Worksop Van Hire North Midlands U19 League (North)
at Cannon Park, Leverton Road, Retford
Retford United (1) 1
Liam White 25
Worksop Town (0) 1
Oliver Spencer-Brunt 87
Admission: £3 inc programme. Attendance: bloody cold
Apparently, the seasons have changed, Winter is a thing of the past and it is getting warmer of an evening. Well, perhaps that applies elsewhere in the known universe, but not at Cannon Park, which is being touted as a suitable area for Ice Station Zero to relocate.
It's a curious climate phenomena that surrounds the local football ground, because apparently my other half was out on the sun lounger in our back garden, sipping Peach Schnapps, just a quarter of a mile along the road towards town... and you all thought it was solar eclipse, eh!?
Anybody present will confirm that it was top coat cold, with the tea hut staff run off their feet keeping the chilly punters served with hot drinks.
Retford played with an outfield player, Harry Hargreaves, in goal and in the event he was only three minutes away from keeping a clean sheet on the night.
The home side opened the scoring after 25 minutes, when Callum Amendola threaded a diagonal pass through the Tigers defence to Liam White, who tucked the ball away from five yards out.
Amendola picked out Nathan Blagg inside the Tigers six yard box with a corner kick, but he nudged the ball just past the wrong side of the upright.
Just before the break, Callum Fielding did well to anticipate Olly Presley's long range strike and got down to claim the ball at full stretch.
Mason Gee went to ground under a challenge from Blagg in the Badgers penalty area, but the referee judged that the challenge was fair and the fall was ever so slightly theatrical and waved play on.
The game became a bit bogged down in midfield and there few real chances of any real note note at either end, under the closing stages, when Worksop picked up the pace.
Gee lobbed a great ball to Oliver Spencer-Brunt, but the Tigers substitute headed over the bar from close range. Then Gee went close himself as he flashed a long range shot wide of the upright.
With three minutes remaining, Worksop pushed on towards their hosts goal on the right hand side of the area, the ball ran to Spencer-Brunt and he crashed an angled shot past Hargreaves from ten yards out.
It was only the second time that the Tigers had scored in their last 450 minutes of football... and they celebrated as if it was too, as the point they had just rescued from this Bassetlaw derby, lifted them off the foot of the table above Chesterfield.
FT: Badgers U19 1 v Tigers U19 1
Remaining WVH NMU19L fixtures:
Tuesday 09/05/17 Retford United FC v Sheffield FCThursday 11/05/17 Swallownest Miners Welfare v Espial FC
Friday 12/05/17 Sheffield FC v Retford United
