League

Shepshed
Spectators: 7568 (Terracing: 5500, Seating: 1968, VIP seats: 100) Valencia CF's Terry Rashleigh started the match with a crisp pass. The crowd had been anticipating this game for weeks and the excitement in the stadium was easily visible. In the 4th match minute, Valencia CF was awarded a freekick, the ball was picked up by Terry Rashleigh to maneuver through the defense. An unexpectedly hard shot by Jack North in the 5th minute of play forced Valencia CF's goalkeeper Ronan Chilton to throw himself to the left, to be able to save the ball. In the 9th minute, Tristan Sharpe got an opportunity to score, but he didn't get a solid hit on the ball and ended up kicking it wide of the goal. The referee was alert and spotted a serious foul by Terry Connell during the 9th minute. The player immediately received a yellow card. In the 12th minute of the match, Jimmy Tompkins tried to roll the ball into the goal by the right post, but Ronan Chilton saw his intentions and got control of the ball before it passed the line. In the 15th minute Dominic Tabb shot on, it seemed, an open goal, but Tony Beresford saw the ball coming and threw himself on it before it passed the goal line. Tony Beresford didn't have a chance when a screaming shot from Simone Zaza went, in the 18th minute, to the upper right corner, 1-1 was the resulting score. Valencia CF's Ronan Chilton played magnificently when he managed to stop the ball from hitting the goal, after a sharp shot by Jimmy Tompkins in the 21st minute of play. Jimmy Tompkins might have been able to make a better finish in the 31st minute when he tried to place a hard shot over Ronan Chilton. Instead the ball went over the crossbar and out. Jimmy Tompkins ran back to his position shaking his head. Simone Zaza kicked well hit freekick during the 32nd minute of the match. In the 37th match minute, Valencia CF was awarded a freekick, the ball was picked up by Jim Warner to maneuver through the defense. Stephen Sawyer, 37 minutes into the match, dribbled the ball up the side of the field and decided to take a long shot at the goal. Unfortunately, the ball was poorly hit and landed closer to the corner than to the goal. An unexpectedly hard shot by Simone Zaza in the 43rd minute of play forced Shepshed's goalkeeper Tony Beresford to throw himself to the left, to be able to save the ball. In the 44th minute, Terry Rashleigh ran past the defenders and hit a shot which went straight ahead into goal. Tony Beresford was frozen by the shot and now it was 1-2. Even after changing tactics the home team jogged off the field with a 1-2 deficit. They would have to work harder if they wanted to turn things around in the second half.

The hometeam waved at the audience when it was time for Tristan Sharpe to strike the kick off in the second half. Dominic Tabb kicked well hit freekick during the 50th minute of the match. Tristan Sharpe sent away a hard shot on goal in the 53rd minute, but the ball went just over the crossbar and out. A very good chance. Shepshed's Tony Beresford played magnificently when he managed to stop the ball from hitting the goal, after a sharp shot by Simone Zaza in the 58th minute of play. After some fancy dribbling in the 61st minute, Jimmy Tompkins managed to get in a good position for a shot. Shepshed's supporters rose to their feet, but Jimmy Tompkins was a bit off balance and shot the ball just wide of the left post. Ronan Chilton breathed a sigh of relief and went to take the goal kick. Tony Beresford took care of the ball after a well-directed shot from Simone Zaza, even though the ball almost passed him on his left side. The crowd rose to their feet as Valencia CF's Terry Rashleigh slotted home a wonderful shot that went in to the left of Tony Beresford. That made the score 2-3 after 69 minutes of play. In the 74th minute Tristan Sharpe shot on, it seemed, an open goal, but Ronan Chilton saw the ball coming and threw himself on it before it passed the goal line. 76 minutes into the game, Valencia CF's Simone Zaza nearly tore a hole in the net with a booming shot. Tony Beresford made a valiant effort, but he could not reach the ball in time, 2-4. After some fancy dribbling in the 80th minute, Tristan Sharpe managed to get in a good position for a shot. Shepshed's supporters rose to their feet, but Tristan Sharpe was a bit off balance and shot the ball just wide of the left post. Ronan Chilton breathed a sigh of relief and went to take the goal kick. In the 81st minute, Victor Tucker reached a very good position and smashed the ball with a huge effort into the net, just to the left of Tony Beresford. The goal made the score 2-5. After some careless play in the Shepshed defense, Simone Zaza kicked a shot that curved into the net to the right of Tony Beresford. The Shepshed fans voiced their displeasure as they felt that Tony Beresford should have stopped the shot. If Jack North had kept his shot down it would have been a goal in the 89th minute. The ball went over the crossbar and out instead. After a defensive mix-up in Shepshed's zone, Wesley Simms stole the ball and had only the goalie to beat. Tony Beresford came out of the goal and Wesley Simms tried to chip the ball over his head. To his dismay, the ball went over the crossbar and out of play. Tony Beresford showed brilliant goalkeeper skills when he caught the ball after a hard shot from Simone Zaza in the 95th minute of the match. When the match was over Valencia CF could go home with a victory in their luggage, having controlled the game far better than Shepshed throughout the match.