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9th December 2006

Super display makes it a happy Christmas

Boots 2nd XI 2 Coalville Town 2nd XI 5

DTZ 2nd XI East Midlands Division One

Town turned in a scintillating show to destroy a Boots team struggling to stay in contention with the top group, scoring five goals in a masterly display of controlled hockey.

  This game exploded into life when Town went one up in the first minute following a superb bit of interplay between Phil Sign and Scott Meadows on the home side’s 25 metre line, with Sign feeding the ball through to Glen Marston who burst into the dee and took his chance to slide the ball between the keeper and the post for his first league goal of the season. 

A rampant Town attack made it two after five minutes when, following a penalty corner, the ball found Sign about 10 metres from goal and he had no trouble finding the net with a fierce drive. 

Further attacks rained down on the home defence but despite many attempts on goal, the home keeper was in splendid form to keep the score down. Boots gradually began to get back into the game and some skillful play but saw chances go begging, although Joel Barker needed to make a couple of good saves to keep the ball out.

However after 24 minutes and with Boots slightly on top, Town went three up but it took the typical persistence of Scott Meadows to break through. Virtually on his own up front, he harried the home defence into mistakes eventually gaining possession inside the dee to fire home an unstoppable shot from a slight angle. 

The game got a little ragged at this point with a Boots player receiving a yellow card for a nasty tackle on Stuart Jobburn, but although he and Sign were in total control of the game, another goal would not come. However Town turned around with a handsome and well deserved lead.

Despite an early hold on the second half, it was the home side that began to force things with some spirited attacks, and they managed to claw back a goal after 45 minutes as defensive mistakes began to creep in. 

For the next 10 minutes or so, it was all Boots, but the back line of Marston, Carl Marshall, Ian Wright and Steve Partner held firm, however if Boots’ disallowed goal on 50 minutes for pushing on Wright had stood, the game could have taken a different turn. 

This acted as a wake up call to Town as Sign and Jobburn regained their total grip on the game,  with the help of some strong running by Meadows on the right flank, the game was all but over. 

Sam Crowie made it four after 60 minutes when he slotted home a great pass from Jobburn to fire home his first league goal and Andy Whitby, having his best game up front for some time, made it five from a penalty corner on 65 minutes. 

Boots never gave up looking for another goal but it was Marshall and Wright, the latter with his distinctive clever play out of defence, who held the upper hand.  However with the last shot of the game, a disconsolate Boots team grabbed a second as they slid in a goal from the penalty corner which ended time.

This superb display takes Town into a commanding second spot in the league to end the first half of the season, and if they can come back and carry on where they left off they should have no trouble securing promotion at the end of the season.