ALCESTER TOWN 3-3 LANE HEAD: THE INDEPENDENT MATCH REPORT, PLUS IMAGES...

 Persistent Lane Head Get Late Reward

Alcester Town 3-3 Lane Head

The Mowdog’s thoughts…

Despite the six goals scored, the final three of them arriving late, there were not many saves made by the two goaltenders on the day. Even Lane Head’s missed penalty went over the crossbar, as both teams performed in a more workmanlike than creative fashion. 

Certainly, Town missed players like the unavailable Matt Bailey and the injured Reece Hewitt, never mind losing midfielder Joe Drake-Cervantes and then striker Dan Elwell before the interval of this match, after taking knocks. However, Lane Head grew into the proceedings and probed and foraged and finally gained a deserved reward after the break through a headed goal by Matt Hearsey and a brace of hard shots by robust replacement Andre James.

THE TOSS...

There were hand-ball issues during this match, two given, one not, yet really none of the three could in any way be deemed ‘intentional’. It is galling… One led to the Romans taking a very early lead through Owen Ward’s cool free-kick, the other offered visiting wide-player Sam Giles his spot-kick invitation which he lifted too high.

GILES (11): SHOT TOO HIGH FROM THE PENALTY-SPOT...

It really did look like Alcester had overcome adversity to steal the win when both Tez Morton and then Danny Williams overturned a 1-2 deficit but James’ second belted goal of the afternoon gifted parity to the Head in the closing moments…

MORTON TO THE REF: "WHERE DID YOU SAY I COULD GET A HAIRCUT?"

The rain held off, a rainbow hung over the unveiled Memorial Bench to Dave Taylor, the Alcester Chairman who died a year ago and I received a decent welcome once again from the host club.

Lane Head, driven on by midfielder Isaac Cooper and Callum Wood, looked the stronger outfit overall but the Romans’ manager Matt Seeley will likely be seething for the next few days when he reflects upon his players’ shortcomings.

WOOD (8) IS CAUTIONED...

COOPER (10): OFTEN LIVELY IN MIDFIELD...

Andre James…

He replaced striker Chadd Birch and exploded into the encounter by lashing in a fine goal for his team. Ward was dispossessed by Wood whose pass towards the left was chased by James and he turned inside Harry Jennings rather easily from the byeline. He then simply whacked the ball from just beyond the corner of the 6 yard box and his shot bulged the far corner of the net. 

1-2: JAMES' FIRST GOAL...

His equaliser stemmed from a centre from the left by Hearsey who had moved past Harry Jennings and his near post delivery deflected off his team-mate Aaron Grewal’s head for James to volley past Jack Hartopp in the Town goal from 7 yards. Again the net bulged… Three Alcester players behind James watched him do it, in truth… 

3-3: JAMES HAS EQUALISED...

Hearsey had opened the scoring for Head when an innocuous cross from the right touchline by Giles bounced in the 6 yard box, allowing Hearsey to nip past Harry Jennings and nod a simple goal.

1-1: HEARSEY, LEFT, IS THE SCORER...

Lucas Hough…

The Head’s skipper was strong alongside Grewal but also made some sterling runs forward, unattended very often by any Alcester players. His best moment though came when James volleyed his late goal, for Hough was in the way but had the awareness to duck down like he was playing leap frog in the school playground and the ball just about flew over his tied back hair…

CAUTION FOR GREWAL...

The midfield tussle… 

Lane Head were physical in the trenches, with the very effective Wood not only winning challenges but later in the game he defended splendidly too. Luke Charlton played his part but Cooper provided any inventiveness that the guests could muster.

Ward scored for the Romans with a fine set-piece shot from downtown which curled into the right corner of the net past the leaping Head ‘keeper Tom Kirkpatrick. Visiting right-back Luke Georgiou was understandably displeased about the hand-ball decision given against him though… 

1-0: WARD'S FREE-KICK...

At times, Umit Eminoglu looked smooth on the ball for Town but his finishing wasn’t good on the day, pulling a free-kick off target, driving a shot on the turn over the goal-frame and having an 8 yard effort blocked superbly by Reis Nadat, the Head left-back, when well placed. However, he would be credited with a pair of assists, one for fellow midfielder Morton and the other for substitute forward Danny Williams.

First Eminoglu hooked the ball over his own head towards the 18 yard box right of centre and Morton’s clipped shot took a slight deflection off the unfortunate Nadat (any relation to Jordan..?) and rose over the stranded Kirkpatrick to drop into an empty net.

2-2: GOAL BY MORTON, SECOND FROM RIGHT...

The third Alcester goal stemmed from strong play by player/coach Craig ‘Goose’ Gasiewski. Eminoglu nudged the ball on for Morton at the left corner of the penalty-box and he in turn dinked it over a defender for Eminoglu to move onto. From the byeline the midfielder’s low centre went past Kirkpatrick and there was Williams beyond the far stick to rush forth and shoot in.

3-2: WILLIAMS (LEFT) HAS SCORED...

Roman offense…

Kirkpatrick spooned away a looping Eminoglu header for a corner but then turned away Dan Elwell’s drive too following a smart Eminoglu pass. Elwell had been injured by Wood’s rather unpleasant tackle for which the Head man was cautioned and Elwell was eventually retired early.

Replacement Sam Jones nudged an angled shot across the face of goal at the start of half two which would have put his team 2-0 ahead and then in a strange incident with no offside-flag, Kirkpatrick clearly got down to a Karl Walker shot and touched it wide of his near post but a goal-kick was awarded to Head by the unsighted referee.

EMINOGLU: OFTEN INVOLVED IN ALCESTER'S BEST MOVES...

Skipper Drew Ricketts dived to head wide from a corner by Eminoglu but all told, Kirkpatrick wasn’t overworked by any stretch of the imagination.

Lane Head in attack…

Hearsey took the ball past the well advanced Hartopp in the opening period but then drifted too wide and subsequently struck his centre far too hard.

The ball then struck Harry Jennings’ arm right at the edge of the penalty-box and Giles took the ensuing penalty, lifting it well over the target before Georgiou couldn’t connect properly with a header from a Cooper free-kick. However the nearest Head came to a first period goal was when poor marking again on the Alcester defensive right, saw Hearsey free to assist Giles whose shot bounced upwards off the falling Hartopp for Ricketts to nod into the ‘keeper’s grateful gloves.

JAMES IS IN SHOCK AFTER SCORING HIS SECOND GOAL...
OR IS COLE TELLING HIM HE HAS SAT DOWN IN THE WRONG PLACE?

Apart from three goals scored the only other real opportunity for the guests after the recess was when Charlton struck a powerful shot which Lewis Clarke did well to block.

Lewis Clarke…

Looking at the match from an independent point of view, it appeared that Clarke put in a decent shift of defensive headers and clearances and in fact saw off the threat of Birch and kept James quiet until the striker netted twice although Clarke was assuming other duties when each chance came James’ way. 

CLARKE IN A PERSONAL MOMENT...

Ricketts and Mike Jennings showed some resolution in their defending too…

Trouble…

Wood did well to curb his challenges after his booking but also cautioned were Roman Williams for a late tackle on Nadat, Grewal of Lane Head and also substitute Adam Cole, for not allowing a very late free-kick to be taken. And still he argued that Alcester were taking it from the wrong place. And still he complained after the game was done and I believe that he then received a second yellow card? Hmm…

"I LEFT MY POT NOODLE HERE, I SWEAR..." 

Final words…

This game lacked creativity but apart from the goals and the rather decent last quarter-hour, it was at best industrious. Hough and Clarke seemed to stand out in the two defences as did Eminoglu and Cooper in midfield although one had to admire James’ two goals, for it’s not often that two strikes of such venom go in for a forward in the same match…

IS THAT A SEELEY SMILE?

TEAMS:

ALCESTER TOWN:

JACK HARTOPP, HARRY JENNINGS, MIKE JENNINGS, LEWIS CLARKE, DREW RICKETTS (CAPT), JOE DRAKE-CERVANTES, KARL WALKER, OWEN WARD, DAN ELWELL, TEZ MORTON, UMIT EMINOGLU.

SUBS:

DANNY WILLIAMS, SAM JONES, JACOB WALTON, CRAIG GASIEWSKI.

LANE HEAD:

TOM KIRKPATRICK, LUKE GEORGIOU, REIS NADAT, LUKE CHARLTON, AARON GREWAL, LUCAS HOUGH (CAPT), MATT HEARSEY, CALLUM WOOD, CHADD BIRCH, ISAAC COOPER, SAM GILES.

SUBS:

LUKE DAVIES, TOM EMBREY, ADAM COLE, ANDRE JAMES.