League

Cambridge
Spectators: 5000 (Terracing: 4000, Seating: 1000, VIP seats: 0) It was fairly windy and cold on the field when Duncan Farrell kicked off to start the match. Duncan Farrell struck a weak shot in the 8th minute. Pete Eslworth didn't even have to move as the ball rolled over the line well wide of the goal. A wasted opportunity for Troyes FC. Zack Langdon scored 0-1 in the 10th match minute with a shot that went into the goal to the right of Kristian Sykes, who was just a little too slow in reacting to the shot. Pete Eslworth took care of the ball after a well-directed shot from Duncan Farrell, even though the ball almost passed him on his left side. Zack Langdon struck a weak shot in the 16th minute. Kristian Sykes didn't even have to move as the ball rolled over the line well wide of the goal. A wasted opportunity for Yardley. Danny Noble charged in rather forcefully in the 20th minute of the match, and managed to knock his opponent down. The referee showed Danny Noble the yellow card, and asked the players to shake hands before continuing play. The supporters of Troyes FC booed when Yardley was adjudged a doubtful freekick after 20 match minutes in a wonderful position. Danny Noble didn't get a good kick on the ball. Yardley's defense didn't have a chance, in the 21st minute, when Duncan Farrell scored to the left of an out of position Pete Eslworth, making the score, 1-1. Kristian Sykes didn't have a chance when a screaming shot from Ian Caton went, in the 26th minute, to the upper right corner, 1-2 was the resulting score. In the 32nd minute, Ian Caton made a precise shot to the right of Kristian Sykes. Troyes FC's defense was at fault, and the scoreboard reflected the new score, 1-3. The crowd rose to their feet as Duncan Farrell kicked a wonderful shot that went in to the left of a diving Pete Eslworth. That made the score 2-3 in the 37 minute of play. In the 40th minute, Ian Caton left the goalkeeper for dead before tapping the ball into the right side of the net. The Yardley fans were clearly happy with the effort and the scoreboard reflected the new score: 2-4. 44 minutes into the match, Carl Dodgson notched a goal, 3-4, to the right of Yardley's Pete Eslworth. Pete Eslworth was clearly disgusted with the effort of the defense and let the defenders know about it. Luck had favoured the away team in the first, and they walked off with a 3-4 lead.

Both teams looked relatively alert before the second half when the referee blew his whistle to tell Ian Caton to make the kick off. Graham Brighton got his second yellow card in the match during the 51st minute which meant that he had to leave the ground. 51 minutes into the game, one of Yardley:s players got tackled near the goal, and the referee blew for a penalty. Yardley's Zack Langdon got a good chance for a goal in the 57th minute, but he totally mistimed the shot and it went over the crossbar. If Duncan Farrell had kept his shot down it would have been a goal in the 59th minute. The ball went over the crossbar and out instead. After 60 minutes, Stephen Goodfellow mouthed his way into the referee's book. The tension between the Yardley and the Troyes FC players grew even worse after the yellow card. Stephen Goodfellow kicked well hit freekick during the 60th minute of the match. When Troyes FC's Duncan Farrell in the 63rd minute got a chance for a shot 63rd didn't hesitate and placed the ball to the right of the goalie. A beautiful save bye Yardley's goalie prevented a goal. Zack Langdon sent away a hard shot on goal in the 70th minute, but the ball went just over the crossbar and out. A very good chance. An unexpectedly hard shot by Duncan Farrell in the 73rd minute of play forced Yardley's goalkeeper Pete Eslworth to throw himself to the left, to be able to save the ball. After 75 played minutes Troyes FC got a freekick which was hit by Mike Hunter. Yardley's Pete Eslworth played magnificently when he managed to stop the ball from hitting the goal, after a sharp shot by Carl Dodgson in the 78th minute of play. When Zack Langdon came up free with the goalie in the 79th minute, the Yardley 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 Zack Langdon couldn't finish the play. After some careless play in the Troyes FC defense, Dave Willets kicked a shot that curved into the net to the right of Kristian Sykes. The Troyes FC fans voiced their displeasure as they felt that Kristian Sykes should have stopped the shot. When the match was over Yardley could go home with a victory in their luggage, having controlled the game far better than Troyes FC throughout the match.