22 Sep 2013 - Croft Juniors Blue (A)

Bassett returned to cup action today against a good Croft team who looked to have both the skill and physical presence to provide yet another stern test. An early goal was surely needed and, with just a minute on the clock, it arrived - courtesy of an attack from Tom who slipped the ball to Charlie who neatly returned it . Tom's resulting shot was saved well but rebounded out to the feet of Lewis who could hardly miss from just a few feet out: 1- 0

A very early goal like this can sometimes unsettle the scoring team as much as the team conceding and so it proved , with Croft coming back at us with some powerful attacks of their own. Another Bassett goal nearly arrived when we broke out strongly and Tom flashed another one just wide, but it was Croft who had the next chance and a period of end to end football developed with both sides showing great desire for cup progress. A series of Bassett corners looked dangerous but came to nothing and then a Croft corner proved our undoing as it sailed across unchallenged - only for an opposition head to glance it in for a deserved equaliser : 1 - 1

This spurred our lads on to take the initiative again and it was Jamie who nearly fashioned an immediate reply as he powered through, putting Dan in who was only able to fire over. Joe then sent a raking pass out to Tom but good defending held him off. A Callum free-kick was sent into a dangerous area but the half ended with a very fair equal score.

Half-time: 1 - 1

It looked to be anyone's game at this stage as both teams continued to look dangerous in attack, but it was Bassett who next came closest when a George corner found Euan in the area, his shot only just skimming wide. Joe then had a chance but, again, his shot didn't find the target. Our lads were now playing with great skill and application, although our opponents always looked capable of unlocking us at the back - a great block from Ed just one example of how alert we had to be. Josh and Ben , too, made some crucial blocks to frustrate our hosts .

Lewis then nearly put Dan in on goal with a sublime flick and Jamie continued to impress through the middle, proving almost unplayable at times - but it was our hosts who next notched a goal when an attack down the left led to a strong shot which Conor got a finger to but was unable to stop: 2 - 1

Would this see us dumped out of the cup? Our 'never say die' approach would now certainly be needed and it was a delight to see the boys simply carry on in their typical style, passing calmly to each other and looking to stop any breakouts when they occurred. Patience was rewarded when Tom cut inside his marker and sent a deceptive shot goalwards which left the goalie flapping at thin air as the ball rolled gently past him into the net: 2 - 2

Things were now set up for the grandstand finish with Bassett certainly looking the more likely. Charlie,now on for Dan, was causing all sorts of problems for Croft and Tom continued to sniff another goal. He almost had it when he rounded the last defender and slanted a shot goal-wards, only to see the ball bounce agonisingly back of off the post and the scores remained level - for now.

With extra time beckoning, a free-kick was conceded by Croft just outside the area and Euan stepped up to do the honours. His kick beat the wall and landed at the feet of three oncoming Bassett players - Joe being first to react and slide the ball home for the deserved winning goal which saw us plant a firm foot into the next round: 3 - 2

Final score: 3 - 2

Man of the match: All the boys deserve praise for this hard earned victory, but it was our talisman midfield dynamo who once more caught the eye as he won many battles both on the ground and in the air. This kept us in the match when it looked as if it might slip away and sparked many of our brightest attacking moments, leading to the ultimate victory.Man of the match today was Jamie Byrom.

Coach comment: Another battling performance saw the lads record a hard earned win & more importantly a place in the draw for the next round.At times it wasn't pretty but that's what the boys are now adding to the excellent passing football they are capable of & as coaches we are extremely pleased with them.You have to work hard to win the ball back before anything else & they are now doing that.Well done boys on a hard worked-for win.

Team: Callum Bridges, Euan Burke ,Jamie Byrom, Conor Chivers, Lewis Cholod, Ben Croydon, Josh Curtis, Charlie Emmerson , Joe Fenton, Edward Fish (capt.), Daniel Hulse ,Tom Miller, George Staten

Last modified on Monday 22nd June 2015 at 23:39