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Photos: TK Rohit
It was by no means a classic, but Derwent 1sts did the job, recording a narrow 1-0 victory over Goodricke 2nds. Tournaments can’t be won in the group stages, only lost, and despite not shining in their first two matches, Derwent have recorded two victories, and still rank as one of the main contenders. Today’s match was a scrappy affair; Goodricke packed the midfield and effectively stifled Derwent, who were indebted to a late winner from Tom Brandreth.
The first half was a rather tepid affair, which never got going in terms of creativity and inspiration. Although it wasn’t really a game for the spectator, there was much to admire from both teams, who displayed great battling qualities. Derwent possessed a number of flair players, but their skills were frustrated by the hard work of the Goodricke side.
At times Derwent looked as if they would break free of the Goodricke shackles, with attempts from Sam Earle and Alex d’Albertanson off target. Their best chances were coming from set pieces, with threats in the air, most notably from Brandreth. Surprisingly though it was d’Albertanson, one of the smaller Derwent players, who got his head on the end of an Earle freekick, but Goodricke managed to scramble the ball to safety. From the resulting Brandreth long throw, Earle flicked a header past the far post, as Derwent were coming closer to opening the scoring.
Goodricke’s best chance was created by Joe Mann, who swivelled and powered a shot only narrowly wide of Seb Treasure’s post. Defensively for Derwent, Brandreth and Andy Jeffreys were dominating, and at the other end, Brandreth headed an Earle cross just off target. Dan Atherton nearly provided a moment of inspiration, with a clever piece of skill and curling shot towards goal, but his attempt was well saved by keeper Tom Neill. At halftime it was goalless.
The second half continued in similar fashion, and as the half wore on it looked as if the game was drifting towards a boring draw. Derwent continued to pressure but couldn’t find the breakthrough, as Goodricke stubbornly resisted. Sam Astburry and Josh Savage were rocks at the back, and the whole team put in a great defensive effort. The blustery conditions weren’t helping, visibly affecting the flight and trajectory of the ball.
Jacob Tapper curled a freekick inches over for Derwent, and Atherton fizzed a shot across goals after good work down the left by Ollie Harrison. As the game moved into the last ten minutes, Derwent spurned their best chance to date, as Neill made an excellent reaction block after the best move of the game. From the resulting corner though Derwent finally got the breakthrough, and it was no surprise that it was Brandreth, who jumped highest to power home a header.
Goodricke were visibly disappointed by the goal after their tremendous effort, and in the closing minutes couldn’t find a way back into the game, as Derwent finished the stronger side, and recorded a narrow victory. Derwent captain David Kirk commented, “It was a bit like last week, happy to win, kept clean sheet again, goals aren’t really coming but we’ve won two games, that’s what matters”. Goodricke captain Neill was devastated after the effort his team had put in saying, “We played brilliantly, set out to stifle them and did for 55 minutes, devastating to lose it so late, but it was an encouraging display”.
Vision MOTM: Tom Brandreth
at least vision knows whats up with motm