AFC Bentley V AFC Coventry Rangers (Birmingham Saturday Vase, Final)

​AFC Bentley and AFC Coventry Rangers met yesterday at Ray Hall Lane for the final of the Birmingham Saturday Vase. It’s been a brilliant season for both sides in their respective leagues and both have caught the eye across the West Midlands non-league scene over the last few months.

AFC Bentley have had an excellent season in the West Midlands Regional League (Division Two) finishing as League champions and only losing twice across 23 matches. Manager Matt Fisher has done a good job, and they have been one of the stories in step eight since the turn of the New Year.

They notably beat the likes of CPA (Birmingham and District Football League) and AFC Birmingham (MFL, Division three) to reach the final. Both of those teams have been excellent in their leagues and are tough to beat.      

AFC Coventry Rangers have been brilliant over the last few seasons in step seven. Manager Kev Kingham is doing a good job with consecutive top two finishes in division two of the MFL. Alongside finishing 2nd over the last two seasons they have lost just nine out of their 60 league matches since the start of 22/23.  

Their route to the final has been highlighted by their defensive record with three clean sheets and just two goals conceded from five matches in the competition going into yesterday.   

​Starting Line Ups

AFC Bentley’s starting line up included Dan Lynex starting in goal and Brady Weston captaining the team from central defence. The formation looked like a 4-2-3-1 with Tyrell McCalla playing up front and being supported by Kyle Armstrong and Mark Webster on the wings.

The starting line up for AFC Coventry Rangers featured Jack Hartopp starting in goal and George Swain captaining the team from central defence. The formation appeared to be a 4-2-3-1 with Curtis Cutts playing up front and being supported by Pete Bailey and Leo Kelly on the wings.  

​First Half

The opening fifteen minutes of the match were mainly cagey with both teams settling into the final. AFC Coventry Rangers started the stronger of the two teams and were looking to make things happen in the final third. None the less, AFC Bentley were well organised off the ball to prevent the clear-cut chances in front of goal and settle into the match.

The best chances for AFC Coventry Rangers were mainly half chances in the opening half an hour. There was a decent chance for Ryan Alexander in the 12th minute where he ran with the ball and took a shot outside the box that was saved by Dan Lynex.

Leo Kelly was impressing for the MFL side in the first half and made a number of excellent runs down the left-hand side for AFC Coventry Rangers. He made an inspired run down the left before having a shot well saved by Dan Lynex in the 17th minute. The link up play between Ryan Alexander and Leo Kelly was one of the stories of the first half for the MFL side.

​AFC Coventry Rangers found a breakthrough in the 33rd minute when they were given a penalty. Pete Bailey stepped up and took a composed penalty into the bottom right corner to make it 1-0. This was unfortunate from an AFC Bentley perspective as they could have caused an upset if they went into half time with it at 0-0. None the less, they were facing an uphill battle from this point.

AFC Bentley looked threatening going forward but just lacked that final ball to cause AFC Coventry Rangers problems at the back. Tyrell McCalla was playing well as the main striker and linked up the play well to bring players into the game. AFC Coventry Rangers responded and were resolute at the back to not allow AFC Bentley back into it with James Ritson standing out in central defence.

​AFC Coventry Rangers made it 2-0 just before half time to have a degree of control over the final. An excellent corner into the box found James Ritson who headed the ball into the net for a decisive lead. It was a well worked set piece from the MFL side and moment of quality deep into first half injury time.          

Second Half

The pattern of the final continued early in the second half with AFC Coventry Rangers looking to break down AFC Bentley and get a third goal to seal the match. AFC Bentley looked threatening on the break, but AFC Coventry Rangers always had enough players back to deal with the danger.

A nice passing move resulted in an excellent ball being played to Leo Kelly on the right-hand side of the box who produced a quality finish into the top right corner to make it 3-0 to AFC Coventry Rangers in the 46th minute.   

As much as AFC Coventry Rangers were playing well on the ball and looking solid at the back, there were a lot of players that went under the radar for the MFL side yesterday. Callum Regan was brilliant from holding midfield and read the game well to break up promising AFC Bentley attacks. He did a lot of the hard work off the ball that can go unnoticed.

The best chance for AFC Bentley came when Liam Smith ran with the ball on the edge of the box before having an effort go wide of the right-hand post in the 63rd minute. AFC Bentley showed they have players who can cause problems yesterday with Kyle Armstrong looking to make things happen on the ball, but they were kept quiet by a resolute AFC Coventry Rangers side.

Curtis Cutts had an effort in the box that was instinctively saved by substitute goalkeeper Christian Frowen who tipped the ball round the post for a corner to keep the score down for AFC Bentley.

There were a few late chances for AFC Coventry Rangers to make it 4-0 in the final few minutes of the final with substitute Joe Gardner playing a good ball to fellow substitute James Chappell whose effort went just wide of the right-hand post. Substitute Alpha Wurie also looked dangerous out on the left wing in the second half in what was a team performance from the MFL side yesterday.

Full Time

AFC Bentley have had an excellent season regardless of the result yesterday. It’s been a positive campaign when looking at the bigger picture with the league championship of West Midlands Regional League (Division Two) standing out. Getting to the final of the Saturday Vase is a notable achievement for a step eight side and there’s no shame in losing to AFC Coventry Rangers.

It’s been an encouraging few weeks for AFC Coventry Rangers who have finished the 23/24 campaign on a high with a runners-up place in division two alongside back to back trophies this week in the Coventry Evening Telegraph Cup and the Birmingham Saturday Vase. They have been one of the standout teams in step seven in the West Midlands and yesterday showed why.

The most pleasing thing from an AFC Coventry Rangers perspective is how there’s a nice balance across the team. There reliably good at the back with a top three defensive record in division two based on goals conceded and there’s quality on the ball to make the difference in tight matches.

It was a good match to watch yesterday at Ray Hall Lane and the future is looking bright for both teams going into next season.   

FT score: AFC Bentley 0-3 AFC Coventry Rangers

Man of the match: James Ritson (AFC Coventry Rangers)

Match report written by Rhys Beardmore for the Midland Football League