Brooksby Melton College. A hive of activity. Wed 12th October 2016

Wednesday 12th October 2016
English Colleges Football League
Kick off at 12.30pm at Brooksby Melton College
Mansfield Town (Brooksby Melton College) (3) 6
Easton & Otley College (0) 0

Mansfield Town Brooksby Melton College:
Ryan Lewis, Jack Beasley, Ben Browne, Ollie Humphrey, Tyler Johal, Justin Trow, Sam Grouse, Reece Lefley, Lewis Matthews, Rheiss McLean, Josh Paskell
Subs - Myles Saxton, Jacob Toon, Harry Johnson, Edward Heginbotham

A delayed kick off, due to traffic congestion, that had caused the visitors to take over three and a half hours to reach their destination at Brooksby, also meant that the away team arrived just in time to coincide with the heavy rainfall that had been very accurately forecast for early afternoon.
As the handful of players parents and spectators headed under the trees to seek shelter from the downpour, it was the home side who dealt with the conditions best from the outset and after settling into their rhythm took the lead on ten minutes, when Sam Grouse struck home an angled shot from just outside the visitors area.
Grouse was causing a lot of problems for the Stags East Anglian visitors and after twenty two minutes, his shot was deflected into the path of  Jake Toon who guided the ball into the net for goal number two.

Within three minutes Ben Browne added a third when he spanked the ball into the bottom left hand corner of the goal from twenty five yards.
Tyler Johal went close twice and 10 threatened again but saw his effort narrowly clear the bar, while Easton & Otley didn't really offer very much in the way.
HT: 3-0
The second half carried on pretty much in the same vein as the first and the home sides lead was extended to four nil, when Justin Trowe headed home Ollie Humprey's left wing cross after fifty four minutes.
Johal moved the ball from his left foot to his right but saw his shot go narrowly wide of the right hand post.

But moments later the match referee Carl Henry awarded Simon Ward's side a penalty and Johal put the game beyond the visitors lead on sixty seven minutes.
With nine minutes remaining Browne's right wing corner evaded a scrum of players crowded into the six yard box, but found Ollie Humphrey at the back post, who stooped forward to head the ball through the most improbable and narrow of gaps.
Both teams had chances in the closing minutes, but with the contrary weather now bathing the college grounds in bright sunshine, there was to be no further scoring as the Brooksby side record an emphatic home win.
FT: Mansfield Town B.M.C. 6 v Easton & Otley College 0

Photo Gallery LINK for both of these games.

Wednesday 12th October 2016
National League U19 Alliance League Cup
Kick off 14.25pm at Brooksby Melton College
Mansfield Town U19 (0) 3
Ellis Williamson 62,
Alistair Smith 67,
Sam Jackson 79
Farsley Celtic U19 (0) 1
Brandon Hughes 85

Mansfield Town:
Alex Roughton, Cameron Weston, Jordan Wells, Surafel Behailu, John Fragakis, Max Hunt (C), Jacob Dumbleton, Charlie Shaw, Ellis Williamson, Alistair Smith, Cameron Jones
Subs - Sam Jackson, Adam Swain, Regan Nairn, Lewis Gibbons, Joe Christopher
Farsley Celtic:
Dan Crook, Kieran Watson, Brandon Hughes, Dan Bambrook, Nathan Hawkhead, Harvey Booth (C), Luke Gibson, Junior Piba, Jordan Hobson, Danny Edwards, Jack McGahan
Subs - Daniel Kanga, Azi Gattulan

The home side mounted the first attack of the game, when Cam Jones threaded a great pass through the visitors defence for Jacob Dumbleton to run onto, but the referee's assistant, a chap going by the name of Morgan Ratcliffe who looked very familiar from somewhere, raised his flag and decreed that Dumbleton had strayed offside when the ball was played.
The game was closely contested as the first half picked up momentum and the visitors from West Yorkshire were keeping Cameron Weston busy down their left flank, as Brandon Hughes and Jack McGahan attacked in tandem, while Luke Gibson and Jordan Hobson, teamed up to threaten John Fragakis and the Stags captain Max Hunt down the middle.
But although the 'Villagers' had obviously decided that attack was the best form of defence, the home side were proving to be a tough nut to crack.

McGahan put on an extra burst of pace and found himself with just Alex Roughton to beat, but the Stags keeper had closed down the options available to the visitors wide man quickly and he rushed his shot wide of the upright.
Meanwhile, the Stags countered from the goal kick and Dumbleton's dipping shot wasn't far away, as it skimmed over the crossbar.
Weston caught McGahan with a mistimed challenge, but from the resulting free kick Gibson put the ball wide, when he had better options available to him.
Fragakis got a touch from Nathan Hawkhead's shot and took the sting out of it for Roughton who gathered the ball easily.

Ali Smith exchanged passes with Surafel Behailu, to make space for Charlie Shaw to advance into the area where he passed sideways to Ellis Williamson, whose shot was blocked on the line.
On the stroke of half time McGahan delivered a cross in towards Jordan Hobson, who was thwarted by Roughton's save from close range.
HT: 0-0
Mansfield had started the first half on the back foot, but after their half time team talk, they recommenced the game with an all guns blazing, shoot on sight approach.

Dan Crook did well to get down and push Smith's shot round the post and from Charlie Shaw's corner kick, Max Hunt was unlucky to see his header narrowly miss the target.
Shaw released Jones down the left flank and having taken two defenders with him, turned and knocked the ball back for Jordan Wells to deliver the ball into the six yard box, where it dropped narrowly wide of the upright.
Dumbleton picked up the ball on the right, before advancing forward and delivering a cross, that held up in the wind before dropping onto the roof of the net.
Although the Stags had dominated the first fifteen minutes of the second half, Farsley still looked dangerous whenever they broke forward and as if t prove such a point, when Hunt scooped the ball away from the home sides goalmouth, Dan Bambrook chased it down and crashed a shot past the right hand upright.

Sam Jackson was careering around the fringes of Celtic's area like a whirlwind and the threaded a great pass into the path of Williamson who was denied from twenty yards by another good stop from Crook. As Farsley tried to clear their lines, Ali Smith intercepted the ball and nudged it forward to Williamson, who opened the scoring from ten yards.
Hunt went close again,towering above the Farsley defence but heading over from Shaw's free kick, after Weston had been fouled.
Anticipating their hosts would be looking for a second goal to give themselves some breathing space, the Villagers packed their area, so when Smith picked up the ball just outside the box, he shot first time, allowing the ball to bounce in front of the already unsighted Farsley keeper. A clever goal to give the home side a two goal cushion.

With Farsley having to commit men forward to chase the game, Scott Rickards shuffled his pack, using his available substitutes well, while switching Jones from the left flank to the right.
The fine tuning paid off almost immediately, when Lewis Gibbons won the ball in the visitors area and slipped it to Jackson, who danced past three challenges before drilling a shot into the bottom right hand corner.
Farsley played to the whistle as Fragakis laid injured in the Stags penalty area and Hughes hooked the ball into the back of the net with five minutes remaining.

Hawkhead tripped Smith just outside the area and the industrious midfielder dusted himself down and opted to take the free kick... but his initial shot rebounded back too him off of the visitors defensive wall and his second one flew high and wide of the goal.
Shaw and Gibbons mounted a stoppage time attack but Crook came off of his line to gather the ball safely.
FT: Stags U19 3 v Farsley Celtic U19 1