St Ives Town 0 v Redditch United 3
Pitching-In Southern League Premier Central 02-11-2024
Nigel Howlett reports
The in-form Reds claimed their sixth win out of seven games on the road as they saw off a below par Ives with a burst of three well taken goals in a fifteen minute spell at the start of the second half. The win keeps the visitors in third place just one point off table toppers Kettering Town who were otherwise engaged taking down near neighbours Northampton Town in First Round Proper of FA Cup.
Ives welcomed new centre forward Coree Wilson but try as he might to impress on his debut the powerful striker was kept in check by Reds centre back pairing of George Burroughs and Kyle Rowley. The visitors took no prisoners all over the park giving Ives no time to settle at all and equally taking no chances at the back going long ball at every opportunity and then snapping in to pick up the pieces as they fell. Not the prettiest football to watch but very effective particularly away from home.
The visitor’s tactics were clear to see right from the off when keeper Callum Smith’s first punt of the afternoon on an almost windless day sailed through to his opposite number Dan Wilks. Wilks was the first keeper to be called into meaningful action in eighth minute when Johnny Johnston latched onto a knock down to send in a low drive from the edge of the box that Wilks held onto well low to his right.
Ives matched their opponents for hard work throughout the stop/start first half which was punctuated by 23 free kicks. One of those lead to Ives almost getting their noses in front in 19th minute. Amaru Kaunda was brought down Rowley 25 yards from goal on the right side of the box. Will Glennon struck the free kick which ricocheted off the Reds defensive wall straight to the feet of Jernade Meade inside the D. His first time effort was not struck cleanly but it found a way through the crowded box and was destined for the bottom corner of the net before Smith pulled off the save of the game hurling himself full length to his right to tip the effort around the post.
Yet another of those many free kicks before the break lead to the visitor’s best chance in 24th minute. George Atwal’s deep delivery from the left picked out Burroughs who had crept around the back. The big centre back’s header down landed at the feet of Jaiden White eight yards out and the Reds number eleven should have done better but he failed to make a clean contact and presented Wilks with a comfortable save.
Three minutes later Ives best move of the game carved out their best chance of the afternoon. Meade’s excellent cross field ball picked out Benji Mensah in space on the right. His first time ball into the box fed into the well timed run of Kaunda. The striker just beat Smith to the ball and managed to lift it over the spreading keeper but just past the post.
Ives had one more opportunity ten minutes before the break as Kaunda picked up a ball forty yards from goal in a central position but with Wilson to his left waiting for the ball to play him in the youngster tried to go for glory and let fly a shot from 20 yards that clattered off a defender straight into the waiting hands of Smith.
This was one game where both sides needed to be on their A game throughout to get a result but sadly Ives spent the first fifteen minutes after the break in a torpor and were duly punished by their very hard working opponents. The opener came only ninety seconds after the restart when Ethan Creary misjudged a long ball and Johnston latched onto it in a flash bursting clear to finish well past the exposed Wilks.
Only six minutes later the visitors made it two. A pacy run from White down the right saw him burst past David Adegbola and deliver a low cross to the near post where Billy Shaw got across his man to thump home from close range.
The frustrations were showing for Ives and Glennon was perhaps a little fortunate to only pick up a yellow card as he lunged in on Brad Burton right in front of referee Zachary Cunningham. Those frustrations were added to just after the hour as Adegbola took down Shaw just outside the box on the right allowing White to claim the goal of the day accolade as he whipped the resulting free kick around Ives four man wall and into the top corner just out of reach of the fingers of the diving Wilks.
Ives manager Ricky Marheineke made the decisive move of throwing skipper Alex Collard up front with 17 minutes to go to give the Reds centre back pairing a new challenge. Collard did manage to win a few flicks against his rugged opponents, but no one managed to latch onto them.
The hosts only real chance of a consolation did not arrive until the 89th minute when substitute Aaron Smith delivered a perfect teasing cross from the left that arrived at the feet of Collard by the penalty spot but as he went for the ball the Ives skipper somehow managed to get tangled up with his team mate Jordan Williams the end result being that neither player managed to get a shot away.
The result sees Ives drop one place to mid table eleventh. The worry may be that lapse which allowed the Reds to take the game away from them. No longer the free scoring side of last season they now find themselves a side who must ensure that they keep their concentration throughout to prevent their opposition scoring to ensure that a single goal can glean full reward. Next chance to get back on track is next Saturday when they make the short trip to face the divisions leading scorers fifth placed Bedford Town at the Eyrie.
Final Score: St Ives Town 0 Redditch United 3 Half Time 0 – 0
Goals:
ST IVES:
REDDITCH: Johnston 47, Shaw 53, White 61
Team Line Ups:
ST IVES: Wilks, Creary (Skyers 73), Adegbola (Smith 62), Meade, Williams, Collard (capt), Gyamfi (Abimbola 46), Glennon, Wilson, Kaunda, Mensah, Unused subs: Hottor
REDDITCH: Smith, Burton, Atwal, Burroughs (Fitzgerald 88), Rowley (capt), Dawkins, Onabirekhanlen (Cameron 77), Shaw, Ram, White (Leydon 81), Johnston (Davidson-Miller 73), Unused subs: Flanagan
Referee: Zachary Cunningham
Cards: Yellow: ST IVES: Meade (28), Glennon (56) REDDITCH: none
IVES SUPPORTERS MAN OF THE MATCH: Jernade Meade
Attendance: 335