West Midlands Regional League
Shifnal Town 5 Worcester Raiders 1
Another example of the quality of the WMRL from two very capable sides. Early skirmishes were pretty even-steven before the hosts instantly took a firm grip on proceedings as they scored twice in as many minutes. Try as they might,and they really did have a go,the visitors struggled to contain table-toppers Shifnal. Things took a sharp turn right on the stroke of half-time when the visitors reduced the deficit with a 'worldy' from the right; was it a shot or a cross ? No matter, from where we stood it was an absolute belter !
Within minutes of the restart Shifnal increased their lead which was further enhanced with a mix-up between defender and keeper; 4-1, but they kept the best 'till last; a sweeping move from defence to attack with just 5 touches and the ball was dispatched for a fifth. Magnificent stuff at this level !
To be fair, the visitors were never overrun;indeed they had their moments and were unlucky on quite a few occasions but Shifnal are worthy league leaders on this performance.
MOTM Shifnal Town ; No 9
MOTM Worcester Raiders ; No 8
Entrance ; £4 concession
Programme ; £2
Drink ; £1
Referee ; 9/10
Crowd ; 50 est
Non-league dogs ; Didn't see any !
Entertainment value ; 9/10
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Buildbase FA Vase 1st Qualifying Round
Wolverhampton Casuals 2 Bilston Town 1 Played at Brinsford Stadium
There's never a dull moment at this level; following last weeks' FA Cup exploits,this week it's the turn of The FA Vase and this derby looked good for local enthusiasts. Both sides are known for their 'never-say-die' attitude so we knew what to expect and we weren't disappointed.
First blood went to the hosts; following a dreadful defensive mix-up initiated by Vidal,Brady pounced to tap in. Casuals controlled large parts of the first half without adding to their lead but the visitors always looked dangerous on the break.
Town started the second half on the front foot and were denied by a combination of good goalkeeping and unfortunate misses but they were rewarded on 68 minutes for their enterprising play and to be fair,it was no more than they deserved.
Game on,or so we thought ! Just three minutes later Brady connected with a ball over the top to lob the advancing keeper to claim his and the hosts' second. That was how it remained despite the best efforts of the visitors.
Casuals move on to the next round to play Lichfield City.
Yet another excellent Non-league game.
MOTM Casuals ; No 3
MOTM Bilston Tn ; No 6
Entrance ; £4 concession
Programme ; £1
Drink ; £1
Referee ; 8/10
Crowd ; 50 est
Non-league dogs ; Didn't see any ! 😬
Entertainment value ; 9/10 👏👏👏
⚽Emirates FA Cup Preliminary Round⚽
AFC Wulfrunians 0 Leek Town 1
Played at the CKW Stadium
We always look forward with great anticipation to these early FA Cup games especially those like todays' where MFLP Wulfrunians entertained NPSE Leek Town with the prospect of a possible cup upset on the cards.
An entertaining first half dominated by the visitors led to them taking a deserved lead via a penalty in the 36th minute. Although dominant,the visitors' direct shots on goal were,to be fair, few and far between due to the herculean efforts of the home defence. The hosts were not completely overwhelmed, far from it; indeed the visiting keeper had to be on his toes on more than one occasion.
The second half was a complete turnaround with Wulfrunians enjoying large swaths of possession resulting in plenty of efforts on goal. They were denied by the crossbar and some brilliant efforts by the keeper . It seemed only a matter of time before they equalised but unfortunately for them,the visitors' defence were in no mood to give up their hard-won lead. Leek Town move forward to the next round and Wulfrunians return to the league programme on Tuesday against Wallsall Wood,also at the CKW stadium.
An excellent advert for non-league football.
MOTM Wulfrunians ; No 9
MOTM Leek Town ; No 1
Entrance ; £4 concession
Programme ; £2
Drink ; £1.20
Referee ; 9/10
Crowd ; 80 est
Non-league dogs ; never saw any !
Entertainment value ; 9.5/10 Superb stuff.
⚽ Emirates FA Cup ⚽
Extra Preliminary Round
Tividale FC 2 Wednesfield 1
Played at The Beeches
Just a matter of weeks after Man City walloped Watford in the FA Cup final,the whole thing begins again.
On paper, this looked a tasty fixture and so it turned out to be.The hosts would have been expecting a hard game against their WMRL opponents and that's exactly what transpired; as stated in previous posts on this blog,Wednesfield dig deep. A complete neutral could not have guessed these two were a league apart. No quarter was asked and certainly none given with some really meaty tackles flying in but on the quarter-hour the hosts took the lead with a smashing hit from Daniel Smith. Wednesfield got their reward for some sterling work on 28 minutes from the spot.
Nothing changed after the break with the visitors giving as good as they got in all areas but with 10 minutes left Tivi regained the lead from a free kick;from that moment on,Wednesfield threw everything bar the kitchen sink at the hosts and would have equalised but for some outstanding saves by the home keeper.
MOTM Tividale ; No 1
MOTM Wednesfield ; No 6
All in all a fantastic game for neutral and supporter alike. Tividale move on to the next round with a couple of grand added to the coffers while Wednesfield rue their luck and go home with £750.
Entrance ; £3 concession
Programme ; Sold out
Drink ; £1 - £1.20
Crowd ; 80 est
Referee ; 7.5/10
Non-league dogs ; 1
Entertainment value ; 9/10
