Handsworth Parramore 3 v Shepshed Dynamo 4 - FA Vase R1

Saturday 22nd October 2016

FA Vase First Round

at the Windsor food Services Stadium

Handsworth Parramore (1) 3
Sam Denton 28, 65, 87 pen

Shepshed Albion (1) 4
Ben Haseley 6, 72
Karl Whymark 60
Liam Read 68
Admission £5. Programme £1.50. Attendance 108
Photos from today's game: HERE

As we entered the turnstiles, a disgruntled Shepshed supporter accosted us: "They've got no bloody beer here! What use is it having a bar at a football ground if they don't sell beer? We'd have spent a fortune, we got here early and we like a good drink!"
I gave the thirsty traveller directions to a nearby public house and he was in good voice upon his return, so I can only assume that he located it without too much trouble.

The situation, as I understand it to be at the ground on Sandy Lane this season is; that the licensed premises is run by and on behalf of Worksop Town, with all of the profits from bar takings going to them.

I have no idea how the problem came about today and fully appreciate (from experience) that unpaid volunteers, with other commitments and priorities outwith the scope of non league football, do most of the time consuming behind the scenes jobs at the majority of local non league clubs, including Worksop Town. 

So I feel that I must stress at this juncture, that I am not criticising any individual or group of people here. But the Tigers will have taken a financial hit this afternoon as a consequence of there being a dry bar in the ground.

Left click to supersize

Both of these sides play at step five in the non league pyramid, where Handsworth of members of the Northern Counties East League, while Shepshed are in the Midland Football League.
The first chance of the game fell to Kieran Wells, but he steered his shot wide of the mark.
In the opening exchanges, Sam Denton took a heavy knock, but after a short break in play he was able to resume and went on to have an immense impact on the game.

Gaz Griffiths directed the ball back towards his own goal, when a sturdy clearance in the opposition direction would have been a better option. Amidst the ensuing chaos Joe Green did really well to pull off a double save, as the Dynamo players queued up to take advantage of the defensive slip, but he couldn't keep the visitors at bay a third time as Ben Haseley latched onto the loose ball and drilled it through a crowd of players into the back of the net to open the scoring after just six minutes.

Handsworth set about the task of getting back on level terms as soon as possible, but a string of chances went begging... Connor Smythe put in a great shift and covered a lot of ground, as did Tom Dugdale, but Jake Betts headed clear after the pair of them had combined to cut a swathe down the left wing and set up another chance for Wells.

Dugdale dispossessed Niall Prenderville and advanced thirty yards before releasing the ball to Jon Froggatt who put the ball over the bar from eight yards.

Wells and Froggatt combined to lay the ball out wide to Simon Harrison, who picked out Alex Rippon with a right wing cross, but his shot was charged down by Prenderville.

The referee played the advantage as Luke Fletcher was fouled in the build up and Dugdale presented Wells with another great opportunity, but his header fell inches wide of the target. 

Joe Pheasant proved to be Froggatt's nemesis twice within a matter of minutes, first blocking the prolific striker's fifteen yard shot and then clearing the ball off the line, after Froggatt had rounded Ben Gathercole as he ran from his area in a vainglorious attempt to intercept a break through the left channel,

Finally, Handsworth's pressing game paid off when Denton applied the finishing touch to Dugdale's long free kick after twenty eight minutes.

Colin Marrison was fouled on the edge of the visitors area, but when Dugdale aimed a dipping free kick towards Froggatt he headed over.

Smythe, still covering more than his fair share of ground picked out Rippon with a throw in from the left flank, but his shot on the turn was so miscued that it went out for a throw in on the opposite touchline.

HT: Ambers 1 v Dynamo 1

Handsworth had created enough chances to be home and dry by the interval, but a mixture of profligate finishing by their proven and usually reliable forward line and some timely interventions by Betts and Prenderville meant that there was still everything to play for in the second half. 

Having absorbed a lot of Handsworth pressure in the first half, Dynamo looked more solid after the restart as they slowed down the tempo of the game, which suited their playing style better than their hosts.

Ironically it was a defensive slip from Shepshed that led to their second goal, when Wells sprinted after an under-hit back pass, Gathrcole advanced from his area and launched a long clearance towards the opposite end of the pitch, Haseley helped the ball on to Karl Whymark and just seconds after being under the cosh the visitors restored their lead on the hour.

The Ambers knew they were now running a severe risk of being abruptly diverted from the road to Wembley... and they fought tooth and nail to get back on level terms and as players from both teams came together on the edge of the visitors area, the referee spotted a shoulder charge by Josh Morrall on Harrison and awarded a penalty. But Gathercole got across Froggatt's spot kick and turned the ball away.

However the home side were on level terms moments later, when Gathercole could only push Dugdale's corner towards Denton and he headed home both his and the Ambers second goal.

The game was opening up throughout the last thirty minutes and Liam Read went close in the sixty eighth minute, but Fletcher managed to turn his shot around the post.

Green came off of his line to deal with the resulting corner and was pushed heavily in the back and took a knock to his head, which stopped him from taking the ball cleanly and in the event he could only nudge it down into the path of Read who netted from twelve yards. But surely the goal wouldn't stand given that Green had been fouled, would it? 

Well, according to Mr Jamie Waters, it would! Perhaps he needed to be somewhere straight after the game and didn't want extra time holding him up. 

 

At the other end Gathercole saved Wells' header from yet another Dugdale cross, but Shepshed countered from their keepers clearance and there could be no complaints about their fourth goal, because it was a quality strike, as Haseley powered through the middle of the Handsworth defence and placed the ball into the bottom right hand corner of the net.

Two goals down, with just eight minutes remaining and their forwards malfunctioning and suffering from an off day, things went from bad to worse for the Ambers when their manager Micky Godber told the referee a really poor 'mother in law joke', or similar... and he was sent from his dug out, leaving his assistant Mark Ward to see the rest of the game out.

Harry Bamforth won a right wing corner and his shot from Harrison's flag kick hit a defender on the arm and Mr Waters finally came good for the home side, well just briefly... and Denton claimed his hat trick from the penalty spot with three minutes to go.

The game entered stoppage time and Shepshed were trying to run the clock down, by keeping the ball in the corner, so Bamforth decided to get stuck in and retrieve it. His challenge was a combination of clumsy and firm... and as the referee intervened it looked as though it had probably warranted a booking too. 

But the referee produced a red instead and subjected Bamforth to a walk of shame for the entire length of the pitch.

And moments alter, the game was over.
As the players were leaving the pitch, Mr Waters showed a second yellow card to Smythe for making a comment to the match official about his interpretation of the rules of the game... a bad day at the office all round for Handsworth then!

FT: Handsworth Parramore 3 v Shepshed Dynamo 4

Shepshed had done enough to justify their passage to the next round and good luck to them to that end, but you can't halp but think that if a few more of the Ambers players had put as much in as the likes of Denton, Smythe and Dugdale had, then it could've been them in the draw for Round Two on Monday instead.