Northern Premier League | Midland Division | Saturday 9 November 2024
It being Remembrance Day weekend, proceedings began with a minute’s silence, impeccably observed. We’re about to start, and the referee is pointing corner wards: why? The corner flag has just collapsed! Players passed sundry balls around, as we waited no less than thirteen minutes for repairs to be completed. The delay largely due the President getting the key to the shed and the removal of the broken corner flag base being removed to allow its replacement to be fitted.
The game started at one hundred miles an hour, Boldmere using the long ball forwards again, Khalsa combining slickly around the park, a consistently excellent game unfolding. A big shout for a visitors’ penalty went up on the quarter mark when Chay Tilt went down in the box; but our official quite rightly ignored it.
The chances now began to come: George Cleet cleared off the line; Robbie Bunn managed to clear the bar from five yards out, then saw one fly across the goalmouth, Jonathan Brown stranded. Things got a little heated as the teams fought for superiority, matters being calmed by a yellow for Andre Landell. Another shot at either end went wide of the framework, and we reached half time with no score.
End to end stuff marked the second period, little to pick between the teams, Boldmere raising the tempo once the hour had gone. Substitutes now appeared, the Mikes replacing both initial wingers. Dave Travers was standing in as P.A. announcer, goalkeeping coach Scott Cooksey as physio, as balls flashed just wide of goal at both ends. The deadlock was finally broken on seventy-nine minutes. A long throw came in from near the corner flag, bobbled like a pinball round the Khalsa goal area…and there was Liam Murphy, at the far post, to poke it home from close in.
Khalsa aren’t fourth in the table for nothing, and remained calm, continuing to play the controlled football they’d exhibited throughout. A frenetic last quarter of an hour saw them do everything but gain what would have been a deserved equaliser. With two minutes of standard time left, yet another well worked right wing move saw the ball beyond defensive control at the far post, then headed off the line. With one minute of added time to go, late replacement Zacharias Kourouyianni rapped the post from twenty yards. Having said that, by now Boldmere could have put the game to bed: Charlie Manners had broken into space down the middle, to be denied by Brandon Ganley’s legs; and the afternoon’s biggest “Oooh!” went up as a Manners cross just eluded Murphy’s effort to force the ball home. A grass pitch and longer studs used would have made the difference! Eventually, the final whistle went, and the Mikes had consolidated their mid table position.
Boldmere St Michaels: Jonathan Brown; Pierre Phillips; Corey Cooper; George Cleet; Joe Hull; Oliver West; Gus Sanches (Liam Murphy 69); Thomas Edge; Jake Collins; Charlie Manners; Hisham Chiha (Lewis Allison 66). Subs. not used: Kyle Burke; Steve Palmer; Ben George.
Sporting Khalsa: Brandon Ganley; Kristian Green; Samson Hewett; Luke Ward; Tesfa Robinson; Callum Dolman; Robbie Bunn; Kieron Whittaker (Zacharias Kourouyianni 87); Andre Landell; Jayden Campbell (Dilano Reid 65); Chay Tilt. Subs. not used: Simeon Cobourne; James McGrady; Todd Ferrier.