West Midland Regional League
Premier Division
Saturday 8th December 2018
Dudley Sports 1-5 Tividale

Beeches boy’s bounce back

 
Tividale bounced back from last weeks defeat with a workmanlike performance at Dudley Sports. It was never going to be easy and Sports were in the game up until two goals in 5 second half minutes put the game out of their reach.

The only changes Tividale made to last weeks starting line up was Lee Smith back from suspension replacing Reece Shilvock and Rion Francis-Mills in for the suspended Dan Smith.

Tividale dominated the early possession but the first decent chance fell to the home side when a 6th minute Aboul Ishola corner was met by centre back Ben Farquharson but his header was blocked on the line by Dan Bryson.  Farquharson was in the thick of the action again 4 minutes later, this time while dwelling on the ball he was robbed by Demetri Brown but with only Sports keeper Liam O’Dowd to beat the striker blazed over the bar.

The visitors were denied by O’Dowd on 19 minutes when a Brad Welding corner was swung to the edge of the Sports penalty area to Curtis Cockings and his pile driver was brilliantly turned around the post by the keeper. O’Dowd was again on hand to deny Tividale on 29 minutes. This time Cocking turned provider for Welding when the wing back met his pass with a low shot that O’Dowd saved with his legs and out for a corner. From the resulting  Tividale took the lead, an in-swinging corner taken by Bustin and Bryson made sure it crossed the line after it had been deflected goal bound by a Sport’s defender.

Bustin had a chance to increase the lead on 36 minutes but the angle was to acute and he could only find the side netting with his shot. On 39 minutes Francis-Mills failed to cash in on another Farquharson error but again the defenders blushes were saved when the striker failed to hit the target with his shot.

Sports provided their best move of the half when on 42 minutes Ishola found Emile Beckford with a great pass but again Bryson was on hand to make the block and deny the winger. Tividale closed the half with another great chance. Bustin raced down the left flank, cut the ball back to Brown but his shot came back off the base of the post with O’Dowd beaten.

Half Time:- Dudley Sports 0-1 Tividale

 
Beckford had a great chance to the level the scores 3 minutes into the second half when he was left bearing down on Cheshire’s goal with only the keeper to beat but he hit his shot high and wide.

Unfortunately for the home side that was as close as they got to Tividale for the rest of the game because on 52 minutes Brown was through and despite his shot being blocked it landed nicely for his strike partner Francis-Mills who made no mistake, blasting the ball into the roof of the net from 8 yards. The games was put out of sight on 57 minutes when from a Sports goal kick Lee Smith’s header found Liam Wilkinson and his ball over the advancing Sport’s defence found Brown and he slotted the ball past O’Dowd and into the back of the net.

Tividale were now looking comfortable and had a couple of chances to extend their lead. First a Brown snap shot was well held by O’Dowd and then Francis-Mills received a pass from Brown but he was also denied by O’Dowd in possibly his best save of the game.

On 72 minutes Tividale made a trio of substitutions with Brown , Francis-Mills and Wilkinson making way for Harvey Walker, Jake Brigdale and new signing Alex Cameron.

On 75 minutes Sports saw a bit of light. A pass from Freddie Watts to Cocking was intercepted by Beckford on the edge of the Tividale box and although Cheshire got a hand to his shot he could not stop it finding a way into the net.

Walker then found Bustin with a neat pass on 80 minutes but again O’Dowd blocked the shot. But 5 minutes later came another Tividale worldy. Tividale won a free kick on the edge of the Sports box to the left of centre. Bustin stepped up hit it with his right foot, it went over the 3rd man in the wall and curled into the top left hand corner. See the goal on Tividale’s twitter feed here

Tividale were not finished there and the result and performance was complete with a debut goal for Cameron. After some great work by Walker he fed in Cameron and the youngster took one touch and gave O’Dowd no chance with a right foot drive.

Sports had the final chance of the game when Ishola was put through but once again he put the ball over Cheshire’s cross bar. The game ended with Sport’s Tony Beyai receiving a red card for what looked like dissent.

Full Time:- Dudley Sports 1-5 Tividale

Tividale Supporters Man of the Match – Freddie Watts

 
Tividale:-1. Ryan Cheshire, 2. Bradley Welding, 3. Darragh Bustin, 4. Karl Gardner, 5. Dan Bryson, 6. Freddie Watts, 7. Lee Smith, 8. Liam Wilkinson (14. Harvey Walker 72). , 9. Demetri Brown (17. Alex Cameron 72). , 10. Rion Francis-Mills (16. Jake Brigdale 72) , 11. Curtis Cocking

Unused Subs:- 12. Reece Shilvock, 15. Tom Hurdman.