Liversedge 3 Tadcaster Albion 1
It was a tough night for Tadcaster last Tuesday (August 17), as they fell to a 3-1 defeat at Liversedge. The hosts started strongly, with the big striker Joseph Walton proving a handful all night for Albion centre-halves Joe Wilkinson and Freddie Sass - the striker saw his first header, however, bounce well wide in the opening five minutes. Nevertheless, on the quarter-hour mark, Liversedge took the lead. Nicholas Walker‘s strike from the edge of the box took a wicked deflection, which gave Harrison Davison-Hale no chance. A couple of minutes later, it was nearly two. Walker was again involved in a goalmouth scramble following a corner, but Davison-Hale made a telling save before his defence threw their bodies in to prevent conceding again.
Just after the 20-minute mark, Davison-Hale again made an impressive save, diving to his right to push behind - denying Oliver Fearon. Midway through the first half, Tadcaster had their first sight of goal. Donald Chimalilo picked up the ball from the halfway line, drove towards the goal, but from around 25 yards out dragged his effort wide. Minutes later, though, the Brewers were level. Freddie Sass played the ball into Chimalilo, who had dropped into a pocket of space in the middle of the pitch. He turned, looked up and threaded the ball through to Simon Russell, who calmly slotted the ball past the keeper. Instantly after equalising, the visitors nearly fell behind again when Walton worked an opportunity in the box, but his strike went just wide of the far post.
At the half-hour mark, Tadcaster forward Eddie Church did well on the left-hand side, before looking up and picking out Marco Basic on the edge of the box, but his effort was well taken and held by the keeper. Now that they’d settled into the match, Tadcaster were enjoying their best spell of the game at this point. Kieran Burton powered forward from left-back and drove in a fierce cross which a defender sliced less than convincingly over his own bar. Around ten minutes before the break, Davison-Hale made another impressive save to deny Fearon again. The resulting corner was headed wide by Walton. Before the half-time whistle blew, there was one last chance for Tadcaster. A deep Corey Roper free-kick was headed back across by Church, as Junayd Cassius-Gill squeezed in and poked goalwards. However, a covering defender hacked it off the line just in time, with Burton fast approaching. The second half started very similarly to the first, with the hosts on the front foot. Davison-Hale came out and punched away a corner early on. Liversedge did have the ball in the back of the net in the opening ten minutes of the first half, only for the linesman to raise his flag as the Brewers defence stuck to a good line catching the attacker offside. Nevertheless, the warning signs were there for Albion. Fifty-seven minutes in, Chimalilo whipped a brilliant ball right across the face of goal, but neither Church nor Cassius-Gill could quite get themselves on the end of it.
Not long after the hosts re-took the lead. Davison-Hale came and punched away a free-kick, but Walton managed to loop a header back towards goal, which flicked unfortunately off the head of Sass on the line and in. In the 71st minute, Liversedge had their third. There was pinball in the six-yard box following a corner, which finally dropped for Kurt Harris, who managed a powerful strike at goal to beat the Brewers keeper despite him getting a hand on it. After falling 3-1 behind, Paul Quinn began to ring the changes with Tadcaster trying to turn the game around. Oli Norman was the first substitute, replacing Junayd Cassius-Gill, Marco Basic was next with five minutes left on the clock to be replaced by another youngster in Damien Giliga. With ten minutes to go, Davison-Hale made another great save with five minutes to go, the keeper got down well, and with a strong right hand, he managed to keep the ball out. The final change saw Romario Vieira make his first appearance of the new campaign as he replaced Corey Roper in midfield. Davison-Hale would make one final save, again denying Walton with four minutes to go.
Report from Olly Wood, photo courtesy of John Clothier.
Tadcaster celebrate their only goal of the game against Liversedge. (26-08-10 SU)
