Tividale FC

Report

Midland Football League
Premier Division
Saturday 14th August 2021
Tividale 3-3 Whitchurch Alport

Whitchurch Mugged

Tividale opened their league season with the visit of Whitchurch Alport and what an eventful opener it was.

Manager Dave King had a fairly depleted squad to choose from with Lewis McPike, Tom Hurdman and Cameron Milne injured and Dan Bryson and Adam Harrison unavailable. So he had to bring onto the bench young Alfie Bustin from the youth squad and coach TJ Munthali.

The day in itself was dedicated to the life of a Tividale legend Jan Cotton who had volunteered her services to the club for over 36 years and who had passed away in the lockdown and this was the chance to celebrate her life. We were all humbled by Whitchurch’s response to a lady they had possibly never of before the previous week. But they also lay a bouquet of flowers on the centre circle from the visitors.

The game itself started with early Whitchurch pressure and young Tividale keeper Paul Hawks had to deal with an early Whitchurch shot. On 9 minutes a Whitchurch free kick given against Tividale for handball was deflected wide and from the corner Tividale clear for anothe visitors corner. This time the corner was driven in low and an unmarked Joseoh Mindhall turned the ball home at the near post.

Tividale had the chance of an immediate response but Brad Weldings free kick was wide of the mark and on 15 minutes Tividale could have been two down but Whitchurch forward Ryan Allcock was denied by a Ben Birch tackle when he was about to pull the trigger.  The home side had the chance to equalise on 21 minutes but Weldings shot never troubled Whitchurch keeper Mason Springthorpe.

Whitchurch doubled their lead on 29 minutes when a Ivan Urvantev free kick found an unmarked Alex Hughes and he steered the ball past Hawk. It could have been a lot worse two minutes later when a Urvantev shot was deflected wide by Tividale skipper Matt Hunt.

Half Time: Tividale 0-2 Whitchurch Alport

The second half began as the first one ended when on 49 minutes Allcock was through but fired wide. Hawks then had to turn a chance around the post for a corner. But on 54 minutes it was 3-0. From a Tividale throw Whitchurch won the ball and though Hawk parried the initial shot Allcock was on hand to turn the ball home.

Tividale’s first attack of the half came in the 59th minute when from a corner, Whitchurch struggled to clear and Tividale failed to create a clear cut shot on target. In the end the ball came off Hunt and nestled safely in the arms of Springthorpe. Then Hawk could only stand and watch as another Whitchurch came back off the crossbar.

Tividale pulled a goal back in the 65th minute when from a left sided cross looked to have been turned home by a Whitchurch defender whilst under pressure from Tividale’s Dan Smith. On 70 minutes substitute Curtis Cocking was denied by a good Springthorpe save at his near post. Fellow Whitchurch sub Jacob Farleigh had a shot saved by Hawk. And Hawk was again there to deny Dylan Bath as Whitchurch launched another attack.

The game seemd to be miandering to a fairly comfortable 3-1 away win when in the 5th minute of injury time Elliott Hartley was felled in the box and up stepped Luke Carter to cut the defecit from the spot in what surely had to be a consolation goal. But the referee just carried on playing and in the 98 minute from a dubious Tividale free kick they should have scored but Springthorpe pulled of a brilliant double save and put the ball out for a corner. With the visiting fans now going wild and pleading for the final whistle Welding met Hartley’s corner with a thunderbolt of a header giving Springthorpe no chance and Tividale a share of the points.

FULL TIME Tividale 3-3 Whitchurch Alport

Tividale Team :- 1. Peter Hawk, 2. Hayden Reeves (16. TJ Munthali 80), 3. Brad Welding, 4. Luke Carter, 5. Ben Birch, 6. Matt Hunt, 7. Ryan Grosvenor (12. Tyree Clarke 59), 8. Liam Wilkinson (14. Curtis Cocking 59), 9. Dan Smith, 10. Jordan Edwards, 11. Elliott Hartley

Unused Subs :- 15. Alfie Bustin