West Midland Regional League

Premier Division

Wednesday 15th August 2018

Tividale 2-0 Wolverhampton Casuals

Nothing Casual about this win

Tividale had to put the weekends FA cup defeat behind them as they now came up against a Wolves Casuals side that had taken maximum points from their first two league games of the season and had made all the headlines with their opening day 9-0 demolition of Hereford side Wellington.

Tividale reverted to a back three and made two changes to the weekend starting line up. The return of club captain Karl Gardner for Rion Francis Mills and Tyree Clarke for the holiday maker Dan Smith. Casuals made three changes from the side that won at Wem Town last time out. In came Jordan Uppal and the dual registered Alvechurch pair of Ryan Winwood and keeper Paul Evans.

After a fairly frantic start, the first attempt on goal came in the 3rd minute when Lee Smith headed a Darragh Bustin free kick wide of Evan’s post.

The game took a surprising turn when whilst in the penalty box Tividale defender Matt Hunt put in a tackle on Casuals forward Scott Sandland. Whether Hunt’s hand touched the ball or not as he rolled on the ground at worse it would have been harsh to class it anything more than accidental. There then followed a bit of a melee that turned into handbags. Once it had calmed down the referee surprised the majority of folks on the ground by showing Casuals ex Tividale frontman Keiron Miller a straight red card and Tividale’s Gardner a yellow.

Although down to 10 men the visitors were well organised and were comfortable in possession and had no trouble dealing with the Tividale attack. They had a great chance on 25 minutes but Ben Podmore could not get his shot on target when the ball fell to him at the back post from a Casuals corner.

Tividale finished the half the stronger and Demetri Brown forced Evans into what was a comfortable save on 40 minutes. The keeper then had to parry away a Clarke shot two minutes later and on the stroke of half time Curtis Cocking tried one from distance that again caused Evans no problems.

Half Time:-Tividale 0-0 Wolves Casuals

There was definitely a more purposeful start from both teams to the second half and Winwood had the first chance on 52 minutes but his free kick on the edge of the home box sailed high and wide. Tom Hurdman then had Tividale’s first chance of the half but Evans just watched it go wide on 55 minutes. A minute later and Tividale were ahead. Brown’s pass into Curtis Cocking was perfectly weighted and the midfield man never even took a touch before unleashing a shot from 25 yards that went over Evans and into the back of the net.

The goal sparked the home side and on 63 minutes Lee Smith headed wide from a Bustin cross and Ben Birch headed over a Hurdman cross. With the visitors tiring after playing the best past of 70 minutes with 10 men they conceded a second. On 86 minutes Brown was once again prepared to run at the Casual’s defence but this time he was rewarded when he was able to get his shot away across Evans and into the bottom corner.

The sending off may have been the difference in the teams but in the end it was three valuable points to Tividale and the second hurdle in this campaign with just another 36 to go

Full Time:- Tividale 2-0 Wolves Casuals

Tividale:-1. Ryan Cheshire, 2. Tom Hurdman, 3. Darragh Bustin, 4. Karl Gardner (12. Bradley Welding 72), 5. Ben Birch, 6. Matt Hunt, 7. Lee Smith, 8. Liam Wilkinson, 9. Tyree Clarke, 10. Demetri Brown, 11. Curtis Cocking (15. Elliott Hartley 88)

Unused Subs:-14. Rion Francis-Mills, 16. TJ Munthali, 17. Liam Smith