CHRISTCHURCH V ALMONDSBURY

FA VASE ROUND 3

MATCH RESULT: 2 - 5

Goal Scorers: Adam Costello, Tom Jeffes

1. STEWART KEARN
2. ADAM COSTELLO
3. DAN TAYLOR
4. BEN LUCAS
5. STEVE LINPOW
6. MARTIN LAWRENCE
7. MARK SMITH
8. MARC FAIRBROTHER
9. BEN OSBORNE
10. TOM JEFFES
11. PAUL RIDEOUT

Sub used

DAVID LEGG

Christchurch were dealt a blow prior to naming their side when influential skipper Dan Crutchley was ruled out due to illness. The kick off was delayed to 8:15pm due to travel problems incurred by the visitors but you would not have thought they were suffering any ill effects as mentioned later.

Almondsbury started like a house on fire opening the scoring on 2 minutes when their right winger sped to the by line and provided an inch perfect cross for an unmarked centre forward to head home from 5 yards and matters got worse for Church in the next minute when an unstoppable shot from 25 yards from the left wing made it 2- nil. You thought matters could only get better but they got worse on 11 minutes when a corner was allowed to go right across goal and a third goal was poked in from 2 yards. If it had not been for Kearn saving a harshly awarded penalty on 18 minutes matters would have got completely out of hand.

With nothing to lose the home side started to play like we know they can and put the visitors under pressure and Tom Jeffes was unlucky not to score on 32 minutes being denied by a fine save. However it was not all Christchurch and the visitors with their pacey forwards threatened every time they came over the halfway line. It looked as if Church had pulled a goal back on the stroke of half time but Jeffes strike from close range was superbly turned round the post by the Almondsbury keeper.

The second half started with Church attacking and they pulled a goal back on 48 minutes when Adam Costello headed home from a Mark Smith corner and for the next 10 minutes laid siege to the visitors goal and were unfortunate not to add to their goal tally. Having survived this passage of play the away side scored a 4th goal on 70 minutes with a clinical finish by their substitute but not to be denied Jeffes scored the goal he deserved on 79 minutes. This was not the end of the scoring as on 89 minutes an Almondsbury player was allowed to run some 60 yards unchallenged to score goal number 5.

Apart from the disastrous first 10 minutes there was not an awful lot to choose between the two sides and Christchurch can take heart from their spirited display in the second half whilst the visitors face a difficult away tie at Witney in the next round but from what we saw and from our own experience last year they could do very well.

Donners