WE WON ON AGGREGATE
Mangotsfield 4 Yeltz 0
20 December 2003
They'd lost five on the trot, we were on an excellent run and we'd beat them 6-0 at home, but unbelievably the mighty Yeltz lost 4-0 away to Mangotsfield. It sounds like a pretty dismal performance - read for yourselves in Dave's match report if you can stand it.
We're back in action next Saturday at home to local rivals Stourport Swifts . Let's hope we can finish off a difficult year in style and put us in good heart for what hopefully be a successful 2004.
Finally, a Merry Xmas to all of you out there - hopefully I'll see many of you at The Grove on the 27th. My holiday trip means the site may be updated less regularly that usual I'm afraid, but things will be back to normal in the New Year.
Match Report from DJ
Mangotsfield Utd: Greaves; Patchet (Kemp 52), Drysdale, Hendy, Summers, Loydon, Sims, Lee, Edwards (Pitcher 75), Seal, Haines. Unused Sub: Warren
Halesowen Town: Lowe; Reece, Charlton, Smith (Small 69), Jones, Baker, Hollis, Ashby, Spencer, Steane, Skidmore (Lowry 69). Unused Subs: Grocutt, Sheils
Referee: M. Cassidy (Weston-Super-Mare) Attendance: 251
Halesowen's wafer-thin squad performed well below par and slumped to their worst defeat of the season in a pre-Christmas horror-show in north Bristol. Mangotsfield had lost their previous six home matches but still thumped four goals past Halesowen without reply to give their new manager Martyn Grimshaw his first win in charge.
The Yeltz were never in contention and fell behind after just four minutes when Dominic Reece sliced his attempted clearance allowing Danny Haines to cross for Darren EDWARDS to force the ball into the net despite the best efforts of Simon Hollis to clear off the line. Visiting goalkeeper Matt Lowe saved at full stretch from Edwards three minutes later and Halesowen escaped again in the 10th minute when Haines stole in behind their defence but headed wide. Leading marksman David Seal then broke clear in the 12th minute but blasted high.
Hollis finally produced a 15-yard shot on goal for Halesowen in the 13th minute but goalkeeper Danny Greaves saved with his legs. Seal then back-headed a Gareth Loydon corner over the bar and hit high again a minute later. Halesowen forced their first corner on the half-hour and a minute later Andy Spencer's cross from the right was cleared.
However, the Yeltz fell two goals behind in the 34th minute with their defensive frailty exposed again after failing to clear another right-wing corner from Haines and Mark SUMMERS rose to head home.
In the 39th minute a Lewis Baker shot was palmed away by Greaves with Reece hitting the inviting rebound wide and Ben Steane curled a 20-yard free-kick over the bar a minute after the restart.
But Mangotsfield were gifted a third goal to kill the game in the 51st minute when Neil Smith passed directly to Seal and he ran on to put the unmarked EDWARDS clear on goal to score with a cheeky chip. Smith then failed to convert a Steane cross in front of goal after 57 minutes before clearing up from Adam Sims at the other end. With out-of-sorts Halesowen finally showing some late promise, a long throw-in from Hollis found Baker near goal but he was unable to turn to shoot. Edwards almost completed his Mangotsfield hat-trick on 70 minutes after Halesowen's defence was carved open again but he struck wide from 15-yards.
In the 77th minute the home side failed to clear a Reece cross but Spencer ballooned the ball high over the bar from 12-yards. Greaves then grabbed a 20-yard shot from Steane at the second attempt and young substitute Mark Lowry fired high with four minutes remaining.
Halesowen's dreadful day was completed in the last minute with substitute Jack PITCHER turning home a right-wing cross from six yards to finally avenge Mangotsfield's 6-0 defeat at The Grove earlier in the season.