Monthly Archives: June 2012

IJLW Brazil 0 – 1 Winlaton Vulcan Inn

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11/08/2004
Tyneside Amateur League Cup Group B

IJLW Brazil
Wilkinson (Katirai 45), Davison, Churchley, Walker, Haigh, Paterson, Creighton (Harrison 50), Hinks, Ho, Thompson (Luper 65), Bull.
Subs not used: Kennedy, Bernstone.

With Winlaton Vulcan Inn the reigning Division 1 champions and Brazil the winners of the wooden spoon in last season’s Division 2, an away win was the expected result. The difficulty of the victory, however, was far from expected; and that is due to how well the home side performed, in what turned out to be an excellent, competitive football match.

Brazil’s defence now has a good understanding and, after a few early marking blips, they settled into a good pattern and kept Winlaton’s front men under control. Gary Davison, Dave Churchley and Bryan Walker all made a lot of timely tackles with Lee Wilkinson comfortably dealing with any high balls into the box. Matthew Creighton was asked to fill the apparently permanent hole in the centre of the midfield and his composure and confidence grew as the half went on. Neither side had any early chances although Steve Ho, making his debut on the wing, found a bit of space on the left and Matty Bull and Chris Thompson were linking up well up front, looking to feed off the intricate passes of Ewan Paterson and Jon Hinks.

Bull and his older strike partner, Thompson, both forced saves from the visiting keeper but Creighton had the best chance to break the deadlock. He ran, unmarked, onto Paterson’s low corner but completely missed the ball as he swung his foot at it. Going into the interval, Brazil, though satisfied with their performance and the scoreline, could have actually been ahead.

New goalkeeper, James Katirai was brought into the action at half time for his debut but it was not an ideal start to his Brazil career. Within five minutes, Creighton injured his shoulder and had to go off. Five minutes later, Thompson received a leg injury and also needed replacing. Before Dan Luper, also making his debut, had readied himself to come on, Ho was forced to crawl off the pitch too. This left Brazil with nine men and they began digging in with their backs to the wall. Inevitably, the defensive line dropped deeper and deeper but they managed to hold on, with Katirai making a good save diving to his left. Luper’s arrival and a formation reshuffle gave Brazil more attacking options, although they still had only ten men and no more substitutions allowed.

The breakthrough finally came in the 70th minute. A cross from Winlaton’s right wing was headed in at the back post but Brazil, to their credit, battled on and didn’t look like conceding any more (thanks, in part, to Bull’s goal line clearance from a corner). In fact, they managed to force a couple of corners but, try as they might, the equalizer wouldn’t come. Despite the first defeat of the season, Brazil were very happy with the way they played and Davison celebrated his first man of the match award with gay abandon, as he collected up the net pegs. Brazil now have a struggle to get a few men fit before their next match on Saturday.

Wardley Durham Ranger 3 – 4 IJLW Brazil

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07/08/2004
Tyneside Amateur League Cup Group B

IJLW Brazil
Wilkinson, Davison, Churchley, Walker, Kennedy, Mitchell (Creighton 45), Paterson, Hinks, Haigh, Smith (Thompson 60), Bull (Harrison 70).
Subs not used: Katirai.

Brazil’s 2004-05 season couldn’t have got off to a better start as they took the lead inside five minutes in the searing heat of east Gateshead. Ewan Paterson won possession in midfield and slid a well-weighted pass though to Paul Smith who despatched it inside the post to claim his first goal for Brazil. The long grass made passing difficult so both sides were finding it hard to keep hold of the ball but a superbly worked goal got Wardley back into the game.

The home side took the lead after half an hour and could have extended it further. A long ball over the top got the striker in behind the defence but Dave Churchley got back to him and slid in a well-timed challenge just as he was about to shoot. It was the visitors that were next score, with a goal from nothing. Smith chased down a back pass which the keeper, under pressure, swung at and missed leaving Smith with the easy task of placing the ball into the unguarded net. Matty Bull nearly gave Brazil a lead going into the half-time break but his powerful shot, from 35 yards out on the right-hand side of the pitch, just cleared the crossbar.

Brazil made several positional changes during the interval and brought on Matthew Creighton for his debut. With several players in unfamiliar roles, Brazil made a stuttering start to the second half and fell behind once more. As they settled, however, Brazil’s confidence started to grow. A bit more shuffling and they were right back in the game. The equaliser was the pick of the goals. Bull’s flick-volley fell perfectly into Smith’s path and the longhaired striker headed off towards goal. He nutmegged the first defender, skipped around the second and fired a shot past the keeper to complete a fine hat trick. The lively Chris Thompson came on to replace him after an hour, but Smith had already done enough to earn himself the man of the match award.

Brazil were in the ascendancy now and it didn’t take them long to go ahead for the second time in the match. Lee Wilkinson’s long, long clearance evaded all of Wardley’s defenders and Bull, who was alert to the situation, volleyed in what proved to be the winner. The final twenty-five minutes was the longest goalless period of the match but there were still chances at both ends. Jon Hinks chased down a weak back pass and managed to tackle the keeper but, from a very tight angle, his left-footed toe-poke went across the face of the goal. A great run by Mark Harrison, leaving three defenders trailing behind him, was capped with a selfless lay-off to Thompson. The young striker hit a hard first time shot that ricocheted back off the post. At the other end, Wardley came closest to equalizing when Churchley managed to get a glancing header onto a long-range shot to deflect it off target. The bounce defeated Wilkinson as he dived and the ball struck the upright. With the keeper on the ground, the forward following-in shot wide. Despite playing over five minutes of injury time, Brazil managed to hang on to their lead, meaning that they have now won two games in a row (going back to the end of last season); their best sequence for over two years.

2003/04 Season Summary

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Tyneside Amateur League Division 2: 10th
NFA Minor Cup: 1st Round
North East Amateur Shield: 1st Round
John Hampson Memorial Trophy: Semi Final

Player of the Year: Steve Toms (5 moms)
Players’ Player of the Year: Ewan Paterson
Top Goalscorer: Les Goodliff (6 goals)
Most Appearances: Dave Churchley and Gary Davison (26 apps, 100%)

Players used: 35

IJLW Brazil 3 – 2 Proctor & Gamble Cobalt

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24/04/2004
Tyneside Amateur League Division 2

IJLW Brazil
Wilkinson, Davison, Churchley, Walker, Kennedy, Paterson, Hinks, Greenwood, Robinson, Smith, Bull.

Up on the hill in Winlaton, the conditions were perfect for watching football, as Brazil attracted their largest home crowd of the season. With bottom place guaranteed, Brazil still had plenty to play for: any result better than a two goal defeat would ensure that Brazil didn’t finish with the worst defensive record in the league; and a win by three or more goals would mean that Brazil didn’t have the worst goal difference in the league.

Brazil got the perfect start when skipper Dave Churchley beat the P&G captain at the toss and ensured that Brazil would enjoy the small advantage given by the bright sun, as it headed westwards in the second half. The actual match started well too, with Brazil taking the lead in the second minute. A swift passing move culminated with Steve Robinson, making the most of his free role, receiving a perfectly weighted return pass from Matty Bull before deftly lifting the ball over the keeper (who went to ground a little too quickly) with his left foot. Raucous celebrations ensued, despite exactly half of Brazil’s fans not even noticing that a goal had been scored! For the next quarter of an hour, the home side were dominant but failed to extend their lead. After that, P&G, to their credit, worked themselves back into the game, but didn’t really threaten the Brazil goal.

Brazil were defending solidly with the dependable full backs, Mark Kennedy and Gary Davison, both having very good games and the centre backs, Churchley and Bryan Walker, dealing with P&G’s two-man strike force relatively comfortably. Andy Greenwood and Jon Hinks were at the centre of most of Brazil’s moves and always made themselves available to receive a pass. Paul Smith and Ewan Paterson, whose form has been revitalised in recent weeks, were providing good support to both the attack and defence, from their positions on the flanks. When the hosts were in possession, they were bravely committing a lot of men into their attacks, as they sensed the weakness in the P&G defence. This sometimes left Brazil vulnerable to counter attacks but the defence, led by Churchley, were good enough to deal with the threat. P&G did draw level before half time though. A deflected header from a corner wrong footed Lee Wilkinson just enough for him to be unable to reach it. The defender on the line had left his post, allowing the ball to bounce gently over the line.

The turn around after the break did the visitors no favours. They were playing into the sun against a lively confident side. It was when Wilkinson had the ball in his hands that the sun played its biggest part. The young goalkeeper’s huge kicks caused immense trouble for the P&G centre backs and Bull was gambling on them missing the ball. On several occasions he was just inches from getting on the end of one before it bounced through to P&G’s keeper.

As the second half progressed it was clear to all who the better team was, despite their relative league positions. Brazil made their superiority tell when they regained the lead through a well-taken Bull penalty, following an absurd handball just inside the area. Moments later Bull could have double the advantage when he intercepted a poor goal kick. Bull was to grab a second just a couple of minutes after that when another weak goal kick forced an equally poor back pass which he latched onto and slotted past the keeper.

The Brazil goal was rarely threatened but Wilkinson was forced to back peddle quickly and tip a good attempted lob over the bar. P&G looked at their most dangerous when they had an attacking throw-in. They put a lot of bodies in the box and attempted a long throw but one of Walker and Churchley was always in the right place to head clear.

Brazil had chances to claim their targeted three-goal victory (the best was created by a low Paterson cross from the right which Hinks dummied allowing Smith to shoot from close range) but a dubious penalty gave P&G a second goal and set up a tense last ten minutes. Brazil held on for their first home win of the season, thanks in part to Churchley heading away a couple of shots and to P&G’s substitute squandering their best chance.

Andy Greenwood showed glimpses of the true talent he possesses, in the second half, and this was enough to earn him the man of the match award.

The Bush Wallsend 4 – 2 IJLW Brazil

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17/04/2004
Tyneside Amateur League Division 2

IJLW Brazil
Wilkinson, Davison, Churchley, Kennedy, Paterson, McGowan, Hinks, Harrison, Slack, Thompson, Goodliff.

It was top versus bottom at Norham Community College, with The Bush needing just a draw in order to clinch the division 2 title. Brazil made a couple of enforced changes, following their excellent midweek performance, most notably playing with just three defenders.

Neither side created any early openings although the home side did look the most likely. Brazil were defending well but did look quite stretched on several occasions. Their attacks were limited to quick breaks and long, wind-assisted, balls over the top from Lee Wilkinson. With half an hour gone, The Bush had the first meaningful shot at goal. Wilkinson, diving to his right, pushed the ball against the post and Dave Churchley was the quickest to react in the box and he scrambled it behind for a corner. The well-delivered corner was unfortunatley headed into his own goal by a Brazil player, under heavy pressure from two attackers. Brazil reacted well to going behind though, and got back into the game almost immediately. Wilkinson’s goal kick cleared The Bush’s left back allowing Ewan Paterson to run clear. His volleyed cross found Chris Thompson’s run perfectly and the young striker confidently lobbed the keeper with a header to register his first goal for Brazil.

Some good work from Peter Slack and Les Goodliff, on the left wing, allowed Jonny McGowan to break into the box. Just as he was about to shoot the ball got caught up under his feet. Slack kept up his fine run of goalscoring form in controversial fashion. His corner from the right was dropped, by the keeper, onto the shoulder of a defender and bounced over the line before being cleared by another defender. Despite the protests, the goal stood and Slack claimed it. Brazil felt that they deserved the lead but it wasn’t to last long. Just before the interval, they conceded a soft goal as Brazil’s markers in the box stood too far off their men to allow an easy finish from close range.

In the second half, to combat the threat of the wind, Brazil made a tactical change. Mark Kennedy and Gary Davison were assigned man-marking jobs on The Bush’s strikers (which they both carried out excellently) and Churchley dropped off to play as an out and out sweeper. This seemed to work well with the Brazil skipper free to clear numerous long balls.

When Brazil managed to get the ball on the ground, they played some attractive passing moves, all over the pitch, with McGowan and Jon Hinks nearly always involved somewhere. Playing into the wind though, the visitors had to concentrate on defending and trying to hit The Bush on the counter attack.

The Bush looked dangerous with every corner, as the delivery was always superb, and it was from one from the right that they regained the lead. It was headed goalwards but Davison headed off the line at the back post only for the referee to claim that it had crossed the line. The Bush players, obviously delighted, were as bemused as Brazil. Another soft goal gave The Bush the lead that looked likely to win them the match (and, with it, the league) when a quickly taken, short free kick caught the Brazil midfield napping and allowed the league’s top scorer to line up an unstoppable shot into the bottom corner.

The score could have been more convincing but for several excellent saves by Wilkinson and Churchley (with his head), but it wasn’t all one way. Brazil had chances too. A long run by Mark Harrison took him to just inside the left edge of the penalty area where his heel was clipped. Being the honest player he is, he remained on his feet but lost the ball just before he could get a shot off. Goodliff’s pace easily outstripped that of the defenders, following Paterson’s neat pass down the line. As he got to the goal line, Goodliff pulled the ball back, taking the advancing keeper out of the game, but a defender got to it just ahead of Davison, who had run the entire length of the pitch to join the attack. Brazil’s last chance came when Hinks was bundled over just inches outside the area. Goodliff’s low free kick was fumbled by the keeper who managed to reclaim it just as Thompson was closing in on him. Wilkinson was the man of the match, perhaps decided by a fantastic diving save to his left from a fiercely struck volley, late on.

With Proctor & Gamble’s trip to Blyth ending in a 4-1 defeat, it’s all set up for the last match of the season (in Winlaton, on Saturday 24/04/2004) to see who will concede the most goals in the league.

IJLW Brazil 1 – 2 Killingworth Social YPC

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14/04/2004
Tyneside Amateur League Division 2

IJLW Brazil
McClure, Davison, Churchley, Walker, Kennedy, Paterson, McGowan, Hinks, Greenwood, Slack, Thompson.

As it was an evening match, this home fixture for Brazil was switched to Social’s ground so that their floodlight facilities would be available, if needed. The playing surface was in perfect condition which made for a good game as both sides like to pass the ball around along the ground.

Social, playing in red, dominated the possession in the first half but Brazil were defending excellently throughout the team. The hosts (who were technically the away side) were passing and moving nicely but couldn’t break down the Brazil defence, as every player was taking responsibility for their man. When Brazil did gain possession they struggled to break into the attacking third of the pitch, partly because of the wind and partly because of Social’s high defensive line. Their first half chances were restricted to long shots from Andy Greenwood and Dave Churchley, which the keeper dealt with comfortably.

A clumsy challenge by Brazil’s full back gifted Social the lead from the penalty spot (which was only nine yards from goal, giving Mike McClure no chance of saving it). The one occasion a midfield runner broke unmarked into the box he met a left wing cross to give the reds a two goal lead at the break.

Brazil began to settle a couple of minutes into the second half and the majority of the game was being played around the halfway line. Greenwood, Jonny McGowan and Jon Hinks were starting to see more of the ball and Brazil were using both flanks well as they tried to build their attacks. The game opened right up when Brazil were awarded a free kick on the half way line. Bryan Walker’s ball into the box was only half-cleared as far as Greenwood. His view of goal was obscured by the big Social centre back but he managed to find Peter Slack towards the lefthand edge of the penalty area. Slack’s first touch took the ball away from a defender and he steadied himself before chipping the advancing keeper with his left foot. This was Brazil’s first goal against Social, in their fifth meeting.

Social rallied well and started to take the initiative back away from Brazil but they never really managed to break down the defence. They were all strong aerially, Walker and Mark Kennedy were always strong in the tackle and Churchley made numerous interceptions. Gary Davison managed to read an attempted nutmeg by the left winger and played an accurate pass up the line to Greenwood. A neat first touch beat his marker and then he outsprinted the defender to get round the back. Unfortunately, his attempted cross was on his weaker right foot.

Chris Thompson was running selflessly as the lone striker for Brazil and his efforts almost paid off as he finally managed to beat the offside trap. (The linesman supplied by the hosts put his flag up every time the ball went beyond the defence and the inexperienced referee blew up every time.) Thompson’s clever attempt at a lob looked goalbound until the substitute keeper managed to pull off a superb save. Slack took the resulting corner and Walker headed down to Hinks who couldn’t quite get on top of the bouncing ball. His shot just cleared the cross bar.

At the other end, McClure was growing in confidence as a goalkeeper. He dealt comfortably with everything that got beyond the defence. His handling was good, he came off his line quickly and he punched clear a couple of corners. Looking solid at the back, Brazil pushed forward in search of an equaliser. A slick passing move between Hinks and Ewan Paterson sent the little winger clear on the right. His first cross was blocked but he regained possession and pulled the ball back to Greenwood whose shot was just too high. Brazil had a freekick in the centre circle and, as Walker approached to take it, Churchley peeled off wide, away from his marker, to give him a better angle to deliver it. Walker spotted his run and picked him out perfectly. Churchley, the man of the match, headed powerfully towards the far post. The keeper was beaten but the ball bounced up and struck the crossbar. With time running out, Greenwood was pushed up front, alongside Thompson, and Brazil had another chance of an equaliser. Greenwood broke free beyond the defence and tried his luck from long range when he could perhaps have taken it closer.

Support a team mate…
Brazil striker, Paul Smith’s band is playing live at Bulletproof on Friday night (16/04/2004). They are called Maximo Park and this could be your last chance to see them before they hit the big time.

IJLW Brazil 1 – 3 South Beach

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20/03/2004
Tyneside Amateur League Division 2

IJLW Brazil
Carr, Davison, Churchley, Greenshields, Kennedy, Paterson, McGowan, Hinks, Harrison (Crabtree 65), Goodliff, Smith.

It was so windy in Winlaton that the game had to be played without corner flags. Brazil played the first ten minutes with ten men because Ian Greenshields, playing only his second home match, got lost behind the Metro Centre. South Beach used their early numerical advantage well and took the lead after a couple of minutes. Once parity of numbers was established, the game became quite even. Les Goodliff had Brazil’s first real effort on goal (his shot from just outside the area was just wide of the far post) but it was the visitors who were next to score.

After half an hour, Goodliff gave Brazil some hope as he pulled a goal back. After receiving Ewan Paterson’s short pass, he used his strength to bounce off a defender before firing in a fierce low shot. It clipped the inside of the post on its way into the net, leaving the keeper helplessly sprawled on the wet ground. Brazil had chances to score again before the interval but failed to take them. Some good work between Goodliff and Paul Smith left the latter with an opportunity but he scuffed his shot, allowing the keeper to make a comfortable save. A Paterson corner from the left was flicked on by both Mark Harrison and Jon Hinks before finding its way to Goodliff at the back post. His shot was blocked by a defender but he managed to collect the rebound and lay off a short pass to Dave Churchley who was unmarked at the edge of the box. The skipper had a chance to score against South Beach for the second time this season but he slipped as he shot, sending the ball just off target. Another Paterson corner, this time from the right, gave Brazil the last chance of the half as Paul Smith’s acrobatic volley was cleared off the line by a defender.

In the second half, conditions deteriorated and no-one would have been surprised if the referee had decided to abandon the match. He didn’t though, and Brazil found it very hard going to make any progress out of their own half. Man of the match, Jonny McGowan was instigating most of Brazil’s positive moves. He was always ready to receive the ball and play simple passes to try to retain what little possession his side had. Despite South Beach’s dominance, Matt Carr, making his debut in goal for Brazil, only had a couple of saves to make.

When Brazil did manage to break, there was a lot of open space in South Beach’s half. Paterson exploited this space with a fantastic, defence-splitting through ball from the right wing into Goodliff’s path. He shot wide. South Beach scored a third which effectively ended Brazil’s hopes of a comeback.

As the wind speed increased, Brazil attempted to counteract the long ball over the top by playing the offside trap with a very high defensive line. The trap failed on two occasions, leaving South Beach’s two strikers clean through on goal: The first time, Carr came out to meet them and made a fine save; on the second occasion the striker took the ball around Carr but Churchley sprinted back and managed to make a sliding block on the line. The visitor’s came closest to scoring a fourth when their right back tried his luck from the half-way line. His audacious wind-assisted effort pinged off the top of the crossbar.

Ollie Crabtree made an appearance in the second half, making him Brazil’s 35th player used in competitive games this season. This squad inconsistency is widely regarded as the root of Brazil’s problems this season. The defeat to South Beach, who are second bottom of the league, guarantees Brazil a last place finish, with three matches remaining to salvage some pride.

IJLW Brazil 0 – 6 Westerhope CC

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13/03/2004
Tyneside Amateur League Division 2

IJLW Brazil
Wilkinson, Henderson, Churchley, Walker, Davison, Moore, Paterson, Hinks, Haigh, Bull, Smith.

A young Westerhope side, that are almost certainties for promotion, were just too strong for a below-par Brazil team that only just managed to get eleven men on the pitch. Right from the start, the visitors were in total control and soon took the lead. They scored again on 20 minutes, after Lee Wilkinson had made a couple of good saves. The closest Brazil came in the first half was from two long-range free-kicks, where Matty Bull forced the goalkeeper into making decent stops. Despite the one-sidedness of the contest, there were no more goals in the first period.

Brazil were struggling to get into the game in all areas of the pitch: they were isolated up front, stretched in midfield and outnumbered in defence. At times in the second half, the hosts were defending very well as a team but it always seemed as if Westerhope had an extra player. The four goals they scored in the second half could have been a lot more, if it wasn’t for some good blocks by Dave Churchley and Jon Hinks and some more good saves by, man of the match, Wilkinson (especially as Brazil played the last quarter of an hour with just ten men after Shaun Haigh had to go off with an ankle injury).

IJLW Brazil 1 – 2 Wardley

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21/02/2004
North East Amateur Challenge Shield 1st Round

IJLW Brazil
Wilkinson, Davison, Churchley, Kennedy (Robinson 75), Haigh, Hinks, McGowan, Greenwood, Mitchell (Thompson 60), Bull, Smith.

The early kick off time meant that Brazil had to start the match with just ten men. This gave Wardley the early advantage but the hosts battled well and the arrival of Jonny McGowan, after five minutes, gave them a boost. Wardley saw a lot of the ball but struggled to break through Brazil’s well organised defence. On the couple of occasions that Wardley did manage to get the ball beyond Brazil’s defence, Dave Churchley was always there to clear the danger. This enabled Brazil to play some quick counter-attacking football and they had a lot of dangerous breaks that were only stopped by the dubious offside flag of the referee’s assistant (Wardley’s manager).

By mid-way through the half, Brazil were dominating the match so it was no surprise when they took the lead. Matty Bull took full advantage of a poor defensive clearance as he hit a left-footed, 25 yard volley dipping, over the keeper, into the top corner. Before the break, Brazil very nearly doubled their advantage when Andy Greenwood’s corner was powerfully headed just wide of the post by Churchley.

The early chances of the second half all fell to Brazil and they should have put the result beyond any doubt. Paul Smith managed to beat the offside trap, and find himself one-on-one with the big Wardley goalkeeper, only for his attempted nutmeg to be blocked by the keeper’s feet. Two minutes later, Shaun Haigh picked up the ball on the half way line and set off on a great run deep into Wardley territory. After beating a couple of players he too just had the keeper to beat. Again, the keeper’s feet kept the ball out. Brazil’s third one-on-one in ten minutes fell to Tom Mitchell, after some good football had been played in the build up. Mitchell recovered the ball after the keeper’s feet had blocked his shot and played a nice square pass into Greenwood’s path. Greenwood didn’t give the keeper any chance of being a hero as he lifted the ball over the crossbar.

Brazil were soon rueing their missed chances as Wardley scored a spectacular, if not somewhat fortunate, equalizer, as a 40 yard punt forward just fell under the crossbar. Brazil should have been back in front minutes later but Greenwood’s breakaway goal was incorrectly disallowed for offside. At the other end, Wardley nearly took an undeserved lead when their shaggy-haired captain got clean through on goal. Lee Wilkinson managed to hold him up long enough for Churchley to get into a covering position and deny his opposition counterpart with a clearance off the line.

As the final quarter of an hour approached, the big talking point of the match occurred. Wardley’s striker was being shepherded away from goal but managed to finagle a penalty as he stumbled. The spot kick was well despatched into the corner but several Wardley players were in the area as it was taken. The goal was allowed to stand as Brazil’s protests fell on deaf ears. Brazil tried to force the game into extra time with some late efforts but they had already missed the best of their chances. Bull and Smith combined well to get to the edge of the box but the shot was blocked. McGowan met Greenwood’s corner but his header was saved comfortably. Bull hit a powerful left-footed shot on the turn but the angle was against him and the keeper was able to parry. Brazil’s goal scorer was, however, rewarded for his fine performance with the man of the match award.

Wardley 2 – 4 IJLW Brazil

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14/02/2004
Tyneside Amateur League Division 2

IJLW Brazil
Wilkinson, Davison, Churchley, Walker, Kennedy (Slack 70), Gurney, Paterson, Hinks, Mitchell, Haigh, Bull.

Brazil got off to a nightmare start and could have conceded twice inside the first two minutes. For the first quarter of an hour, they were sloppy in all departments but they gradually managed to feel their way into the game. As their confidence grew, they began to pass the ball around and create some problems for the Wardley defence. The home side were still dominating possession though and, down their left flank, they were causing particular problems for Brazil. Brazil’s defenders made some important challenges and interceptions (both Mark Kennedy and Dave Churchley made last-ditch tackles to prevent shots) and Lee Wilkinson carried on where he had left off last week, with some good, confident goalkeeping.

As the game progressed, Brazil were looking increasingly threatening as they attacked. A good move culminated in Shaun Haigh’s low cross from the left being tucked away neatly by Matty Bull. A couple of minutes later, Bull turned provider as he played a magnificent 40 yard pass into the path of Ben Gurney, who made no mistake in doubling the visitors’ lead. Brazil completed their best 10 minutes of the season when Gurney struck his second. It was a first-time left-footed shot from 25 yards out and it sailed over the keeper and curled into the top corner. Brazil went into the half-time break with a three goal advantage and were extremely confident of gaining their first league points of the season.

Wardley started the second period well and were looking dangerous down their right wing. Brazil’s whole team was working hard to keep them out but the home side did eventually pull a goal back. Wardley could have found themselves right back in the game if it wasn’t for some desperate defending. There were several goalmouth scrambles, Churchley blocked a couple of shots and Ewan Paterson twice headed off the line at the back post. During this time, Wilkinson really made his presence felt as he came confidently for crosses and pulled off a couple of excellent saves to earn his man of the match award.

After this period of intense pressure, Brazil then had a good spell themselves. Bull was clean through but the Wardley keeper managed to tip his shot round the post. Bull did then score, from Hinks’s defence-splitting pass, but the goal was incorrectly ruled out for offside. Gurney had a thumping shot pushed onto the post by the diving goalkeeper. The best move of the match, in which Brazil calmly passed the ball all around the pitch without a Wardley player getting near it, ended in a good shot by Haigh which forced the keeper into a full-stretch dive. Brazil made their domination pay as Gurney’s corner was powerfully headed against the bar by Bryan Walker and Hinks was on hand to tap in and put the result beyond doubt.

Wardley did score a second but, despite a couple of late chances, never really looked like getting back into the game. This result was a great confidence boost for Brazil as they look to get off the bottom of the table in the last third of the season. These two sides will meet again on Saturday, in the North East Amateur Challenge Shield, but, due to the unavailability of several players, it looks like it will be a very different Brazil side.