Anstey Nomads 5 Boldmere St Michaels 0
Northern Premier League Midland Division Saturday 15 February 2025
When you’re in a season with a continually rotating squad, playing at home on a 3G pitch, and you visit a settled set up with a notorious glue pot of a surface, the omens are not good – and so it turned out to be. In the days of screw in studs, you’d insert some long ones on this park; but in these days of sporting slippers, the Mikes were left sliding to another heavy defeat in the East Midlands. The starting team was almost the same as the previous Saturday’s victory, except that George Cleet and Oliver West were absent; and only three substitutes made the trip.
Things started badly. The Nomads knew where their men were, and passed the ball round crisply, while the Mikes began by pumping the ball forward, in search of Kevin Ngombi. Seven minutes in, James Tague got hold of a centre from the left, and put the hosts ahead, invoking much drumming and singing from the ultras at the opposite end. Only two minutes later, the lead doubled, Jacob Fenton sending in a low shot from twenty-five yards which tucked itself inside Jonathan Brown’s left-hand post.
Surviving three more wayward attempts at their net, by the quarter mark of the match, Boldmere were beginning to string passes together and play some football. Even so, Brown’s natty canary yellow strip was turning uniformly brown as Anstey, promptly delivering throw ins and free kicks, went close three times more, shaving the framework on each occasion. Could the Mikes hold out until half time? Alas, no. As continued instructions poured forth from the away bench, Fenton doubled his account, firing one across the goal mouth to score. Half time: 3-0.
Would the second period witness a change of fortunes? Alas, no. With only six minutes gone, Fenton completed his hat trick, completing a slick move by turning home a cross from the right. In what was a sporting encounter, only two yellow cards were administered by our experienced official – surprisingly, both to Anstey’s two most dangerous forwards. Right on the hour, the Mikes mounted their sole attempt on the home net, Conrad Logan having to make a double save from Ngombi.
With a quarter of an hour left, Anstey gave three of their substitutes (closely followed by a fourth) some game time, replacing forwards in each case. A fifth goal had by now been conceded, an unmarked Brad Wilson sending in a looping header from a corner. Boldmere, to their credit, battled on to the end, while Anstey were playing out time by passing the ball along their back line when our referee decided we’d had enough, and his final whistle pierced the gathering darkness and increasing cold.
Anstey Nomads: Conrad Logan; Brad Wilson; Sam Beaver; Ben Bayliss; Brad Wilson; Lewis Gibbens; Zayn Hakeem; Kyle Tomlin (James Snedden 81); Henry Bestwick; Leo Brown (Connor Furey, 76); Jacob Fenton (Oscar Tongue 76); James Tague (Joshua Burr 76). Sub. not used: Jude Kinch.
Boldmere St Michaels: Jonathan Brown; Ben George; Pierre Phillips; Tyler Donaldson; Lewis Allison; Mason Rees; Theo Rowe; John McHugh (Joseph Blowers 82); Kevin Ngombi; Taylor-Jay Hart (Stephen Palmer 67); Demico Burton (Charlie Manners 71).