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1-0 6th May 2008 at 6:15 PM

Duxford Utd : Bambridge Cup Semi Final match

Duxford were always going to prove to be difficult to beat as they had had a very good season in Division 1A and had finished a creditable 3rd. They had, however, been beaten by Fowlmere and had struggled against our reserves (who were playing a weakened side) in a recent game.
The conditions for the game were good. On a bright and very warm evening, the pitch looked in fine condition with a good covering of grass. The surface was firm but not rock hard.
Due to suspension, Ben Thompson was unavailable for this game and a couple of other key players were missing as they were attending a sports awards dinner for Hills Road VIth Form College. Tom Kelk was due to attend this but very generously agreed to play for the team as we were short of options in the goalkeeping department.
The team was set up in a 4-1-4-1 formation to start the game with Kevin Walters sitting in the holding position and Pete Manners being the lone striker.
Shelford started well and applied some early pressure. A Shelford free kick was lashed away for a corner by a Duxford defender in the 3rd minute. This was the first sign that they were threatened by Shelford.
In the 5th minute the ball was pumped forward and Joe Parrish neatly directed a header into Pete Manners' path. He broke through the defence and planted the ball comfortably past the 'keeper. 1-0 to Shelford.
Shelford then continued to have the better of the play but were careless in possession and lost the ball too easily. However, their work rate was exceptional in the warm conditions and they were winning the ball back well.
In the 15th minute a Duxford shot scraped the top of the Shelford crossbar. This seemed to inspire Duxford and they proceeded to dominate for the next 15 minutes. The Shelford defence played well through this and the midfielders did well to help out wherever possible. Duxford had several attempts at goal that were all wide of the mark except one shot, in the 25th minute, that was well saved by Tom Kelk.
In the 30th minute Russell Konradt delivered a great cross in from the left and it was met by Tino who headed just past the post. This signaled the start of a period of domination by Shelford that was to last for the remainder of the first half.
Shelford created a number of opportunities in this period. A Chris Loveridge ball into the Duxford penalty area in the 32nd minute was met by a Duxford defender who did his best to score an own goal but headed just wide of the post. Tino and Pete were combining well and created chances in the 35th and 37th minutes. Joe Parrish also forced the goalkeeper into a hapless save from a header in the 38th minute.
In the 43rd minute Kevin Walters suffered a calf strain and had to be replaced by Marc Ellwood. The formation was changed to 4-4-2 with Marc playing in the centre of midfield and Joe moving up front to play alongside Pete.
The second half was a pretty even affair with both sides canceling each other out in the midfield and few clear-cut opportunities being created. In the 55th minute, Will Keen was brutally hacked down. The foul was given but Will could take no further part in the game. Matt King was brought on and the formation had to be changed yet again. Matt went up front with Pete and Joe reverted to playing wide on the right.
Set pieces were proving to be a problem for the Shelford defence and they nearly paid for this when Duxford headed wide off a corner in the 65th minute and also narrowly missed from a long throw in the 83rd minute.
As the final whistle approached Duxford got increasingly desperate to try and get an equaliser. This was evidence that they were taking the competition very seriously indeed – so any comments about this game 'meaning nothing' are wholly wrong.
The Duxford 'keeper spent the last 5 minutes mostly in the Shelford half whilst they threw everything they could possibly think of at the Shelford defence. Time and again they were repelled by a resilient defence and their frustrations started to boil over. There were instances of wild hacking and confrontation, but nothing phased the Shelford players.
The referee seemed to play an interminable amount of injury time – well over 5 minutes. Eventually the whistle was blown and Shelford were on their way to the final.
This was a good performance and the team got the result they deserved for the hard work that they put in throughout the game. If they'd managed to retain possession for longer, however, they wouldn't have had to put in this amount of work!
There were some exceptional performances in defence. The midfield also worked very hard with Tino putting in a massive amount of work. Joe battled constantly and did well – especially as he was asked to play in three different positions during the game. Pete played well up front and combined well with Tino to create a number of opportunities.
We look forward to meeting Comberton Utd Reserves in the final where we should (injuries permitting) be able to field a strong team.