SOUTHERN LEAGUE ERREA CUP 4TH ROUND MONDAY 21 JANUARY 2008, 7.30PM

Cirencester Town 3 Sutton Coldfield Town 2

Curious match, this. With the wind howling across the pitch, you'd have expected wayward passes and lots of throw-ins. Instead, with Mr Viveash fielding most of his first choice team with only Paul Cochlin (injured) and Matt Shaxton (pre-booked family holiday) unavailable, Ciren played some good stuff tonight and showed that their improvement since Christmas is not a flash in the pan.

On a wet slick pitch that had drained remarkably well and was a credit to groundsman Kevin Abbley after a heavy downpour at 5pm, The Royals gave the Centurions a right battle as they tried to reach the last 8 in this year's Errea cup.

Well organised at the back and with two very quick, tricky forwards in Matt Dodd and Mykel Beckley the visitors played confident one-touch football through the middle of the park and tested Lee Molyneux and Alex Stanley much more than many front pairings in the Prem. On this display, even lacking 2 key players themselves, they would be no mugs in the Prem if they come out of the Midland Division in April.

In spite of threatening down the flanks they could not quite breach the centre of the defence, with Matt Bulman untroubled in the home nets. Ciren were equally quick and accurate to respond through the energetic Nick Stanley and the tricky Andrew Chapman in an end to end contest.

The Royals may have been sturdy and competitive but, in conceding free kicks and corners, they were regularly under threat from the imaginative and testing balls sent in by Chapman. Early on, every chance he had he wellied for goal, intending to see how good Chris Gemmell was under pressure. And, obviously, also looking to put his forwards in when he'd made himself space for a cross.

After Nick Stanley had spun and shot just over the top on 11 minutes, he collected a neat first time pass from Chappy on 18 minutes, spotted Chris Gemmell off his line, and missed by a whisker with Jon Else doing well to connect at the far post only to see his shot charged down. Good vision by Snaky and great anticipation by Elsey.

Sutton were conceding free kicks merrily as they tried to contain the Ciren thrusts up the right and after surviving several close calls as Chappy whirled the ball in, they paid the price on 26 minutes. Lee Molyneux timed his run to the far post just right and got the faintest of touches with his coiffe on a devil of a cross to flummox Gemmill and net firmly into the bottom corner.

Nick Stanley was unlucky minutes later when his spin and shot from the edge of the box sent the ball to the top corner only to cannon back off the angle with Gemmell beaten. He'd been eager and smart and was causing problems all across the Sutton back line.

As was Jon Else – one misplaced pass was maybe too hurried, early on – but he was increasingly very effective in the game, getting himself into dangerous places and more than aware of what was going on around him and then slotting accurate, incisive passes in to the front pair.

Ed Booth, who had played for The Yeltz when we were there in August, was giving Robbo no room to move. But Robbo was doing his bit, keeping Snaky on the move and taking Booth into places where he did not want to be.

Phil Male, maybe thinking he was not going to get much change out of Snaky unless he slowed him down, was starting to give him some stuff off the ball behind the ref's back. The ref, by definition, was not going to see it..

But the plonker with the flag is there for exactly that purpose. Sadly, he clearly does not know how to read a match and in spite of being advised increasingly frequently by the bar-door gang, was not twitching at all. And, unwisely, Snaky was getting himself wound up.

At the other end of the pitch, Matt Dodd had been just as impressive. Coming to meet the pass, fed by some nice crisp stuff from Neil Watkins and Leon Blake, he was setting Mykel Beckford up for runs. And his partner, even with the trick only of taking the ball with his right foot, turning left then going right and up the outside, was like lightning over the first five yards and making Chris Collins and Lee Molyneux work hard to contain his bursts.

Neil Watkins, increasingly influential in midfield for Sutton, was in the right place in the middle of the box to connect first time with a neat driven cross by Craig Owen on 38 minutes. Michael Jackson had got himself too far upfield, lost the ball with a short pass to Nathan and had not been able to get back to cover. The cross from Owen was spot on. Passed clear and outside Alex Stanley, he looked up to connect with Neil Watkins in space and that was that, evens.

At the break it was probably a fair reflection of the match, with Ciren more measured in their attacks but Dodd and Beckley always posing a threat with their ability to break at pace and threaten the Ciren goal.

Down the slope but against the stiff wind, Ciren were dominant in the opening phases of the second half. Stanley and Robertson both made Gemmell save and The Royals defence was desperately trying to keep Chapman's probes out of reach of the rampaging Ciren forwards.

A rare attack on 56 minutes saw Craig Owen take the ball into the Ciren box. He slotted Dodd up the right channel, with Alex Stanley inside him. Going nowhere, he just had to be contained and stopped from turning. But, he showed the ball, Lex was tempted and dived in and that was a penno, clear as day. Not necessary.

It seemed to take ages for Dodd to be dusted down, then for Alex to be carded – though the amount of complaining he was doing he was lucky not to get a foul and abusive card. And Owen had been waiting with the ball on the spot.

Matt Bulman had a look, moved his feet a tad, looked again and out-thought Owen and made him place his penalty to his left. It came in hard and low, aimed for just inside the post. But Bully is not only probably the quickest keeper we've seen for many a long year, he is undoubtedly the most athletic. He was down and across to knock the ball away with a full length save.

Minutes later a Chapman free kick into the danger area was totally impossible to defend. Arcing in at pace, dipping to the near edge of the six yard box, Snaky was there to meet it. Very clear evidence today that the lads are doing their attacking drills – and they must love what Chappy feeds them.

Snaky had timed his dart just right and got so high, that all the defender could do was go with him and hope. I think Snaky connected but the ball then deflected off Phil Male and looped into the far corner to fall beyond his own keeper.

Mr V would have loved that – the cross-over runs were spot on, the Sutton defence were dragged all over the place, and the delivery and connection were sweet. And there is a delicious irony for Snaky that he'd forced the fella who had been giving him some stuff to concede an unstoppable own goal

On 62 minutes yet another Chapman zinger, this time a corner, forced The Royals to miscue in defence and after Nathan Haisley had distracted the defence with an outrageous air shot as he tried to connect with Jon Else's lay-off, Alex Stanley struck firmly from the edge of the box, the ball taking a tiny deflection off Nick Stanley to nestle in the bottom corner.

It looked game over but Sutton came back, with Watkins again popping up on the right to fire in a cross shot that beat Bulman only for Alex Stanley to intercept but then mis-kick his clearance over the line for 3 – 2. Mr Busby was very tolerant and exercised the first rule of reffing, that of applying commonsense.

He let Alex have his bellows of protest and then calmed him down. He realised what he was doing, risking a second yellow, and very commendably played out the rest of the game with admirable discipline and restraint. Played, fella.

Sutton threatened but with Molyneux and Chris Collins calm and safe at the back Bulman was never actually tested. Jon Else was subbed – maybe a tactical change with Sutton probing hard up his flank, though it did look as though the threat was coming more through the middle with Jacko getting too far up ahead and Nathan having to do sterling work to snuff out the surging Watkins.

At the other end Ciren sub Paul Hunt could have put the result beyond threat after linking well with the indefatigable Nick Stanley, turning Male with a lovely deft change of feet but then dinking narrowly wide.

When, right on the final whistle Oggy gave Hanin a mouthful after the youngster had slid him free only for the plonker to flag, it might have been more reasonable to have turned his ire on the flag man. Oggy had spun into space and was well onside but the lino had read it as interfering by Snaky, who was in fact 20 yards off the play.

Oggy was coming back into the gap off the defender's shoulder with Snaky the one behind the line of the defence. Hanin's pass had actually been the perfect set-up play. He certainly did not deserve the berating from his coach, even if it was in the heat of the moment.

Centurions: Matt Bulman, Chris Collins (c), Alex Stanley Y 56, Nathan Haisley, Lee Molyneux, Dan Wallington Y 78, Jon Else [Hanin Romdhane 74 Y 88], Michael Jackson, Steve Robertson [Paul Hunt 79], Andy Chapman sub not used: Harry Etheridge

The Royals: Chris Gemmell, Luke Fuller, Sam Wilson, Phil Male (c), Ed Booth, Mel Gourlay, Neil Watkins, Craig Owen [Liam McDonald 67], Matt Dodd [Jammille Matt 76], Mykel Beckley, Leon Blake [Jake Morrell 89] subs not used: Andy Ling, James Quiggin

Ref: Mr J Busby (Oxford) Can't be expected to see everything, and made one (acknowledged) error when he made a corner out of a goal kick, with no assistance from his lino. Needed his linos to alert him to the off the ball stuff in the last 20 minutes of the first half.

Att: 42 Alarming, that. The Errea Cup has clearly not grabbed the attention of the footballing public.

MoM: Nathan got mentions, Snaky got mentions, Bully got lots of mentions but the one with the most, not surprisingly considering in effect all 3 goals were his, was Andy Chapman