The promotion hopes of the men’s football 2nds were all but dashed this week as they were beaten 3-1 by title rivals Huddersfield University. Three first- half goals for the visitors were enough to settle this tie, and despite a spirited attempt at a comeback York will be left ruing the run of three consecutive losses that have effectively ended their chances of promotion.
After a full-blooded but even opening ten minutes Huddersfield started to look dangerous, creating chances and setting up camp in York’s half. Things didn’t bode well for the home team when one of Huddersfield’s strikers was presented with a clear opportunity from a cross, only to thrash the ball wide when a little more composure would have put the visitors 1-0 up.
Huddersfield didn’t have to wait long for their first goal though, as only five minutes later the visitors’ no.7 scored directly from a corner, the curling ball looping over a lunging York goalkeeper, Sam Clitheroe, and into the top corner. Buoyed by the goal, Huddersfield started to overwhelm York, and only a few minutes later they added a brilliant second when centre back Dom Henney was turned and left for dead, allowing Huddersfield’s no.10 to calmly slot the ball home. To add insult to injury the visitors scored a third just before half time, their centre back galloping forward from the halfway line, playing a chipped one-two with his striker, and receiving the ball again to smash it into the roof of the net.
A dejected York rallied at half-time, with striker Joe Cooper leaving players with the words: “These next 45 minutes will define our season.” In the second half York could not have been faulted for their effort, fighting Huddersfield for every ball and scoring ten minutes in, with winger Jack Beadle bundling home the goal his impressive performance merited.
Sadly though York were unable to get the vital second goal that would have brought them back into the game, and will be disappointed with an anti-climactic end to a season that promised so much.