Bewdley Town 0-6 Atherstone Town Bewdley’s home problems continued with a 6-0 lose against Atherstone Town at Ribbesford Meadow on Saturday afternoon. It’s been a challenging season for the Worcestershire side, and they have struggled at home with nine consecutive losses in the league. The result leaves them 15 points off safety and it’s looking an uphill task to stay at step five for next season. It’s all about building for step six when relegation is confirmed and hopefully the club can bounce back. Atherstone have been one of the form teams since the turn of the New Year and they continued it here against Bewdley Town. The result makes it five wins from their last six league matches and leaves them just five points off the play offs. A commendable crowd of 94 supporters turned up to watch Atherstone get their fourth away win of the season. The visitors controlled the first half and went 4-0 up at half time thanks to efforts from Ryan Quinn, Tom Smith, Richard Blythe and Nathan McGarrity in what was an excellent team performance from the Adders. Further goals in the second half from Jess Adcock and Jacob Shilton made it 6-0 at full time and helped Atherstone’s goal difference. It’s been a positive season for the visitors who have an outside chance of the play offs. Dudley Town 5-1 Stourport Swifts Dudley Town continued their excellent home form with a convincing 5-1 win against play off chasers Stourport Swifts on Saturday. The Guardian Warehousing Arena has been a real strength for the Robins this season with only three losses from 13 matches at home. An excellent crowd of 186 supporters turned up to watch Dudley’s sixth home win of the season. Harry Crook opened the scoring in the first half for the hosts before Stourport found an equaliser to make it 1-1 going into half time. Dudley found another gear in the second half with Harry Crook completing his hat trick and Ethan Muckley also getting on the score sheet. There was also an own goal by Stourport to make it 5-1 at full time. Stourport’s issues on the road continued. It could prevent them from getting in the play offs which would be a shame as they have been excellent at Walshes Meadow. Lichfield City 2-0 Highgate United Lichfield continued their impressive home form at the Trade Tyre Community Stadium with a huge win against play off chasers Highgate United at the weekend. The result continues Lichfield’s unbeaten home record where they have conceded just 9 goals from 14 matches. A brilliant crowd of 187 supporters turned up to watch Lichfield get their 11th home win of the season to leave them only five points off Congleton Town. Second half goals from Jack Edwards and Dominic Lewis gave Lichfield the three points. It was a clinical performance from Lichfield who produced the quality when it mattered to get the win. Despite the loss, Highgate are still in a good position in the league and are three points better off than Stourport Swifts in 6th with the same number of games played. Romulus 3-4 Studley Studley beat Romulus in a thriller at the CV Stadium at the weekend to cement their position in the play offs. A good crowd of 83 supporters turned up to watch Studley get their 4th away win of the season and continue their consistent record on the road with just three losses from eleven matches. Romulus got off to a brilliant start and took the lead through Isai Marselia inside the opening ten minutes. The visitors responded and efforts from Finley Holmes and Zach Guinan made it 2-1 to Studley at the end of the first half. The hosts showed character to get back in it and took the lead early in the second half thanks to goals from Rob Hanna and Jack Sang to make it 3-2. Studley found an equaliser near the hour mark through Zach Guinan before John Mills scored a late winner in the 80th minute to give the Bees the three points. The Roms competed well in this match against a play off chasing team and there’s some positives to take going into the next run of matches. Shifnal Town 1-1 Darlaston Town Darlaston got a battling point against Shifnal Town at the Acoustafoam Stadium in their hunt for the play offs. It could prove to be a big point in the race for the top five with Stourport Swifts struggling against Dudley Town at the weekend. A notable crowd of 88 supporters turned up to watch the match in Shropshire. Michael Nelson scored early on for Shifnal to give them the lead before Alexander Foreshaw scored an equaliser just before half time to make it 1-1. Out of the two teams, Darlaston will be happier with the point and Shifnal might have to settle for a top half finish for the rest of the season. Stone Old Alleynians 1-1 Wolverhampton Casuals Wolverhampton Casuals battled to get a point against Stone Old Alleynians at Kings Park to give themselves some breathing space over the bottom two. A decent crowd of 67 supporters turned up to watch a big match near the bottom of the table. If either team lost, it could have dragged them into a relegation battle, so it was huge for both. Louis Anthony gave the hosts the lead in the first half in the 7th minute in a tight match. The visitors found an equaliser in the second half thanks to an effort by Benni Wilson to make it 1-1 at full time. It’s a good point for both teams and gives them a bit of space over the bottom two. Stone Old Alleynians will be looking over their shoulders with Northwich and Tividale having a few games in hand but being seven points above the bottom two is a big advantage at this stage of the season. Whitchurch Alport 2-2 Congleton Town Whitchurch battled back to get a point in the second half against league leaders Congleton Town at Yockings Park. It’s a statement result for the Shropshire side under Adam Shillcock and leaves the door open for Lichfield in 2nd who have a five-point gap to make up with two games in hand over the Bears. Congleton took an early 2-0 lead in the opening twenty minutes thanks to goals from Peter Williams and Max McCarthy. Whitchurch responded a few minutes later with Macauley Taylor scoring an excellent individual goal to make it 2-1 going into half time. The hosts were reduced to nine men in the second half with red cards for Aaron Simms and Adam Hailes. Jack Sheward produced a brilliant save from a free kick by Carl Dickinson late on to leave Whitchurch with a chance of getting something in the final few minutes. They managed to get an equaliser in injury time with Nicky Parker scoring from a header at the back post to make it 2-2. It’s an eye-catching result for Whitchurch who are comfortably in mid table. There’s been signs of progress this season since Adam Shillcock has come in as manager and they have competed well in both the league and the FA Vase. It’s a tough result for Congleton who were moments away from getting a crucial win to keep their lead at the top of the table. None the less, they have a chance to respond against Tividale this weekend at the Beeches and play Lichfield on the 2nd of March at Booth Street in a huge match. Round up feature written by Rhys Beardmore for the Midland Football League AFC Wulfrunians were looking for a result yesterday afternoon to continue their good form under Carl Abbott and cement their position in the top half of the table. The Wulfs have grown into the season and were unbeaten in their last three matches coming into this one. Tividale have struggled in the premier division this season and are involved in a relegation battle to stay in step five. The visitors were five points off Northwich Victoria in 16th place coming into this one and had the chance to make up some ground with Northwich’s match against Uttoxeter getting called off yesterday. The atmosphere around Castlecroft was welcoming and relaxed with both sets of supporters looking forward to the match. It’s a brilliant ground to visit for casual groundhoppers across the West Midlands and is accessible to get to by public transport. Supporters can get the number 3 bus from Wolverhampton City Centre and get off at Castlecroft Hotel for a short walk to the ground. Starting Line Ups The starting line up for AFC Wulfrunians included Joe Williams starting in goal and Bradley Maslen-Jones captaining the team from central defence. The formation looked like a 3-4-3 with Daniel Munday playing up front and being supported on the wings by Kane Lee and Finlay Barker. There were two changes from the team that started against Dudley Town last weekend with Lee Chilton coming back into the team and playing at left wing-back. Tividale’s starting line up featured Louis Connor starting in goal and Zach Kourouyianni captaining the team from central defence. The formation appeared to be a 3-4-3 with a front two of Jack Till and Ryan Snape being supported by Max Morris in the attacking midfield role. There were three changes from the team that started against Dudley Town in mid-week with Joe Burroughs coming back into the team and playing as part of a back three. First Half AFC Wulfrunians started the match brightly and took the game to Tividale early on. They were making things happen in the final third and causing problems down the wings in the opening twenty minutes. The best chance to take the lead fell to Kane Lee on the right wing who made an excellent run before having a shot hit the far post. Tividale did a good job of seeing the opening twenty minutes out to get a foothold in the match and looked well organised off the ball to limit the clear-cut chances in front of goal for AFC Wulfrunians. They were growing into the match as the first half went on and were passing the ball around well. The visitors were starting to get into a rhythm with the only thing missing being the final ball to cause AFC Wulfrunians problems defensively. Tividale were building attacks well and playing out from the back to stifle AFC Wulfrunians’ early momentum. AFC Wulfrunians did a good job to contain Tividale’s attacking threat and had a good chance to take the lead on the half hour mark. An excellent free kick into the box was headed over the bar by Jack Rowley. Both teams were knocking on the door to take the lead in an even first half. The hosts managed to take the lead on the 33rd minute to make it 1-0. Finlay Barker was fouled in the box by Joe Burroughs for a spot kick with Daniel Munday stepping up to take it. His initial effort was instinctively saved by Louis Connor before the rebound fell into his path to finish into the bottom right corner. It was tough on Tividale who competed well up to that point and it gave the hosts a sense of control over the match. The last ten minutes of the first half was action packed with a lot of notable chances in front of goal from both teams. Kane Lee had a good chance from a second ball that was delivered into the box before putting his effort over the bar. The best chance for Tividale in the first half came late on when Jack Till made a brilliant run and was one on one with Joe Williams before firing wide. Malcolm Melvin played an excellent chipped ball over the AFC Wulfrunians defence from midfield that was well anticipated by Jack Till near the edge of the box to create the opening. AFC Wulfrunians mainly played a possession-based style and liked to invite Tividale on to them so they could play a long ball over the defence. They had an excellent chance to make it 2-0 at the end of the first half where an accurate long ball found Tom Poole down the right. The Wing-back advanced into the box before having an effort go wide. Second Half AFC Wulfrunians managed to make it 2-0 early in the second half to make it an uphill task for the visitors. A well delivered corner found Dexter Dudley-Toole at the back post who headed the ball into the net. It was a well worked set piece routine from the hosts, but Tividale would have felt disappointed as they could have put considerable pressure on the hosts in the second half. From 2-0 down Tividale were chasing the match for the rest of the second half. One of the positives for the visitors was how they stuck to their passing style and showed character to keep going despite the scoreline. Their best chance in the second half came when a neat passing move resulted in Jack Till having a shot well saved in the box at the near post by Joe Williams. AFC Wulfrunians’ best chance of the second half came when a good ball into the box by Curtis Cocking found Kane Lee in the box who fired narrowly wide of the far post. The front three for AFC Wulfrunians impressed throughout this match and were creating several good chances in the box which was a real positive yesterday. Tividale did manage to get a goal back late on to set up a nervy finish to the match. A well delivered free kick by Ryan Snape found Joe Burroughs in the box who finished well at the back post to make it 2-1. This proved to be a consolation for the visitors with AFC Wulfrunians holding on to take home the three points and their sixth home win of the season. Full Time AFC Wulfrunians played well in this match and were worthy of the win. There’s quality throughout the team both on and off the ball and they showed a lot of effort and endeavour yesterday to get a result. Bradley Maslen-Jones was excellent at the back and read the game well from central defence. He managed to stop several promising Tividale attacks to take the pressure off the hosts, especially in the first half. Joe Williams also had a good game and made some crucial saves to give AFC Wulfrunians the three points. Dennis Digie had an underrated game from holding midfield and was linking up the play well. He offered the team a sense of composure when building attacks from midfield and moved the ball quickly through the thirds of the pitch. Tividale played well in this match despite the result. They showed a lot of character and effort throughout the afternoon and have quality on the ball to make things happen. The front two of Ryan Snape and Jack Till played well and looked a threat in the final third. Ryan Snape has been notably good at creating chances at this level and could be the difference in tight matches for the visitors. Jack Till was getting into some good positions around the box which was encouraging. Malcolm Melvin had an underrated game from holding midfield and was passing the ball around well, especially in the first half. He linked up the play well for the visitors and gave them a way of growing into the match. Overall, there were encouraging signs that they could pick up results to have a chance of staying up. FT score: AFC Wulfrunians 2-1 Tividale Man of the Match: Bradley-Maslen Jones (AFC Wulfrunians) Match report written by Rhys Beardmore for the Midland Football League |
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March 2024
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