15/11/2003
Tyneside Amateur League Division 2
IJLW Brazil
Andrew, Davison, Churchley, M McClure (Gurney 65), Kennedy, Paterson, Belcher, Clark, Mitchell (Peake 75), Harrison, Bull.
The muddy pitch and windy conditions were not suited to Brazil’s flowing style of football, however it was the visitors that made the better start, enjoying a lot of the early possession. Just a couple of minutes into the game a nasty late tackle on Paul Belcher set the tone for what was to come. Belcher inflamed the situation by retaliating with a dangerous two-footed lunge but the referee didn’t seem to mind the seriousness of the fouls. It took a goal to calm the game down, although there were still several unnecessary fouls, mainly committed by the home side.
The opening goal came when Ryton cleared a corner only as far as Mark Kennedy. His hard, low drive into the box was cleverly diverted past the fat goalkeeper by Ewan Paterson. Ryton responded well and Brazil’s game seemed to drop off slightly. It wasn’t long before a quick counter attack from a Brazil corner resulted in an easy equalizer. Brazil could have gone back ahead, again from a corner, but Dave Churchley’s powerful left-footed volley was diverted away from the top corner by Paterson’s inappropriately positioned head.
Two more counter attacks gave Ryton a 3-1 lead at the interval.
Brazil upped their game slightly in the second half but it was still the home side that were creating more chances. Al Andrew was finding it difficult to hold onto the ball in the swirling wind but he made a number of good blocks. On one occasion he fell back into the net as he stopped the ball on the line. Churchley reacted quickly and managed to get to the ball just ahead of the Ryton striker, who fouled him as he cleared. A few minutes later, the same striker was sent clear by a ball over the top. Andrew managed to delay his shot as the forward rounded him and thought he had an open goal. As he looked up though he realised that Churchley had got back. The visiting captain then made a goal-saving tackle before he could shoot.
Brazil’s injured full back, Anand Charge, said of his skipper, “… just consistently the best player on the team …”.
Debutant Ben Gurney had an excellent chance to bring Brazil back into the game when man of the match Paul Clark sent him clear. He appeared to rush his shot though and dragged it wide of the post. The result was virtually beyond doubt when Ryton scored their fourth with ten minutes to go.
The last ten minutes were scrappy with more dangerous tackles being committed, particularly by Ryton’s centre back. After his fourth in three minutes (all possible worthy of a red card on their own), the referee had a quiet word with him. With five minutes remaining, a collision between Churchley and Kennedy, on the edge of the Brazil box, momentarily knocked out Brazil’s skipper and left him with a dull headache for the next three days. As the game came to a close, with just twenty seconds left on the clock, Belcher was the victim of yet another unacceptable challenge. It was late, vicious, over the ball and deliberate and left Belcher with a broken leg and dislocated ankle. The culprit, Ryton’s centre back was finally dismissed and the game was abandoned. Due to league rules, however, the result will stand as more than 70 minutes of play had elapsed.
Luckily for Belcher, Gurney and Mark Harrison are practising medical doctors and they took charge of the situation immediately. They reduced his ankle and made a temporary splint from some wood and tape. There was a risk that he could have lost his foot had they not done this, as the ambulance took so long to arrive. Belcher has since had an operation and is currently waiting for the swelling to go down before he can get plastered and go home.