Westland Sports 1 Hamworthy United 0
Dorset County Youth League, Sunday, 9th March 2008
Westland Sports with this victory managed to do the double over the young Hammers, and at the same time replace them at the top of the table. Unfortunately, the ability to have the league title in their own hands may now also be taken away from the Hamworthy youngsters later this week, when a Disciplinary Hearing at DCFA will rule on an allegedly improperly registered player being used against Poole Town Wessex.
However, the players will reflect on key moments during both matches against their main rivals for the league, which could have made the end results so different.
Westland Sports started the match much brighter and sharper than the Hammers and scored what proved to be the only goal of the game during this opening 20 minute spell. A ball over the top of the defence was kicked into the Westland’s centre forward by Hammers’ keeper, James Gillingham, when he came rushing out of his goal to clear, leaving the player with a simple tap in to score. During this period of the game the Hammers looked unsettled at the back and also unable to get support to lone target man Josh Reavenall-Nuete.
But the tide then started to turn and for the remaining 70 minutes of the match the Hamworthy youngsters created and missed a succession of chances. Also, during a second half onslaught on the Westland’s goal the referee had perhaps the biggest say in the league title race when he ruled out what looked a perfectly fair Hamworthy goal when the Westland’s keeper spilled the ball in front of Josh Reavenall-Nuete.
Still those that remember the first match will recall the ‘golden chance’ missed by Luke Stone that was followed almost immediately by Westland’s last minute winner, and again, this time, it’s a similar story of what might have been!
It’s not over until it’s over and the Hammers must now look to take maximum points from their remaining games and hope that a combination of slip ups by Westland, and also a ‘fair minded’ decision at DCFA, will allow the league to be settled on the field of play rather than off it.
Team: Gillingham, Crossin, Cole (Cooper-Blayney), Byrne, MacDonald (Capt.), Pimm, Barnett (Watson), Grimason, Reavenall-Nuete, Macklin, Basing (Chappell)