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Photos: Jack Western
Derwent 1sts deservedly won a tight game on 22 Acres on Sunday morning, as Sam Earle’s deflected free-kick midway through the second half was enough to secure victory against Vanbrugh.
Despite both sides looking confident in possession, it was Derwent who always appeared the more likely to score as they played expansively, particularly in an impressive first-half display which will have delighted captain Dave Belshaw, who was unavailable to play.
And Vanbrugh captain Max Brewer will be disappointed not to have continued Vanbrugh’s winning streak to two successive games after last week’s battling win over James. Instead, Vanbrugh were left to rue a series of spurned opportunities, which could have put them at the top of the league if converted.
With both sides depleted by injury at the start of the match, it was Derwent, playing with ten men, who started brightly. The outstanding Mark Askham set the tone for a man-of-the-match performance with a rampaging run from the right-back position, sending a ball down-the-line to forward Ed Fotheringham, whose deflected cross was gathered by Vanbrugh ‘keeper Aaron Hooper.
Space and time on the right was to become a theme of the match for Derwent, as Askham and Fotheringham continued to ask questions of Vanbrugh left-back Potts, who was leaving gaps at the back for the Derwent duo to exploit.
Vanbrugh sought to slow the pace of the game with some stabilising passes in their midfield, but Derwent were always looking to break forward at a greater pace and intensity than their opponents. The movement of striker Jamie Trant was a constant menace to the Vanbrugh back-line, as captain Brewer attempted to organise his defence.
Fotheringham and Trant combined midway through the first period for the match’s first real shot of meaning, as Trant fired a dipping strike just beyond the top corner.
Vanbrugh, missing the goal-scoring capabilities of Harry O’Brien, have always been a threat on the counter-attack this season, however, and there was no change today as Liam Sides’s speed sent him through on goal. But the onrushing Derwent ‘keeper Frank Woodcock was there to thwart him, at the expense of a corner.
Last week’s match-winner Elliot Rous-Ross had a shot on goal from the resulting corner for Vanbrugh, which he skewed horribly wide from a promising position, but the Vanbrugh threat was growing after a period of Derwent dominance.
Determined not to lose their grip on the game, Derwent earned themselves a free-kick in a promising position at the edge of the area. The impressive Sam Earle stepped up and hit a well-struck free-kick goalwards, but Hooper was equal to the task as he turned the ball behind.
At the other end, Rous-Ross was working tirelessly to punish Derwent on the counter, but solid defending from centre-backs Tapper and Shelbourn kept him at bay. A Kyle Pittman effort from the edge of the area which drifted wide was the only other shot of note in a lacklustre spell for Vanbrugh.
Derwent, on the other hand, continued to have plenty of joy down the right flank, with Sam Earle and Andy Naylor pulling the strings from midfield. Naylor had an opportunity to shoot, but his effort went agonisingly close to the bar as it sailed over the top.
It came as a huge surprise, then, when Vanbrugh were the first side to put the ball in the back of the net, as Charlie Watkins’s header cannoned in past Woodcock, only to be ruled out for offside.
Derwent knew that they were riding their luck after going to sleep at the back. They pressed forward, looking for any way to get on the scoresheet. Naylor’s low cross eluded everyone in the area, however, and the sides went in level at the interval.
Derwent sent on Sven Sabas to reach their full complement after the break, but Max Brewer’s stern words at half-time stirred Vanbrugh into life, as they visibly upped the ante. Kyle Pittman was growing into the game in the middle of the park, and some swift interchanges in the Vanbrugh attack ensured that possession was more equally spread after Derwent dominated the first half.
Derwent, however, were able to send on the talented Joe Easter for the injured Jamie Trant, and he was immediately involved in the build-up to a good chance for Earle, whose sidefooted shot was saved by Hooper.
The game was opening up now as both sides began to tire in midfield. It was Vanbrugh’s turn to have the best chance of the match. A searching cross from the right found its way to Rous-Ross unmarked in the area, but he could only shoot straight at Woodcock, who expertly pushed the ball over for a corner.
And Rous-Ross was made to rue his profligacy very soon after. Joe Easter scythed through the Vanbrugh defence with a mazy run, only to be chopped down by Brewer on the edge of the box. Earle, who had already tested Hooper earlier from a set-piece, made no mistake this time as he struck the ball past the hapless Hooper via a Brewer deflection to break the deadlock.
Desperate to get back into the game, Vanbrugh continued to pressurise, but found no way through a resolute Derwent defence. In truth, Derwent looked the more likely to double their lead through a trio of Fotheringham chances, but the score would remain at 1-0 for the rest of the game to put Derwent back in contention to win the league.
Stand-in captain Easter told Vision: “It was a good performance in what was a scrappy game. We won the individual battles, though, and deserved the win. It’s left us in a good position heading into the final two games of the season. Mark Askham gave a great performance.
“Roll on next week – we fully expect to thrash Langwith and set ourselves up for a battle with James in the final game.”