CCK endured another defeat at their own ground, as they were beaten 2-1 by American Express. Home form continues to be a problem for The Badgers who have lost all their matches at Wish Park this season.
American Express started brightly with far more purpose than their opponents failed to settle into the game. An early goal for The Express did little to help CCK's efforts. Poor defending allowed the attacking Express players to exploit a man over on the right. Their striker received the ball on the edge of the CCK area, and produced a sublime left footed curler past the helpless keeper, Mike Spence. The Badgers fans hoped that the goal would spark CCK into life, and encourage a fightback. However, they were left dissappointed as American Express continued to dominate all over the pitch. Their passing and moving were creating a defensive headache for CCK and their determination to win the ball in the midfield saw them dominate possession. CCK's lack of possession, along with their lack of composure when they did sparadically have the ball did little to aide their attacking threat. Instead it was their opponents who continued to make chances. Mike Spence, CCK's stand-in keeper, was kept busy and helped keep his team mates in the game. The pick of his first half saves was a great block with his legs after an attacker found himself free in the area. Dave Sewell was also inspirational in CCK's battle to keep in touch. He regularly made timely interceptions and blocks to prevent further punishment for CCK's dismal display. Despite their poor performance, CCK could have found themselves back in the game. Dave Jones found Mike Morrison inside the area. The tall midfielder turned, but his shot failed to test the keeper. Morrison and Jones combined again moments later, with the latter shooting tamely towards goal. The save was comfortable for the keeper. The CCK players trudged off the pitch with plenty of soul searching to be done in the changing rooms.
All the body language pointed to a CCK revival, a half time cry to arms looked to have inspired the Badgers into action. A positive passing move through the midfield seemed to set the tone. Then American Express gave themselves some room to breathe. A long throw troubled Mike Spence who failed to claim the ball. This sparked a goalmouth scramble, several blocks, then several airshots leaving CCK red-faced as the ball ended in the net. The second goal knocked the stuffing out of CCK, whose fragile home confidence took another blow. Their opponents on the other hand were in high spirits and their performance mirrored that. They outplayed and outbattled the men in yellow and continued to create chances. Redemption was an adequate word to portray Mike Spence's role in keeping the scoreline respectable. His howler had presented American Express with their second goal, however, two outstanding saves salvaged some credibility. A powerful Express effort at goal was acrobatically tipped over by Spence, before he brilliantly saved with his feet after an Express striker went one on one with him. Dan Harnden seemingly picked up a knock around the hour mark and was replaced by Mike Preston. American Express continued to enjoy the better of the play, as they looked to cement their healthy lead. Personal battles started to get to CCK players as they were clearly riled by their opponents. Unfortunately, those tussles did little to help their cause. Tim Rose was then replaced by Matt Carvel in a straight swap. It had been a long time coming but CCK seemed to improve. They strung passes together and showed more desire to win the ball. Ivan Sambles saw a long range effort saved, however, that was a sign of intent as CCK looked to get back into the game. Mike Morrison, Ivan Sambles, and Mike Preston started running at the defence, while Matt Carvel had made a positive impact in the midfield. Dave Sewell was starting good passing moves from the back, as the midfielders showed more willingness to receive the ball. A good run by Ivan Sambles presented Dave Jones with a chance on the edge of the area. He pulled his shot wide. American Express sensed a turning in the tide and resorted to physical tactics as they anxiously awaited the final whistle. Doug Reid was involved in an altercation with Express' large midfielder. The American Express player rugby tackled Reid, who let him know that he wasn't to be messed with. Both players received a warning from the referee and play continued. Then CCK gave themselves hope. Dave Jones received the ball in a pocket of space, and found the run of Josh Van Nes with a nicely weighted pass. The giant striker ran through and neatly passed the ball home. The goal proved to be too little too late, as Express time wasted their way to the three points.
Manager Tim Rose was upset by his sides poor performance when he spoke with sports journalists in the post match press room, "The defeat is hard to take, but even more tough is the manner of the loss. Frankly we were awful today and fully deserved to lose. We need to learn from this and come back fighting." Man of the match Dave Sewell told BBC Sport that it was a game to forget for his team, "It wasn't great today, we all know that, but we need to forget this result and move on. We are a quality side, we are far better than this performance and we need to start showing that." CCK will be pleased to know that their next match is away from home at the Waterhall where they'll face Brighton North End in a cup clash.
