Tuesday 9th January 2018
CHROMASPORT & TROPHIES UNITED COUNTIES LEAGUE-PREMIER DIVISION
COGENHOE UNITED (2) 3 v KIRBY MUXLOE (0) 1
Cooks; Long 17 Dove 42 (pen) Ansell 90
Kirby; Aaron Black 85 (pen)

Not too many changes for The Cooks this evening as Matt Long started up front with Luis Vieira moving to wide left to replace the unavailable Montel Dore and Dan Smith returning at left-back with Josh Melling dropping to the bench. Michael Parkes returned amongst the subs in place of Charlie Hynam.
It was a miserable night weather-wise at Compton Park with a low lying mist enshrouding the ground with the air very damp and chilly. That didn’t bother the boys in blue though as they were quickly out of the blocks and buzzing around the Kirby Muxloe penalty area right from the first whistle. Harry Chipchase fed Vieira on the left and he beat his marker to whip in a cross which a defender got his head to, but didn’t get much distance, although they did manage to block Séan McBride’s attempt to get the ball back into the box. Long, Ryan Ansell and Vieira all delivered balls into the visitor’s penalty area in the first few minutes, but the masses of red and white shirts were able to deny any clear-cut chances during the onslaught. They did manage to get into the home box with a rare break, but Cogenhoe cleared their lines after the ball bounced awkwardly around the danger-zone for a few seconds.
Smith made a great run down the left linking with Vieira before the full-back beat his man to get in the box and pull it back for McBride, but a defender just managed to get his toe to the ball to stop the midfielder getting in a shot. Despite all the pressure, Scott Handley in the Kirby goal hadn’t really been tested, but in the 17th minute he was picking the ball out of the net with somewhat blushed cheeks. Matt Long was delivering a cross into the box from the right wing. The ball looped much higher than he had intended and was dropping safely towards the unchallenged keeper, but as it dropped through the murky mist, it somehow avoided a touch from the keeper’s elevated gloves and one bounce later it was hitting the roof of his net in the far corner. Whether he lost in the mist, misjudged the flight or simply lost concentration I don’t know, but Cogenhoe had a deserved lead either way, albeit fortuitous in the way it came about. Long won’t be too bothered about that and was celebrating his fifteenth goal of the season.
Ansell sent over a good cross, Sam Wilson headed it but didn’t clear his box. Dove won the ball in air and Vieira stepped inside to shoot from inside the box on the left, but he pulled his effort wide of the far post. A rare foray forward from Muxloe saw Aaron Love get himself into a great position on the right-side of the box and he sent a very dangerous ball across the face of the goal, but it took a slight deflection and Mark Tinsley couldn’t get close enough to get a touch.
Vieira ran on to McBride’s pass and was bursting into the box when the defender went down under his challenge, but with the Cooks man now inside the box, referee James Wetherall blew for a foul. My first reaction was he had got this wrong, but Vieira didn’t seem too surprised so maybe the man in the middle’s view was much better than mine.
Dove touched a ball on for McBride who looked set to shoot, but a great tackle from Wilson denied him as he was about to pull the trigger ten yards out. Another good move saw Vieira break through and set Chipchase up with a lovely piece of skill, but again a defender just managed to get a foot to his low pull-back in front of his own goal. Ansell was the next to open the Kirby defence up with a great run down the right followed by a lovely ball in, but Handley slid out to get his hands to the ball as he dived at Long’s feet. Dove was quickest to the loose ball and thumped in a low shot that the keeper blocked. The ball was returned into the danger area and Dove again went for goal, but this time a defender managed to get his body behind it and they finally managed to get the ball away.
Cooks went close again moments later as Dove helped the ball into the path of McBride’s run into the box. He lifted it over the keeper with his first touch and went for the ball as it came down, but Simon Alcott got his head to it and they managed to clear the ball before it went over the line. Stuart Lutter was called into his first meaningful action as he was forced to dive to his right and push Luke Garrett’s low shot around the post. Vieira teed up McBride twenty-five yards out, but his shot was several yards over the top.
Great battling from Long saw him get away from Wilson and run into the left corner of the box where Alcott tripped him. Wetherall had no hesitation in pointing to the spot and after the protests had faded away, skipper Ryan Dove stepped up to fire the spot-kick to the keeper’s right and Cogenhoe were 2-0 up. Before the restart, Aaron Love became the first player to go into the book for carrying on his protests and Cogenhoe took their two-goal cushion into the interval.

Half-time; Cogenhoe United 2 Kirby Muxloe 0.

One change at the break with Josh Melling taking over at right-back as Jacob Gartland came off feeling a tightness in his hamstring.
Good work from Dove gave Vieira a chance to go past his man and pull the ball back from the by-line, but it was cut out for a corner. Ansell swung it into the edge of the six-yard box, but Handley managed to get up amongst the crowd to push the ball away. Kirby had a chance at the other end, but Tinsley’s heavy first touch on Aaron Black’s excellent cross gave Lutter the chance to dive at the striker’s feet and claim the ball.
Vieira charged down an attempted clearance and took the ball deep into the Kirby box before trying to touch it inside to Dove, but the keeper managed to stretch his leg out and get just enough on the ball to put it behind the striker’s run, then Long fed Ansell in the centre but he pulled his shot wide from the edge of the box.
We lost possession deep in the Kirby half and they countered down the left, but Dan Stevenson worked across quickly to win the ball from Aaron Black in a dangerous position with a perfectly timed tackle. Vieira was working the left touchline well and giving the visiting defence a real headache. One run saw him go down under a strong challenge, but recover quickly to take the ball into the box and deliver a low cross that the keeper took well. He then saw another cross cut out as Cogenhoe continued to press. Aiden Black went into the book for Kirby for arguing with the referee, but they were on the attack soon after as Josh Burniston battled in the box and found Love at the far post, but he had strayed into an offside position and fired his shot wide anyway. Both sides made a sub on 63 minutes, Michael Parkes replacing Harry Chipchase for the Cooks and Mo Mahir coming on for Elliott Pacey for Kirby.
Ansell made a good run before laying the ball inside to Dove. He played it wide to Long who sent over a decent cross that Handley handled well in his six-yard box. Melling then whipped in a cross from a similar position that the keeper took just as well. Parkes switched play with a great ball o to Long wide on the right and his low ball across the box was inches away from giving Ansell the chance to add to the scoring. This proved to be Long’s last action of an impressive display as he made way for Rhys Taylor for the last twenty minutes or so.
Kirby Muxloe started to have more and more of the ball now and George Barnell made a brave challenge that he felt much more than his victim, but he took the ball cleanly and ended a promising break. Love was lucky to escape as the already booked midfielder jumped into a late challenge on Dove after he had crossed the ball, but the referee only awarded a corner. Barnell was again on form as he successfully tackled Mahir on the right, but Cogenhoe still appeared fairly comfortable even if they had lost their way a little.
Kirby made a swap and changed tactics a little by taking off right-back Luke Taylor and bringing on the more attack-minded Conor Brown-Wingfield with eight minutes remaining of the ninety. McBride threaded a pass through aiming to put Taylor through in the box, but he put slightly too much on it and Handley was able to gather it up.
We had started to give away a few unnecessary free-kicks in our own half which invites the pressure on and went one worse with five minutes left on the clock as Tinsley was brought down in the box. Aaron Black stepped up to take the game’s second penalty and beat Lutter with a powerful strike. From being comfortable we were now looking anxiously at the clock as we looked to consolidate our now slim advantage.
Aaron Black had a chance on the edge of the box, but his effort lacked venom and Lutter took it easily, while Cogenhoe had to face the last couple of minutes, plus what turned out to be five added, with ten men after our final sub Rhys Taylor was forced off with what appears to be a reoccurrence of the injury that has side-lined him for some time.
Vieira went into the book for what I believe was time-wasting as we tried to run the clock down, but the game was made safe three minutes into stoppage time with another cracker from Ryan Ansell. Picking up the ball in the centre of the Kirby half, he jinked forward and side-stepped a defender before firing a low drive past the keeper’s left hand from twenty-two yards and crashing into the corner of the net.
Three deserved points for Jake and the boys tonight and it probably should have been by a greater margin, but a win is a win whatever the score-line. We totally dominated the first half and started well in the second, but we did lose our way a bit in the last twenty minutes, although we still didn’t come under too much pressure. Stuart Lutter did what he had to do well, while Dan Stevenson and George Barnell both made some vital challenges when Kirby finally got going. Good to see Dan Smith back after his trip down under and he was straight back into his stride. He does seem to link well with Luis Vieira on the left flank too. Jacob Gartland enjoyed a solid first half, as did Josh Melling in the second. Up front Matt Long and Ryan Dove both worked hard and created things for others, while the central pair of Harry Chipchase and the again impressive Séan McBride ran the show from the midfield, with the latter getting forward more and more this season and linking so well with the strikers. Ryan Ansell scored an absolute cracker and had another excellent game, but my man-of-the-match today goes to Luis Vieira for his performance on the left and his link-up play with his fellow Cooks. It was also great to see Michael Parkes back on the pitch and he impressed in his half-hour run out, while it was sad to see Rhys Taylor limp off again so soon after his return from injury.

Cogenhoe United; 1. Stuart Lutter 2. Jacob Gartland (sub 12. Josh Melling ht) 3. Dan Smith 4. Séan McBride 5. George Barnell 6. Dan Stevenson 7. Ryan Ansell 8. Harry Chipchase (sub 14. Michael Parkes 63) 9. Matt Long (sub 15. Rhys Taylor 71) 10. Ryan Dove © 11. Luis Vieira. Su not used 16. Luke Stone.

Kirby Muxloe; 1. Scott Handley 2. Luke Taylor (sub 12. Conor Brown-Wingfield 82) 3. Aiden Black 4. Simon Alcott 5. Sam Wilson 6. Elliott Pacey (sub 15. Mo Mahir 63) 7. Aaron Love 8. Aaron Black 9. Mark Tinsley 10. Josh Burniston © 11. Luke Garrett. Subs not used; 14. Tyler Love 16. Will Andrew 17. John Love.

Referee; James Wetherall.

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