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21 February 2009 Match report for Wilmslow Town U9 Panthers 0 - 0 home draw with Stretford Victoria JFC U9 (A) (21/02/2009)
The opening period set the tone for the full 45 minutes, with both two teams working hard to cancel each other out.
As a result, real goal-scoring chances were limited; Sam had a shot from the edge of the box go wide of the left post and Nathan from a similar position saw his shot go past the right-hand upright.
At the other end, and not for the last time in the game, Wilmslow struggled to pick-up the bounce on a long kick from the Stretford keeper and James had to dive acrobatically to his left to turn a goal-bound effort past the post.
15 mins: Wilmslow Albion 0 Stretford Victoria 0
Albion's first and last clear-cut chance came early in the second period when Josh Mehta found himself one-on-one with the Stretford 'keeper. Unfortunately his shot cleared both the keeper and the crossbar and the score stayed level.
Wilmslow did enjoy a prolonged spell of pressure, including four corners in quick succession, one of which was played to Josh Wheeler on the near edge of the box and his first time shot was blocked as it travelled goal wards.
Josh Mehta and Finn both had attempts on goal, but neither managed to beat the busy Stretford 'keeper.
The second period ended with Wilmslow having enjoyed most of the possession, but having failed to make the advantage count.
30 mins: Wilmslow Albion 0 Stretford Victoria 0
The action in the last period mirrored that which preceded it – hard work from both sides, but defence getting the better of attack at both ends of the pitch.
Whereas Wilmslow had enjoyed the best of attacking possession early in the game, it was Stretford who came closest to scoring in the last 15 minutes. First, a Stretford free-kick five yards outside the Albion box cleared a crowded area and the goal keeper only to bounce to safety off the top of the bar. Then Albion failed to clear another long goal kick and defenders and goal keeper had to throw their bodies into the way of three close-range Stretford strikes to keep the match goalless.
45 mins: Wilmslow Albion 0 Stretford Victoria 0
This was an uncharacteristically lacklustre performance from the U9Bs. They defended game-fully throughout, but struggled to deal with long kicks from the Stretford 'keeper and were forced to ride their luck a couple of times in the last 10 minutes.
Stretford defended deep and Albion failed on all but a few occasions to get in behind the defence and put the 'keeper under pressure.
Wilmslow will feel that they should have been ahead by the half way stage. Stretford will count themselves unlucky not to have converted one of their opportunities in the last period. On balance, the draw was a fair result.
Recent training sessions have stressed the importance of passing and movement, and in this game we saw the lads making a clear effort to do both, with some success. Unfortunately, this good work was consistently undone by a lack of control – not something you'll read in any of their previous match reports – and lack of concentration.
Wilmslow travel to Stretford next week for the return fixture, when the opposition (who played today's game with just seven players) will hope to have a full squad to choose from. Albion's players and coaches are well aware that they can improve on today's performance and will look forward to proving this next time around.
James was awarded Man of the Match for his solid performance in goal throughout the 45 minutes and for his spectacular save in the opening period.
 Man of the Match: James Gillespie
Team : J Gillespie, H Cole, D Nield, J Wheeler, R Batra, S Higginson, F McEwan-Paterson, J Mehta, N Sach
Source: A Wheeler << to news index
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