JW Hunt Cup
2nd Round
Wednesday 31st October 2018
Tividale 5-2 Hawkins Sports

Hawkins fold after Sporting first half

 

If you had come to The Beeches as a neutral. You would have been forgiven if you had thought that the visitors were the side riding high in the Premier and Tividale were plying their trade 2 leagues below them.

It was obvious from the kick off that Hawkins had decided on the game plan that if they were going to go down they would do so fighting. And for 45 minutes they caused Tividale more problems than many of their higher level counterparts had so far this season.

They put their marker down in the very first minute, when Ricky Nicholls shot on sight from the edge of the box and Kriskinans watched it clear his cross bar. Then Hawkins full back Tom Collier and Ross Clarke both tried long range efforts that went wide in the first 8 minutes as Hawkins dominated.

Tividale’s first attack came in the 9th minute when Hawkins keeper Tom Greenhouse got down to foil Demetri Brown, But with their second attack on 15 minutes and completely against the run of play up to then, Tividale went ahead when Shilvock found Brown with a neat through ball and he drilled it past Greenhouse and home.

Hawkins were not going to let that setback disrupt the way they approached the game and Collier will feel he could have done better when after a fine run he dragged his shot wide. On 28 minutes though the visitors were level. Simeon Townsend was allowed to run at the Tividale defence and he finished superbly, giving Kriskinans no chance.

8 minutes later and the visitors were ahead. Nicholls latched onto a ball from Ryan Bradshaw and although his initial shot was beaten away by Kriskinans he had the presence of mind to meet the rebound with an overhead kick that made its way into an empty net.

Tividale ended the half the stronger but Hawkins were fairly untroubled for the rest of the half.

Half Time: Tividale 1-2 Hawkins Sports

Dave King and his staff are fairly mild mannered men, but I imagine all that changed at the half time break. Especially in the wake of such a lack lustre first half display.

Within 3 minutes of the restart Tividale were level through a sublime lob from Brigdale that beat Greenhouse all ends up, for his first Tividale goal.

On 53 minutes, Tividale were ahead. A Brad Welding free kick swung into the visiting box was not dealt with and Hunt was able to take the ball, take a touch and fire past Greenhouse.

Tividale were now in overdrive and on 56 minutes it was game over. Another Welding ball into the box and Birch is left unmarked to head home. So in the space of 7 second half minutes the game had been turned on its head.

Hawkins were now visibly tiring and Tividale were now rampant. Greenhouse did well to deny Brown on the hour. Then Welding fizzed a ball across the Hawkins box to Bustin but Geenhouse again saved the day. The keeper was again on hand in the 81st minute when he beat away a Dan Smith effort. Tividale got even closer when Gardner thundered a header against the cross bar. On 87 minutes Substitute Dan Smith watched his shot also come back off the bar.

Tividale added their 5th in the 89th minute. A neat one, two between Bustin and another Tividale sub Jim Welch ended with Welch’s perfectly weighted ball only requiring guiding home by Bustin.

Tividale now go into the hat for the 3rd round draw. Praise must be given to a valiant effort from the visitors who were well worth their half time lead. But it was the level of fitness that proved the deciding factor.

Full Time: Tividale 5-2 Hawkins Sports

 

Tividale Supporters Man of the Match – Bradley Welding

Tividale:-1. Luke Kriskinans, 2. Bradley Welding, 3. Darragh Bustin, 4. Ben Birch, 5. Karl Gardner, 6. Matt Hunt, 7. Lee Smith, 8. Liam Wilkinson, 9. Jake Brigdale (12. Dan Smith 60), 10. Demetri Brown, 11. Reece Shilvock (15. James Welch 80)

Unused Subs:-14.Elliott Hartley