COVENTRY PLUMBING 5-1 WELLAND FC: THE MATCH REPORT...

Welland Drained By Kenilworth Plumbers

Coventry Plumbing 5-1 Welland FC

The new facilities impressed in Gypsy Lane, Kenilworth, as Coventry Plumbing began their season with a 5-1 victory over newcomers Welland, who were certainly competitive until their centre back Dan Sullivan left the field injured just prior to a second period Coventry corner by Connoll Farrell. The score was one apiece at that point but home skipper Jordan Powell rose to send a long, looping header from downtown over everyone and into goal via the base of the right vertical pole and from thence, Welland looked a beaten outfit. Both teams had created chances before this but the ease with which the visitors crumbled in defence later in the match must be galling for their manager. He was already irritated by the lack of gumption of some of his players to get at crosses delivered decently enough into the Coventry penalty-box but in the end it was a case of lessons learned.

NO ROOM AT THE INN...

Unable to video from a decent position in the middle of the ‘grandstand’ which housed the teams’ replacements and coaches, due to someone having beaten me to it, I was forced to film out in the open, not elevated at all and at the mercy of the rather unseasonal wind, despite the cover of trees which gesticulated angrily behind me… The other grandstand would have meant videoing against a lowering sun. Some days you simply can’t win…

PERFECT HANDSHAKE...

Welland passed the ball out of defence with some confidence at times and in truth, following Sullivan’s first period equaliser of Kyle Jaynes’ opener, it seemed that a surprise might just be in the offing but that would not materialise. What caused raised eyebrows for some spectators and also members of the Welland coaching staff was the inconsistency of some of the refereeing, whereby some invidious challenges were punished by the main official’s yellow card and yet other dubious clashes were simply ignored. Sullivan, after his caution early on, escaped a second yellow card for a wild challenge on Jaynes, simply because the Plumbing forward had kept his feet and had run on towards goal. However, Jaynes had even earlier caught Sullivan in the face with a flailing arm and immediately before Sullivan’s attempted ‘challenge’ on the Coventry man, Jaynes had slid in unceremoniously upon the Welland defender to win possession, a tackle which the referee thought was perfectly fine. Yet the official booked both Plumbers Alfie Boylin and Dave Evans for interestingly similar incidents. Jaynes would also escape punishment for two more displays of his shoe soles…  

"SO, WHICH WAY SHALL WE GO?"

FARRELL WONDERS WHY HE'S LEFT HIS SUNGLASSES IN THE CAR...

It was strange that Coventry’s prolific goalscorer Connoll Farrell didn’t find the net on the day and indeed, he only made one shot at visiting goalie Adam Went and poked a drifting cross-shot by Jaynes onto the outside of the base of the right upright, both before the interval. He was to have no other shots before a hamstring injury curtailed his afternoon but the speedy forward was destined to be a creator and Jaynes and Powell were the recipients of his good approach work. In that opening period, Powell nodded a Boylin cross wide, was denied by a scrambling Went when a Boylin free-kick rolled loose in the 18 yard box and from a Farrell assist, the skipper drove too high. Jaynes had two goal attempts, one of which slapped the crossbar, whereas the other broke the 0-0 deadlock.

SULLIVAN & JAYNES: NO LOVE THERE...

PUT YOUR HANDS ON YOUR HIPS IF YOU'RE NOT BEING BOOKED...

...OK SULLI, YOU CAN IF YOU WANT TO...

BOYLIN'S CAUTION...

JAYNES DRINKS TO THE BOOKING...

First, Farrell made a typical rush along the left flank but instead of going for goal, he fed Jaynes from inside-left and although the striker had no ‘keeper to beat from 7 yards, he fired against the crossbeam. However, when Welland’s Lewis Doyle overran the ball, Tommy Probert won possession for Coventry and although his first pass forward bounced away from the Welland man, his second found Jaynes, 20 yards out. The forward played a tight one-two with Powell and entered the penalty-area to fire a low 15 yard effort off Went’s right boot deep into the net.

1-0...

Welland had looked lively early on, with right-back Aaron Bottomley finding far too much room for Coventry’s liking on the flank. However, it was skipper Paul Edwards who really impressed, slicing one effort off target, delivering a cross which dropped dangerously wide, clipping an angled free-kick against the face of the crossbar and being baulked by home defender George Swain, as he rounded in on Bottomley’s pass and was thus foiled by Plumbing goalie Dave Allen’s plunge. Striker James Lush didn't have the best of afternoons in truth but a downward header beyond the left upright forced Allen to drop at David Lawrence’s feet and the home gloveman later blocked an angled shot from Lush. Before busy forward Lewis Hill clipped a near post half-volley into the side-netting from Edwards’ left-side flag-kick, Sullivan had regained parity for his team. 

1-1...

Edwards’ short free-kick from the right saw the effective Kieran Scollen totally ignored by Coventry and he rapped in a 22 yard shot which fizzed low at Allen, bounced away from the fallen ‘keeper and Sullivan reacted just how the manager had wanted his forwards to: quickly, shoving the loose ball into goal.

THE INTERVAL...

LAWRENCE STARTS HALF TWO...

DAVE ALLEN...

So, an even opening half in many ways but after the restart, despite only managing to forge maybe eight goalscoring opportunities, the hosts netted half of them. Powell had already nodded wide at the near stick from Daz Hutchinson’s serve but after Sullivan’s demise, Farrell’s high right-side corner saw Powell leap, unmarked, well beyond the far stick and his looping header dropped over the posse in the middle, clipped the base of the right upright and rolled over the goal-line…

2-1...

The corner had come from a save by Went, who had tipped over a rising shot by Jaynes, who had been set up by, er, Farrell again but Farrell was soon active once more after the influential Powell had dispossessed Lewis Doyle. Farrell ran on the left, managed to get past the challenge of Mark Holbrow and then skirted the scrabbling Went before passing the ball across the 6 yard box for Jaynes to covert with ease.  Interestingly, Jaynes soon moved in from the right and drove an angled effort at Went, despite the fact that his auxiliary, Farrell was lurking alone on the 6 yard line… Ah, well…

PLUMBERS UNHAPPY ABOUT AN EDWARDS FOUL...

BOOKING FOR EDWARDS...

3-1...

...& A BRACE FOR JAYNES...

Powell fed Probert for a shot which bounced off Went straight to substitute from stage right, Liam Doyle, whose first touch was to roll a low 19 yard shot into an empty net. He would create the last goal too and although he made a song and dance (get it?) about scoring and although his celebratory belly slide was unsuccessful due to friction between shirt and turf, he assisted by calmly clipping a right-booter from the left side of the penalty-box onto Probert’s right foot, near the far stick. Probert’s close range effort was not stoppable. Apart from a fine 26 yard drive by Evans which struck Went late on, that was all the hosts amassed on offense until the end.

4-1: DOYLE FOR COVENTRY...

5-1: PROBERT FOR PLUMBING...

The guests struggled to recover from those goals and subsequently accepted defeat with a mix of determination and genuine effort. Left-back Joe Crews had made a strong run forward but drove his shot too high, Lawrence’s shot flew to Allen but Lush miscued when replacement Josh Barnett had rounded Allen and set up his team-mate, whose weak effort rolled wide. A late header by Edwards was easily clutched by Allen and Swain eventually deflected a 20 yard drive by Hill but that was all the plucky guests could provide before the final whistle ended their frustration and agony.

POWELL & LEWIS DOYLE...

Both Edwards and Lewis Doyle were cautioned for Welland, although no more home players were displayed the referee’s carte jaune…   

A comfortable final period for the Plumbers then, for whom Evans, Phil Chesters and Probert performed fine, although skipper Powell was truly prominent, Jaynes nabbed a predatory brace and Farrell’s support play was very useful, despite rarely getting into goalscoring positions himself.

ALL OVER...

The visitors were well served by Bottomly and Crews at full-back, Sullivan and Holbrow did OK in defence, although Scollan continued to play strongly until the end. Hill and Lush worked hard but lacking striker Sean Smith, Welland were unable to add to Sullivan’s strike. Edwards was the most worthy Wellander though with a real skipper’s performance…

TEAMS:

COVENTRY PLUMBING:

DAVE ALLEN, DAZ HUTCHINSON, DAVE EVANS, CAM PRINGLE-ANDREWS, GEORGE SWAIN, PHIL CHESTERS, ALFIE BOYLIN, TOMMY PROBERT, CONNOLL FARRELL, JORDAN POWELL (CAPT), KYLE JAYNES.

SUBS:

JACK DOBSON, KYLE KING, JOE TOBIN, LIAM DOYLE, WAYNE POWELL (GK).

WELLAND FC:

ADAM WENT, AARON BOTTOMLEY, JOE CREWS, MARK HOLBROW, DAN SULLIVAN, KIERAN SCOLLAN, LEWIS DOYLE, PAUL EDWARDS (CAPT), DAVID LAWRENCE, LEWIS HILL, JAMES LUSH.

SUBS:

BEN PASSBERGER, JOSH BARNETT, SEAN GLEESON.