BRNESC FOR THE SECOND WEEK IN SUCCESSION THREW AWAY A LEAD AS ALUMNI CAME FROM 3 1 DOWN TO WIN 4 3 AND STUN MELLING ROAD
THE FROSTBOUND PITCH HAD THAWED AND WAS PLAYABLE ,WITH THE EMBANKEMENT END A WEE BIT SLIPPY AS THE GAME KICKED OFF.THE SLIPPY CONDITIONS CONTRIBUTED TO A SHOCK OPENER FOT ALUMNI ,IN THE FOURTH MINUTE ,AS A BALL DOWN THE MIDDLE EVADED CHRIS BELL AND AS MATTY NAGLE CAME TO COLLECT HE SLIPPED AND THE ALERT ALUMNI FORWRD NIPPED IN AND SLOTTED THE BALL INTO THE EMPTY NET, 0 1
BRNESC HIT BACK WITHIN 4 MINS AS DEBUTANT PHIL OLIVER HEADED TONY McDERMOTTS FREE KICK OVER THE STRANDED ALUMNI KEEPER . 1 1
A FLOWING MOVE IN THE 10 MINUTE INVOLVING DANNY KEARNEY,CHRIS FAGAN AND DAVE WHITNEY ENDED WITH DAVE WHITNEYS SHOT JUST WIDE OF THE FAR POST
CHRIS FA\GAN THEN WAS NARROWLY WIDE WITH A FREE KICK WITH THE KEEPER STRANDED,THE GAME WAS END TO END AS BOTH TEAMS SEARCHED FOR THE SECOND GOAL.
DAVE WHITNEYS STRONG RUN AND PASS TO DANNY KEARNEY ENDED WITH DANNYS GOALBOUND SHOT BLOCKED 8 YARDS OUT
BRNESWC HAD GOT ON TOP AND IN THE 21 MINUTE TOOK THE LEAD PAUL FINNAN AND DAVID WHITNEY FLICKED ON A FREE KICK FROM THE LEFT AND WHEN THE UNDER PRESSURE ALUMNI DEFENDER CLEARED THE BALL TO THE EDGE OF THE BOX DANNY KEARNEY VOLLEYED THE BALL INTO THE FAR CORNER 2 1
ALUMNI THEN WENT CLOSE WITH A HEADER JUST PAST THE FAR POST AND IT TOOK A TREMENDOUS 1 ON I SAVE BY MATTY NAGLE TO DENY THE ALUMNI FORWARD AFTER A RARE SLIP BY CHRIS BELL
CHRIS BELL THEN MADE AMENDS WITH A FINE TACKLE TO PREVENT A BREAK INTO THE BOX WITH BRNESC STRETCHED.PAUL FINNAN THEN NARROWLY MISSED THE TARGET WITH A FINE HEADER AS BRNESC TOOK CONTROL OF THE GAME FINN THEN SCORED AFTER A TWISTING RUN ALONG THE BYELINE LEAVING SEVERAL DEFENDERS IN HIS WAKE BY DANNY KEARNEY LEFT HIM WITH A EMPTY NET TO SLOT THE BALL INTO BUT THE BALL HAD JUST GONE OUT OF PLAY BEFORE THE PASS.
THE GOAL WAS ONLY DELAYED FOR 5 MINS WHEN PAUL FINNAN TOOK A QUICK FREE KICK INTO THE RIGHT HAND CORNER WHILST ALUMNI WERE STILL ARRANGING THEIR DEFENSIVE WALL QUICK TBHINKING AGAIN BY FINN HIS SECOND SUCH GOAL THIS SEASON 3 1,BRNESC FULLY DESERVED THEIR LEAD AT HALF TIME HAVING SHRUGGED OF THE EARLY GOAL AND FOR THE MOST PART WERE COMPACT AND SHOULD HAVE SCORED MORE
BRNESC WREE INCHES AWAY FROM 4 1 WHEN A BALL DOWN THE MIDDLE FROM DANNY KEARNEY WAS JUST TOUCHED AWAY FROM PAUL FINNAN BY A DESPERATE LUNGE BY THE DEFENDER BEFORE HE COULD APPLY THE FINNISHING TOUCH
ALUMNI THEN REDUCED THE ARREARS WHEN FROM A DAVE WHITNEY CLEARING HEADER TO THE EDGE OF THE BOX A TOTALLY UNMARKED ALUMNI PLAYER VOLLEYRD THE BALL INTO THE FAR CORNER 3 2
BRNESC RESPONDED WITH A VOLLEY JUST WIDE FROM CHRIS FAGAN AFTER GOOD WORK FROM DANNY KEARNEY AND FINN ,DAVE WHITNEY WAS CLOSE WITH A HEADER CLAWED AWAY BY THE KEEPER AS BRNESC STROVE TO STRECH THEIR LEAD
ALUMNI THEN STUNNED BRNESC BY LEVELLING WITH A CLOSE RANGE EFFORT AFTER A BALL FROM THE RIGHT WAS NOT CLEARED ALUMNI HAD SCORED 2 GOALS IN 15 MINUTES TO TURN THE GAME ON ITS HEAD 3 3
BRNESC EARLIER COMPOSURE HAD EVAPORATED AND THEY NEARLY CONCEDED ANOTHER GOAL WHEN ALUMNI SHOT NARROWLY WIDE.
THE GAME HAD CHANGED COMPLETELY AND WHAT AT ONE STAGE LOOKED AS IT WAS GOING TO BE 5 OR 6 TO BRNESC WAS NOW A BATTLE TO STEM THE FLOW OF A RESURGENT ALUMNI WHO WERE THREATENING TO RUN AWAY WITH THE GAME
BRNESC FASHIONED A GOOD MOVE BETWEEN PAUL FINNAN AND DAVID WHITNEY WITH ALUMNI JUST CLEARING THE BALL BEFORE DAVID COULD SCORE,BRNESWC THEN HAD 3 CHANCES IN THE SIX YARD BOX BUT COULDNT TURN THE BALL INTO THE NET AND THE BALL WAS CLEARED OFFTHE LINE AT LEAST TWICE.
ALUMNI WERE LOOKING FITTER AND SHARPER THE LONGER THE GAME WENT AND IN THE 77 MIN FROM BRNESC CORNER THEY SHOWED IT ,THEY CLEARED THE BALL TO THE HALF WAY LINE WERE IT WAS GIVEN AWAY AMD THEY BROKE IN NUMBERS AND THE PLAYER WHO HAD CLEARED THE BALL SCORED THE GOAL!!! WHEN YOU LOOKED BACK ON THE PITCH BRNESC PLAYERS WERE STILL IN THE ALUMNI HALF!!!
BRNESC THEN TO BE FAIR HAD ANOTHER 3 SCRAMBLES IN THE ALUMNI SIX YARD BOX BUT COULDNT CONVERT ANY OF THEM
AT THE FINAL WHISTLE IT WAS DE JA VEAU ,SHADES OF THE WATERLOO GAME 7 DAYS EARLIER BRNESC STUNNED AND THEIR OPPONENTS CELEBRATING A LAZARUS LIKE COMEBACK
FITNESS OR LACK OF IT IS A MAYJOR PROBLEM GAMES LAST 90 MINS NOT 45 THE LAST TWO GAMES WE HAVE MADE ERRORS AND OUR SHAPE AND ORGINISATION HAS DISINTEGRATED AND IT WILL HAPPEN AGAIN UNLESS WE CHANGE THE ATTITUDE OF THE PLAYERS OR CHANGE THE PLAYERS!!!
