T'was the week before Christmas, a cold, icy day at Belle Vue Stadium with a stone-hard pitch and an even harder challenge for The Turf to face as they faced off against Consett Steel Club, who are easily one of the most prestigious teams in the league. The Turf lined up in the usual 4-2-3-1 formation. Andy Gowland took his position in goal, guarded by a back four consisting of Jonny Thirlaway on the right, Ben Walton on the left, and a central pairing of Jak Booth and Kevin Lowe. In front of them, Joe Currie and Jack Dawson operated as central midfielders, while the attacking trio featured Liam Henry on the right, Ian Johnstone in the centre, and Lewis Currie on the left, with Eithan Thomasson operating as the lone striker.
The match began as both teams contended with equal amounts of possession, figuring out their opposition, however the tides quickly changed with a setback for The Turf as Jak Booth had to be substituted in the 10th minute due to a tight thigh injury, with Dan Gowland coming on to fill the gap in defence. Just five minutes later, Consett Steel Club First opened the scoring with a spectacular long-range effort that left Gowland with no chance, hammering in a stunning strike at the top near post. The Turf's woes continued as the opponents doubled their lead in the 20th minute with a pass headed across the face of goal, only to be headed home by a powerful header from close range.
By the 25th minute, the relentless pressure from the Steel Club paid off again, as they scored their third goal from inside the box, leaving The Turf's defence scrambling. The onslaught continued unabated, with two more goals in quick succession at the 30th and 35th minutes, both scored from inside the area, highlighting the Steel Club's attacking prowess. The Steel Club are a side that thrive on getting in behind defences, and that is exactly what they did, exploiting the Turf's lapse in defence, leaving Andy Gowland with a number of one-on-ones to deal with.
As the first half drew to a close, Kevin Lowe received a yellow card for a bad tackle, a sign of the frustration building within the team. The free kick was fizzed into the box which saw a quick reaction from Gowland to get down low and parry the shot out for a corner. Just before the half-time whistle, The Steel Club added another goal to their tally, making it five. Then minutes later, a stunning strike from outside the box in the 42nd minute capped off a dismal first half for The Turf, after an unmarked player on the edge of the area thumped home a seventh just before the break, before scoring moments later for the eighth.
The Turf knew this was an unwinnable game, but persisted through the torture as second half began with little respite for The Turf, as The Steel Club scored two goals in quick succession just after the restart, with another unchallenged goal from inside the box to take the game into double figures. The Turf's situation worsened as a shot was saved by Andy Gowland, only to be tapped in by a lone striker left to run freely onto the ball unmarked.
The Steel Club let loose another flurry of goals from inside the box before they converting a penalty in the 65th minute, extending the lead to 13-0. The relentless assault continued, with further goals in the 75th and 85th minutes, both scored from close range, bringing the final score to an astonishing 15-0 and the worst defeat this season.
Despite the overwhelming defeat, Andy Gowland in goal was noted for his efforts, making several crucial saves to prevent an even greater embarrassment with some high-end defending, though it wouldn't be enough. It is such a shame that the Turf have had to endure such defeats at the hands of teams that SHOULD be in a higher division. Scores like this do nothing for the smaller teams who have to face giants in one singular league, instead of teams on our level. Despite the heavy defeat, the Turf are a team and will continue to fight on till the end of the season, where some league changes may have to be made.
