Tividale FC

Midland Football League
Premier Division
Saturday 1st March 2025
Tividale 5-1 Wolverhampton Casuals

Back to Back Wins

After last Saturday’s away win at Highgate United. It was imperative that we did not throw    the great work away by dropping points at home today. While a draw would be painful but not quite the end of the world a defeat would be disastrous.

There was no issues with the line-up, as the same first eleven and substitutes were named.

The home sides nerves were settled within the first minute as Ezekiel Agyemang surged down the Tividale right picked out Jordon Sangha and his half volley flew past Casual’s keeper via the underside of the bar and in. Although it settled the home nerves Casuals were not going to roll over and immediately went for the equaliser with right back Phil McKerdy firing wide on 5 minutes.

Casuals were nearly two behind on the quarter hour when a mix up in their defence put Agyemang through one on one with Casuals keeper Bradley Clarkson, but the keeper blocked the forwards shot and put it behind for a corner that itself caused a mass scramble in the Casuals area but they cleared.

On 20 minutes came a great Casuals chance, when it was Tividale’s turn to give the ball away and ex Tividale wide man Jack Downing beat Ethan Hawkes with his shot but Tom Rann was on the line to clear. The errors continued and in the 24th minute Tividale cashed in on another one when a loose Casuals defensive pass fell to Sangha to fire home his and Tividale’s second.

It should have been 3-0 to the home side on the half hour when from a corner Matt Holland had his shot blocked on the line. But back came Casuals and Zak Poskitt tried his luck from distance on 34 minutes but it never troubled Hawkes. A minute before the half time break Casuals again had the chance to half the deficit when a Billy Corns cross was headed wide of Hawkes post by Charlie Swingwood

Half Time:- Tividale 2-0 Wolverhampton Casuals

Tividale started the second period as they started the first when a brilliant 49th minute cross field ball from Jason Wood was met on the half volley by Sangha and he hammered the ball past Clarkson and into the back of the net. The all action game continued with Agyemang unselfishly picking out Alfie Higgs in the 53rd minute but his shot was blocked by Clarkson. The ball immediately went straight down the other end and Hawkes had to get down sharpish to deny the dangerous Downing.

Corns had his goal bound effort blocked by Tom Rann in the 56th minute and two minutes later Agyemang beat Clarkson with his shot but his effort came back off the post. Sangha was the first to react and he turned the ball to Higgs who side footed the ball home for Tividale’s 4th.

After a wave of substitutions, a lapse in the Tividale defence and a poor clearance on 71 minutes allowed Downing to hit a shot from the edge of the box that beat Hawkes and made it 4-1. 7 minutes later and Tividale regained their 4 goal lead when substitute Aon Mohammed Abbas left his full back for dead played in fellow sub Ryan Piggott and he in turn calmly turned his marker wrong footed Clarkson and passed the ball into an empty net.

Lewis Derrick nearly added to the scoring in the 87th minute but could not keep his shot down and in injury time Downing was again looking to get a consolation for the visitors but the Tividale defences never say die attitude was summed up when Callum Lloyd dived across him to block his shot.

In the end not only a very good win against a fellow struggler but the 8 goal swing in the goal difference was as good as another point.

Full Time:- Tividale 5-1 Wolverhampton Casuals

Tividale:- 1.Ethan Hawkes, 2. Tom Rann, 3. Sam Bratt-Wyton, 4. Jason Wood, 5. Callum Lloyd, 6 Matt Holland, 7. Jordon Sangha (15. Myles Durham 75) , 8. Eddie Rann (16. Lewis Derrick 66), 9. Ezekiel Agyemang (14. Nathan Guest 60) , 10. Alfie Higgs (17. Aon Mohammed Abbas 77) 11. Ethan Delaney (12. Ryan Piggott 60)

Unused Subs:– None