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Photos: Jack Western
It was a crucial day in the BUCS Futsal calendar as UYFC needed strong results from their final group games, which would both take place in the same afternoon. The first game was against Sheffield, and a tense, visceral affair ensued with both sides full value for the scoreless draw they achieved. UYFC then went on to comfortably see off basement club Manchester 9-0 to round off an impressive day’s work without conceding a single goal.
York 0-0 Sheffield
In their first match of the day, York battled to a draw against a well-drilled Sheffield side, but the score belied what was a hugely physical and exciting match with both sides unlucky not to score on multiple occasions. Only the heroics of the respective goalkeepers and pure luck prevented both teams from scoring a brace.
The match was an incredibly close affair, with both sides showing their quality. The commitment level shown by both sides was immensely high, with both York keeper Johnny Sim and his Sheffield counterpart pulling out some fantastic saves. Possession was equally shared between the sides, with both making some dangerous attacks, however it was in defence where both teams shone, with both teams immensely well organised, making it hard for either to make the breakthrough.
Momentum was extremely volatile with both sides having spells of comparative dominance, with the pendulum quickly swinging in favour of both sides throughout. After the break Sheffield piled on the pressure, with an early chance eliciting a great save from Sim. After this, York piled on the pressure for themselves with both Conor McCoy and James Briars having excellent chances saved by the on-fire Sheffield keeper.
Sheffield were also immensely dangerous, making some incisive passes which cut through the York defence. However, their striker was unable to connect properly with these golden opportunities, either scuffing his shot or skying it over. Despite Sheffield’s chances, it seemed that they were struggling to create a final end product to significantly challenge Sim in the second half. By contrast, the home side constantly troubled the keeper.
Hard tackles were flying in thick and fast, as both sides probed for the winner. As the seconds ticked down, the action became even more frenetic. Alex Tringham and McCoy both had efforts saved, while it appeared for a second that Sheffield had scored a rather messy late winner, but Sim heroically managed to fumble the ball away before it dribbled over the line. In the final few seconds, Briars had a phenomenal opportunity to score, but his shot went agonisingly wide. York put in one last attack in the final few seconds, but it was too late. They were forced to settle for a well earned draw.
President James Briars told Vision that he was happy with the way his side performed, saying “It was a good result, it was a close game, we played really well, but their keeper made some great saves, fair play, all credit to them”.
York 9-0 Manchester
After a difficult start to the day, York really opened up the taps in their afternoon feature against Manchester, romping to a 9-0 victory. York started well, with two goals from Alex Tringham to open the scoring, the second coming from York’s best move of the game.
Ralph Gill added the third not long afterwards, and Guy Bowden made it four with a tap in just before the half, giving York a commanding lead at the interval. In the second half York kept up the tempo,routing the visitors with ease, a succession of four goals and finally a Manchester own goal completing a miserable day for the visitors.
If anything, it could have been an even worse day for the away side if it wasn’t for some solid saves from Manchester’s keeper to keep the scoreline in single figures, and with the boys in purple almost completely failing to trouble at the York end, their chances of pulling one back were always unlikely.
York’s captain James Briars seemed buoyed by his team’s performance; telling Vision “To play two games in a day and not concede is virtually unheard of, so yeah I’m going home quite happy”.