Darlaston Town V Whitchurch Alport (Premier Division)

​Darlaston were looking to continue their excellent form against Whitchurch Alport at the Paycare Stadium yesterday afternoon to cement a play off position. The Citizens were coming off five consecutive wins going into this match and were one of the form teams in the premier division. They were on an incredible run of five clean sheets which included notable wins over Lichfield and Highgate over the last week.  

It's been a transitional season for Whitchurch Alport under Adam Shillcock who was appointed as their new manager back in the Autumn. The Shropshire side were one of the form teams going into this match with 12 points from their last five matches. They were looking to respond to the 1-0 loss at AFC Wulfrunians last weekend with a statement result against Darlaston.

The atmosphere around the Paycare Stadium was friendly and welcoming prior to kick off. There was a good turnout of both Darlaston and Whitchurch supporters which added to the match. The weather was brilliant yesterday with clear skies and sunny conditions.

The ground is a brilliant location to visit for casual groundhoppers across the West Midlands and is accessible to get to by public transport. Supporters can get on the number 37 from Walsall Town Centre and stop off at Wrexham Avenue for a short walk to the ground. It’s well worth a visit for supporters around the Walsall area and offers a good standard of football.  

​Starting line ups

Darlaston Town’s starting line up included Tom Allsopp starting in goal and Alexander Foreshaw captaining the team from central defence. The formation appeared to be a 4-2-3-1 with Aaron Bishop leading the line up front and being supported by Rivel Mardenborough and James Rowland on the wings.

There were two changes from the team that started against Highgate United on Thursday evening with Jason Wood coming into the team and playing in holding midfield.

The starting line up for Whitchurch Alport included Jack Sheward starting in goal and Aaron Simms captaining the team from central defence. The formation looked like a 4-2-3-1 with Nicky Parker playing up front and being supported by Harry Bower and Lewis Bloor on the wings.

There were three changes from the team that started against AFC Wulfrunians last weekend with Cameron Dourish coming into the team and playing in the holding midfield role.  

​First Half

The opening twenty minutes of the match were fairly scrappy with both teams settling into it and working each out. Darlaston started brightly and their first good chance came when Harry Chesterton played an excellent ball into the box that found Lewis Gill who headed wide for the Citizens.

Whitchurch were positive on the ball and looking to make things happen down the wings with the pace of Harry Bower and Lewis Bloor causing Darlaston a few problems. The first half was even based on the balance of play with both teams carrying a threat going forward which made for an entertaining match.

Both teams were well organised off the ball to limit the clear-cut chances in front of goal throughout the first half. The visitors settled into the match well and managed to take the game to play off chasing Darlaston.

Whitchurch were winning the midfield battle and the composure on the ball of Cameron Dourish and Craig Pritchard gave them a way of building into the match.

The best chance for the visitors came when Lewis Bloor cut inside before having a shot well saved by Tom Allsopp in the Darlaston goal. To the hosts’ credit they were well set up at the back with Alexander Foreshaw having a reliably good game in central defence and heading dangerous balls away. They did a good job of not getting caught off guard and conceding a preventable goal.

The most concerning thing for Darlaston in the first half was the injury to James Rowland on the half hour mark who had to be substituted. He’s been brilliant this season with 18 goals in all competitions and home supporters will be hoping it’s not too serious which could rule him out of the upcoming play offs.

The first half was quite tense overall and both teams had spells in front of goal where they were building some momentum. The main thing missing was that composure in the box to create clear cut chances. None the less, it was well set up for the second half.

Second Half

Whitchurch started the second half well and were building some momentum in front of goal. They had a great chance to take the lead in the opening ten minutes when Harry Bower found space in the box before having a shot instinctively saved by Tom Allsopp. It was by far the clearest chance of the match up to that point and a key moment in the game.

Darlaston responded with a good chance of their own a couple of minutes later. Rivel Mardenborough did well to work the ball out on the left-hand side before playing an inviting cross to Jason Wood whose header was saved by Jack Sheward at the far post.

As the match was getting more stretched in the final half an hour, it saw Darlaston looking to break down a resolute Whitchurch defence to take the lead. The visitors were playing on the counterattack and looking to draw Darlaston on to them so they could make the most of the available space.

They had an excellent chance to take the lead on the counterattack from a corner where they were three on one with Josh Jones back for the hosts. The right back did well to narrow the angle and make it harder to score for the visitors to keep it goalless. He had another underrated match yesterday for Darlaston and is one of the key players at the back for the hosts.

Dean Gill made a good tactical substitution in the second half which decided a close match. He brought on Kieron Miller and played him as a central striker up front which helped Darlaston get on the ball more and build attacks. His hold up play was excellent, and he brought players into the game which made a real difference in this match.

He was crucial in the opening goal for Darlaston in the middle of the second half. A ball was played to him in midfield, and he held off his defender before playing an excellent ball to Rivel Mardenborough down the left. He accelerated with the ball before playing a low ball to Jack Downing who finished well into the left corner to make it 1-0. It was a moment of genuine quality from the hosts.

Darlaston managed to find a second goal a few minutes later and it was another quality move. Aaron Bishop found some space out on the left before playing a defence splitting pass to Kieron Miller who produced an excellent finish into the left corner to make it 2-0.

​The hosts managed to see the match out well following the second goal for a crucial three points and their 13th home win of the season.

Full Time

Darlaston played well yesterday and showed character to get the result against a good Whitchurch Alport side. It’s been a busy week for the Citizens with three matches in a week and they had to show a bit of resiliency to dig in and get the win. The most pleasing thing about this match was how they kept switched on to not let it get away from them.  

This result is huge for Darlaston and cements their play off position with a good chance of a top three finish.

Whitchurch competed well in this match and were ultimately undone by a moment of quality from Darlaston rather than anything they did wrong. It was just that final ball in the box that was missing but apart from that it was a really encouraging performance from the visitors. Harry Bower was excellent on the wing and a real threat in the final third.     
       
FT score: Darlaston Town 2-0 Whitchurch Alport

Man of the Match: Kieron Miller (Darlaston Town)

Attendance: 158

Match report written by Rhys Beardmore for the Midland Football League