Devon St Lukes Challenge Cup
Axminster Town 0
Tiverton Town 3 (Thompson 6, 38, Crawford pen 23)
Tuesday, September 24 . Tiger Way . 7.30pm
TIVVY made their bow in this season's St Luke's Bowl away at Axminster Town. Our South West Peninsula League opponents have an impressive set-up and were excellent hosts.
The Yellows rested centre-forward Joe Parker and the very much in-form Dylan Jones; Asa Hall was given the night off as he was waiting to become a dad again; and injury kept Mike Baker and Tor Swann out of this fixture. This gave opportunities for others to stake claims for starting places and, to three of Tiverton’s Under-18 side, a chance to gain experience and shine.
The team quickly assumed possession of the football and patiently built an early foothold in the game, which was cemented as early as the sixth minute when a lofted ball down the left channel was taken up by Theo Jeremy. He went beyond a couple of the Tigers’ players and reached the bye-line before pulling the ball back to the edge of the area where the supporting Niall Thompson emphatically fired home into the corner of the goal.
Tiverton continued to knit play together well. A Jay Murray effort was pounced on by the Axminster goalkeeper, then Ryan Crawford fired past the upright from inside the box. Murray then fluffed his lines when the ball came to him about 10 yards out with the goalkeeper out of position.
Crawford extended our lead, when the referee awarded a penalty after he was fouled in the 23rd minute; he got up to take and convert the spot kick. Axminster mounted a few decent attacks and had some individually talented players, but their moves often broke down in the final third as Zak Baker was a bystander. However, the Yellows, in the main, had ownership of the ball.
In the 37th minute, following almost a carbon copy of the move that saw us go in front, Jeremy carried the ball to the bye-line, but this time passed short to Murray who turned the ball back to Thompson on the edge of the box and his powerful finish saw us three goals to the good.
Just before the break, Jeremy hit the outside of the post and, as the sides headed for the dressing-room, the Yellows were comfortable.
Tivvy continued to impose themselves on their hosts when we restarted and Jeff Forkuo’s blistering shot that flashed wide served warning of our relentless threat on the evening. Forkuo was a big influence for Tivvy in the second half, showing good vision and putting his foot on the ball to often set the tempo of our play.
A couple of substitutions on 55 minutes, saw the introduction of two Tiverton Under-18s, Riley Davis and Sunny Webber, who replaced Ben Gerring and captain Matt Britton.
Yet another good chance came and went as the Tigers’ ’keeper smothered a Farren Simons effort from point-blank range.
A rare Axminster attack almost saw them pull a goal back, but the intervention of Davis snuffed out the danger and, minutes later, Webber and Davis’s assured play combined to good effect to scupper the home side’s thoughts of getting back into the game. Both Under-18s were tidy in possession, defensively aware, and slotted in well.
They were then joined by fellow youth team player Elis Aldrich as Murray was replaced. Forkuo linked up well with Aldrich and Sam Gleeson with probing interplay, Aldrich showing good close control as we bombed forward. A very good delivery from a corner from Simons was met by Webber, who made a good connection with a header, but saw his effort just clear the bar.
A wicked cross-shot from Simons drew an important parry from Axminster’s No.1, who gave a good account of himself during the evening. A string of corners were then forced by the Yellows but, although Crawford was denied again by the ’keeper from close in, there was no further addition to the scoreline.
Plenty of promise from our Under-18s, as Webber and Davis were impressively very switched on and confidently retained possession with calmness under pressure. Aldrich was bright when he was introduced and showed good footwork and ability in tight spaces, being aware of the runners and movement around him.
The floodgates never quite opened, but, apart from emphasising their dominance by being more clinical, Tivvy’s play was fluent and the result was never really in doubt.
A worthwhile workout for the team as their thoughts now turn to the weekend with the arrival of early Pitching In Southern League Premier Division South pacesetters Gloucester City, lying in fourth place.
On paper, our three-game winning run will be hard to add to, but Leigh Robinson’s men have momentum and should have belief, too, come 3pm on Saturday.
Yellows: Z Baker, Thompson, Gerring, J Jones, Gleeson, Britton, Forkuo, Simons, Murray, Jeremy, Crawford. Substitutes: Wright, Davis, Webber, Aldrich.
Comments