Royal Wootton Bassett TownRWBTFC
Bradford Town
Royal Wootton Bassett Town Logo
2 ‒ 2
Bradford Town Logo

RWBTFC Scorers:
Bailey Gallagher, Tommy Ouldridge

Spirited Bassett fight back earns Bobcats point

Gerard Buxton Sports Ground, 18 September 2021

Six minutes into their home clash against Wiltshire rivals Bradford Town, Royal Wootton Bassett Town appeared set for a very long afternoon.

Two opportunities yielded two goals for the rampant visitors and a third straight league loss for Sam Collier's side seemed inevitable.

But gradually Bassett fought back – and come full time goals from Tommy Ouldridge and Bailey Gallagher meant that they deservedly earned a share of the spoils.

Indeed Bassett could - and perhaps should - have emerged from the game victorious given the chances they enjoyed during the remaining 85 minutes of a thrilling, full throttle Hellenic League Premier Division fixture.

However, thanks to the predicament they found themselves in early on, Bassett can be satisfied with the point that they ultimately came away with.

Bassett's start to the fixture was the definition of a nightmare.

Less than three minutes in, they were a goal behind. Stealing possession from Kai Robinson inside Bassett's half, Bradford cut through the Bassett defence with impunity. Jake Brown advanced down the left, cut the ball back from the byline and Richard Dawley was on hand to fire home a first time finish from twelve yards out.

Still reeling from that goal, Bassett quickly fell into an even deeper hole. This time Bradford exploited the expanse of space the hosts left between their defence and midfield as George Box was granted far too much time on the ball, allowing him to spray a pass out to Brown on the left side. The winger then advanced towards and sold Macauley Dodson a dummy that left the full back on his backside before squeezing an effort into the roof of the net from a tight angle.

It was a chastening start to the game – and one that could potentially have got even worse midway through the opening period when Brown found room on the edge of the area. Fortunately for Bassett, a heavy touch prevented the winger from shooting with a clear sight on goal and the eventual effort that he could muster was dragged wide of the mark.

The hosts were beginning to find their footing though, and by half time they were back into the game.

Having found Bradford confident when on the front foot, Bassett also discovered how nervous their visitors could be when forced to defend.

That became apparent on 25 minutes when, seemingly out of nothing, Bassett crafted their first real opportunity of the match. The ball was worked out to Joe Selman in space on the right and he whipped in a cross which an unmarked Alan Griffin headed wide of the left post from ten yards out.

Their next chance then yielded a goal. Bassett were expecting a penalty when Gallagher appeared to be tripped just inside the area. Referee Roger Smith was non-committal, but Bassett had little time to complain. Bradford failed to clear and Selman squared to Ouldridge, whose seemingly rather tame sidefoot shot from the edge of the area crept by Bradford 'keeper Jonathan Hill and into the bottom corner.

Moments later Bassett had a great opportunity to pull level as Selman cut back for an unmarked Gallagher, but the winger rushed a weak shot straight at Hill.

By pulling the game back to 2-1, not only did Bassett ensure they went into the break still very much in the game. But they also seemed to chip away at the visitors' confidence. Not all appeared cordial between the Bradford management and their players. Both in the dugout and on the pitch, things threatened to boil over.

Bradford were fortunate to hold onto their lead as the game reached the hour mark. A fierce Robinson shot forced Hill to tip around the post. Then from the resulting Ouldridge corner, Griffin headed against the bar with Dodson guiding the awkward rebound narrowly over.

Soon enough Bassett were on terms – much to the disgust of Bradford manager Lee Davidson who, losing his cool, angrily sent a chair flying from his technical area.

Why the equalising goal brought such a reaction was unclear given that it was the product of a piece of magic from Bassett's Gallagher rather than an error from Davidson's team.

Ouldridge curled a first time pass forward and, with his back to goal, Gallagher sold his marker a dummy before whipping a sumptuous strike from the right edge of the area into the opposite top corner. It was a goal of outstanding quality – and one that Bassett deserved for the nature of their response to falling into such an early hole.

More than twenty minutes remained though and both sides were of the belief that they could snatch a win.

The remainder of the match was thus an open, end-to-end affair.

Bassett had their moments, with Ouldridge, Selman and substitute Zac Skinner proving particularly troublesome down the left flank. However, ever so slightly mistimed runs meant that the offside flag got in the way of the home side troubling Hill again.

At the other end, the visitors went close on two occasions. With eleven minutes left, an outstretched Harry Rutty guided Ethan Witchell's low cross into the box narrowly wide. Brown then cut inside from the right and rode two tackles before forcing Eddie Cavanagh to fist the ball away.

Ultimately though, neither side was able to find a winner on an afternoon that offered the neutral the perfect balance of excitement and tension.

Man of the Match: Adam Corcoran – it might seem strange to name a centre half man of the match in a game that saw his side concede twice in the opening six minutes. However, Corcoran was at fault with neither goal and, alongside partner Dave Bampton, he marshalled Bradford's dangerous attack expertly for the remainder of the contest. Corcoran's distribution was excellent throughout too as his early passes forward helped give Tommy Ouldridge, Joe Selman and Bailey Gallagher the space they needed to cause the visitors trouble.

Credit: Stuart Smedley
Last modified on Sunday 19th September 2021 at 21:18

Royal Wootton Bassett TownRWBTFC
Bradford Town
Royal Wootton Bassett Town Logo
2 ‒ 2
Bradford Town Logo

RWBTFC Scorers:
Bailey Gallagher, Tommy Ouldridge