Mens 3rds get off to slow start

A slightly rushed start for the third team this week with terrible delays on the M62.

Another completely changed squad finally arrive at Energise with just enough time for GK Tony Sykes to kit up. With Acomb winning the toss they elected to push back and went straight on the attack with a lofted aerial ending up deep in the Halifax 25.

From there the first 20 minutes was a barrage of attacks from the well-rehearsed Acomb team. Halifax’s defence battled bravely with some superb tackles from Simon Meredith and Rob Keene.

Eventually the Halifax defence conceded a penalty corner which was successfully converted with a perfectly executed routine from the Acomb attack.

A slightly disheartened Halifax took the pushback still looking decidedly shaky with very little match time together. However, it was not long before the ball was back with the opposition and Halifax were pinned back defending again.

A shot from the edge of the D was finally deflected past vocal goalkeeper Tony Sykes after having made a series of spectacular saves. 2-0 down Halifax again went back to the centre. Starting to look more gelled and constantly gaining confidence the team battled on.

The midfield had started to link together with some smooth passing between Josh Barron, Mathew Ward and Jack Willis Halifax went on the attack and there were finally some decent forays in to the Acomb half.

Halifax was again opened up by the same well-rehearsed short corner drill and Tony Sykes was left helpless to prevent the ball from hitting the back of the net. 3-0.

At this point master tactician Dave Collins suggested a slight change in positions with Ryan Dransfield being swapped out to the Left of midfield and tireless Paul Mayes being switched in to a defensive midfield role. The impact was almost instantaneous with Halifax beginning to attack the Acomb goal with more frequency.

With every attack the Acomb defence were looking more and more panicked. A strong appeal for a short corner was turned down after the Acomb goal keeper appeared to deliberately play the ball off the back of the pitch. After another short period of play a short corner was finally conceded by the Acomb defence. A slightly wayward pass from the push out saw that this came to nothing. Finally the half time whistle went.

The second half started on a more positive note for Halifax with more
regular attacks on the Acomb goal. However a top class goalkeeper prevented any of the Halifax team from getting their names on the score sheet.

Shortly in to the second half though disaster struck with young Matty Ward hitting the deck hard and suffering a severe injury to his shoulder. It appeared his participation in the match was over. With no available substitutes the Halifax team pulled together to match the Acomb team who were making good use of the extra man and substitutes.

Veteran Roy Atkinson filling in on the Left with Ryan Dransfield moving across to his more natural right hand side leaving Dave Collins creating some good chances up front on his own.

After 20 mins or so the inevitable happened as Acomb found themselves with an extra man in the D. A cool finish saw the ball lifted perfectly over Tony Sykes and in to the netting to make it 4-0.

At this point Matty decided to attempt to carry on playing, slotting back in to the Left of midfield.

By this time the pace of the match was starting to show on the Halifax team and the players were starting to tire. However they battled on bravely with Paul Mayes making constant runs up and down the field being involved in almost every attack and defence that went on.

The final 10 mins were a very evenly matched affair with both teams creating chances. However no further goals scored.

Halifax left the pitch wondering what might have happened were it not for the first 20 mins, feeling a goal for them would have changed the course of the match entirely.

Overall an excellent performance from a team that can only get stronger as the season continues.

Man of the match as voted by the team was Simon Meredith

Next stop home to Boston Spa 2nds.