SOUTHERN PREMIER SATURDAY 27TH OCTOBER 2007 3PM KICK OFF

Cirencester Town 1    Yate Town 2

The Bluebells did the job they came to do. With their spiky but hugely effective little midfielder Chenoweth missing, they loped onto the pitch with all of them big enough for the low, drizzly clouds to hide their dodgy haircuts.

I was with Dave B and when I said “This lot are not quite as tall as Thommo” he said “Yeah, by about only half an inch. Play this one on the deck, methinks”   We did not really do that and Yate were typically   Give nothing away at the back and Nick what you can up front.

Their direct style never gave a depleted Centurions team much time to settle, with the wily Adam Sims taking the Chenners role and working hard and very effectively in midfield, sometimes right on the fringes of legality, to maintain their edge.

But, match them physically and they can be sussed. It is always big ball from the back, get your body in to shield, lay-off and see if you can probe down wide. Then throw your body in to try and make something happen when the cross comes in. Ciren were coping fine, and when the ball broke, were using it better.

Nathan Haisley and Harry Etheridge were biting in, sometimes conceding free kicks with the always alert ref close enough to spot the niggles that inevitably appear when you play a team that like to see if you are man enough to take the nudges and the boots left in.

Ciren should have been 3 up within 20 minutes. On 9 minutes Nathan stepped in, stood strong and collected a Dan Wallington infield pass. Looking right, he switched left on the deck and Andy Chapman was already moving in behind Edd Vihid to collect, go inside him then outside, only to pull his fierce shot wide of the far post with Tony Court scrambling.

New signing Matt Shaxton, obviously preferred ahead of the quick feet of Jon Else because he maybe would have more of a physical presence, had won a couple of line ball headers already. But when he picked up a loose header from a half cleared corner, he had time to pick his spot but mistimed the strike and it swerved wide of the far post from the edge of the box.

As did Vihid's shot minutes later when Matt Rawlins did exactly what he has done all his career, stood firm on a ball up to him and laid it off beautifully weighted back into the D. Vihid, supporting all the way from the back on the run and missed by the defence, lifted his head and wasted a good chance. Admirable and unexpected support play on the best set-up in the match so far.

An accidental set up by Luke Hopper gave Ciren the best chance of the match. Meeting a free kick from the right, he tried to flick Rhys Carpenter in but with Lee Jefferies standing no nonsense and busily engaged in kicking him up in the air, Luke miscued the other way.

Andy Chapman had again moved quicker than Vihid to get in front of him and collected on the edge of the area. He had thought quickest to anticipate the chance and could actually have steadied and broken past the defensive line before shooting. But fired right footed first time just over the angle. Third chance missed – none of them easy but hitting the target is so important and none had made Tony Court actually work.

Yate were getting frustrated – the intimidation was not working, with the ref very cute and seeing all of the illegal action and making sure the players knew when the challenge was hard but fair. Not sure the linos were quite up to his standard – a couple of times they were a bit flag happy when the pass actually had been onside – but they had obviously been instructed to flag fouls and were getting those right.

They missed one when a Yate corner ended with H standing up to Jefferies. The Yate skipper had decided to let the youngster know the pecking order of things, did not like being shown up to so instead had a stamp on H. Not seen otherwise the clod would have walked.

Vihid had been 'doing' Chappy quite well, and our feisty little wide man was giving as good as he got. Mr Field had a long chat with him on 27 minutes after he had dished out some afters on the touchline, in that lino's quadrant. Good officiating and the players knew exactly where they stood.

On 30 minutes, the Yate muscle paid off. Throw in down the Ciren left, Hilds got out manoeuvred and his recovery tackle back only deflected Dave Anyinsah's cross towards the Ciren near post. Bully started to go for it then stepped back as both Moley and Alex Stanley covered 8 yards out.

Not quite getting there as Matt Rawlins threw himself in to attack the ball, it bounced off his shoulder. Dan Wallington was caught out, let it bounce in the six yard area, and Matt Prosser bored in, got his body in the way and forced the ball into the net with his head. It was a clear pay-off for direct, first time football.

Adam Sims had been diving in and on 34 minutes got his own long horoscope lesson from the ref. And while Yate kept conceding free kicks, they were also getting their shoulders in and winning the long balls that Ciren had started to fire upfield.

On 34 minutes Rhys Carpenter got away from Scott Brice onto a lay up from Harry Etheridge, and slotted Luke Hopper up the left. He steadied on the ball only to be swept away by the uncompromising Lee Jefferies before he could get his shot away. It was not elegant but winning the ball was the only thing Jefferies wanted. And he got it.

At any level in football, pressure can force mistakes. Twice in quick succession Aaron Blakemore, built in the mould of a 'Thommo-style' Yate player but more a touch rather than a bustling footballer, preyed on the increasingly visible unease in Dan Wallington.

First time, his touch was too heavy and Bully collected off the toes of the on-rushing Prosser. Next time, Blakemore was quick into the gap onto a return pass from Sims when Wallo miscued but after surging with almost silky pace clear on the left he flailed wide to hit the stanchion behind the goal.

Ciren were by no means giving up. Even though both Luke and Rhys were having great difficulty holding and keeping the ball up top, they were managing to nudge off enough stuff for Big H and Nathan to drive onto the ball in midfield and send it wide. Shaxton had faded but Chappy was still going at Vihid.

Not all his crosses were hitting the target, and neither Hopper or Carpenter were getting much joy out of the defence, but deflections and free kicks conceded liberally by the Yate midfield kept the ball moving up the slope. Harry E had a shot curving wide after Carpenter, nearly bent in half as Jefferies tried to go through him, laid off to him.

Luke Hopper reacted well to a half chance off a corner, with Lee Bridson wrapped all over him, with Nathan heading the rebound just wide in a reaction response.

And Moley was inches off connecting when again Nathan got his head to a corner.

There was even time for Jefferies to be caught up in a midfield duel with Nathan. He nutted our icon and came off worst, eventually weaving away off the pitch while Nathan rubbed the bony bit on the back of his head.

Anticipating the appearance of our crowd favourite Dave Elsey second half, instead Jefferies reappeared.. And while he had more than a few rocky moments in the second half, his performance typified the way Yate go about holding on to what they've got.

Mr Viveash had replaced both the front men with Snaky and Robbo. And within a minute their different approach won an opening. Robbo moved to and met a placed forward pass from Big H, nodded down towards the D.

At full stretch Jefferies miscued straight to Snaky on the edge of the box. His instant left foot drive was going inside the far post before Court got down and made an excellent finger tip save.

Moments later Snaky surged left, collected, nut megged Jefferies (who was obviously still woozy because his attempted body check missed) but then, as so often seems to happen when we make an opening, Snaky's cross was cut out with Shax and Robbo crowded out in the middle and Big H not seen in the clear on the edge of the box.

Ciren attacked solidly for the next 15 minutes, with Sims drawing his well merited yellow on 50 minutes as the tide turned and he was drawn into one mistimed tackle after another. But, in spite of a lot of space and possession time after time promising openings were wasted with a woeful final pass, with the otherwise lively Chapman the most persistent offender.

Yate were able to clear their lines without much difficulty, though their long balls out were now being collected by Harry Etheridge and Alex Stanley and returned with interest.

On the hour Yate were wobbling and pinned on the edge of their box, with Jefferies at sixes and sevens and miscuing his clearances all over the place. Nick Stanley pounced on a Jefferies mistake in the D on 61 minutes.

Spotting Court bearing down on him as the 'keeper did the only thing possible he lifted a lob over him. Only for a huge gloved hand to disappear into the clouds and emerge not only clutching the ball but holding on to it. Great reflex save to preserve the Yate lead.

They were defending doggedly now, packing their defence on the set pieces and really giving it the rip, big time. Rawlins was back on the near post double cover to get this one away.

It was just as you'd expect a team to defend a lead when they are on the rack, and they did it very well

Mr Thompson obviously thought it was time to freshen up. On came Mike Wyatt to use his experience to lurk wide off Dan Hilder and collect the out balls and pass on for Blakemore and Prosser to chase. And Big H collected his yellow for dropping Dave Anyinsah with a really late one from behind, the lively winger being replaced by Phil Waters who slotted in tucked deep on the left.

It was up to Ciren to unlock Yate, while they waited and looked for the chance of a clincher. It came from an unexpected source. Moly and 'Lex had been calmly clearing up the long forward balls, using Bully when they had to given that his ability to find a man from distance is probably unsurpassed throughout the league

On 73 minutes Moley laid back a routine ball to the corner of the box, with Bully coming to collect what he had called for. Somehow, he made a total horlicks of timing and sent it all along the ground into midfield. As if fated, there all on his ownio was Mike Wyatt who collected, looked up and calmly side footed home from 35 yards.

Bully was crestfallen. But never would we badmouth him – we know how much he contributes to the team and it was just sheer bad luck that his first mistake in an otherwise outstanding season would be so cruelly punished. That's football. Though he had Moley to thank when Prosser's header right at the end was cleared by today's skipper.

Cirencester immediately pulled back a goal, when Nick Stanley stayed strong in the air to flick on an Andy Chapman free kick, one of many conceded by Yate in that feisty second half. Lee Molyneux made himself first in front of Vihid, himself having his view blocked by the plunging Haisley, and fired home at the far post from on the line.

Ciren piled on the pressure without turning openings into chances. Pass after pass came into the middle, with Jefferies producing a miracle off one of them, a real beauty from Andy Chapman. He dived in to poke the ball off Robbos toe as he poised to net.

Snaky rushed a half chance at the death and giving Court a chance to tip it wide. Corner after corner was conceded but with no fruit.

Yate had defended in depth all game and they know how to close out a match. Nine defenders on this cut back when Chapps went wide on a second ball off a half cleared corner on the hour. He'd gone wide of Prosser (10) with Matt Rawlins poised to get the ball clear. Both the Yate attack are back defending. Some game plan, that.

Yate took all 3 points by doing the defending basics right and not being pressured into fatal mistakes. In contrast the home team could not find the killer pass and ended regretting those first half chances.

Centurions:  Matt Bulman, Dan Wallington, Dan Hilder, Nathan Haisley, Lee Molyneux (c), Alex Stanley, Matt Shaxton [Oggy Hunt 84], Harry Etheridge Y64, Luke Hopper [Steve Robertson 45], Rhys Carpenter [Nick Stanley 45], Andrew Chapman
subs: Jon Else, Alex Frost

Bluebells:  Tony Court, Edd Vihid, Lee Bridson, Scott Brice, Lee Jefferies (c), Adam Sims Y50, Aaron Blakemore, Ben Davies, Matt Rawlins [Mike Wyatt 66 Y87], Matt Prosser, Dave Anyinsah [Phil Waters 68]
subs: Dave Elsey, Lee Stevens, Stu Nelson

Ref: Mr N Field, Northampton I thought he had a superb game. Consistent, got all the stuff he had to get (missed the Jefferies stamp but that wily old fox does nowt under the eye of officials) and while his linos were not quite as experienced as he was in seeing the nudge in the back when a header is contested 'up the line' they were given a lot more freedom to signal than many refs allow their lino.

Att: 167    Given it was a mizzly wet day that was a good gate, with more than a cheery few turning up from their trip through town behind the flag.

The Bluebells brought at least 30 – 35, though I'm worried about the levels of literacy in the Bris Overspill Town seeing very few of them splashed out on a programme. They missed a classic this time. Well done Robert.

MoM: For me, Adam Sims of Yate was the class act on the pitch (not always for the right reasons but hey, winners come in all shapes and sizes and he did a hell of a lot to ensure that win) and after that result not to many of our backroom were inclined to make a full canvass of opinion.

Lot of support for Chappy, though those crucially miscued few final balls were also noted by a few, as well as for Moley, Nathan and a fair number for Robbo and Snaky. Harry Etheridge got it, and it could have been any of those listed, probably because he did not let his early stumbles phase him and just stuck in there.