MICKLEOVER ROYALS 1-0 BELPER UNITED: match report by The Mowdog...

Heads-up Martins Lift Mickleover To the Top

Mickleover Royals 1 Belper United 0

I was listening to One Republic’s ‘Preacher’ on the way to the game and in the song there’s a break when the singer belts out three times: “Wait… Put your hands up…” but during this top of the league clash, the referee reacted to three possible incidents of hand-ball not at all and, considering the importance of this edgy, rather uninspiring game, creditably both clubs caused little real bother about the rather languid official’s indecisions. The Royal Martins, Danny and Chris of Mickleover, as opposed to the Royal Ravens of The Tower of London, settled the affair, combining to fashion the winner from a near post corner routine and plucky Belper left the Raygar with nought. Fine defending by United’s skipper Shaun Roulston, alongside the combative Adam Robley had kept the somewhat out of sorts Royals at bay but behind them, ‘keeper Scott Whittingham and his crossbar on one occasion, kept the match open too. Sadly for Belper, Sam Vickers was unable to influence the game with his dribbling, partly due to the excellence of Royals’ winger Nashan Wilson’s disciplined defending and partly due to injury. Visiting striker Luke Crosby was unable to clip one of his lethal left-footers into the Mickleover net either. Home skipper Danny Martin was the linchpin of the Royals’ performance, whilst Chris Martin fought like an infantryman and left the field looking like a casualty from the World War One trenches of Arras, his head gushing blood.

The toss...

A quick game of tig at the kick-off...

After Whittingham beat Matt Savage to a Royals through-pass, Wilson stretched for a long Danny Martin free-kick but could only loop it over the left angle of bar and post but it was clear that Belper were there to compete strongly and hustled Mickleover, with Crosby dropping deep and Jordan Ball finding too much offensive space right away. Rain fell, then United survived two home corners, the first of which was conceded by Roulston’s spectacular sliced header over his own crossbar, then Belper responded with a smart Ball corner from the left, which confused Spencer, as several players missed it and the ball, not Jordan, passed harmlessly beyond the far upright. Savage did really well in possession and unselfishly fed Josh Gregory to his left but as Whittingham advanced, the Royals’ striker fired his low drive at the ‘keeper’s lunging torso, for a good save.

Robley marks Gregory...

Wait... Put your heads up...

Crosby shot hard but Spencer was behind it, Tim Perry’s effort, also from distance took a deflection for a left-side corner and Ball’s fine delivery from the flag-kick was beaten aside by Spencer like he was setting up a team-mate’s spike in a volleyball match. Roulston, getting some kind of weird pleasure from slicing the ball over horizontal bars, hacked Danny Martin’s low shot upwards and behind his own goal-frame, then Ash Foster, surprisingly quiet for the hosts, over-hit two or three passes for Savage to chase, savagely. Crosby and Ryan Wheatcroft threatened briefly for United but then conceded a free-kick and at the opposite end, Whittingham and Wilson collided at the far post as they challenged for Peter Aliguma’s fine left-flank centre. Wilson, looking lively on the Mickleover right then passed to Chris Martin for a 20 yard shot, which Whittingham collected like he was picking up next door’s encroaching pet chicken.

More like a line-out in a rugby match...

Mickleover’s passing had improved, with Danny Martin’s confidence and time on the ball so important for his team. Savage had a shot blocked but then careless possession and bad bounces by and for the home team led to a short period of attacking by Belper. First, Ball shot low and Spencer fell to push the ball aside then Ash Lynch was outfought by Crosby, chasing a long boot forward but the big striker could only hang out a boot and Spencer collected the gently looping effort easily. Ball soon found himself in a shooting position at inside-right but Spencer raced from goal to make a fine sliding save and after clumsy defence by Aliguma, conceding an unnecessary corner, Robley, the wily one, retrieved the flag-kick on the left and crossed cleverly into the middle, where Lynch backed off Roulston, Jamie Sparkes headed the ball down for his skipper, but Roulston’s left boot volley skied the ball into the upper branches of a tree from an unmarked slot, 10 yards away from goal.

Like in a scene from 'Life of Brian', Jordan Ball removes a boot, because Brian removed a sandal...

The Mickleover Chairman has already begun to decorate the club's Christmas tree.
I didn't think he had the balls...

Mickleover shook off their errors and responded with a hard drive from Gregory which struck Roulston’s arm again, the ball flew right and was crossed back in by Danny Martin for Chris Martin to steal in and head downwards at the near post, but Whittingham reacted superbly to drop on the ball, right on his goal-line. Belper failed to heed the warning of the Danny Martin-Chris Martin near post combination… As the pattern-less half, as inconsistent as the weather, ran down, Mickleover were awarded a 25 yard free-kick from a central position and Danny Martin’s great shot dipped past Whittingham but nudged the underside of the crossbar and dropped to be hacked clear by the visitors. Finally, a Ball free-kick fizzed low from right to left across the Mickleover penalty-area and the official signalled a break in the proceedings.

Vickers was replaced at the interval by the lean wide-player Gary Conway, whose control would let him down at times, and after Mickleover had conceded midfield possession, not for the first time, Ball attempted a 25 yarder, which rose way too high. Foster, working hard but with little to show for his considerable efforts, drove straight at Whittingham from 22 yards and a fine, surging run by Aliguma so nearly set up Wilson for a shot. Savage’s quick, low drive was brilliantly blocked by the never-say-die Roulston but then Mickleover struck and it was the Martins who combined again at a right-wing corner. Danny’s near post delivery was met by a deft Chris header from 6 yards, beating James Baxter, who simply couldn’t get off the ground and Whittingham could only stand and stare as the ball bounced into the left corner of the net.

Chris Martin, 3rd from left, celebrates, as Jordan Simpson (4) growls at a badger...

Roulston, not near enough to his own goal to slice the ball to safety over the crossbar again, lost possession to Savage in midfield and savagely hauled the speedy, if sometimes rather vociferous Royals striker down, earning an accepted caution. The ensuing free-kick was headed on by Aliguma, chaos occurred, Chris Martin challenged and the ball fell for the swivelling Savage to fire goalwards from 10 yards, only for Whittingham to react and make a fabulous save, just in front of his goal-line. Matt Wright replaced the quiet Wheatcroft for the visitors and Wilson was withdrawn for the introduction of Owen Brown for the hosts. A near post corner by Danny Martin looked to be dropping onto Oli Buxton’s head but Gregory popped up in front of him, nodding too high, then Belper broke, following a period of defending to earn a corner from careless Royals defending. Lynch, marking Sparkes, jumped, turned his back, threw up an arm like he was dancing the Gay Gordons in the penalty-box and the flag-kick delivery struck his arm; even Lynch looked shocked that a penalty wasn’t awarded to Belper…

Sparkes fly with Jamie on the ball...

"Wait... Put your hands up..."
Well done, ref...
Roulston accepts the caution...

Steve O’Connell then replaced Gregory, adding a considerable physical presence to the Royals’ offence, before Brown dribbled forward and Savage lifted a shot for Whittingham to catch above his head then O’Connell battled well and Foster shot straight at Whittingham again. The game was becoming a little more open as Belper appreciated that they had to get forward and Crosby saw a right-footer blocked but then Savage broke left for the hosts onto Lynch’s great delivery, hooked a pass for O’Connell in the middle, but the striker procrastinated a little, failed to control the ball at 18 yards and allowed Sparkes to get back and defend him and the ball cannoned disappointingly off O’Connell for a goal-kick. O’Connell then surprisingly found himself running onside onto Foster’s perfect pass at inside-right but the advancing Whittingham blocked the tall forward’s angled shot. O’Connell stabbed the rebound into the side-netting.

Milling around...

Tristan Spencer replaced Belper’s Jon Poplar (a popular move?) and then the visiting boss became as angry as I had felt walking through a sea of visitors’ dogs in the tight streets of St Ives, Cornwall the other day, when a free-kick was awarded to Mickleover, which he felt should have been awarded to United. Danny Martin’s free-kick from the left was totally missed by two unchallenged Royals, Savage and Brown, who looked like they were shackled in a three-legged race to get there, only for O’Connell to side-foot the ball into the side-netting at the far stick. Finally, Crosby benefited from an Aliguma error and moved the ball onto the left boot, but his low shot bounced wide of the right upright from 20 yards. Crosby then passed to Ball for a shot from inside-left but Spencer fell to save comfortably and then with an unmarked Savage in the middle screaming for a pass from O’Connell, who was on the left, the replacement somehow skewed the ball high into the air, possibly attempting to dislodge the Roulston ball still decorating the tree behind the goal. He failed with that too.

A smart piece of dribbling by Danny Martin, also known as showboating, including a one-two with Foster, ended with a low drive off target, then Chris Martin, bleeding from the head, was replaced by Joe Brockley, who appeared to be fouled as he broke away on the right. At the other end, Crosby fed Ball for a shot from 19 yards, which Spencer watched all the way and fell right to save near a post but the final chance fell to Mickleover in the closing seconds. O’Connell’s left-wing centre started the move, Savage retrieved the ball, dribbled, persisted and Buxton took over, passed inside to the free Brown but the substitute leaned back and lifted an 11 yard shot well over the crossbar with the goal at his mercy.

The little bleeder is led off...

Roulston and Robley, Ball and Crosby were notable performers for the guests, as was Whittingham in goals but although Mickleover lacked sharpness in attack, Savage was always lively, Wilson was determined and it took a big effort by the Martins and the defence to keep the Royals ahead. I then watched American College Football later in the evening, USC @ Stanford but I couldn’t help singing: “Wait… Put your hands up…”

The bosses show how jolly nice they are...

It’s what I do.

Teams:

Mickleover:  Dan Spencer, Oli Buxton, Ash Lynch; Jordan Simpson, Peter Aliguma, Danny Martin (Capt); Chris Martin, Ash Foster, Josh Gregory, Matt Savage, Nashan Wilson.

Subs: Steve O’Connell, Davy Hamson, Owen Brown, Joe Brockley, Kieran Lynch.

Belper:  Scott Whittingham, Jon Poplar, Jamie Sparkes; Adam Robley, Shaun Roulston (Capt), James Baxter; Ryan Wheatcroft, Tim Perry, Luke Crosby, Jordan Ball, Sam Vickers.

Subs: Tristan Spencer, Tarik Harvey, Gary Conway, Matt Wright, Mark Rathbone (gk).