06/12/2003
Tyneside Amateur League Division 2

IJLW Brazil
Andrew, Davison, Churchley, M McClure, Kennedy, Slack, Paterson, Clark, Mitchell, Haigh, Harrison.

The match began with both sides getting a lot of possession in midfield but not managing to penetrate the defences. The visitors, who were top of the league going in to the match, saw more of the ball but Brazil, with five men working hard across the midfield, have become harder to break down in recent weeks. This again seemed to be the case as The Bush struggled to create any early chances. In fact it was the home team that broke the deadlock with the best goal of the match. Brazil won possession on the half way line and broke quickly. Shaun Haigh played a superb cross field pass to Paul Clark who spotted striker Mark Harrison’s run into the box. Clark’s cross was perfect and Harrison brought the ball down with his first touch and hammered it into the back of the net with his second.

Going behind served to spur the league leaders into action and they committed more men forward in their attacks. Brazil’s defence was tackling well but chances were beginning to come for The Bush. The equaliser came on 35 minutes and five minutes later Brazil were a goal behind. The result could have been decided by half time but for a couple of excellent saves by Al Andrew.

The second half was a lot more open. The Bush were still dominating but Brazil looked dangerous as they counter attacked. Harrison broke clear but could not see Peter Slack unmarked at the far post as he tried to go it alone. Andrew pulled off a couple more saves and Dave Churchley won a lot as the last defender, to prevent a shot on goal.

Clark and Slack, the man of the match, linked up well several times down Brazil’s right flank but each time the move broke down before a chance was created. Twice Haigh made excellent runs with the ball and broke free for a one-on-one with the keeper but both times he failed to hit the target. His first attempt even failed to reach the goal line and almost turned into a good pass for Tom Mitchell but he was just beaten to it by a defender.

The Bush’s third goal, from a good corner routine, secured the victory before a late final goal flattered them a little. It came from a mix-up between goalkeeper and defender when either one could have dealt with the situation on their own.

Next week’s match, at home to Ryton Reserves, is the last this year so everyone’s support would be welcomed, not least because Ryton are the team who have already broken Chris Toward’s nose and ended Paul Belcher’s playing career this season.