Boldmere Falcons V Castle Vale Town (Division Three)

​Boldmere Falcons were looking to continue their eye-catching start in division three with their third consecutive home win yesterday. It’s been a brilliant start for the Falcons with 15 goals scored and just two conceded coming into this one. The hosts have been making tangible progress since the appointment of Jordan Lengthorn at the end of last year and are looking to challenge at this level.   

Castle Vale Town also had a good start to the season with consecutive away wins against BNJS and Meadow Park to get their division three campaign under way. The visitors have been making progress over the last few seasons under manager Luke Evans and were shaping up to be a tough test for Boldmere Falcons yesterday evening.

The atmosphere around Boldmere Sports and Social Club was friendly and welcoming prior to kick off with the people at the club helpful with any queries raised. It’s a good set up which offers the supporters an opportunity to be close to the action. There’s a lot of work that goes on behind the scenes to make it a good match day experience and the pitch looked brilliant.  

It’s an accessible ground to get to by public transport and can be visited by getting on the 66-bus route and getting off at Boldmere Drive where it’s only a short walk to the ground. An alternative route would be getting on the train and stopping at Chester Road where it’s only a ten-minute walk away.     

​Starting Line Ups

The starting line up for Boldmere Falcons included Nathan Davies starting in goal and Rikki Danton captaining the team from holding midfield. The formation appeared to be a 3-4-3 with Dale Huckfield playing as the main striker and being supported by Ryan Day and Mouhamadou Kandiaye from attacking midfield.   

There were three changes from the team that started against Leamington Hibernian at the weekend with Reece Emmony coming into the line up and playing in a three-man central defence.  

The starting line up for Castle Vale Town featured Joel Chadwick starting in goal and Jordan McKenzie captaining the team from attacking midfield. The formation looked like a 4-2-3-1 with Chris Tabbernor playing up front and being supported by Dane Reid and Owen Reynolds on the wings.

There were three changes from the team that started against Meadow Park at the weekend with Oliver Priestly coming into the team and playing at left back.  

First Half

Boldmere Falcons got off to a brilliant start in the early stages of the match and took the lead within the opening fifteen minutes. A good free kick was played to the back post where it was headed on to Mouhamadou Kandiaye who finished well into the bottom left corner to make it 1-0.

The hosts started the match positively and took the game to Castle Vale Town in the opening half an hour. They were linking up the play well going forward and looked like a side that were full of confidence in front of goal following their recent results. There was a half chance in the box for Mouhamadou Kandiaye in the 18th minute whose shot went wide.

​Boldmere Falcons made it 2-0 in the 21st minute thanks to a defensive mistake at the back from Castle Vale Town. Following a long ball up the pitch Rhys Warner played a short ball to Joel Chadwick in the Castle Vale goal that created a chance for Mouhamadou Kandiaye in the final third. The striker capitalised on the error and punished the visitors with a composed finish to make it 2-0.

The best chance for the visitors came in the middle of the first half when an inviting cross from the right-hand side found Jordan McKenzie in the box. He got into a brilliant position before having a header well saved by Nathan Davies in the Falcons goal which went out for a corner.

Castle Vale Town gradually grew into the match as the first half went on and built up some momentum in the latter stages of the first half. Leadun Dunlevy was moving the ball well throughout midfield and offered them that composure on the ball to settle into the match. Luke Smith was also reading the game well at the back and heading dangerous balls away to take the pressure off them.

Despite an encouraging fifteen-minute spell for the visitors the clear-cut chances in front of goal were mainly limited to efforts from range. Boldmere Falcons were well organised off the ball and were pressing in the right moments to limit the space available to Castle Vale Town.

The visitors were almost caught on the break in first half stoppage time following a free kick from midfield. They committed players into the box, but the free kick was played short which resulted in the Spitfires losing the ball and giving it Shaun Reid. He made an inspired run down the right to be one with one with Joel Chadwick who did well to save his shot at the near post to keep it at 2-0.

It set up an interesting second half with Boldmere Falcons having a control of the match, but Castle Vale Town were not completely out of it.        

​Second Half

The pattern of the first half continued in the early stages of the second half with Shaun Reid making a brilliant run down the right-hand side before playing a good ball to Mouhamadou Kandiaye who fired wide from a promising position in the box.

Shaun Reid was a constant threat for Boldmere Falcons in this match and had another notable chance in front of goal a few minutes later. He got into a good position in the box before having a shot well saved by Joel Chadwick that went out for a corner.

The chances were coming for the hosts and the third goal eventually came thanks to Shaun Reid. He capitalised on a second ball in the box before finishing well into the bottom right corner near the hour mark.

Castle Vale Town had a clear-cut chance to reduce the deficit in the middle of the second half where Jordan McKenzie made an excellent run into the box before being through on goal. His effort was instinctively saved by Nathan Davies to prevent a comeback from the visitors.  

​Boldmere Falcons looked well organised at the back with Ben Rea and Rikki Danton standing out and giving them that stability defensively which stifled any hopes of the visitors coming back late on.

Chris Tabberner was sent off for a second yellow card in the latter stages of the second half which reduced Castle Vale Town to ten men.

A player who impressed for Boldmere Falcons in this match was Lamin Barrow who was brought on in the second half and played out on the left-hand side. He looked a threat for the hosts and was looking to make things happen on the ball. He played a good ball across the box that found Mouhamadou Kandiaye who completed his hat-trick to make it 4-1.

Castle Vale Town persevered and kept going late on to get a goal back through Jordan McKenzie who scored through an inspired run into the box where he beat a few players before finishing past Nathan Davies into the top left corner.

Lamin Barrow scored the final goal for Boldmere Falcons in second half stoppage time where he produced a quality finish into the bottom left corner. It showcases the depth of the squad at Boldmere who have made some smart additions in pre-season with Lamin Barrow having an underrated season with Diamond Academy U21s last time out.

It was a tough day at the office for Castle Vale Town who were undone by moments of quality from Boldmere Falcons alongside the odd mistake at the back. The supporters should not be too concerned, and the Spitfires will look to bounce back against Kenilworth Sporting at the weekend.

Overall, this match was a brilliant advert for division three. The standard of passing and the free-flowing attacking moves in front of goal stood out and contributed to an entertaining match yesterday evening.         

FT score: Boldmere Falcons 5-1 Castle Vale Town

Man of the match: Mouhamadou Kandiaye (Boldmere Falcons)  

Attendance: 43

Match report written by Rhys Beardmore for the Midland Football League