Match Reports - january 2008
Saturday 26th January
AT LAST - TOWN WIN !!
Stratford Town 3 - McPhee 23 Byrne 73 Davis 90
Coalville Town 1 - Swan 89
Town could hardly have approached their two MFA matches with Coalville this season in more contrasting form. When they played the Ravens away in the autumn they were defending a 12 match unbeaten start to the season, but the encounter at Coalville - Town’s 13th game of the season and played on October 13th so plenty there for the superstitious to ponder upon - was to bring that run to an end, and since then Town’s form had totally collapsed with only three more games being won, two drawn and the remaining nine lost
So when Coalville arrived at Damson Park on Saturday for the return fixture Town were “defending” a six match losing run and were hoping for a similar form reversal. Bizarrely it was also Town’s 13th - and last - MFA match at their temporary home, but this time the fates were on Town’s side and after a hard fought encounter they emerged as worthy winners although whether they will now set off on another lengthy unbeaten run remains to be seen.
Once again Micky Moore shuffled his side. Richard Robinson and Harry Donaghey were restored to the full back positions from midfield and Ashley Pringle was brought in to partner Richard Munday in the centre of defence thus allowing Jack Byrne and John Snape to move into midfield with Michael Crawford dropping to the subs bench. Lawrence Rawlings came in for the injured Paddy Connolly while new signing Neil Davis - once of Aston Villa but latterly with Bromsgrove - commenced his stay at Town in the no 12 shirt.
A few dry days had made the pitch surprisingly lively and both teams struggled to adapt after the quagmires of so many recent games. The Ravens were first to threaten after five minutes when Rob Johnson got away down the right and squared the ball to Michael Swan who will have been disappointed with his finish which was well off target.
OUCH! That had to hurt as Loz Rawlings feels 'the force'
There was also a scare for Town in the 12th minute when a free kick from out on the left was headed into the penalty area by Swan. Town keeper James Dormand came out to smother the ball bringing down Kevin Thompson in the process but Coalville’s heated appeals for a penalty were waved away by the well positioned referee.
Town had hardly troubled Coalville keeper Chris Gibson’s goal as they found it increasingly difficult to break down a solid defence well marshalled by the dominant Andy Crabtree, but they came close to taking the lead in the 18th minute when Rawlings took a short corner on the left to Donaghey whose cross was met by Snape at the near post and Gibson did well to claw his header behind.
The game badly need a goal to bring it to life, but when it arrived in the 23rd minute it was hardly a classic. Town had possession out on the left and when a hopeful ball was lofted into the Coalville penalty area Snape was there to head it on and Gary McPhee just reached it before Gibson to prod it ever so slowly over the line.
Sadly though little changed after the goal and the remainder of the half was fought out in midfield with both sides being guilty of giving the ball away far too easily thruogh a succession of misplaced passes and poor control. Crabtree nearly equalised for the Ravens when he headed a free kick narrowly over the bar in the 38th minute and Swan tried a couple of long range efforts but overall the first half had been an undistinguished affair with the standard of play seldom better than ordinary..
Half Time - Stratford Town 1 Coalville Town 0
The second period had barely started when Town skipper Snape had to come off injured to be replaced by Davis and he immediately caught the eye when combing well with Rawlings and McPhee. Nevertheless Town were fortunate to escape in the 55th minute when Danum Russell went on a tricky run down the left beating at least three defenders before wastefully shooting straight at Dormand when clean through.
However by the hour mark Davis/McPhee combination was making its presence felt, and in the 62nd minute the pair exchanged passes to send Mark Faulds free down the inside right channel only for his low cross intended for Jerome Grandison to be hooked behind for a corner by the covering Thompson.
Coalville replied with a snap shot from Lewis Dodd which Dormand was relieved to see go wide of his left hand post, before the Davis/ McPhee partnership worked again this time releasing Rawlings into the penalty area only for Gibson to expertly narrow the angle and block the shot low to his left.
Town were now building a bit of momentum but when they went two up in the 73rd minute it was all down to a brilliant individual effort from Byrne. On a number of occasions this season the young midfielder has tried his luck from distance and more than once the ball has been car park bound, but this time his strike was near enough perfect as he latched onto a loose ball fully 30 yards out and his shot - aided by a deflection - rocketed past a static Gibson. A real Goal of the Season contender !!
That should have been Game Over, and indeed for a few minutes Town were really buzzing. Gibson made another brave save when Rawlings set up Grandison with a shooting chance, but Coalville were not giving up and Dormand had to go down low to his right to save from Swan as they came back for a final flourish.
Town supporters have seen it all too often this season as their side falls back and invites the opposition to come at them, and sure enough Town yet again made it harder than it should have been by conceding a totally unnecessary goal when Swan had time and space to slide a long cross from Waldrum beyond Dormand from close in with only a minute of normal time remaining.
But at least on this occasion the result was not to be affected, and in time added on Town clinched the points when Rawlings fed the impressive Davis who finished clinically from 15 yards with a well placed shot across Gibson into the far corner.
So ended Town’s brief stay at Damson Park. Of the 13 games MFA played there 4 were won, 5 drawn and 4 lost but the bare results do not tell the whole story. Overall it was a happy and successful groundshare arrangement, and many thanks are due to everyone at Solihull who made Town and their followers so welcome.
TOWN : Dormand, Robinson, Donaghey, Snape (Davis 47), Munday, Pringle (Crawford 90), Faulds, Grandison, McPhee, Byrne, Rawlings. Subs Not Used - Wood, Overton and Oakley
COALVILLE : Gibson, Brown Stuart, Attwood, Crabtree, Thompson, Johnson (S White 86), Jarvis (Lawrence 76), Swan, Dodd, Russell (Waldrum 59). Subs Not Used - R White.
Town Yellow Cards - None
Coalville Yellow Cards - None
Attendance - 121
Town Man of Match - Gary McPhee - worked tirelessly up front all afternoon and combined particularly well with Neil Davis when he came on early in the second half
Match Stats :
Town - GA 9 OT 6 HW 0 CW 4 FC 13 OS 5 YC 0 RC 0
Coalville - GA 10 OT 4 HW 0 CW 4 FC 18 OS 0 YC 0 RC 0
Saturday 19th January
IT’S PLAYED SIX LOST SIX AS TOWN’S MISERY CONTINUES
Stratford Town 0
Stapenhill 1 - Shales 61
A month ago this match would have been considered a home banker with Town leading the League and Stapenhill languishing towards the bottom with only Cradley below them, but Town’s form since then has totally collapsed - five matches and five defeats - so much so that they are now residing at the foot of the current MFA Form Table.
Even so with Stapenhill remaining in 21st place overall this seemed as good an opportunity as any for Town to get back to winning ways, but after a performance as dismal as the weather they only succeeded in handing their visitors their first away win of the season and their fourth in all.
Once again Micky Moore had to make changes with both Nathan Lamey and Jamie Petty missing from last weekend. Jerome Grandison and Michael Crawford moved up from the subs bench to replace them but with Crawford playing at left back to allow Harry Donaghey to move into midfield. A further change saw Richard Robinson come in for Ashley Pringle to play in midfield with John Snape dropping back to take Pringle’s place alongside Richard Munday in the centre of defence.
With rain falling more or less throughout and the pitch already extremely soggy the match was clearly going to be a stamina test, but Town appeared to relish the conditions as they settled down to play some neat football with Donaghey foraging away to good effect in his new role on the left of midfield and Grandison troubling the Stapenhill defence with his pace even on this squelch surface.
The first real chance arrived after ten minutes when Gary McPhee lobbed the ball into the penalty area where Paddy Connolly headed it on and keeper Tom Allan had to move smartly off his line to push it away from the lurking Grandison.
Allan was next in the action six minutes later when a long ball out of defence from Jack Byrne sent Grandison scampering down the right touchline. Allan came racing out of his area to bring him down and received a yellow card for his efforts but he then redeemed by making a clean catch from the resultant free kick and sending Gareth Langford away on a dangerous looking foray into the Town half before Town successfully regrouped on the edge of their penalty area.
As the half reached its midway point Town were enjoying much the better of the possession but too often the final pass was going astray, while the visitors were operating the offside trap pretty efficiently with McGhee a regular victim. Nevertheless it was McPhee who had the best chance so far in the 28th minute when a Donaghey pass was flicked on by Grandison to leave McPhee one on one with Allan but his finish was not clinical enough and Allan was able to get sufficient hand on it to deflect it for a corner.
Following another corner Crawford was not far away with a 20 yard effort after the ball was cleared out to him, and shortly after a low cross from the busy Donaghey was bravely held by Allan as Connolly closed in .
Then in the 37th minute Town wasted a golden opportunity to take the lead as a careless mistake by Ryan Gardiner allowed Grandison to surge into the penalty area with only Allan to beat. No defender was near enough to challenge and Grandison could easily have taken it round the stranded keeper but he chose to shoot early and his effort clipped the far post and went behind for a goal kick.
Little had been seen of Stapenhill as an attacking force but they wasted a rare chance of their own in the 42nd minute when Langford got away down the right and put over a useful cross only for the unmarked Jonny Shales to miskick when he had a clear sight of goal.
After all of Town’s dominance it seemed amazing that they were to approach the interval still scoreless but in the final minute they were to squander yet another priceless chance. Mark Faulds won the ball from Kevin Wagstaff on the right and slipped it inside to Grandison who again had only the keeper to beat but this time he appeared to slip in the act of shooting and the ball cannoned against the left hand post. As it fell loose Allan went to smother it and in doing so collided with Connolly sustaining a nasty facial injury in the process.
It was soon clear that Allan could not continue and Stapenhill had to put their striker Kevin Locke in goal and bring on sub Jordan Gough up front. Allan went to hospital and after the match it was confirmed that he had ruptured a blood vessel in his nose.
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Half Time - Stratford Town 0 Stapenhill 0
In spite of their injury problems - or perhaps because of them - Stapenhill came out for the second half determined to take the game to Town and with Town seeming slow to get going again the game changed. Munday was booked for the sixth time this season as the visitors began to apply some meaningful pressure to the Town defence and the Town faithful began to feel uneasy as if sensing what was to come.
Sure enough in the 61st minute a routine cross from the right by Tom Jenkinson was floated into the Town penalty area and Shales took advantage of a static defence to meet it with a diving header which clipped the far post on its way past the helpless James Dormand.
Micky Moore immediately sent on Lawrence Rawlings to give Town some much needed attacking width, and he soon sent over a teasing cross from the right which beat Locke but there was no Town forward up to take advantage.
At the other end Shales went close again with a shot from a corner which was only just deflected away by a packed Town defence for another corner before Micky Moore made a second substitution sending on Pringle in an attacking role and taking off Munday with Robinson dropping back to Munday’s place in defence.
The move nearly worked as with virtually his first touch Pringle connected with a header from a Grandison cross only for Locke to react brilliantly and push it away from under the bar - an impressive save for a regular keeper let alone a stand-in.
Rawlings was next to threaten with a header which went past the post in the 74th minute, but Town were now looking increasingly desperate. Only when they were able to feed Rawlings on the right did they remotely look dangerous as the resolute visitors battled doggedly to hold on to their lead.
With the game entering its final minutes Town attempted to finish with a flourish, and Pringle and Byrne both tested Locke with shots from distance while Connolly was crowded out as the tried to make space for an effort after another Rawlings cross, but it was to no avail and Stapenhill’s defiance had earned them three precious points.
In many ways this was a typical recent Town performance. Vital chances were missed in the first half, the defence lost concentration at a crucial time and they were then unable to get the better of a team which were determined and workmanlike but really no more than that.
So this is now Town’s worst run since they became founder members of the MFA at the start of the 1994/5 season, and it is difficult to see how things are going to improve in the immediate future. The players may be good enough as individuals but as a team they definitely are not.
TOWN : Dormand, Byrne, Crawford, Robinson, Snape, Munday (Pringle 71), Faulds (Rawlings 65), Connolly, McPhee, Grandison, Donaghey.. Subs Not Used - Wood, Overton and Oakley
STAPENHILL : Allan (J Gough 45), Winson, Wagstaff, Wczasek, Gardiner, Keenan, Jenkinson, S Gough, Locke, Langford (Wheildon 84), Shales Subs Not Used - Bromley.
Town Yellow Cards - Munday
Stapenhill Yellow Cards - Allan and Wczasek
Attendance - 137
Town Man of Match - Harry Donaghey - relished his midfield role and in the first half especially he was at the heart of most of Town’s best efforts
Match Stats :
Town - GA 13 OT 6 HW 3 CW 7 FC 6 OS 12 YC 1 RC 0
Stapenhill - GA 3 OT 1 HW 0 CW 5 FC 9 OS 2 YC 2 RC 0
Saturday 12th January
TOWN’S MISERY CONTINUES IN THE ATHERSTONE BOG
Atherstone Town 4 - Stanley 9 (pen) & 75, Brown 71, Gaunt 90
Stratford Town 3 - Lamey 2, McPhee 46, Munday 66
A visit to Sheepy Road is not for the fainthearted with its partisan crowd and intimidating atmosphere, and for Town followers it was an even less enticing prospect than usual on Saturday as the Adders had taken over from Town as League leaders over Christmas and were absolutely flying with seven straight wins whereas Town were apparently in freefall with four straight defeats.
Everything therefore indicated that the Adders’ winning run would continue, and it duly did but not without a monumental struggle and more than a fright or two along the way.
Micky Moore again shuffled his side looking for the elusive combination that would get Town‘s season up and running again. Richard Munday came into central defence with Jack Byrne being moved to right back instead of Richard Robinson to allow skipper John Snape to forage in midfield. Mark Faulds also came into midfield and new signing Gary McPhee, who has recently had a couple of games for Alveston but who was previously with Nuneaton Borough partnered Nathan Lamey up front, while Jerome Grandison and Lawrence Rawlings dropped to the subs bench
After Friday’s storm the pitch had only just passed an inspection and in places was little better than a quagmire, but it didn’t prevent Town from making the best possible start by going ahead in the second minute. McPhee showed his class as he made progress down the right touchline before picking out Lamey with a pinpoint cross from by the corner flag, and the on-loan striker from Chasetown notched his second goal in two games by calmly placing the ball beyond Williams into the bottom right hand corner.
The Adders had kept clean sheets in their previous four matches and were visibly shocked at conceding so early as Town had the better of the initial exchanges. Paddy Connolly forced Williams to save low to his right when he tried his luck from the edge of the penalty area in the 6th minute, and Town seemed in control when the Adders equalised in their first serious attack three minutes later.
Ex Town striker Luke Barlone chased a long pass into the penalty area and was met by the advancing James Dormand who appeared to make contact with the ball, but down went Barlone and the referee immediately pointed to the spot. Ignoring the baying hordes behind the goal the referee only produced a yellow card for the Town keeper instead of the sough after red, before Jai Stanley made no mistake with the kick.
The game now settled into a midfield slog with the pitch preventing any semblance of flowing football from either side, and attempts on goal were few and far between. In the 18th minute a corner on the right taken short set up a shooting chance for Ezekiel Tomlinson but his well struck effort was pushed away by Dormand for Byrne to complete the clearance, and on the half hour mark another ex-Town man, Nasthan Jones, turned Ashley Pringle for virtually the only time in the game to fire in a snap shot which was well held by Dormand going to his right.
By then Town had lost Lamey to a groin strain being replaced by Grandison, but as half time approached they upped the tempo with two right wing crosses from Grandison and Faulds only being cleared with difficulty and then a Byrne shot from 15 yards being held by Williams under his bar.
Half Time - Atherstone Town 1 Stratford Town 1
If Town thought that they had scored early in the first half they did even better in the second as barely 30 seconds had been played before they were in front again. The impressive McPhee chased a hopeful punt into the Atherstone half and with no defender near enough to challenge he coolly lobbed the ball over Williams as the keeper came out.
The Adders now knew they had a real game on their hands and began to dominate possession, but the revamped Town backline with Munday in particular catching the eye defended resolutely, and most of the play was in the midfield area where the both teams were literally bogged down.
McPhee had a chance on the hour mark when played in by Grandison only to be well off target with his shot, but in the 66th minute Town went two up when Faulds showed great persistence down the left to get to the byline and pull the ball back for Munday - up with the attack - to joyfully blast it past the helpless Williams.
Atherstone were rocked but to their credit they immediately battled back. Tricky substitute Danny Gaunt operating on the left wing was not far away with a shot from the edge of the area in the 69th mniute, and two minutes later the Adders reduced the arrears when Barlone threaded the ball through to another Adders substitute, Matt Brown, to hold off Pringle before rounding Dormand and firing into the empty net. Town should have been forewarned as this was the 8th goal Brown has scored when coming on as a substitute in the last 9 games - a real super-sub !!
The momentum was now totally with Atherstone and the equaliser arrived only four minutes later. Gaunt was becoming increasingly influential on the left and this time he fed Barlone who squared the ball inside for Stanley to finish decisively.
With Town penned back the Adders went for the winner. Gareth Williams forced a sprawling save from Dormand when he cut in from the right and Gaunt then had a cross-cum-shot bounce on top of the bar but Town hung on.
The pitch was beginning to take its toll of players’ fitness and with some meaty challenges going in a rash of yellow cards were flourished by the under pressure referee notably after a skirmish on the right touchline following a Grandison tackle on Gareth Williams.
Nevertheless Town had seemed to be heading to a well-deserved point - and a repeat of the scoreline at Damson Park in August - until in the final minute of normal time Atherstone stole the game. A strong run by Stanley down the Atherstone right took him to the byline and when he slipped the ball inside Gaunt’s shot appeared to go in off a Town defender.
So the Adders made it eight wins on the bounce and go marching on. Town meanwhile made it five consecutive defeats which is confirmed by Club Statistician Alan Hawkins to equal their worst ever run in the MFA, but at least this time Town could not be faulted for lack of effort.
At the end the only real difference between the two sides was that the Adders were just that little bit stronger in the crucial last 15 minutes. That strength will probably be enough to make them MFA Champions and gain promotion, but at least that will mean that Sheepy Road will not be on Town’s itinerary next season.
No Town follower will mind that.
TOWN : Dormand, Munday, Donaghey, Byrne, Pringle, Snape, Connolly, Faulds, McPhee, Lamey (Grandison 20), Petty (Rawlings 77).. Subs Not Used - Oakley, Overton & Crawford
ATHERSTONE : R.Williams, Tullin, G.Williams, Haynes, Everitt, Wells, Tomlinson, Stanley, Jones (Browne 65), Barlone, Martin (Gaunt 46) Subs Not Used - Thomas, Beale & Clark.
Town Yellow Cards - Dormand, Grandison, Donaghey and Munday
Atherstone Yellow Cards - Wells and G.Williams
Attendance - 197
Town Man of Match - Richard Munday - a sterling effort in the centre of Town’s defence and well deserved his goal which at the time looked to be decisive
Match Stats :
Town - GA 12 OT 5 HW 0 CW 6 FC 17 OS 8 YC 4 RC 0
Atherstone - GA 13 OT 7 HW 1 CW 8 FC 11 OS 1 YC 2 RC 0
Saturday 5th January 2008
YET MORE DEFENSIVE LAPSES AS TOWN MAKE IT FOUR DEFEATS IN A ROW
Stratford Town 2 - Lamey 51 Connolly 80
Market Drayton Town 3 - Ellis 29 & 85 Rogers 75
Town’s wretched run of form continued as they slipped to their fourth consecutive defeat - three of which have been at home - against high-flying Market Drayton, and for the umpteenth time this season they contributed hugely to their own downfall with some more shambolic defending.
Market Drayton are the surprise packets in the MFA this season, and this win moved them up to second spot four points behind Atherstone but with two games in hand. When the reverse fixture had been played at Drayton in October they had steamrollered Town to run in four goals without reply, and again they were hard working and well organised, seldom allowing Town time to settle into any sort of rhythm.
Although it had been less than three months since that game at Drayton, Town’s team has changed to such an extent that only two players - Jack Byrne and Jerome Grandison - who had started then made the starting line-up on Saturday.
Five changes were made to the side which had lost to Westfields on New Year’s Day with Harry Donaghey (back at last), Paddy Connolly and John Snape returning, and debuts being made by Nathan Lamey - on loan from Chasetown - and Jamie Petty from Bromsgrove but who had made 40 appearances for Solihull Borough last season. Down to the subs bench went Adam Overton, Mark Faulds and Ian Wood, Aaron Farrell was out injured while Rory May had been released in midweek. but in any event would have missed this game as he was due to start a three match ban following his red card at Causeway.
The early skirmishes were fairly even being played out mainly in midfield, and neither goal was really threatened until the 12th minute when Drayton’s Tom Rogers flicked on a long ball out of defence for Chris Morris to bustle past Snape and get in a shot which was only held by James Dormand at the second attempt. A free kick at each end then offered both side a chance with Paul McMullen heading Drayton’s over the bar and keeper Sam Jones doing well to punch Town’s away under pressure from Lamey.
As the half reached its midway point Town enjoyed a good little spell. Donaghey went a familiar overlapping run down the left to cross low for Lamey who was crowded out at the near post, and then Lamey turned provider by dispossessing Grant Goodhead in midfield to set up a shooting opportunity for fellow newcomer Petty but he required too long on the ball and the chance was gone.
Then in the 29th minute Town went behind to yet another in the season’s list of totally preventable goals. Goodhead hit a hopeful long ball out of defence for Stuart Ellis to chase. He outpaced Richard Robinson but although it seemed easy for Dormand to come and collect he hesitated and Ellis nipped in to slide the ball past him into the empty net.
Town were temporarily knocked back by going behind and the speedy Ellis nearly laid on a second as he sent over two crosses from the left in quick succession. The first was met by Morris whose effort was blocked by Donaghey while the second flew across the face of the goal with no Drayton player close enough to apply the finish.
Town were wobbling, and slack play by Robinson let in Morris who hit a fierce effort straight at the well-positioned Dormand.
Town needed to respond and gradually did so as the interval approached. Lamey latched onto a pass from the unusually subdued Lawrence Rawlings to test Jones with a sharp right footer, and a minute later the roles were reversed as Lamey sent Rawlings scampering away down the inside left channel. Jones raced out of his area to bring him down and was probably relieved that the card shown was only yellow with the resulting free kick only being cleared by the desperate Drayton defence after a scrimmage in the six yard box.
Lamey then brought another save out of Jones with a snap shot from 15 yards which the keeper was happy to parry before gathering safely.
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Half Time - Stratford Town 0 Market Drayton Town 1
No doubt words had been said in the dressing room at half time as Town made a lively start to the second period. Jones made a comfortable save from Petty after a Rawlings free kick had fallen to him 20 yards out, and then Petty put Rawlings clear down the right but having beaten the advancing Jones his shot was drifting wide of the far post before being cleared by McMullen.
Town were deserving of an equaliser and it duly arrived in the 51st minute. Jack Byrne hit a free kick from just inside the Drayton half into the penalty are where it was expertly controlled by Lamey who turned and hit a left footer into the bottom corner.
Town were now looking the more likely of the two sides to go on and win, and for the next quarter of an hour had the better of the possession but without creating any really clear cut chance. Drayton soaked up the pressure and Dormand was called upon to deal with a couple of dangerous crosses as they worked their way back into the game, but when they regained the lead in the 75th minute it was down to luck rather than anything else.
Jason Francis hit a long ball down the right touchline and Tom Rogers got the better of Donaghey to fire in a low cross. As Ashley Pringle stretched to intercept the ball rebounded of his leg, hit Rogers in the face and ricocheted back past Dormand into the net.
However it did not take Town long to level the scores once again. A Rawlings free kick in the 78th minute was fumbled by Jones only for Connolly to head the loose ball over from barely two yards out, but he made amends two minutes later when a Rawlings corner found its way to him and he beat Jones with a well struck left footer from the edge of the penalty area.
Both sides were now beginning to tire as it had been a hard fought game played at a testing pace, but there was still time for Town to conjure up another defensive howler. Ellis had been a handful all afternoon and with five minutes to go he ran at the Town backline and slipped the ball into the penalty area between Robinson and Pringle. With neither defender reacting and Dormand again slow to come off his line Ellis merely had to follow the ball in, skip past the stranded keeper and finish neatly from a narrow angle to clinch the game for his side and pile more despair on to the Town faithful.
So Town’s seemingly inexorable slide down the MFA table continues - they are now eighth - and with the next game being away at current leaders Atherton - who are currently on a six match winning run !! - the prospect of any immediate relief appears unlikely. But in football you never know and it would certainly do wonders for morale if the Town could return to winning ways against Craig Woodley and Co next weekend. We can always hope !!
TOWN : Dormand, Robinson, Donaghey, Connolly, Snape, Pringle, Rawlings, Byrne,, Lamey, Grandison (Adams 61 Overton 87), Petty (Faulds 83). Subs Not Used - Oakley and Wood.
MARKET DRAYTON : Jones, Howells, Anslow, McMullen, Bowyer, Goodhead, Porter (McCormick 86), Francis (Biddle 75), Morris, Rogers (Williams 86), Ellis. Subs Not Used - Timmis and Miur
Town Yellow Cards - Donaghey and Grandison
Market Drayton Yellow Cards - Jones and Goodhead
Attendance - 118
Town Man of Match - Paddy Connolly - although still not totally back to his old form he put in a typically hard working performance and richly deserved his goal
Match Stats :
Town - GA 7 OT 5 HW 0 CW 3 FC 12 OS 2 YC 2 RC 0
M/Drayton - GA 11 OT 7 HW 0 CW
Tuesday 1st January, 2008
ANOTHER TOWN COLLAPSE MAKES IT THREE DEFEATS IN A ROW
Stratford Town 1 - Pringle 14
Westfields 2 - Cuss 43 & 46
Just when you think that things can’t get any worse they usually do - and they certainly did for Town in this New Year’s Day fixture with Westfields at Damson Park.
It had already been a far from happy Christmas for Town supporters as successive defeats over the festive period to title rivals Loughborough Dynamo and local rivals Racing Club Warwick had seen the team slide from leading the MFA table to languishing in a disappointing 5th place and in danger of fading out of contention altogether. To commence 2008 with three points from this match with their mid table visitors was therefore essential just to keep in touch with the leading sides and relieve a bit of the gathering gloom, but it was not to be, and after looking all over the winners Town allowed Westfields to score twice in three minutes either side of half time to effectively bring to an end any lingering hopes of MFA success this time around. 
The omens were not good beforehand as injuries and illness had decimated the Town squad, and Micky Moore had to name himself as a sub in order to make the bench up to four. There was however a new goalkeeper on show - Town’s fourth of the season - as James Dormand has joined from Halesowen on a month’s loan with regular keeper Craig Johnson going likewise to Coleshill.
Nevertheless Town got off to a lively start and totally dominated the early exchanges. In only the 5th minute the speedy Aaron Farrell latched on to a through ball from the busy Lawrence Rawlings to head towards the penalty area , but challenged by the covering Tom Sparey he put his effort over the bar. Barely a minute later he was free down the inside left channel after an astute pass from Rory May but when he reached the byline his attempt to cross was too close to keeper Jon Pugh who gathered comfortably.
May was next to threaten with a header from a Rawlings corner which was not far away, before Town took the lead they fully deserved in the 14th minute. Jerome Grandison was hauled down by Mark Hibbard halfway inside the Westfield half and the free kick from Rawlings was met by Ashley Pringle whose glancing header went in off a defender.
But within a minute of going in front Town suffered yet another injury blow when the dangerous Farrell had to go off with a hamstring problem which may well mean a month on the sidelines. Initially however Town’s control was not affected and just as at Causeway a few matches ago when Richard Adams put Town ahead early on the fans sat back and waited for the further goals which would surely come, and just as at Causeway they did not.
Chances came and went. A long cross from the right by Grandison was met at the far post by Rawlings but Pugh was well positioned to block, Rawlings then jinked past three defenders on the right touchline only for his pinpoint cross to be headed wide by May ,and then another pass from Rawlings flashed across the face of the goal with no Town player there to apply the finishing touch.
Up to now new boy Dormand has been virtually a spectator but on the half hour mark he had to show his ability by making a clean catch under pressure from a Paul Allam free kick and then going full length to cut out a low cross from Jamie Cuss in a rare Westfield foray into the Town penalty area.
Back at the other end the Town dominance continued. May had a header deflected for a corner and when Town put together a slick passing move down the right the capable Pugh did exceptionally well to safely hold on to Grandison’s cross under a strong challenge from Town’s big striker.
Then with half time looming - and not for the first time this season - Town pressed the self-destruct button. Jamie Edwards was allowed to dribble into the left of the penalty area, and evading a couple of flimsy tackles he threaded the ball through to Cuss who prodded home from barely two yards out to give the interval scoreline a totally fictitious look.
Half Time - Stratford Town 1 Westfields 1
If the Town faithful were stunned by the apparent injustice of the equaliser their shock was turned to despair within 30 seconds of the restart when Westfields scored what proved to be the winner. Again Edwards was the provider as his long ball found Cuss on the edge of the area with time and space to spare and he duly rifled the ball past Dormand to really put Town up against it.
Town attempted to hit back immediately. Grandison and Rawlings combined to set up a chance for May but he wanted too long on the ball and was crowded out. Adam Overton then tried his luck from 20 yards out but Pugh acrobatically tipped it over, and then in the 51st minute Town did everything but score. Rawlings floated in a free kick from out on the right which May headed against the post. The rebound fell to Richard Robinson whose shot was blocked on the line and when May had another go his effort was also somehow scrambled away.
Town now became increasingly desperate as they continued to be frustrated by the stubborn visitors who were determined to hold on doggedly to their advantage. Very few clear openings were being created and too often the final pass was poor.
Westfields were confined to breakaways and Dormand did well to hold on to a low effort from Cuss when Town were stretched at the back, but it was only in the final few minutes that Town looked remotely like getting the goal they so needed. Then in the 82nd minute a piece of magic from May nearly succeeded as he controlled the ball on his chest and turned in one movement to fire a shot towards the bottom left hand corner of Pugh’s net which the keeper turned away at full stretch
It was all or nothing now and in the last minute of normal time Pugh made another fine save from May and Connolly then hit the post as the ball fell loose, but Westfields hung on grimly to the final whistle to leave Town hopes of League honours in tatters..
Sadly the season which started so brightly with an opening 12 match unbeaten run has now seemingly fallen apart.. Since that unbeaten run ended only 3 of the next 11 have been won and any hopes of promotion are now surely only for the wildly over-optimistic.
The next two matches against third placed Market Drayton at home on Saturday and table toppers Atherstone away the following weekend will be hard and physical encounters, and Town will need to be more than totally committed if they are to get anything from either. On current form this seems extremely unlikely.
TOWN : Dormand, Overton, Wood, Byrne, Robinson, Pringle, Rawlings, Faulds, May, Farrell (Connolly 17), Grandison. Subs Not Used - Crawford, Moore and Sheils (GK).
WESTFIELDS : Pugh, Allam, Hibbard, Green, Sparey (Jefferson 53), Price, Cuss, Day (Gwilliam 90), Harding (Prince 70), Davis, Edwards.. Subs Not Used - P. Jones & A. Jones
Town Yellow Cards - Connolly & Faulds
Westfields Yellow Cards - None
Attendance - 86
Town Man of Match - Jerome Grandison - again a hard one to call in another dismal team performance but at least he beavered away manfully in midfield and kept going right to the end
Match Stats :
Town - GA 23 OT 9 HW 2 CW 9 FC 12 OS 1 YC 2 RC 0
Westfields - GA 6 OT 4 HW 0 CW 5 FC 7 OS 5 YC 0 RC 0
