Bet Victor Division One South – Saturday 14th December 2019
Evesham Utd 3 v 1 Basingstoke Town Attendance 187
Where: The Jubilee Stadium, Cheltenham Road, Evesham, Worcs. WR11 2LZ
Costly second half mistake, sinks Stoke’s to yet another way defeat.
Manager Dan Brownlie with various players out through illness, went with a starting line-up of; 1. Freddie Gee, 2. Alfie Saunders, 3. Adam Everiss, 4. Aaron Kuhl 5. Dean Stow (Capt) 6. Ryan Suckling, 7. Harrison Cliff, 8. Ben Cook, 9. Ben Wright, 10. Jordan Edwards, 11. Bradley Wilson
On the bench: Claudio Herbert, Riccardo Andrady, Jordan Alves, Aiden Harris and Mikey Davis
The game gets underway with Stoke attacking the covered standing end with a cold wind blowing around the ground.
It’s Stoke who win the first free-kick on ten yards inside the Evesham half. The kick by Stow is caught by the keeper who throws the ball out to his defender on the right, and Evesham break quickly down the wing, they get down to our byline and send a low cross across the goal, where their leading scorer Lee Chilton, taps it home into an empty net and Stoke trail 1-0.
However, Stoke are straight back on it and we come forward deep into Evesham’s half, and then Jordan Edwards steady’s himself and takes a shot straight at the keepers who fluffs it, as he fails to hold onto it and the ball rolls slowly into the net.
GOAL! Evesham Utd 1 – 1 Basingstoke Town
The keeper looks to the heaven, and the small contingent of Btg give the keeper some friendly advice behind the goal.
It’s Evesham who spend the next two to three minutes in an around our box, as they work the ball around the box, then send the ball across to wide open Utd forward who fails to keep his header down and it flies over the ball. A minute later they then win another corner and yet again we are unable to clear the initial cross and a flick forces Freddie Gee to make the save at the near post.
On 18 mins and it’s another cross from the byline and another wide open Utd attacker fails to get his header on target and flies wide of the goal.
On 20 mins from a poor pass out from the back, they break down the right and send a low cross, but Aaron Kuhl is first to the ball and calmly takes two touches then clears the ball to Wilson down by the touchline.
Another attack, across by Utd and Gee makes another save down low at the near post.
Then on 25 mins the ball is slipped through to Bradley Wilson who races into the right-hand side of the penalty area, but his first-time shot, although well hit is straight at the oncoming keeper, who makes the save.
It’s Gee to the rescue again, as he makes two class saves in the next three minutes. The first a shot down low from another corner, the second is a shot that he is able to smother from another low cross that finds an open attacker on the six-yard line.
Then the game takes a lengthy break as the Evesham forward Kai Tonge, has to be carried off on a stretcher.
The injury appears to have affected the flow of the game, as neither team is able to create anything of note until we head into first-half injury time and the referee gives the home side a soft free-kick just outside our box. The shot beats the wall, but Gee pushes is again to the rescue as he pushes it over the bar. From the corner we gain fail to win it in the air, but we are able to scramble it clear.
The ref blows for halftime, and Stoke head into the break, as many Stoke fans agree they would take the point now if offered to them.
The second-half gets underway, similar to the first as Evesham seem to get behind our back four at will, and a shot forces Gee into action yet once more.
We then have break into their half as a move between Cook and Kuhl, allows Aaron to take the ball a further five yards towards the goal, then tries a shot from 30yds that never troubles the keeper as it runs out five yards away from the far post.
Here we go again as on 51 mins and from another corner, the ball somehow find Chilton at the far post who again taps it home, and we trail 2-1.
Another attacking move by Evesham as they break down the right, the ball is slid inside to another Evesham attacker who smashes a shot from 20 yds, but fortunately it flies over the bar.
On the hour Stoke make their first change as Claudio Herbert replaces Harrison Cliff.
It takes less than a minute to make his first contribution as good work from Cook and Wilson send Herbert away, but his shot from a tight angle find the top of the side netting.
Again another attack for Evesham forces a scrambled clearance by Dean Stow in the 6 yard box.
It’s Stoke who then spend the next few minutes trying to force an equaliser, as a good move between Edwards and Herbert, but the Herbert cross is blocked out for a corner. Nothing comes from the corner, but we pick the ball up again and the ball finds Ben Wright, who is able to turn his defender and sends a swerving shot that the keeper pushes back out to a wide open Wilson, who has the whole goal in front of him, but hits it straight at the keeper who makes a good save. That simply should be 2-2, and another reason why we are where are in the table.
Two further important blocks by Stoke players, firstly by Alfie Saunders, who stops a dangerously looking attack, then Kuhl again who intercepts another attacking pass from the home side.
The game is starting to get stretched but we are still not out of it, but we can’t seem to find that vital killer pass, but then on 80 mins we have a schoolboy error. The ball is chipped into he heart of the Evesham, the keeper is beaten to the cross by Herbert, who flicks a header past the keeper, it’s going into the net, then Cook decides to tap it home from a yard, and the linesman flags for offside. The goal is rightly disallowed despite the small group of Stoke fans protests.
Five minutes to go and Evesham force another save out of Gee.
Stoke are looking to make a double substitution, but the ball is sent over the back and the left back is able to retrieve along our byline, then sends a low cross that beats our defenders at the near post, only to find a Evesham player on his own again and it’s another tap it, and it’s game over as we trail 3-1.
We appear to make just the one change as Mikey Davis replaces Ben Cook as we head into injury-time.
It’s game over as the referee blows the final whistle on another disappointing result.
Final Score: Evesham Utd 3 – 1 Basingstoke Town
Final game before Christmas, as next Saturday we are back on the road and back to the Corinium Stadium in the league this time, to take on Cirencester Town.
Match Report by Martin French..
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