Prince of Wales vs Stronstad Utd – London Cup 1st Round
After last week’s shocking performance against Alan & Wright, Stronstad were looking to put a good performance in to bring a smile to manager Dave “Moggsy” Morling’s face.
The key information before the game were
1. Passing to feet
2. Communication
3. Keeping the ball on the floor
First Half from Paulsgrove
Stronstad kicked off against their division 1 rivals Prince of Wales hoping to get a back to winning ways and with Robert Pearson dropped and Jamie Nottage making his first start of the season and Pete Hamilton not being risked due to a non payment of his booking, Nick Crocker partnered Jeff Needham in the heart of the Stronstad defence. Luke Raeside partnered Steve Beech in a change of formation.
The game was a scrappy affair in the opening stages as both teams resorted to launching the ball up into the air with some spectators getting neck ache from staring up in the air.
The first real chance fell to Prince of Wales with a dipping shot which Jamie Nottage turned over but play was pulled back for a free kick due to off side but not long after that Prince of Wales took the lead. Prince of Wales had forced a corner and from the corner the play was played in to where Jamie Nottage who usually has safe hands dropped the ball and the ball was swept into the back of the net from all of one yard out to give Prince of Wales the lead.
This goal seemed to lift Stronstad and they decided to you key points 1 and 3 with Gareth Colley at right back starting to get the ball down and doing the simple stuff and when Stronstad did this they created a few good chances with Dean Barlow slicing horribly wide and Phil Ingram seeing his effort from outside the box being blocked. Stronstad were having plenty of join down the left and right wings as Prince of Wales looked shaky at the back but Stronstad had to be wary of the counter attack and only some poor finishing stopped Prince of Wales from extending the lead.
At the other end Stronstad’s good football created a chance and a goal. Gareth Colley collected the ball on the Stronstad right and he sent the ball down the line to Steve Beech who like Fred Flintstone used his twinkle toes to skip past the Prince of Wales defender before advancing to the box before squaring the ball to Lloyd Adam who controlled the ball before slotting past the advancing Prince of Wales goalkeeper and draw the team level to the delight of manager Dave “Moggsy” Morling.
After this goal you would have thought that Stronstad might move through the gears and with the team doing the simple stuff they looked good but then they were hit by a sucker punch. A ball over the top of the Stronstad defence released the Prince of Wales striker and he advanced on Jamie Nottage and despite Jamie’s fine one handed save the ball bounced back to the Prince of Wales striker who was about to knock the ball into the empty net. Out of nowhere Gareth Colley managed to put a great block tackle in but the ball again bounced back to the Prince of Wales player who sliced his effort and it bounced in to give his team the lead.
This goal was frustrating for Stronstad as they had been playing some good football but this goal meant that Stronstad had to rebuild again and they almost got back in the game as a corner from Ian Privett found its way through to Jeff Needham but his effort was blocked by a penalty area full of players and then his second effort was saved. With time running out in the first half Prince of Wales got a killer third goal. The Prince of Wales collected the ball on the half way line and like most of the play in the first half the ball was pumped 50 yards into the Stronstad penalty area where an unmarked Prince of Wales player headed the ball into the far corner unchallenged to make the score 3-1 and some Stronstad players questioning the marking.
Half Time:- Prince of Wales 3 Stronstad Utd 1
Second Half from Paulsgrove
Stronstad went out for the second half with the words of manager Dave “Moggsy” Morling ringing in the ears of the Stronstad players but instead of getting the ball down and playing it around it more long ball action with both teams giving the ball away too cheaply and this was frustrating to see from the side line as in the first half the two wingers for Stronstad Dean Barlow and Lloyd Adam were tearing the full backs to pieces but in the second half they hardly had a sniff and really the game was turning stall.
All Stronstad needed was a goal to give themselves a chance to get back into the game and they were given a lifeline as Dean Barlow was barged into and from the resulting free kick the ball was delivered into the box where the Prince of Wales keeper came to get the ball but it slipped out of his hands and from close range Steve Beech rifled the ball into the unguarded net to give Stronstad a massive lift with 17 minutes to go.
Stronstad then tried to get back into the game but there luck was running out. Jon Way tried his luck from 35 yards but his worm burner rolled through to the Prince of Wales keeper and other plays saw both teams again giving the ball away but then Stronstad were done by another killer goal. The ball was played to the edge of the penalty area where Gareth Colley was penalized for using an arm and from the free kick the Prince of Wales player blasted the ball into the net to make the score 4-2 and a place in the next round of the cup.
The result could have been much worse for Stronstad as a Prince of Wales player had the whole goal to aim at but Aaron Brown managed to put a great timed block in and deflected the ball for a corner. At the other end Stronstad again had chances with Sam Olby shooting wide when well placed and Dean Barlow heading wide as the luck ran out for Stronstad as the referee blew the whistle for the final time.
Full Time:- Prince of Wales 4 Stronstad Utd 2
Next Up:-
Stronstad are back in league action against Cowplain Utd Xi’s then a Hampshire Cup game against Redhill from the Bournemouth league
