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.