League

Little Harrowden Sta
Spectators: 5000 (Terracing: 4000, Seating: 1000, VIP seats: 0) Dark clouds were building up when the players entered the field. None of the them looked very eager to play. Trev Bilham started the match with the kick off. Barmby on the Marsh's Johnnie Cartwright got a good chance for a goal in the 6th minute, but he totally mistimed the shot and it went over the crossbar. Little Harrowden's Ben Barr played magnificently when he managed to stop the ball from hitting the goal, after a sharp shot by Johnnie Cartwright in the 8th minute of play. The supporters of Barmby on the Marsh booed when Little Harrowden was adjudged a doubtful freekick after 9 match minutes in a wonderful position. Garth Hampton didn't get a good kick on the ball. After a defensive mix-up in Little Harrowden's zone, Johnnie Cartwright stole the ball and had only the goalie to beat. Ben Barr came out of the goal and Johnnie Cartwright tried to chip the ball over his head. To his dismay, the ball went over the crossbar and out of play. 18 minutes into the game, Conal Hayes was given a yellow card after he appeared to trip an opposing player. Barmby on the Marsh's manager was livid on the sidelines, but the referee was unmoved and gave Little Harrowden the free kick. In the 18th minute, Conal Hayes hit a crossing free kick to the open man running down the field. With a little luck, Barmby on the Marsh's Mitch Worrall got control of the ball when Fred Orchard tried to sneak it across the goal line. In the 25th match minute, Barmby on the Marsh was awarded a freekick, the ball was picked up by Conal Hayes to maneuver through the defense. Ben Barr took care of the ball after a well-directed shot from Johnnie Cartwright, even though the ball almost passed him on his left side. The crowd rose to their feet as Little Harrowden's Trev Bilham slotted home a wonderful shot that went in to the left of Mitch Worrall. That made the score 1-1 after 34 minutes of play. A collision led to Barmby on the Marsh getting a freekick after 37 minutes play. Conal Hayes hit a great ball. After 38 played minutes Barmby on the Marsh got a freekick which was hit by Tod Niven. The long shot by Shane Gunn in the 39th minute really tested Mitch Worrall's skills. The ball was on its way into the goal to the left of him when he managed to stretch himself and save the shot and avoid a goal. Little Harrowden's Trev Bilham got a good chance for a goal in the 45th minute, but he totally mistimed the shot and it went over the crossbar. The fans had the chance to grab some refreshments as the whistle went for half-time. The score stood at 1-1 after a close first half.

The players of the home team were most fresh-looking when they entered the field to play the second half. Johnathon Hallam was the one to do the kick off. Mitch Worrall showed brilliant goalkeeper skills when he caught the ball after a hard shot from Trev Bilham in the 54th minute of the match. When Conal Hayes was, once again, overly rough in his play he received his second yellow card and was ordered off the ground. 55 minutes had been played. In the 55th match minute, Barmby on the Marsh was awarded a freekick, the ball was picked up by Conal Hayes to maneuver through the defense. In the 59th minute the ball was on its way in behind Barmby on the Marsh's goalkeeper Mitch Worrall, but with the help of a sacrificing defense, he could catch the ball at the crossbar. Tod Niven's late challenge caught a Little Harrowden's player on the shin and left him crawling around in pain. The referee blew his whistle and produced the yellow card. Tod Niven helped the player get up and apologised. Tod Niven hit a great freekick 62 minutes into the match. Shane Gunn took a chance and fired a shot far from the goal in the 63rd minute, but it turned out to be a dangerous situation for Mitch Worrall. Barmby on the Marsh's goalkeeper really had to stretch himself to stop the ball from crossing the goal line. After 75 minutes of play, Little Harrowden's Trev Bilham made it 2-1 when he simply outclassed the defender marking him and hit a curling shot into the right side of the net. Mitch Worrall was left in no man's land by his defense there! When Trev Bilham came up free with the goalie in the 83rd minute, the Little Harrowden fans jumped to their feet. But the shot missed the goal by a fraction of an inch, and the fans sat back down disappointed that Trev Bilham couldn't finish the play. In the 88th match minute, Barmby on the Marsh was awarded a freekick, the ball was picked up by Tod Niven to maneuver through the defense. Trev Bilham received a nice pass in the box and took a hard shot in the 91st minute. Mitch Worrall tensed up and prepared to dive, but the shot went over the goal with him having to interfere. Little Harrowden's fans were exulted and cheered after their team won in a match that could easily have gone the other way.