COLESHILL TOWN 2-0 WANTAGE TOWN: THE MATCH REPORT & A FEW IMAGES...

 Colemen Too Hot For Patient Freds...

Coleshill Town 2-0 Wantage Town

To their credit, Wantage attempted to pass the ball from defence throughout this game, being played at a dark and forbidding Pack Meadow which was at the mercy of a blustery wind. It would not be enough though, for their hosts, full of pace and rushing and fielding the most dangerous attacker on the pitch in Kai Tonge, thoroughly deserved their victory. Freds’ goalie Tom Middlehurst played well and made some decent saves, yet both goals stemmed from good parries made by him but it was a Coleshill player who reacted more quickly each time to claim their strikes. The Alfredians still plugged away, with midfielders Declan Shepperd and Tom Ballard looking smart on occasions but top scorer Ryan Knight was offered little in the way of useful service, for left-flanker Marley Hamilton was injured early in the encounter and right-sider Nate Robinson wasn’t able to provide the necessary deliveries.

THE TOSS...

I had intended to film from the exposed gantry at Pack Meadow but it proved so wild up there in the November winds pre-match, that I descended the bouncing, metal ladder and stood pitch-side instead… Despite Coleshill’s dominance in the second period, the opening half was often untidy and as dull as the countryside’s night-time sky, although both teams had chances to score. A ricochet, possibly off Hamilton (Wantage’s James Keller suggested it might have been him) from a corner flew over the home crossbar, Josh Tooke headed off target to his chagrin from a Robinson flag-kick and James Keller reckoned Tooke might also have been the one who fell and nodded the ball goalwards from another set-piece but it was cleared away from the Coleshill goal-line. Little more was produced by the guests…

HATHAWAY: A PASSIVE EVENING...

HAMILTON: HURT...

Apart from three goal attempts by the belligerent Max Brogan, all cheek on the ball and smart passes of it, only Tonge really threatened for Coleshill. Brogan drove in a fine shot from downtown which Middlehurst turned over the crossbeam, then from Tonge’s assist shot too high from 19 yards and finally headed over the target, following fine work by Vidal Hendrickson, who was a live-wire all evening for the hosts. Middlehurst dived at Tonge’s feet to block an early shot, then saved at the near post from the speedy wide-man, before Tonge’s weak attempted lob was caught by the gloveman and a low drive by the winger from inside-left was tipped wide of his left post by the tall custodian.

WATCHING HAMILTON BEING...

...HELPED OFF THE FIELD...

Back to Hendrickson; he was so quick and dynamic, making some excellent dashes forward and he continued in the same vein after the interval. Midfielders Barry Fitzharris, a hive of industry and skipper Joe Halsall, who anchored the play so effectively, made sure that defenders Harry Higginson and Shay Palmer were given decent cover and in truth, ‘keeper Paul Hathaway was rarely troubled. Taylor Carter-Byrne at left-back probed regularly but Daniel Dubidat, for all his efforts would find no goal reward on the night. Wantage’s central defenders Sam Hartley and Jack Alexander (the only player cautioned during the match) were forced into some desperate defending and more was to follow after the players broke for a fag and a pint at half-time. However, Tonge was getting past Harry Brock too often but only due to the electric acceleration displayed by the Coleshill forward and not to any deficiency on Brock’s part. However, I guess that both right-back Kyreece Martei (who moved into attack to replace the hurt Hamilton) and substitute John Johnston were both relieved that Tonge stayed mostly on the opposite flank…

IF YOU'RE COLD & YOU'RE LOSING, PUT YOUR HAND UP...

Little offense was achieved by the visitors after the recess, yet still Ballard and Shepperd created what they could but the home defence was in stubborn mood. An awful effort wide by Robinson, an Alexander drive which deflected over the target off Fitzharris and a late Ballard shot which Hathaway dived low for and turned aside to his left for a corner, were all the Freds could muster. The hosts though, scored the opening goal soon after the restart, which was perfect for them. 

A fine right-side run by Tonge ended with a low and hard delivery into the 6 yard box, where Middlehurst dived down and parried the ball away but there was Josh Willis to convert the rebound with a rising drive. 

1-0: WILLIS...

Middlehurst dropped low and prevented Dubidat from scoring near the right post, before the striker received a Willis head-on from Hendrickson’s long throw but the striker’s upward header cleared the horizontal pole. A Brogan free-kick was hacked clear by a troubled Wantage defence, Tonge drove straight at Middlehurst from 20 yards and saw a late shot well claimed low by the goalie, then Hathaway took a free-kick from the half-way line and we all watched with mouths open as it dropped only just over the goal-frame. A Hendrickson run ended with a cross-cum-shot over the target but a subsequent substitution brought James Harrison onto the pitch, the hero from Saturday’s victory over the Bromsgrove Rouslers.

CLOSE PROXIMITY DISTANCING...

He glanced a header off-target from a Tonge centre, nearly turned another Tonge assist in at the near stick and then scored the all important second goal. Hardly surprisingly, it was Tonge who started the move, although Wantage somehow got the ball clear but only as far as Fitzharris (I believe it was him anyway…) whose 18 yard drive through a crowd of legs was superbly parried away by Middlehurst. Harrison though smacked a hard rebound which was brilliantly blocked again by the recovering goalkeeper, only for Harrison to poke in the rebound. Late in the game Hendrickson found himself clear on the right, although he looked a touch offside but when he delivered the assist, Harrison wasn’t quite able to benefit.

MIDDLEHURST: TWO FINE BLOCKS BUT HAS STILL JUST BEEN BEATEN BY HARRISON... 

This was a good victory for Coleshill and they have some players who will hurt any team; Tonge and Hendrickson on the right-flank particularly but they also looked tough to beat last night too and they pressed Wantage’s passing tactic from the back and hurried the Freds into a number of errors. Fitness was needed to harass in that fashion and the hosts were still at it by the end of the game…

HARTLEY & DUBIDAT...

Shame about the gantry though… 

2-0: HARRISON HAS SETTLED IT...

TEAMS:

COLESHILL TOWN:

PAUL HATHAWAY, VIDAL HENDRICKSON, TAYLOR CARTER-BYRNE, HARRY HIGGINSON, SHAY PALMER, BARRY FITZHARRIS, KAI TONGE, JOE HALSALL, DANIEL DUBIDAT, MAX BROGAN, JOSH WILLIS.

SUBS:

JOSH WEBB, DAN TYMON, GIO DAINTY, JAMES HARRISON AMARVIR SANDHU.

WANTAGE TOWN:

TOM MIDDLEHURST, KYREECE MARTEI, HARRY BROCK, SAM HARTLEY, JACK ALEXANDER, JOSH TOOKE, NATE ROBINSON, DECLAN SHEPPERD, RYAN KNIGHT, TOM BALLARD (CAPT), MARLEY HAMILTON.

SUBS:

JOHN JOHNSTON, SEAN MCKEON, JAMES KELLER.