St Ives Town v St Neots Town

Evo-Stik League Southern Premier Division Central   22-04-19

A bumper Bank Holiday crowd and the sun shining, the visitors are already relegated local rivals St Neots who with their present financial problems are fielding what looks like a youth team. On paper it looked like Ives simply had to do the simple things right to finish off their very successful season at home with a comfortable victory. But games are never played on paper the Saints kids showed they still have an appetite for the battle in spite of knowing their fate is sealed after their heavy defeat from King’s Lynn only 48 hours earlier. Not only did they make things difficult for the Ives throughout they came within millimetres of claiming a very unlikely win.

It all started very positively for Ives and in only the second minute a long Mark Coulson throw was flicked on by Tom Wood, Ollie Snaith tried his best to direct his effort on target but the ball was just behind him and his acrobatic effort flew just wide.

Probably Ives best chance of the afternoon went the way of Morgan Penfold only four minutes later. Robbie Parker won the ball deep inside Saints territory and picked him out on the right hand corner of the box. The young winger cut inside Leon Fulianty and the goal opened up for him but rather than put his left foot through it he went for a curving cross come shot to the far post with the outside of his right foot and the ball curled harmlessly wide.

Already under the cosh the visitors received a further blow as their skipper and most experienced player Matt Miles was forced to limp off with an injury after only eight minutes. He was replaced by another youngster in 18 year old Joe Rider. This forced a reshuffle in the Saints line up but this did not seem to greatly inconvenience them. 

The host continued to enjoy the majority of the possession but they were struggling to find a way through the resilient massed ranks of the Saints who quickly got men behind the ball as soon as they lost possession. It took until 22^nd minute before another chance came along and again it was Ives on the attack. Munashe Sundire and Wood combined well on the right to get Penfold to the bye line. His cross flew through the six yard box just evading Snaith arriving at pace. Ex Ives man Joe Hood was covering by the back post and just managed to smuggle the ball behind for a corner.

On this very hot day the referee had agreed to drinks breaks midway through each half and Ives were almost caught cold only seconds after the re-start as the failed to deal with a bouncing ball down the centre of the park. Dan Trendall made his presence felt and the ball eventually dropped to Jacob Joseph twenty yards from goal. The young winger struck his right footed effort well forcing home keeper Martin Conway into an excellent save low to his left.

Andrew Osei-Bonsu was proving a handful for the Saints defenders and his persistence created a real opportunity for Ives six minutes before half time. He chased down a long bouncing ball out of defence by Coulson and got between centre half Ryan Hughes and keeper James Philip forcing the Saints custodian to handle the ball outside the box. Parker rolled the free kick sideways to Osei-Bonsu who struck an excellent dipping effort over the four man wall and past the static Philip only to be denied by the crossbar as the ball struck it and bounced away.

Osei-Bonsu caused further problems for Saints back line three minutes later as he robbed Stevan Shaw deep inside his own half and fed the ball out to Ben Seymour-Shove wide on the left. The Ives striker continued his run and had the ball laid back to him. His teasing cross was met well beyond the back post by Wood whose header into the centre was just to high for a stretching Snaith who could only direct his header over the top from eight yards.

The hosts were forced into a change at half time as Peterborough loanee Penfold was forced out of the game with what looked like a hamstring injury. He was replaced by George Bailey who took up a position on the left with Seymour-Shove moving across to the right. The second half picked up in similar vain to the first with the hosts knocking the ball around well in front of the massed ranks of their opponents but unable to find a route through. Half chances came and went. The first of these in 52^nd minute saw Snaith combine with Bailey before getting to the bye line on the left. His low cross bobbled on the way towards Wood making it difficult for the Ives midfielder who failed to make clean contact the ball bobbling wide.

As Ives began to throw more men forward in search of that all important opening goal they became a little more vulnerable to the counter attack and the visitors twice created half chances in a ten minute spell just after the hour. In 61^st minute Rider showed his strength as he picked up a loose ball inside Ives territory and drove at the defence his shot when it eventually came from 20 yards deflected off Owen Wallis for a corner. Rider was involved again eight minutes later as fellow substitute Joe Sutton managed to get on the end of his flick just outside the left edge of the box where he was bundled over by the covering Coulson to give the Saints a free kick in a dangerous position. But Sutton wasted the opportunity as he failed to get the ball past the two man Ives wall.

The clock continued to tick down and the frustration for the home players and supporters continued to grow and things became a little tetchy in the middle, Snaith picked up a needless booking for chopping down Sutton in the centre circle. He was quickly followed into referee Alex Rayment’s notebook by Sutton as the Saints man returned the compliment. The official did well as he ensured that he kept up a dialog with the players rather than resort to a flush of cards.

As the game entered the last fifteen minutes manager Ricky Marheineke decided to throw on Jake Newman as a strike partner for Osei-Bonsu but still Ives struggled to find a way through. Parker had a snap shot from 25 yards that skimmed harmlessly wide of Philip’s right hand upright. Newman similarly tried his luck first time from a little bit closer after Osei-Bonsu had flicked on a long Conway punt but the Ives substitute faired even worse than his skipper as the effort flew high and wide.

Then with seven minutes to go and Ives throwing everyone forward Saints thought that they had grabbed the winner. Bradley picked up a clearance in the centre circle and threaded a pass into the feet of Trendall as he broke through the right channel Conway came sprinting off his line to meet him and the centre forward did everything right clipping the ball past the exposed keeper. It was on its way into the net but as all Ives supporters held their breath and Saints fans started to celebrate Wallis never gave up and somehow he managed to complete a remarkable goal line clearance as he caught up with the ball on the goal line and hooked it out. It looked like Rider might stab home the loose ball but Conway was alert enough to recover and claim it off the foot of the Saints striker to complete a remarkable let off for the hosts.

Play quickly swung back to the other end as Ives continued to try and batter a way through but in spite of all their effort they remained unable to test Philip. The only noteworthy effort in the final minutes came two minutes into added time when A Coulson throw was knocked down to Bailey inside the box but with his back to goal. He teed up Parker but the Ives skipper’s low drive was blocked by a covering defender to ensure that Saints got what they deserved for their battling performance a very hard earned point. The effort level alone will bring them points in step four, but a little more quality will probably required to lift them back up into the Southern League Premier Division. Ives remain on target to match their best ever finish in step three of thirteenth but with Barwell and Banbury breathing down their necks they may well need to get something at Coalville next week to retain it.  

Final Score :  St Ives Town 0  St Neots Town 0   

Goals :  none

Team : Conway, Sundire, Coulson, Wood, Wallis, Jarvis Wilson, Penfold (Bailey 45), Parker (capt), Osei-Bonsu, Snaith (Baker 86), Seymour-Shove (Newman 76)

Unused subs : Ward, Griffiths

Supporters man of the match : Andrew Osei-Bonsu

Attendance : 351

Report by Nigel Howlett. Photos by Louise Thompson.

St Ives Town v Redditch United  

Evo-Stik League Southern Premier Division Central – 13-04-19

Ives first home win since mid-January kept them on track for a record breaking best ever finish in the Club’s history. The win came courtesy of a deflected Andrew Osei-Bonsu strike ten minutes after half time. However the home supporters also need to compliment their, as ever, mean defence who kept their sixteenth clean sheet of the season and debutant eighteen year old goalkeeper Shay Griffiths who played his part in ensuring the back line was not breached.

Owen Wallis who has been exemplary since his return to the side at Stourbridge once again showed his quality and rightly took the supporters man of the match award. The young centre back showed excellent composure as early as the eighth minute when Danico Johnson bustled his way into Ives box and threatened to get clean through. Wallis initially held him up and then timed his tackle to perfection to take the ball off his toe and move it away to safety.

Griffiths heroics started six minutes later with two excellent saves in less than sixty seconds. Robbie Bunn was initially allowed to much space to run at the Ives defence and he seized his opportunity to go for goal unleashing a fierce drive from 25 yards that the young keeper did very well to keep out hurling himself low to his left to push the ball away. But the hosts struggled to get the ball clear and it almost immediately came back into the box with Josh Hawker getting a snap shot on target from fifteen yards that Griffiths did well to get a hand to low to his right. The young stopper rode his luck a little as the ball ricocheted off his right hand upright before it was eventually scrambled clear.

The in form Reds continued to press forward at every opportunity and Griffiths was Ives saviour again in 28^th minute when a flowing visitors move was completed by Rob Evans playing the ball into the feet of Bunn on the edge of the box. He in turn teed up Richard Batchelor for a strike from 20 yards that the number eleven hit well but again Griffiths was equal to it plunging to his right to turn the ball around the post.

The Ives keeper was perhaps a little more fortunate in 31^st minute as he somewhat miss timed a sprint from his line to try to claim a bouncing ball through the right channel and was always struggling to get to it ahead of Bunn. Both players collided just inside the box and went down in a heap, with Reds players all appealing for a penalty it was with much relief to Ives supporters and players alike that referee Thomas Cooke deemed that Griffiths had just won the race and had thus been fouled by the Reds midfielder.

In spite of the hard work of Ives front players throughout the first half it took until 39^th minute before the hosts carved out a real opportunity to test visiting keeper Reece Francis. Ollie Snaith won the ball in the centre of the park and picked a pass to Ben Seymour-Shove in acres of space on the right. With an opportunity to sprint for the bye line and try to pick out a colleague in the centre or cut in and go for goal the usually decisive wide man seemed to get caught in two minds and did neither eventually simply rolling a tame cross into the hands of the grateful custodian.

Having battled hard to stay in the game without much possession in the first period Ives needed to lift themselves to ensure that they could turn another potential home draw into their fifth home win of the season. They did just that wrestling control of the game away from their opponents straight from the off. Osei-Bonsu set the pace tricking his way past James Brown down the right wing in 49^th minute. The striker got to the bye line before picking out the run of Snaith on the front edge of the six yard box. The young striker had his back to goal but carefully rolled the ball back to Robbie Parker on the edge of the box. The Ives skipper tried to pick his spot in the bottom corner but just missed the target with the ball eluding the diving Francis but rolling inches wide of the post.

The goal that settled it came five minutes later thanks to a flash of individual brilliance from Osei-Bonsu. The silky striker picked up the ball on the right hand edge of the box, shimmied past Brown before opening his stride and unleashing a fierce drive that took a wicked deflection off the luckless Hawker and completely deceived Francis flying into the net to the keepers left as he moved to his right.

The hosts continued to push forward in search of another and Morgan Penfold was very unlucky not to claim his elusive first Ives goal in 59^th minute. A Seymour-Shove corner from the left was half cleared to Osei-Bonsu inside the box. The off balance striker hit a bobbling first time shot from fifteen yards that Francis spilled, Penfold reacted instantly to prod the loose ball home only to have his celebration cut short by an assistant’s flag.

Osei-Bonsu’s pace, strength and movement continued to cause problems for the Reds back line and he set up another opportunity for Penfold in 63^rd minute as his break a pace down the right gave him the opportunity to deliver a low cross that Penfold looked favourite to force home at the back post only for the Peterborough United loanee to allow Lewis Wright to get back and take the ball off his toe.

In a desperate effort to get back into the game the Redditch manager Paul Smith made a double substitution in 64^th minute Throwing on Leam Howards and Harry Franklin to replace the strangely ineffective Shaquille Leachman-Whittington and Batchelor. The move almost worked as within thirty seconds of entering the field Franklin rose highest to Bunn’s right wing corner but failed to keep his header down under pressure from Wallis.

Griffiths had had a relatively quiet second half but he needed to be on his toes in 80^th minute as Ives struggled to clear another Bunn corner, this time from the left. An attempted clearance rebounded off Johnson and fell to Andrew Parsons deep inside the box, the Reds skipper looked like he had the goal at his mercy eight yards out. But Griffiths was on him in an instant narrowing the angle and forcing the centre back to snatch at his effort and fire across the face of goal.

With the clock ticking down Ives did not sit back but instead continued to go in search of the second goal to kill off the contest. An 86^th minute corner was fed back to Munashe Sundire by Seymour-Shove, rather than simply deliver the ball into the centre the right back cleverly got his head up and spotted George Bailey inside in space 25 yards from goal. The substitute took a touch before rifling off a stinging effort that forced Francis into a spectacular diving save as the big keeper leapt to his right to fingertip the effort over the top.

Referee Cooke somehow found five added minutes in a half with six substitutions but otherwise barely a stop. The final of those minutes brought a flurry of noteworthy action as initially a long Brown throw was knocked down inside the box to Hawker who saw his well struck shot deflected for a corner. This allowed Francis to join the pack of players inside Ives box. Wood rose highest to head the corner away and the ball was fed out to Penfold who was breaking over the halfway line with the open goal looming only to be halted by the referee blowing for time. 

Overall an entertaining game that those put off from attending by the hailstorm in the run up to kick off will be disappointed to have missed. Make sure that you do not miss out on the record breaking Ives final home game of the season at 3.00pm on Easter Monday when struggling local rivals St Neots will be the visitors.  

Final Score : St Ives Town  1  Redditch United  0  

Goals :  Osei-Bonsu 54

Team : Griffiths, Sundire, Coulson, Wood, Wallis, Jarvis Wilson, Penfold, Parker (capt), Osei-Bonsu (Newman 84), Snaith (Bailey 79), Seymour-Shove (Baker 90)

Unused subs : Patrick, Ward

Supporters man of the match : Owen Wallis 

Attendance : 179

Report by Nigel Howlett. Photos by Louise Thompson

St Ives Town v AFC Rushden & Diamonds  

Evo-Stik League Southern Premier Division Central – 06-04-19

Six points off the play-off places with games fast running out this was a must win game for Diamonds but they were out fought and at times outplayed by an Ives side missing a few regulars. With regular right back Ben Jackson injured and his first choice replacement Owen Wallis pressed into action in the centre of defence regular midfielder Munashe Sundire found himself recalled into the side in the number two slot. He looked at home in the role from early on winning a number of important tackles and headers and as the game wore on he found opportunities to roam forward and show his normal creative style. The stand in full back was the only man who forced a real save out of either goal keeper as he tested Ben Heath in the Diamonds goal with a low left footed drive in 64^th minute.

The visitors showed early promise and their leading scorer Tom Lorraine got on the end of a third minute corner delivered from the left by ex Ives man Declan Rogers. The big striker got in front of his marker and made good contact from eight yards but only succeeded in steering his header over the top.

Ives supporters eagerly welcomed back Morgan Penfold. The Peterborough United youngster had won himself a professional contract following his successful loan spell with the Club in 2016 and it was quite clear that the 20 year old had filled out and strengthen up in those intervening years. He showed that he had also lost none of his pace as he powered through the left channel to get on the end of a deft clip over the top by Andrew Osei-Bonsu in 14^th minute, unfortunately the youngster took one touch to many and his shot when it did come flashed harmlessly across the face of goal.

Penfold went close again five minutes later as he got on the end of a move which saw the Diamonds defence stretched but not broken. Tom Wood delivered a dangerous ball into the box that was half cleared to Mark Coulson 30 yards from goal on the opposite side of the box. Rather than just pump the ball back into the box he cleverly slid it through to pick out the run of Ty Ward. Ward got to the bye line and picked out the fast arriving Penfold with his pull back but the ball just would not fall right for the youngster to hit it and his mishit shot was scrambled away.

The host’s centre back pairing of Owen Wallis and Jarvis Wilson were doing an excellent job of keeping the Diamonds strikers quiet. Wilson showed that he has learnt a lot as the season as gone on when in 28^th minute he found himself up against the tricky Rogers one v one on the edge of the box. Where earlier in the season the youngster may have dived in on this occasion he stood his ground well and cleanly took the ball off Rogers toes when the midfielder tried to go around him.

Another good opportunity went begging for Ives six minutes before the break with Penfold again heavily involved as he picked up a ball by the corner flag before wriggling his way past Alex Collard in his run along the bye line. He showed good composure in getting his head up and picking out Ward on the edge of the box but the ball took a wicked bobble just in front of the Ives man and he screwed his shot wide of the target.

There was one scary moment for Ives supporters just before the break as Conway was almost caught out by the firmness of the pitch. He came to take a long Sam Brown punt into the box only for the ball to bounce twice as high as expected forcing the keeper to stretch up one handed to just get enough on the ball to stop it bouncing over him. His team mates came to his aid to scramble the loose ball clear.

As we know Osei-Bonsu is capable of spectacular individual goals and he went close to adding to his tally of those in 53^rd minute as he picked up a ball on the half way line and drifted right with it before standing up Brown and then cutting inside him before unleashing a rising drive from the corner of the box that flew past the outstretched hands of Heath but went agonisingly inches over the crossbar.

Play swung to the other end and two minutes the two Diamonds full backs combined to carve out a half chance. Zack Reynolds went down the right and delivered a deep cross that found Brown in a little bit of space beyond the far post. Wilson was again in the right place to block Brown’s shot but at the expense of a corner. Rogers delivered the resulting flag kick into the centre where Lorraine rose highest and directed a downward header on target but Conway was down smartly to block and the ball was scrambled clear.

Ives continued to look more likely to break the deadlock and went close twice in a five minute spell around the hour mark. In 59^th minute Wood picked out Osei-Bonsu with a crisp pass from just over the half way line. The skilful striker clipped a perfectly weighted pass into the run of Ward but again the Ives number eleven failed to hit the target from just inside the box. Heath’s only real save of the match came five minutes later when in a well worked corner routine Ward picked out Sundire in space with his lay back. The speedy stand in full back went past a man before striking a low left footed effort from 25 yards that was creeping in the corner before the outstretched fingers of the diving Heath turned it around the post.

The firm surface was again involved when the hosts suffered a scare in 72^nd minute as both Lorraine and Wilson were deceived by the bounce 35 yards from Ives goal allowing Jack Bowen to get away down the centre. But skipper Robbie Parker came to the rescue doing what he does so well as he read the situation and got back to cleanly take the ball off the Diamonds striker before he could get a shot away. 

Ben Seymour-Shove was introduced to the fray in place of Ward with fifteen minutes to go and his first touch almost brought him a goal. Osei-Bonsu played a consummate cross field ball to pick out the substitute in space beyond the far post. The usually clinical winger’s touch let him down on this occasion as his heavy contact forced him wide giving Diamonds skipper Liam Dolman chance to get across and block his effort.

Seymour-Shove went close again three minutes later as a mishit Conway clearance fortunately found Coulson in space on the left touchline. His ball to the edge of the box picked out the Ives substitute whose fierce left footed effort from the corner of the box did not trouble Heath as it hit the side netting.

With time running out on their play-off hopes Diamonds through Dolman forward to add extra height to their attack, but Wallis and Wilson continued to deal admirably with everything throw into their box including the long throws of Brown. Ives were still looking for every opportunity to break forward but were just unable to pick the killer pass to break down the equally resolute Diamonds back line.

Once more Ives have matched and at times bettered one of the play-off chasing sides and they continue to show that they are a match for all teams in this Division. The result means Ives stay thirteenth with four games to go and a best ever finish in the Club’s history remains a distinct possibility. His all action display earned Sundire an almost unanimous man of the match award from sponsors and supporters alike.

Final Score : St Ives Town  0  AFC Rushden & Diamonds  0  

Goals :  none

Team : Conway, Sundire, Coulson, Wood, Wallis, Jarvis Wilson, Snaith, Parker (capt), Penfold, Osei-Bonsu, Ward (Seymour-Shove 77)

Unused subs : Bailey, Baker

Supporters man of the match : Munashe Sundire 

Attendance : 372

Report by Nigel Howlett. Photos by Louise Thompson.

St Ives Town v Alvechurch

Evo-Stik League Southern Premier Division Central – 23-03-19

An early goal in each half from the play-off chasing Church was sufficient to complete a hard earned double over the battling Ives and into the bargain the visitors lifted themselves into the all important fifth spot.

In an effort to improve Ives poor home form manager Ricky Marheineke chose to stick with the starting eleven that performed so well to claim an excellent win at Leiston on the previous Saturday. Unfortunately all of the careful planning was undone very early on when the visitors went in front in the simplest fashion after only six minutes. Tom Turton won a ball in midfield and fed it wide to Josh Ezewele and the Church full back delivered a teasing cross to the back post where Kyle Morrison came between dithering Ives defenders to rise majestically and power home a header from eight yards giving Martin Conway in the Ives goal no chance.

The Church had started very positively and even prior to the goal they had forced Conway into action. In only the third minute a free kick from the left edge of the box was half cleared to Turton who curled it back into the box from 25 yards forcing Conway to make an excellent claim under heavy pressure from Aaron Lloyd.

Having got in front the visitors showed their quality by generally bossing the centre of the park although their threat was limited to a variety of long throws into the box by Tom Tonks. These were delivered in true Rory Delap style from anywhere within thirty yards of the hosts goal and came in either as low flat missiles aimed at the near post or more looping howitzers which could reach as far as the far post. Ives showed their mettle in defending these and although at times stretched the combined defensive line up were very successful in winning the first header wherever the shells dropped.

As the half wore on the hosts began to show a degree of threat and Church keeper Dan Crane was called into action to make two smart saves to keep his side in front in the ten minutes before half time. The first of these in 37^th minute came from a trade mark break at pace from their own half. Ty Ward won the ball thirty five yards from his own goal and fed it forward into the feet of Jake Newman inside opposition territory. Newman held the ball up well and fed it into the pacey run of Ben Baker cutting in from the right. The Ives winger was quickly closed down but managed to unleash a well struck drive from 20 yards that looked like it was straight at keeper Crane but the ball must have taken a slight deflection on the way through as the keeper almost misjudged it and was forced into a scrambling save low to his right. A defender came to his aid scrambling the loose ball away at the expense of a corner. 

The resulting flag kick from the right was cleverly taken short by Ward to Baker who curled in a cross to the back post that just beat everyone. Tom Wood was first to react and hooked the bouncing ball back into the near post where Ben Jackson came within millimetres of beating Crane to the ball the keeper bravely claiming it off his toe.

Crane’s second vital save came just seconds before the half time whistle as a Ben Seymour-Shove corner from the left was half cleared to Ward on the corner of the box. The young midfielder showed excellent technique as he took on the dropping ball on the volley. He struck his shot almost to well and unfortunately straight at Crane. The keeper just had time to close his fists to punch the vicious effort away from goal.

These two efforts were dissected by a good shout for a penalty from the visitors in 38^th minute as Kieran Cook’s run into the box was halted by a well timed challenge from covering defender Robbie Parker. There was some contact with the Church wide man but the excellent referee Jordan Cushen was in the right place to get a clear view of the incident and he concurred with most Ives fans that Parker had won the ball fairly much to the chagrin of the visitors management team who needed a word from the referee before they calmed down.

Coming back out looking for a route back into the game it was critical that Ives started the second period much better than they had started the first. Unfortunately they were undone by the best pass of the game only three minutes after the restart. Centre back Morrison belied the number five on his back as he threaded an exquisite pass between centre back and full back to pick out the perfectly timed run of full back Ezewele. The overlapping full back claimed his second assist of the game as he got to the bye line before laying the ball back to give Tonks the simple task of side footing the ball home from close range past the exposed Conway.

In a valiant effort to change the course of the game Marheineke made a double change on the hour replacing his two somewhat ineffective wide men Seymour-Shove and Baker with Andrew Osei-Bonsu and Munashe Sundire but it took an excellent save from Conway prevent the score line worsening four minutes later as he bravely spread himself at the feet of Cook to make a point blank save to deny the tricky winger after he had got clear onto a through ball from Turton.

The Ives keeper was almost caught out in 68^th minute as Lloyd closed him down on a clearance and the stoppers usually reliable distribution let him down his attempted clearance arrowing straight to Josh March inside the centre circle. The Church leading scorer took careful aim and launched his return over the stranded Conway who was very pleased to see the effort sail a couple of feet wide of his right hand post.  

To their great credit Ives continued to battle to try and find a route back into the game and Gavin Hoyte went close to reducing the arrears in 73^rd minute. A long Parker free kick into the box was headed onto the back of Newman’s head by Ash Carter. Hoyte was first onto the loose ball and lifted it over keeper Crane as he came racing off his line. But the athletic keeper had done just enough to put off the big centre back as Hoyte’s rushed effort drifted inches over the top.  

A well worked free kick almost brought the visitors a third goal three minutes later as the kick was fed into the feet of Lloyd just outside the box. He held the ball up well before feeding it on to Zack Foster who had feinted to take the kick then run over the ball before continuing his run into the box. His low driven cross was very well held by Conway just ahead of two onrushing forwards.

The last ten minutes could have been a very different story but for an excellent one handed save by Crane. Jackson’s long throw was flicked on by Wood and Ward managed to force himself between two defenders to get his toe onto the dropping ball and steer it towards the near post from close range. Crane reacted instantly plunging low to his left to stop the effort rolling just inside the post. His defenders then came to his aid just scrambling the loose ball away before an Ives striker could react to force it home.

Ives continued to press forward in search of a route back into the game and they were almost handed one in 83^rd minute as Morrison under pressure from Newman flicked a long ball into the box past his own keeper but the ball floated agonisingly the wrong side of the post as all looked on.

The final action of the entertaining game in front of a good crowd enjoying the sunshine again went the way of the visitors as a long ball down the park by Carter fell to substitute Andre Landell who tried his luck first time from 25 yards and was disappointed to see his well struck effort strike the stanchion just to the right of Conway’s goal.

Overall verdict was an entertaining game where Ives matched one of the favourites for a play-off place for long periods but were ultimately undone by some poor marking and one piece of brilliance. However if the push to the hoped for best ever finish in the Clubs history is to be achieved a pick up in home results is essential in the remaining three games at Westwood Road. 

Final Score : St Ives Town  0  Alvechurch  2  

Goals :  none

Team : Conway, Jackson, Coulson, Wood, Hoyte, Jarvis Wilson, Seymour-Shove (Sundire 60), Parker (capt), Newman, Ward (Bailey 86), Baker (Osei-Bonsu 60)

Unused subs : Wallis, Snaith

Supporters man of the match : Tom Wood 

Attendance : 270

Report by Nigel Howlett. Photos by Louise Thompson.

St Ives Town v Barwell     

Evo-Stik League Southern Premier Division Central – 09-03-19

After two excellent results on the road it looked like Ives were running into a nice little bit of form with the season now winding down and the prospect of a visit from the Canaries who are only just struggling above the drop zone and had not scored for three games looked like an inviting opportunity to extend the winning run. However games are never played out on paper and it was the visitors desire and battling qualities that came out on top in the end as they grabbed a late winner to take all three points against a very lack lustre Ives.

The game started fairly evenly with the visitors enjoying some good early possession without really creating much. The first real threat came from an Ives breakaway as Ben Seymour-Shove managed to wriggle his way between two much bigger defenders to get on the end of a Robbie Parker clip over the top in eleventh minute. But the striker was forced to take his shot early and fired well wide from just outside the D.

The Canaries main threat came from a series of free kicks Ives were conceding around their box. The second of these in 13^th minute saw the powerful Henry Eze get on the end of Brady Hickey’s clip into the box. The hosts were perhaps a little fortunate that the big centre back powered his free header well over the top from a good position.

Two minutes later Hickey went for goal from another free kick from five yards closer. This one had been clumsily conceded by Gavin Hoyte who brought down Sam Hollis from behind. Hickey’s free kick curled around Ives three-man wall but just crept over the angle of post and crossbar.

You might almost say that Ives taking the lead in 20^th minute was against the run of play up to that point but it was a very well taken goal by leading scorer Seymour-Shove as he caught out the struggling Eze to get on the end of an excellently weighted Parker clip to the left corner of the box. Having beaten Eze to the dropping ball as the big man struggled to turn Seymour-Shove still had a lot to do. Keeper Liam Castle sprinted from his goal to quickly close down the angle but the Ives striker did everything right as he deftly clipped the ball past the Canaries keeper and wheeled away to celebrate as it bounced on into the empty net.

This setback knocked the fragile confidence of the visitors and they had the agility of Castle to thank for not falling further behind seven minutes before the break. A Ben Jackson long throw from the right was knocked down by Tom Wood the ball falling to Seymour-Shove on the edge of the box and he took the shot on first time on the volley almost catching Castle out low at his near post but the agile keeper got down smartly to his left to palm the ball around the post.

At half time with scores elsewhere going against them the visitors looked in serious danger of being sucked into the relegation quagmire if they could not lift themselves to get something out of the game. No doubt they received a roasting from their management team at the break to try and lift the effort levels in search of a route back into the match. The half time “team talk” seemed to have the desired effect as the Canaries came out and took the game to their opponents straight from the off but they were rather handed their route back into the game in 50^th minute. A ball in from the right by Jamie Towers was not dealt with effectively by Ives back line and the ball fell to the feet of Dominic Brown-Hill who tried to lift it back into the mix but Hoyte’s upraised arm arrested the track of the ball giving referee Wayne Chalmers little option but to award a penalty. Hickey made no mistake from the spot firing down the middle as Martin Conway went to his left.

We hoped for a reaction from Ives but it just did not happen and it was the visitors who continued to come forward in search of a winner. Eight minutes later the all action Hickey robbed stand in left back Jordan Patrick deep inside Ives territory before exchanging passes with Daniel Durkin and then lashing in a powerful drive from the edge of the box that the well positioned Conway did well to block with his legs.

Conway was called into more spectacular action in 64^th minute. Eze got on the end of a Brown-Hill corner from the right but his goal bound header was blocked by an Ives defender and scrambled out of the danger zone. Eddy Nisevic latched onto the loose ball and unleashed a screamer from fully 35 yards that was net bound until Conway flung himself to his right to turn the ball around the post. 

Hickey continued to threaten at every opportunity and only ninety seconds later he was sent tumbling just outside the box by an ill-timed sliding challenge from Jarvis Wilson. The young Ives defender earned himself a yellow card and was saved from further punishment as Conway clung onto Hickey’s curling free kick that beat the hosts four-man wall.

Ives still seemed to be almost sleep walking their way through the game and in spite of Jake Newman and Ben Baker replacing Wilson and the strangely quiet Ollie Snaith to allow the hosts to change to a 4-4-2 formation they continued to create very little threat on Castle’s goal. The visitors sensing that a vital three points could just be there for the taking stepped up their efforts to claim the full reward. Star man Hickey showed their desire to win the game in 76^th minute when he seized an opportunity to take a quick free kick well inside Ives half fortunately for the hosts substitute Jacob Whitmore wasted the opportunity by blazing the ball over the top from 25 yards.

With the clock ticking down it looked like Ives were going to get more reward than their performance perhaps deserved from this game but the Canaries found one final chance to load Ives box as deep in added time they were awarded a free kick on the half way line. Keeper Castle pumped the ball into the mix and Eze somehow managed to lose his marker inside the crowded box and rose to power home a header from ten yards giving Conway no chance.

The wild celebration that followed between players, management team and supporters shows just how vital these extra two points may be when it comes to the final shake up at the end of the season and with all of their main rivals for those relegation places ending up dropping points it turned out to be a good afternoon after all for the Canaries. 

Manager Ricky Marheineke knows this performance was a long way below par and he and Bully Adams will need to reinstate the level of passion and desire which has been so evident in so many of Ives performances this season very quickly to ensure they do not turn into one of those middle of the table sides that are simply playing out the season in their remaining eight games.

Final Score : St Ives Town  1  Barwell  2

Goals :  Seymour-Shove 20

Team : Conway, Jackson, Patrick, Sundire, Hoyte, Jarvis Wilson (Newman 69), Seymour-Shove, Parker (capt), Wood, Osei-Bonsu (Ward 83), Snaith (Baker 69)

Unused subs : Bailey

Supporters man of the match : Ben Seymour-Shove

Attendance : 168  

Report by Nigel Howlett. Photos by Louise Thompson.

St Ives Town v Kettering Town

Evo-Stik League Southern Premier Division Central – 16-02-19

Ives manager Ricky Marheineke was left fuming at the end of this game after he felt that a couple of important decisions from referee Shaun Barry did not go his way but some of his ire was probably also frustration as a carefully mapped out tactical plan and an excellent battling performance were not quite enough to bring the Ives any reward against the champions elect.

The plan mapped out and drilled into the side so diligently by Marheineke and his assistant Craig Adams was a master stroke which saw Ives effectively negate the attacking threat from the League’s leading scorers almost completely in the first half. Eight changes from the previous week’s poor performance against Rushall saw all of the recognised strikers left out and two pacey wingers serving as the outlet to test the pace of the visitors back line.

From the outset Ives were solid in their formation although willing to concede possession in the opposition half once they lost the ball everyone took up their position inside their half and formed a formidable formation that the visitors were finding almost impossible to find a route through. 

When they got the opportunity Ives were quick to break out at pace and with real menace they had the game’s first shot on goal in tenth minute as Ben Seymour-Shove stepped over a Mark Coulson ball in from the left allowing Ben Baker to tee up Ty Ward for a shot from the edge of the box. The busy midfielder struck it well but the ball was always rising and cleared Paul White’s crossbar by a couple of feet.

The Poppies first effort at goal did not arrive until midway through the first period when Dan Holman found a little bit of space in the centre and Marcus Kelly picked him out with a pinpoint cross from the left. Holman got some power in his header but directed it straight at Martin Conway in the Ives goal and the keeper hung on well. Even if the effort had beaten Conway it would have been chalked off as Holman had wandered into an offside position and the flag was up.

The visitor’s first effort was quickly followed by a second only ninety seconds later. Owen Wallis, recalled into the side after an injury lay off, was adjudged to have fouled Holman 25 yards out from goal in a central position. Kelly curled his free kick around the four man Ives wall but Conway was equal to the effort palming the dipping ball over the top.

With the tallest of Ives centre backs missing from the side either injured or suspended dead ball situations were always going to be a danger and the visitors went close again in 27^th minute when Declan Towers lived up to his name as he rose above the pack at the back post to nod a Kelly corner from the right just past the post.

The big Kettering contingent in the bumper crowd of 639 was stunned to silence in 29^th minute when Ives went in front. A slip by Dion Kelly-Evans in allowing a Coulson clip down the left to skim on off the top of his head allowed Seymour-Shove to get away into the box. The speedy winger just managed to loose off his shot before he was clattered by Towers. Referee Barry watched the shot sail wide before correctly pulling back the play to award the penalty. Robbie Parker was back on spot kicks and the Ives skipper made no mistake beating White with a powerfully struck effort low past the diving keeper.

The visitors did have one golden opportunity to get on level terms before the break when Towers showed his ability on the deck as he curled a perfectly weighted clip over the Ives back line to put Aaron O’Connor clear. With home defenders appealing in vain for offside O’Connor raced into the box but he tried to beat Conway with power rather than finesse and blasted his effort wide of the keeper’s right hand post from the edge of the box.

The half time interval could allow the Ives to go in clear in the knowledge that they had all worked hard and done their jobs executing the game plan to perfection. They no doubt came out for the second half expecting more of the same. But visiting manager Marcus Law took his turn to show his tactical nous as he had spotted a potential weakness in Ives line up in the first period and knew he had the perfect weapon to attack it on his bench. He replaced the ineffective Ben Milnes with man mountain ex Cambridge United professional Adam Cunnington. His new tactic to go more direct aiming for 6’ 5” Cunnington and aim to pick up the pieces around him.

The big man was an instant handful for the Ives centre back trio although he was not involved in the equaliser when it came ten minutes after the break. Coulson and Ward both went for the same ball in the centre of the park allowing Rhys Hoenes to break away and run at the Ives back line. He timed his pass to O’Connor to perfection to allow the striker to break into the box and this time he made no mistake as his powerful drive beat the diving Conway and billowed the back of the net.

Having got level the visitors now started to push forward looking to get their noses in front. Two minutes later Hoenes went down inside the box under challenge from Wallis but referee Barry was had a good view of the incident and waved away the appeals of Kettering fans and their players.

The pressure continued to mount and Conway was called into action again on the hour as Towers rose above the pack at the back post to get on the end of a Kelly corner from the right. He tried to cleverly loop his header over Conway but the keeper was equal to it moving his feet smartly to leap backwards and claim the dropping ball. The keeper was perhaps a little lucky two minutes later as the influential Lindon Meikle sprayed a pass out to the overlapping Kelly-Evans on the right. He hung up a cross to the back post where Cunnington rose above his marker to nod the ball down into the mix. Tom Wood’s attempted clearance cannoned off Holman and rebounded inches wide as Conway scrambled across to cover it.

The Poppies thought they were going to get in front in 65^th minute as Meikle and O’Connor combined well on the left. The latter delivered a low cross that Cunnington looked like he was going to get on the end of but Wood pulled the big man back to prevent him stabbing the ball home. The unsighted Mr Barry did not initially give a foul but after consultation with his assistant on the far side he awarded his second spot kick of the game. Holman stepped up and hit his shot well to Conway’s left but the keeper had guessed his intention and flung himself across to palm the ball away.

The save only relieved the pressure momentarily as Cunnington powered himself through the crowd to get on the end of the resulting corner forcing Ives keeper to again display his heroics as he blocked the effort at close range. Holman’s follow up was also blocked on the line and the ball was finally scrambled away.

The winner arrived in 67^th minute but manager Marheineke was convinced it should not have stood as he felt that Cunnington had fouled Wilson as he won the ball to knock it out to the right where Hoenes picked it up. The Poppies leading scorer did the rest cutting inside Coulson before unleashing an unstoppable shot past Conway into the roof of the net from a narrow angle.

Now in front the visitors did not sit back but continued to go in search of another goal to kill off the game. 15 minutes from time Michael Richens picked out the dangerous Hoenes in space on the right and he tried to repeat his trick of eight minutes earlier as he again went past the labouring Coulson before unleashing another powerful drive from the corner of the box that thudded into the chest of Conway. 

Manager Marheineke now began to throw caution to the wind and roll on his regular strikers with Andrew Osei-Bonsu, Jake Newman and George Bailey all joining the fray replacing Ward, Wallis and Coulson respectively. Ives did carve out a few threatening moves into the Poppies final third but the only time they got close to any reward was in the first of the added five minutes when again Marheineke was convinced that Mr Barry got it wrong again as Baker went down in the area under challenge from Towers. But the official waved play on and the chance was gone.

The final whistle blew a few minutes later and Kettering can be pleased with their days work as they extended their winning run to five games and edged themselves a step closer to the title which in reality is now theirs to lose from their present position five points clear with two games in hand.

Ives are now six games without a win and still in search of those few additional points to see them over the line to safety for another season at step three. But they can take a lot from this game as they matched the champions elect for long periods and once again showed the level of work rate and commitment that must always be present to glean any reward in this unforgiving division.

Final Score : St Ives Town  1  Kettering Town  2  

Goals :  Parker 29 (pen)

Team : Conway, Jackson, Coulson (Bailey 89), Sundire, Wood, Jarvis Wilson, Wallis (Newman 83), Parker (capt), Ward (Osei-Bonsu 69), Baker, Seymour-Shove 

Unused subs : Patrick, Snaith

Sponsors man of the match : Robbie Parker

Attendance : 639  

Report by Nigel Howlett. Photos by Louise Thompson

St Ives Town v Rushall Olympic    

Evo-Stik League Southern Premier Division Central – 09-02-19

The powerful Pics once again brought out the worst in Ives who for only the second time this season found themselves on the end of a three goal beating in the League. Their previous three goal defeat in October was against guess who?, the very same opponents. Is it possible for a team to become one of your bogy sides after you have only played them twice?.

The day had started so well for the hosts as a drying overnight breeze courtesy of the remnants of storm Erik had dried out the pitch sufficiently to enable the cancellation of a planned precautionary early pitch inspection. Manager Ricky Marheineke had virtually a full strength squad to pick from with only long term injury absentee Dylan Wilson and unavailable keeper Martin Conway missing. Conway’s absence between the sticks allowed a cameo appearance out of retirement for former fans favourite Tim Trebes.

Having played well in recent games without managing to gain full reward from any of them we all expected the Ives to start positively with the strong breeze at their back but it was the visitors who started on the front foot with Trebes needing to gather a snap shot from Dylan Parker inside the first minute. It was no real surprise when they went in front in twelfth minute Tyler Lyttle and Massiah McDonald combined down the right with the former sliding a clever ball through Ives back line to get the big centre forward to the bye line. His low driven cross took a wicked deflection off the unfortunate Robbie Parker at the near post and flew into the net past the off balance Trebes.

Falling behind did not seem to rouse the lack lustre Ives and the visitors remained in the ascendency going close again only three minutes later as Ben Lund did well to keep alive a ball that looked like it was going out by the left corner flag. His cross to the near post was met powerfully by McDonald but fortunately he directed his header wide of Trebes right hand post.

The Pics continued to rule the centre of the park where very unusually for them Munashe Sundire and Parker were getting out fought by the muscular visitor’s pairing of Lee Smith and Danny O’Callaghan. They went close to increasing their advantage twice more in a two minute spell midway through the first half. In 20^th minute a deep corner from the right by Lyttle picked out O’Callaghan who directed his header straight at Trebes. Two minutes later the dangerous Simeon Maye robbed Charlie De’ath 35 yards out and set off for goal only to be hauled down just outside the box by the covering Danny Kelly who received the expected yellow card. Lyttle curled the free kick over the Ives wall but the curl was not quite enough and the ball went into the side netting as Trebes scrambled across to cover the effort. The keeper was called into action again in 27^th minute as he bravely slid in at the feet of Parker to claim the ball as the speedy striker looked likely to out pace Kelly and get away.

Ives did enjoy good twenty minute spell either side of half time when they offered some threat to the Pics goal. Their first threatening attack of the afternoon came in 34^th minute as a flowing move ended up with the ball at the feet of Andrew Osei-Bonsu on the left edge of the box. He took the opportunity to cut inside and take on Lyttle before unleashing a rasping drive that took a big deflection off Joe Hull and flew wide. Ben Toseland delivered the resulting corner low to the near post and when the ball came back to him he picked out Jake Newman by the penalty spot with his back to goal. Newman pivoted well on his right foot but fired his left foot shot well wide.

The Pics debutant keeper Ben Newey had to make his first save of the afternoon four minutes later. Sundire seized the opportunity to run at the visitor’s back line and was hauled down 25 yards out. Kelly curled the free kick up and over the wall but the effort lacked pace and Newey made a comfortable save by the foot of his right hand post.

Ives came out of the blocks much sharper in the second half and the keeper was called into more spectacular action only two minutes after the restart as Sundire pounced on a loose ball and rifled in a dipping thirty yard effort that the young keeper did well to keep out hurling himself to his right to parry the ball away. Unfortunately for the hosts no one reacted quickly enough to the loose ball allowing Pendley to complete the clearance.

Good pressing from Newman carved out another opportunity for Ives to get level in 50^th minute. The big centre forward just beat Hull to a bouncing ball and got away on the left hand edge of the box. His pull back picked out George Bailey arriving at pace but the striker failed to make good contact and his partially blocked shot rolled into the waiting hands of the already prone Newey.

Ives good spell came to an abrupt end in 56^th minute as they were carved open down the centre by Parker and Maye the move ending with the former slipping through a perfectly weighted pass to put the latter clear into the box. He cleverly drew Trebes to him before slotting the ball through the legs of the exposed keeper.

With Ives now at sixes and sevens the visitors continued to threaten to completely kill them off and Parker should have done that in 61^st minute as he got put completely clear only to be forced wide by the advancing Trebes. His shot when it eventually came only found the side netting.

Manager Ricky Marheineke was desperately searching for a route back into the game and made a brave triple substitution in 64^th minute taking off the injured Danny Kelly, the struggling Ben Jackson and the strangely ineffective Newman and replacing them with Jarvis Wilson, Ben Seymour-Shove and recent signing from St Neots making his debut Tom Wood. But before the substitutes had chance to even bed into the game two further dramatic events meant any slim hopes Ives had of getting back into this game had been entirely extinguished.

In 66^th minute De’ath planted himself in the way of Maye to prevent the Pics winger from breaking away right in front of the assistant on the far side. It looked like an almost certain yellow card but unfortunately De’ath had already picked up one of those just after the break. Sure enough the second yellow was promptly followed by a red taking the hosts down to ten men. To rub salt into the wounds the resulting Lyttle free kick arrived at the feet of Hull just inside the box and he made no mistake side footing home past the unsighted Trebes to put the final nail into Ives coffin.

With the game now effectively over the visitors did an excellent job of moving the ball around and retaining possession to ensure that Ives found it impossible to build up any head of steam to threaten even a remote possibility of a very unlikely come back. The final chance of the game fell to Lund who probably should have put the icing on the Pics cake in 83^rd minute when a Lyttle corner arrived at his feet by the back post but he snatched at the chance and his miss hit shot simply bobbled into the grateful hands of Trebes.

Without doubt Ives worst two performances this season have come against the Pics, amazingly over 20% of the goals Ives have conceded in the League this season have come in the two fixtures against the boys from Walsall. On the bright side this is the first defeat in six and ends a run of four draws. The Ives are still eleven points above the drop zone with only twelve games to go and next week face runaway leaders and champions elect Kettering Town. One of our best performances this season was served up at the home of the Poppies so let’s hope lighting can strike twice and we can repeat it at Westwood Road.  

Final Score : St Ives Town  0  Rushall Olympic  3  

Goals :  none

Team : Trebes, Jackson (Jarvis Wilson 64), Toseland, Sundire, De’ath, Kelly (Seymour-Shove 64), Bailey, Parker (capt), Newman (Wood 64), Osei-Bonsu, Snaith 

Unused subs : Coulson, Ward

Supporters man of the match : Munashe Sundire

Attendance : 180  

Report by Nigel Howlett. Photos by Louise Thompson

St Ives Town v King’s Lynn Town    

Evo-Stik League Southern Premier Division Central – 26-01-19

A cracking advert for Non-League football saw an understrength Ives push the play-off chasing Linnets all the way. This pulsating game had almost everything as Ives matched their illustrious opponents and were only denied the victory by an excellent late penalty save by visiting keeper Alex Street.

With four players missing injured and Jarvis Wilson serving his one match ban for his dismissal at Halesowen the starting eleven for this game almost picked it’s self and there was also a welcome return to Ives for Jordan Patrick who joined Ben Seymour-Shove and Ben Baker as the only three players on the bench.

Even with all of their changes it was the hosts who started best and there were only eight minutes on the watch when a good early advantage by referee Tim Donnellan as Robbie Parker was fouled in centre of the park allowed home debutant Andrew Osei-Bonsu to run at the visiting defence cutting in from the left but his shot when it eventually came from 20 yards lacked power and proved a comfortable save for Street.

Referee Donnellan was the centre of attention again seven minutes later but this time he disappointed Ives fans as he failed to award them a spot kick. George Bailey had started up where he left off Tuesday evening at Barwell looking very busy and his bustling style enabled him to rob Jake Kerins just outside the visitor’s box. As he bore down on goal the recovering Kerins seemed to push him down from behind but there was insufficient contact to satisfy the referee.

Ives did get reward for their early endeavours though in 19^th minute. A slide rule pass through the Linnets back line by Mark Coulson picked out Ollie Snaith who had inexplicably found a few yards of space on the edge of the visitor’s box. Snaith had time to turn and fire in a low shot that crept in the back of the net via the inside of the post despite Street getting his finger tips to the effort.

The shock of falling behind seemed to spark the visitors into life and only sixty seconds later it took a well timed challenge from Charlie De’ath to prevent Adam Marriott getting on the end of a Frazer Blake-Tracy through ball from the left. De’ath did even better in 24^th minute as bravely blocked a close range Marriott effort after the dangerous striker had exchanged passes with Craig Parker before breaking into Ives box.

The Linnets had one more chance to get level in first period when a 28^th minute Blake-Tracy corner from the right was knocked down at the near post. Centre half Ryan Fryatt reacted first to the loose ball but fired his effort wide from a very good position.

The hosts also had another opportunity to increase their lead two minutes before the break as the excellent Bailey slid a ball through the centre on the deck that caused confusion between the visitors centre backs. Fryatt initially missed the ball giving Jake Newman chance to almost get clear but Rory McAuley slid in to delay the Ives striker giving Fryatt chance to recover and although Newman eventually got his shot away from the edge of the box it flew wide of Street’s right hand post.

Both sides came out for the restart determined to lift the pace of the game and chances started to come thick and fast at both ends. There was less than a minute gone when Linnets skipper Michael Clunan played in a ball from the left that Marriott flicked on in the centre. His strike partner Michael Gash arrived at the back post and hammed in a fierce drive that fortunately for Ives only billowed the side netting.

Three minutes later a long De’ath throw in from the right was flicked on by Danny Kelly and although the visitors attempted to clear the ball it fell to Munashe Sundire 25 yards from goal his ball back into the box was knocked down by Newman to Snaith who fired in a first time effort that brought a smart save out of Street who plunged to his left to parry the ball away at close range.

Snaith was even more unlucky only ninety seconds later as he was denied a second goal by the firmness of the Ives pitch. Keeper Street only just beat Newman to a long ball over the top but his hurried clearance fell straight to Snaith 30 yards out. The young Ives midfielder took a touch and lofted the ball over the stranded Street who could only look on in horror as the ball sailed over his head. The look turned to amazement as the ball bounced on the six yard line and got high enough to go over the crossbar and land on top of the net.

Having ridden their luck the Linnets now started to push forward with more purpose and started to look much more dangerous. Home keeper Martin Conway was called up to make his first save of the game on the hour as substitute Ryan Hawkins combined with Jordan Richards on the right before the latter delivered a cross to the near post where Marriott rose highest but Conway was equal to the effort flicking the close range header over the top.

But two minutes later the scores were level as Ives defence was prized open by a series of headed passes through the centre Gash won the initial ball twenty yards from goal his well directed header picked out Henderson on the edge of the box and his header down picked out Marriott bursting through. The Linnets striker made no mistake slotting the ball past the exposed Conway from twelve yards.

The visitors play became more direct as they continued to press forward looking for a winner. They were stretching the Ives back line but it refused to break with every player on the park doing their bit to help the cause. It was not until 76^th minute that the visitors managed to carve out another clear cut opportunity and that was perhaps a little fortunate as the ball seemed to bounce off Ives substitute Baker to put Marriott clear into the box again. But this time he was denied by the ever alert Conway as the Ives keeper sprinted from his line to bravely block the striker’s effort at point blank range. The resulting Blake-Tracy corner arrived at the near post where Gash had an effort blocked before Marriott’s follow up shot from ten yards was deflected straight into the grateful hands of Conway.  

With the clock ticking down the visitors continued to push forward. The closest they came to a winner came in 81^st minute as another Blake-Tracy corner from the right was met powerfully by Fryatt at the back post but his rasping header hit the underside of the crossbar and bounced down before it was scrambled away by Ives defenders. The Linnets had one more opportunity to clinch it in 81^st minute Clunan picked out substitute William Mellors-Blair in space on the left edge of the box but his curled effort was tipped away spectacularly by a diving Conway. 

Having survived the second half pressure Ives now seemed to find a second wind and suddenly seemed to realise that they could not only take a battling point from this game they could even win it and their golden opportunity arrived in 89^th minute. Newman picked out substitute Seymour-Shove in space cutting in from the left. He took a touch before firing in a shot from just outside the box that went through a defender’s legs and almost caught out Street low to his right. The keeper just did enough to keep the ball out but he could not hold it. Baker came out of nowhere and took the ball off him only to be brought down by the struggling keeper. Referee Donnellan immediately blew for the penalty, Newman stepped up confidently and placed the ball on the spot. He struck his shot well but Street had guessed the right way and redeemed himself by hurled himself to his left to palm the ball away.

There were still five added minutes for either side to grab a winner and both sides came close. In 92^nd minute another Clunan cross from the left was met powerfully at the back post by Gash but he directed his header just inches the wrong side of the post. Back at the other end of the park in the final added minute Parker and Patrick combined to get the latter to the bye line his cross into the six yard box beat Street and cannoned off the knee of McAuley on a different day it would have flown into the roof of the net but on this occasion it flew wide and proved to be the final action in a highly entertaining game.

Final Score : St Ives Town  1  King’s Lynn Town  1  

Goals :  Snaith 19

Team : Conway, Coulson, Toseland, Sundire, De’ath, Kelly, Bailey (Seymour-Shove 69), Parker (capt), Newman, Osei-Bonsu (Patrick 83), Snaith (Baker 69)

Unused subs : none

Sponsors man of the match : Munashe Sundire

Attendance : 322  

Report by Nigel Howlett. Photos by Louise Thompson