The build-up to the game always meant this game was going to be a tasty affair. The tension was evident from the opening whistle when M Gladwin launched a tyrant of abuse at the Fusiliers players much to the delight of Mutford’s ever present travelling support.
From the go Mutford piled on the pressure earning 6 corners in the first 10 minutes unfortunately Mutford were unable to take advantage of their early pressure. This was until the Fusiliers earned a throwing which would prove to be telling the thrower who at best was 5 foot 8 managed to launch the ball in to the 6 yard box which was put away in fluky fashion to give the Fusiliers the lead against the run of play.
Amazingly the Fusiliers decided they had the ability to hold this slender lead for the remaining 70 minutes of the game, a tactic which unsurprisingly would come back to haunt them. Mutford began to pile on the pressure winning all the aerial balls and making some full blooded tackles.
The pressure finally told on about 30 minutes when LWillis powered home a shot from the edge of the area. The Fusiliers looked shell shocked they could not believe their tactic of staying back and smashing the ball aimlessly up field hadn’t worked they were devastated, the half time whistle blow and it was hard to imagine a team could run/waddle of the pitch any faster.
HT Fusiliers 1 v 1 A.F.C Mutford
After a stirring Half Time talk from the gaffer Mutford picked up were the left off making attack after attack the only shocking thing was that they were unable to take the lead. The gulf between the team was evident Mutford players looked stronger and more determined to win the game, this showed when they took the lead on the 50th minute with LWillis’s second goal of the game it was to be a telling goal for Mutford while their heads rose the Fusiliers dropped arguments began a sign of a team whose leader was several miles away in hiding.
C,Parr fired in Mutfords 3rd goal putting his team 2 goals clear of the Fusiliers who by this time had called in the ‘large’ cavalry in the form of their midfielder S.McNamee who promised much but added little to the game other than earning himself a yellow card for Bad language.
The 4th and final goal was one of those goals which will be talked about for years and was up there with Zidane’s volley in the champions league final the ball was cleared up field from the Fusiliers it then smashed against the Ref who provided one of the best passes I’ve ever seen the ball landed at the feet of L.Willis who went on a mazy run leaving the tired defence in his wake before slotting the ball home in fine fashion completing a fine Hat-trick. The battle for top scorer is well and truly underway with C, Parr on 6 goals and L,Willis on 5 goals after 3 games each.
