of a playground scrap, simply had to rush forward and raise a mitt to Jepson too. The two original fighting hares were cautioned but despite calls from the Hinckley crowd which can clearly be heard on the relevant video clip, somehow, subsequently, Slevin went unpunished. And thus the game finished…

LOTS OF FRUSTRATED CHAPS...

The match had ebbed and flowed I guess, with the scoreline drifting both ways until it settled on parity… Eight goals cannot be sniffed at but certainly Willis, Burniston and Jepson often impressed for the hosts, whilst Rich Powell and Slevin drove the Racers like charioteers in an ancient Roman amphitheatre. But Hart was superb. He was certainly as the Americans put it, the game’s Most Valuable Player and one could also see him in a Roman amphitheatre too, striding out with the other gladiators… 

I LIKED THIS...

I had only seen him play once before, for Stapenhill in 2016 and on that occasion he netted 4 times in a 7-3 win v Holwell Sports. So, two watches by me and 7 goals by the striker… 

HART IN ACTION FOR STAPENHILL v HOLWELL SPORTS IN 2016...

Want me to watch again, Steve?

It’s what I do…   

TEAMS:

HINCKLEY AFC:

CARL O’NEILL, JAMES WILLIAMS, MITCH TOMLINSON, JAMES JEPSON, RICH MUNDAY, RICH LAVERY, KAI TONGE, JOSH BURNISTON, LUKE RICHARDS (CAPT), STEVE HART, JOSH WILLIS.

SUBS:

JON BUKASA, JACK SUTHERLAND, ASA WRIGHT, CHAD TIMSON.

RACING CLUB WARWICK:

LUKE COLE, ELLIOTT POWELL, RYAN BILLINGTON, MARTIN HUTCHCOX, JAMIE COLEMAN, MARTIN SLEVIN (CAPT), RICH POWELL, JOE CARTER, WADE MALLEY, TREA BERTIE, SEAN KAVANAGH.

SUBS:

LEWIS HUDSON, CALLUM BELL, ALEX PRICE, JOHN BLUNSOM.