Tividale FC

Midland Football League
Premier Division
Tuesday 16th April 2024
Tividale 0-5 Congleton Town

Five Star Champions.

The newly crowned league champions were Tividale’s final visitors of the 2023-24 season and although Tividale battled for over an hour, but the gulf in final league positions showed as Congleton Town ran out 5-0 winners.

Again, a number of changes were made as Joel Harrison, Jack Till, Ryan Snape, and Ewan Edwards came in for Lewis Wright, Callum Powell, Tom Cole, and Lewis Taylor-Boyce.

As expected, the visitors did the majority of the early running and Brian Barton goal was ruled offside after just 3 minutes. A minute later and good Tividale defending denied a Marco Fregapane shot on goal. Tividale’s Joe Burroughs was on hand in the 9th minute to intercept a Max McCarthy shot as he was teed up by Thomas Hampton.

In the 11th minute the ball was popping around like it was in a pin ball machine and it took some great defensive work from Craig Gregg to complete the clearance. Louis Connor then came to the rescue on 17 minutes when he turned away a thunderbolt from McCarthy. Then 4 minutes later he denied both Hampton and then McCarthy with a brilliant double save. As Congleton kept up the pressure George Sankey fired over from the edge of the box in the 23rd minute.

Tividale would have a major gripe on 34 minutes when a Congleton player ran into Callum Gillies from an off side position and stopping him from intercepting the pass. The assistant gave nothing, the ball ran through for Marcus Allen at the edge of the box he fired a low driving shot but Tividale got back in numbers to defend it.

Gillies tried his luck with a free kick on 40 minutes but it never troubled Congleton keeper David Parton and that was the end of a half that Congleton had been on top but Tividale were well organised and defended very well.

Half Time:-Tividale 0-0 Congleton Town

Hampton struck Tividale’s crossbar a minute into the second half and then 10 minutes later he was denied by another brilliant Connor save, this time the keeper denying him in a one on one situation.

Tividale finally cracked after 54 minutes when McCarthy got on the end of a Hampton flick on and slots the ball  home. On 57 minutes a Tividale free kick was well defended by the visitors. But on 65 minutes they were 2-0 up. Hampton with a neat finish flicking the ball into the top corner from a Congleton corner.

Tividale had a great chance to half the deficit in the 70th minute when Ewan Edwards got himself into the box but fires his shot into the side netting.

With 10 minutes to go McCarthy made it 3-0 with his second of the game and on 90 minutes substitute Daniel Cocks netted the 4th and Congleton’s 100thy league goal of the campaign. The rout was complete in the 92nd minute when Allen hit a beauty from the edge of the box that flashed past Connor and into the bottom left hand corner.

There can be no complaints as Congleton fully deserved their victory Tividale competed well up until the second goal then Congleton took complete control.

Full Time:-Tividale 0-5 Congleton Town

Tividale:- 1. Louis Connor, 2. Zac Kourouyianni, 3. Callum Gillies (12. Kamol Campbell 69), 4. Jakob Burroughs, 5.Joel Harrison, 7. Craig Gregg (15. Jack Bate 69), 8. Max Morris, 9. Jack Till, 10. Ryan Snape, 16. Joe Burroughs 17. Ewan Edwards

Unused Sub :- 13. Roman Davies 14. Tom Cole, 19. Lewis Taylor-Boyce