Pewsey Vale

A respectable crowd, despite the apparent counter-attraction of some televised football, watched Nomads’ penultimate home fixture of the season and witnessed a match which, in the first half at least, certainly did not have too much of the end-of-season atmosphere about it.

Nomads produced some early pressure with Danny Castro and Ben Moses bringing hasty clearances from Pewsey defenders, but it was the visitors who took the lead in the eighth minute. Mark Field (10) picked up a loose ball on the Pewsey right and with time to spare, and faced with the advancing Gareth Tucker, produced a long cross to an unmarked Adam Field (9) on the far-post who finished into an unguarded net from a narrowing angle.

This early setback stung Nomads into action and they were level within four minutes as Michael Sackey was fouled and Joe Parker curled a precise free-kick into the danger area where Moses back-headed past Stewart Thompson the Pewsey keeper, who perhaps might have been expected to deal with the threat.

Ryan Banks (7) produced a promising run for the visitors on their right and Tucker did well to clasp the ball as it was fired across the face of the goal; and Rhys Denton had a typically bustling run for Nomads halted by the combined efforts of two defenders.

Pewsey were given a chance to restore their lead on twenty minutes when Mark Field (10) was fouled by a Nomads’ defender as he closed on goal and there seemed to be few complaints from the players as Adam Field put the ball on the spot. His kick was not hard, but looked goalbound, as Tucker fingertipped it onto the post and Castro reacted the quickest to clear the ball.

Within minutes Nomads were pressing again and a strongly hit free-kick from Neil Greig was turned behind for a corner as Castro’s head looked like applying the final touch. At the scramble from the resulting corner loud shouts greeted a had-the-ball-crossed-the-line moment only to be answered by an unconvincing “not even close” cry from the man with the flag. But in the scramble to clear the ball the horizontal Castro drew a whistle from the referee, and Ben Moses confidently fired the spot-kick firmly past Thompson’s left hand to give the home side the lead for the first time.

On the half-hour equality was restored again as a green shirt was first to a ball out of a crowd of players in the Nomad’s goalmouth after a shot had bounced back off Tucker’s left-hand post.

Rhys Denton turned well and netted five minutes later, but a raised flag ruled out the strike, but the referee, already allowing advantage, pulled the game back to award Nomads a free-kick near the edge of the area, but Greig’s centre from Castro’s pass drifted behind. And a free-kick from Greig moments later flashed across the goal and behind with neither Denton nor Lance Shaw quite able to take full advantage of the opportunity.

With around five minutes of the half remaining the third penalty of this eventful session was awarded. Gareth Tucker’s full-length dive took away ball and man, but gave a great chance to Banks (7), but his shot was well off target. The advantage having evaporated, Mr Ludlow again indicated the spot and booked Tucker, who promptly pulled off another good stop, plunging to his right and beating away Banks’ spot-kick.

HALF-TIME: Oxford City Nomads 2-2 Pewsey Vale

Lewis Colwell replaced Ben Moses at the break and was quickly into action as he was faced with a long chase as Field (9) broke on the Pewsey right to deliver a low cross that was narrowly missed by green and hooped shirts alike.

Rhys Denton produced a couple of shots just off-target, and Michael Sackey’s powerful volley had Thompson scrabbling across his goal-line as the ball passed just outside the upright, but generally the excitement of the first half seemed to have taken its toll and for twenty minutes or so there was little to distract Roy Haley from carrying out some essential maintenance to the advertising boards.

Chances were fairly even in the final quarter as both Nomads and Pewsey went very close from corners. Danny Castro’s run allowed him to give Denton his clearest chance of the half, but though the shot had power it lacked accuracy. Gareth Tucker’s clearance of a through-ball struck a defender and fell kindly to Field (9), but his shot was straight at the grateful Tucker. And as time for that decisive goal ran out a Pewsey free-kick from an ominous position curled round the wall, but not inside the post; and Sackey raced onto a pass from midfield but lifted this final opportunity of the game over the bar.

FULL-TIME: Oxford City Nomads 2-2 Pewsey Vale

Nomads: Tucker, Quegan, Hall, Sackey, Parker, Shaw, Castro, Jussi (?), Moses (Colwell 45), Denton, Greig.

My apologies to any Pewsey Vale readers for any misidentification of players who were not numbered as per programme.

Cirencester Utd

Posted by ChrisB on April 5, 2008, 7:25 pm

Cirencester United, unfortunately well adrift at the bottom of the league, paid their second visit of the season to Court Place Farm today, hoping to reverse the defeat in the Supplementary Cup here at the end of January.
Nomads had an early corner after some effective running by Lance Shaw, while United’s No8 caused some problems at the other end before the home side nosed in front on nine minutes when a precise chip into the box from Danny Castro found Rhys Denton in space. His shot was blocked athletically by Michael Bowman in the Cirencester goal but the ball fell kindly to Tom Holmes who had time to pick his spot and finish well.
Nomads continued to make the running and Castro put in a strong drive from 20 yards which Bowman confidently watched pass his post with inches to spare, while Gavin Lane went close with a header from another corner. Mark Janes’ pace was causing difficulties in the United defence, and one of the best moves of the first quarter saw Janes flick on a long clearance from Gareth Tucker to Castro and race on to the return only to sidefoot the ball just high of the bar.
Immediately after Cirencester’s first corner of the game on 26 minutes Lane worked the ball out of defence to Michael Sackey and his pass found Castro in acres of space on the Nomads’ left. His pace took him clear of the rearmost defender and, just as it looked as if he might have taken the ball too far, he finished coolly past Bowman’s left hand and into the net with a little assistance from the far post for, surprisingly, his first goal of the season.
Cirencester had a free kick in a dangerous position near the edge of the box but No.11’s shot was comfortably held by Tucker, but generally, from open play at least, the Nomads’ keeper was having a fairly untroubled afternoon.
The home side deservedly stretched their lead on 37 minutes as Mark Janes cut in purposefully from the left and his low shot beat Bowman’s dive just inside the near post.
Nomads finished the half in command and might have converted at least one more chance. An aggressive run took Danny Castro from the half-way line through three tackles, but he dragged his right-footed shot just beyond the far post; a deep free-kick by Mark Janes was headed powerfully by Rhys Denton into the side-netting; and a looping centre from Tom Holmes wide on the left just eluded Mark Janes’ lunge.

HALF-TIME: Oxford City Nomads 3-0 Cirencester United

Nomads continued in an attacking vein in the second period and within five minutes of the restart had added to their tally. Mark Janes worked his way into a good position wide on the right and fed Rhys Denton inside the penalty area who rolled off his marker and shot firmly beyond Bowman.
Five minutes later and United had pulled one back in unusual circumstances as Joe Parker overhit a lobbed backpass to Gareth Tucker who, unable to handle it, headed the ball vertically and could do little as Kevin Reape bundled the ball across the line.
The visitors’ elation at this life-line lasted less than a minute as, from the kick-off, Nomads pushed forward and won a free-kick. Janes’ accurate kick curled across goal and Gavin Lane just outjumped Bowman to head Nomads’ fifth of the afternoon. In challenging Bowman Lane picked up a painful gash to the head and Ben Moses joined the fray in his place when it became clear that some stitching may be needed.
At the end of the third quarter Cirencester had their liveliest spell and both No.3 and No.11 drew saves from Tucker, but, as in the first half, the home side looked much the likelier to add to their tally.
Castro just cleared the bar with a sidefooted effort when set up by Shaw; Moses curled a free-kick just wide of the target; and Bowman could only watch in hope as Castro’s powerful volley narrowly failed to find its target.
Milan Barisic replaced Denton for his out-field debut signalling the lifting of high balls into the visitors’ area in the hope that the erstwhile keeper, towering above his markers, would remember to use his head rather than his hands. But the best chance of the later passages of play came when Shaw nutmegged his marker on the goalline and his pass was flicked just past the post by Holmes.

FULL-TIME: Oxford City Nomads 5-1 Cirencester United

Nomads: Tucker, Quegan, Lane (Moses 63), Jussi ?, Denton (Barisic 70), Parker, Holmes, Sackey, Shaw, Janes, Castro.

N.B. My apologies to those concerned for the lack of a number of names above.