League: The FA Cup

St Ives Town vs Saffron Walden Town

St Ives Town 3 Saffron Walden Town 1

Emirates FA Cup 1st Qualifying Round Replay 11-09-18

Ives eventually claimed the prize from this vary hard fought replay following Saturday’s stalemate at Catons Lane. The match proved to be a nervy and at times petulant affair fortunately well managed by the referee.

As on Saturday the first chance of the game fell to the Bloods as Ives struggled to clear the first corner of the match in sixth minute. The ball ricocheted around the box before eventually rolling back to the taker Spike Bell who snatched at the opportunity and hammered his shot well over from a good position.

Ives settled into the game and eased any nerves that they may have by going in front in 17th minute. A Robbie Parker free kick from the left was half cleared from the box by a Walden defender but Jarvis Wilson kept it alive and fed the ball out wide to Ben Seymour-Shove in space on the left. He sped away and delivered a driven low cross to the near post where the inrushing Tom McGowan met the ball perfectly to divert it past Neil O’Sullivan from close range.

Up to this point the petchiness between the two sides had been bubbling under the surface but it exploded in the 21st minute as Charlie De’ath clattered into Julian Simon-Parsons in the centre of the park as both went for an awkward bouncing ball. De’ath certainly got his boot high as did the Bloods man and both players went down in a heap with the Walden supporters screaming for a red card for De’ath. After a lengthy period of treatment for both players the card issued by referee Jeff Aldous was a correctly interpreted yellow.

The hosts came close to grabbing a second two minutes later Parker robbed a dallying Bell and sped away down the left. His perfectly weighted clip into the middle looked like it was going to role into the path of Dylan Wilson but a brave plunge in by keeper O’Sullivan just took the ball off the toes of the Ives striker.

Simon-Parsons was still feeling the after affects of his collision with De’ath and he limped out of the game in 27th minute to be replaced by the man who had stood in for him whilst he served a one match ban on Saturday Charlie Davis.

Ives loanee keeper from Mansfield Town Sam Wilson was looking confident in dealing with everything that came his way and he was called into action a couple of times with half time looming. In 40th minute he did well to climb above Ryan Fleming and get a good clean punch onto a long Bell throw and even better making a clean catch above the crowd as the ball was lofted back into the box. He was also well positioned on his near post to make a comfortable save from a Bell strike from the corner of the box three minutes later.

Thanks to the long periods of treatment to Simon-Parsons and De’ath there were four added minutes at the end of the first period and the game’s second flash point arrived just seconds from the end of the last one of these as Ashley Skeggs launched himself two footed to take out Parker inside the centre circle as the Ives skipper was breaking away at pace. Referee Aldous had no option but to go into his top pocket to brandish the red card to the Bloods midfielder much to the disgust of the Walden supporters and management team who felt they had been very hard done by.

Parker should have inflicted more pain on the Bloods only thirteen seconds after the restart as a kick off move by the Ives almost worked perfectly the ball arriving at the feet of Parker in space on the corner of the visitor’s box. The skipper struck his shot well but it was always rising and just cleared O’Sullivan’s crossbar much to the relief of the beaten keeper.

Ives were now well on top against the ten men but to their great credit the Bloods continued to battle to stay in the game. Dylan Wilson showed his excellent touch in 49th minute as he took down a clip into the box from the right by Owen Wallis and in a single movement swivelled and got his shot away from the edge of the box unfortunately his effort was straight at O’Sullivan who held on well. 

A second Ives goal was on the cards and it duly arrived in 57th minute in simple fashion thanks to the quick thinking of Parker. His quick free kick from the half line way set Seymour-Shove away down the left and caught the Bloods all at sea. The visitors were still in disarray as Seymour-Shove picked out Jarvis Wilson in space at the back post. The young centre back kept his composure and guided his powerful header into the far corner of the net to claim his first goal for the Ives. 

But having fought so hard to get two in front the hosts switched off momentarily and found the deficit reduced to one again less than ninety seconds later. Sam Cartwright was trying to police a through ball out of play on the edge of his own box only to be robbed by Dan Trendall who then cut inside and unleashed a rising drive into the far corner of the net past the exposed Wilson.

The goal lifted the Bloods and they continued to push forward in search of an unlikely equaliser. Bell delivered a deep corner in 63rd minute that Fleming headed back into the danger zone but no one was on hand to force the ball home and it was eventually hacked to safety. The Bloods full back hurled another ball deep into Ives territory from the resulting throw again the hosts struggled to clear but the ball eventually arrived in the safe hands of keeper Wilson.

Manager Ricky Marheineke made a double substitution with twenty minutes to go replacing Snaith and Seymour-Shove with the pacey Ben Baker and the ever-willing George Bailey and Baker almost scored with his first touch only seconds later. Dylan Wilson bravely went in with Jamie Riley and keeper O’Sullivan as they all challenged for a long ball just outside the Bloods box. The ball ran loose towards Baker who looked like he had got a tap in only for Bloods skipper to slide in with a covering tackle that took the ball off the young striker’s toe.

Bloods manager Stuart Wardley played his final card with 13 minutes to go as he took off left back James Solkhon and threw on an extra striker in James Crane. But as the ten men tired it was Ives who were now well on top. In 83rd minute Bailey battled his way through three tired challenges to get into a good position on the edge of the box only to unleash a tame left footed effort straight at O’Sullivan.

The goal that finally killed off the gallant visitors arrived six minutes from time as Baker and Wallis worked a short corner that ended with the former delivering a driven cross into the box that deflected up off a struggling defender to present Sam Carwright with a free header six yards out. The Peterborough youngster became the second centre back to open his Ives account of the evening as he gleefully steered the ball home. 

Baker had one more opportunity to inflict further pain on the now defeated Bloods as he got on the end of a ball from the left from fellow substitute Jordan Patrick in space beyond the far post. He took the ball down well but pulled his shot across the face of the goal from just inside the box.

Referee Aldous brought proceedings to an end a few minutes later and it is Ives who can welcome the Gingerbreads from Grantham Town to Westwood Road in the next round on Saturday 22nd September. Equally important to the win was seeing the return of the majority of our injured players in this fixture competition for places will keep everyone on their toes in the next few weeks.

On a night where there were again a number of contenders for the man of the match award the very hard working Tom McGowan claimed it for the second match in a row this time courtesy of Mark Plummer from the Hunts Post.

Result :  St Ives Town  3  Saffron Walden Town  1    

Goals : McGowan 17, Jarvis Wilson 57, Cartwright 84

Team : Sam Wilson, Hood, De’ath, McGowan, Cartwright, Jarvis Wilson, Wallis, Parker (capt), Dylan Wilson (Patrick 86), Snaith (Baker 70), Seymour-Shove (Bailey 70)

Unused subs : O’Connor, Coulson, Sundire, Rogers

Man of the match : Tom McGowan

Attendance : 258

Report by Nigel Howlett. Photos by Louise Thompson

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Saffron Walden Town vs St Ives Town

Saffron Walden Town 0 St Ives Town 0

Emirates FA Cup 1st Qualifying Round  08-09-18

As manager Ricky Marheineke said in his post match interview this was always going to be a tough one as Ives visited the so far unbeaten Bloods who had already showed their metal in progressing through two tough fixtures to arrive at the 1st Qualifying Round.

Although the visitors did spurn a couple of good late opportunities to win the tie at the first attempt their gallant hosts did just about enough to deserve another shot at Westwood Road on Tuesday evening.

Not surprisingly the confident hosts tore at their visitors right from the kick off winning a corner inside the first minute. The flag kick from the left taken by right back Spike Bell was delivered to the back post where Lewis Francis looked likely to steer it home but the alert Charlie De’ath did just enough to prevent him hitting the target with his header.

Francis caused more trouble for the Ives defence in 14th minute as he outpaced De’ath and just beat debutant keeper Sam Wilson to the ball. But fortunately the Bloods winger was forced very wide and his ball into the centre could not pick out one of his team mates.

Ives first opportunity came mid way through the first period and Danny Kelly should have done much better with the chance as Seymour-Shove’s corner from the left beat keeper Neil O’Sullivan but the ball seemed to take Kelly by surprise hitting him on the body rather than him directing it goalwards from the edge of the six yard box. The loose ball was scrambled out for a throw. De’ath delivered a long one into the box which was half cleared but fell to Owen Wallis inside the D. But under pressure he failed to keep his effort down and the ball flew over the top and out of the compact Catons Lane Ground.

The only other noteworthy effort on goal in the first 45 minutes came ten minutes before the break as the hard working Tom McGowan won a ball on the right inside the Bloods half and fed the ball into the feet of Ben Baker just outside the box. He carefully teed up Seymour-Shove whose low driven effort bobbled across the face of goal with no one able to get a touch. 

So ended an entertaining first period in which defences were very much on top and chances at a premium even at this point it looked like a game which would probably be decided by a single goal if one could be found at all.

As in the first half the Bloods were first out of the traps and created an opportunity only two minutes after the break. Craig Calver got down the left and delivered a cross into the centre that bounced off an under pressure Sam Cartwright and fell to Charlie Portway inside the box. Sam Wilson was bravely in at the feet of the hosts striker who was deemed to have fouled the Ives keeper in his efforts to force the ball home.

Seven minutes later Ryan Fleming won a crunching tackle in the centre of the park and sent the overlapping Bell away on the right. The speedy full back got a little bit to much on his cross which flashed through the area ahead of his fast arriving colleagues.

Manager Marheineke made his first change just after the hour replacing the strangely ineffective Kelly with the pace of Dylan Wilson and the Ives striker showed that he was well on the way to full recovery from the injury that saw him miss the last three games as he was involved in Ives best chance to this point in 74th minute. Seymour-Shove delivered a cross from the right that Wilson flicked on at the near post. McGowan met the dropping ball with his head ten yards out and looked like he must score but keeper O’Sullivan was equal to the effort hurling himself to his left to paw the ball away.

From this point the game started to open up as both sides went in pursuit of the crucial opening goal. A further Ives raid at pace only sixty seconds later saw Seymour-Shove get to the bye line on the right and pull the ball back into the run of Robbie Parker but the visitor’s skipper got the ball tangled in his feet and failed to get his shot away from a good position.

The Bloods were not out of it and went close three times in the next five minutes. In 76th minute substitute Dan Trendall got away down the right and turned inside De’ath before driving in a low shot from the corner of the box that proved a comfortable save for Wilson at his near post.

Three minutes later a Bell corner from the left was delivered to the back post where Jamie Riley rose highest but thanks to pressure from Cartwright and Jarvis Wilson he was unable to get a clean contact on the ball and knocked his effort wide.

A long throw from the left by Bell caused problems in Ives box in 81st minute. As Ives struggled to clear the ball dropped to the feet of James Solkhon on the edge of the six yard box but the ever alert Sam Wilson was bravely in the claim the ball in the melee.

As the game entered the last ten minutes it became evident that the hard working Bloods were beginning to tire and this was the period when Ives should have sealed the tie. A Seymour-Shove corner from the right arrived at the feet of Jarvis Wilson at the back of the box, but his goal bound effort struck one of his colleagues and ricocheted wide.

A long Joe Hood throw caused problems in the hosts defence in 89th minute. The ball fell to McGowan who teed up De’ath his well struck effort from the edge of the box was deflected wide of a gallant Bloods defender. Jarvis Wilson rose highest to the resulting corner but powered his header over the top.

O’Sullivan was the Bloods saviour again right at the end of the ninety minutes as yet another Seymour-Shove corner was half cleared to Jarvis Wilson just outside the box. Wilson cleverly fed the ball back out to the Ives winger who delivered a perfectly flighted cross into the centre where Dylan Wilson met it with a clean header ten yards out. O’Sullivan twisted in the air and somehow got a hand onto the effort turning the ball onto the post. Substitute Jordan Patrick pounced onto the rebound but was deemed offside as he tried to bundle the ball home.

There was still time for Ives to go close to the clincher as a long Sam Wilson punt two minutes into added time flicked on off a tiring defender. Seymour-Shove just beat keeper O’Sullivan to the ball and unselfishly delivered it to the feet of Dylan Wilson in the centre. The young striker struck his effort well only to be denied by an amazing covering block on the line by Riley.

All will reconvene for a second attempt at Westwood Road on Tuesday evening when we can hope for a return of a few more of the injured players to boost our chances of progressing.

Result :  Saffron Walden Town  0  St Ives Town  0   

Goals : none

Team : Sam Wilson, Hood, De’ath, McGowan, Cartwright, Jarvis Wilson, Wallis, Parker (capt), Kelly (Dylan Wilson 69), Baker (Patrick 76), Seymour-Shove

Unused subs : O’Connor, Coulson, Rogers

Man of the match : Tom McGowan

Attendance : 521

 Report by Nigel Howlett. Photos by Louise Thompson

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