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Stourbridge 4 Frickley Athletic 1

Stourbridge 4 Frickley Athletic 1

Richard Clark15 Apr 2017 - 17:15
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A strong second half display earned the Glassboys all three points against lowly Frickley at the War Memorial Ground.

In the end it was a fairly routine victory, but the visitors caused a few anxious moments, not least when they took a surprise lead in the first half, and the Glassboys were made to work for the three points.

Manager Gary Hackett made two changes from the win at Ilkeston a week earlier. Richard Sho-Silva’s broken jaw rules him out for the rest of the season, and Kennedy Digie came in as his replacement, whilst Josh Green slotted in for Kieren Westwood at left back.

Stour began on the front foot, but chances were at a premium in the opening 20 minutes or so. Leon Broadhurst drove a shot over from Ethan Jones’s half cleared cross, and Kayelden Brown curled a shot well wide of the far post after cutting in off the right flank, before Frickley keeper Seb Malkowski punched away a Tom Tonks cross with Brown closing in.

Frickley had their first sight of goal fifteen minutes in as Zeph Thomas glanced a header wide from a free kick, but that apart Stour held the upper hand, and they came close again when the impressive Jones got to the by-line and forced a corner.

There was a moment of concern on 22 minutes as Thomas again got into the area, hooking a cross into the six-yard box with nobody on hand to capitalise.

Stour failed to heed the warning though, and were behind on 26 minutes as a long clearance caught the back-line napping and allowed Tyler Williams in to head beyond the onrushing Matt Gould and into an empty net.

It wasn’t the first time in recent weeks that Stourbridge have found themselves having to respond to going a goal behind, but the deficit did not last long – less than a minute in fact, as Tonks lifted a ball into the right-hand side of the box which Brown challenged for, with Luke Benbow quickest to react to volley the dropping ball into the roof of the net, giving Malkowski no chance.

The visitors’ Polish keeper had better fortune four minutes later, coming out smartly to clear as Benbow bore down, and he was called into action again before the break to save a free kick from the Glassboys’ leading scorer, and then to hold an angled effort from the same player. In between times, Jones, Benbow and Darryl Westlake all found their radar faulty with efforts off target.

Benbow tested Malkowski again with a free kick right into the keeper’s midriff at the start of the second half, and then Pierpoint saw his header from a Tonks corner blocked on the line and cleared by Jack Waters.

The goal that Stourbridge had been threatening eventually came on 56 minutes. Benbow tried his luck from another free kick, and with Malkowski only able to block at his near post, Brown was on hand to celebrate his birthday with a goal, slamming the loose ball home.

Two minutes later there was clear daylight between the teams as Jones did superbly to find space on the left and his low cross was dummied by Benbow for Tonks to slot home from inside the six-yard box.

Game over? Not quite! Within two more minutes the visitors had a lifeline as they were awarded a penalty for handball, only for Luke Mangham to stroke his spot kick wide of Gould’s left-hand post, with the Glassboys keeper heading in the other direction. It may not have been a “game-changer” necessarily, but it did seem to flatten the visitors and they were rarely to seriously threaten again.

Stour were quickly on the hunt for more goals. Pierpoint headed down Westlake’s cross for Brown to hook over as he fell, and then Jones shot over the bar as he searched for space on the edge of the area.

But Jones did get the goal his performance deserved sixteen minutes from time as he retrieved the ball on the left before attacking the Frickley area and drilling a shot just inside Malkowski’s right-hand upright, with the keeper perhaps a little slow to react.

That, realistically, put the result beyond doubt, although Frickley kept at it, and Williams was unlucky to see his volley zip just wide shortly afterwards. The general pattern was still one of Glassboys control, however, and they went close again as Benbow laid the ball off for substitute Jordan Archer to fire wide from 20 yards.

The closing minutes saw Archer go close again as he headed wide when unmarked from a Benbow free kick, and then Benbow himself fired just over in stoppage time as Dodd found him in space ten yards out.

The Glassboys remain fourth in the Premier Division table going into Monday’s game at Rushall Olympic.

VIDEO CLIPS FROM THE MATCH ARE AVAILABLE TO VIEW VIA NPL TV AT
http://www.evostikleague.co.uk/match-info/match-centre/1-2189657

(Scroll down and select 'Show All Events' to bring up earlier footage clips from the game)

STOURBRIDGE LINE-UP: Gould, J Green, Westlake, Tonks, Digie, Pierpoint, Brown (Archer 68), Broadhurst (Dodd 68), Benbow, Jones (Canavan 75), Birch.

UNUSED SUBSTITUTES: Westwood, Wedderburn.

ATTENDANCE: 844.


SUPPORTERS' PLAYER OF THE YEAR VOTE

Voting opened at Saturday's match for the 2016/17 Supporters' Player of the Year. Votes can still be cast via Twitter or Facebook, and at the final home game next Saturday. For full details see the following link:

http://www.stourbridgefc.com/news/201617-supporters-player-of-the-year-1782935.html


FORTHCOMING FIXTURES

We travel to Rushall Olympic for our final away game of the season on Easter Monday, 17th April, before then rounding off the "regular" season with a potentially pivotal home game against fellow play-off chasers Nantwich Town on Saturday 22nd April.

Kick-off for both of these matches will be at 3.00 pm.

Please note that a Supporters Coach will be running to Rushall, and further details can be found elsewhere on the website.


YOUTH TEAM

The Youth Team have a friendly match at home to Halesowen Town next Tuesday, 18th April, kicking off at 7.00 pm. NB. Please note the earlier kick-off time than previously advertised.

The Youth Team's only remaining competitive fixture is the Worcestershire County Youth Cup Final against Evesham United, to be played at Stourport Swifts FC on Wednesday 10th May (7.30 pm kick-off).


EVO-STIK NPL PREMIER DIVISION - RESULTS & REMAINING FIXTURES

[b]SATURDAY 15TH APRIL

Ashton United 1-1 Blyth Spartans
Buxton 0-1 Grantham Town
Coalville Town 3-3 Skelmersdale United
Marine 3-0 Hednesford Town
Mickleover Sports 4-1 Barwell
Nantwich Town 3-0 Ilkeston
Spennymoor Town 1-1 Rushall Olympic
Stafford Rangers 0-1 Corby Town
STOURBRIDGE 4-1 Frickley Athletic
Sutton Coldfield Town 2-3 Matlock Town
Whitby Town 2-2 Warrington Town
Workington 1-0 Halesowen Town

MONDAY 17TH APRIL

Barwell v Coalville Town
Blyth Spartans v Whitby Town
Buxton v Matlock Town
Corby Town v Grantham Town
Frickley Athletic v Spennymoor Town
Hednesford Town v Stafford Rangers
Ilkeston v Mickleover Sports
Nantwich Town v Workington
Rushall Olympic v STOURBRIDGE
Skelmersdale United v Marine
Sutton Coldfield Town v Halesowen Town
Warrington Town v Ashton United

WEDNESDAY 19TH APRIL

Workington v Ilkeston

THURSDAY 20TH APRIL

Halesowen Town v Nantwich Town

SATURDAY 22ND APRIL

Ashton United v Ilkeston
Blyth Spartans v Grantham Town
Coalville Town v Corby Town
Halesowen Town v Rushall Olympic
Marine v Buxton
Matlock Town v Warrington Town
Mickleover Sports v Frickley Athletic
Skelmersdale United v Stafford Rangers
Spennymoor Town v Barwell
STOURBRIDGE v Nantwich Town
Whitby Town v Hednesford Town
Workington v Sutton Coldfield Town



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