Saturday 14th April 2018

CHROMASPORT & TROPHIES UNITED COUNTIES LEAGUE-PREMIER DIVISION

COGENHOE UNITED (2) 3 v SLEAFORD TOWN (0) 0
Cooks; Ansell 6 Long 28 Dove 90+1 (pen)

A beautiful sunny afternoon at Compton Park started with United Counties League Chairman John Weeks presenting the Premier Division Manager-of-the-Month award for March to Jake Stone.
On the pitch Callum Patching was handed his first team debut in goal in place of Stuart Lutter who was away for the weekend, Ryan Ansell started in place of the working Montel Dore and Jacob Gartland came into the centre of the midfield to replace the suspended Sean McBride.
Cogenhoe kicked towards the car park end in the first half and started brightly enough, but Patching was the first keeper called into action as he came to the corner of his box to dive at the feet of Tom Fisher to claim the ball. Fisher caught him and the free-kick was awarded and it was good to see the young keeper get straight up and get on with the game. Fisher tried an ambitious shot from fully forty yards out, but it looped high into the cloudless sky and must have been ten yards over the bar. A long throw into the Cogenhoe box wasn’t dealt with too confidently by the defence and it resulting in George Couzens getting behind a low drive from the edge of the box, but a heavy deflection took most of the pace off it and Patching stooped to gather it comfortably.
Six minutes in Cogenhoe made the breakthrough and it was Ryan Ansell the man on target with a very well taken goal. Cutting in from the left, he turned back on Dan Worthington to make himself a yard and placed a low shot across the keeper and into the far corner, making it look oh-so simple as he did so.
Josh Melling came out of a full-bloodied Couzens challenge with the ball and sent in a decent cross that was headed behind for a corner. Ansell delivered it and Gartland met it with a solid header, but he couldn’t get on top of it enough and it went over the bar. Great strength and determination from Ryan Dove saw him get the better of two challenges inside the box and although off balance, he still managed to fire in a powerful shot, but keeper Garry Doran came off his line to narrow the angle and saved with his legs. Ben Machin became the first player to be booked by referee Luke Scott, assumedly for something he said, but I’m not sure what his protests would have been about, unless it was a continuation of comments made earlier.
Simon Bolland tried to curl a shot into the top corner from around the edge of the box, but Dove jumped to head it and it ballooned on to the top of the net. A great cut out by Worthington stopped Matt Long putting Dove clear through, then soon afterwards Long won a corner down the right and the same player got on the end of an Ansell cross but couldn’t keep it on target. Patching had no trouble with Archie Moyes’ twenty-five yard centrally placed free-kick but on 28 minutes Cogenhoe doubled their lead.
Great work from Ansell down the left saw him deliver a dangerous ball into the edge of the six yard box and Matt Long got in front of the defender to steer the ball past the keeper for an important second goal for the Cooks.
Jacob Fenton perhaps should have progressed more after seizing on a rare slip in the home defence, but Dan Stevenson came across to tidy up as the green shirted player went wide rather than straight at goal. Patching punched out a corner but Sleaford pressed to keep it in the danger area and Leigh Warman saw his shot blocked and his follow up saved by Patching. Harry Chipchase played a nice one-two with Matt Johnson on the edge of the box but his shot was blocked, then Dove got up well to win a bouncing ball and find Long twenty-yards out and he hit a lovely low first-time shot that beat the keeper, but struck the outside of the post.
Great battling from Dove on the right saw him hold off two defenders and send over a cross, but Worthington did well to get a foot to it in front of Ansell. The ball fell to Chipchase on the edge of the box but it was at an awkward height and his volley was over the bar.

Half-time; Cogenhoe United 2 Sleaford Town 0.

Sleaford boss Jamie Shaw laid down the law to his team during the interval and they started the second-half with intent, but the back four were all looking solid again after last week’s blip during the a fifteen minute spell at Wisbech. Patching stretched to turn away a Moyes free-kick aimed at Warman’s run to the far post, then gathered Luke Hollingworth’s ensuing low corner safely.
Long made a good run before playing the ball inside to Dove and the skipper turned well but the ball bobbled as he went it hit it and he scuffed it wide of the far post. Chipchase made a great run that saw him get into the box and fire a low shot on target, but Doran got his body behind it and then Long teed up Johnson for a shot, but it was blocked by a defender’s boot as it left his own. Cogenhoe worked the ball back into the box though and Ansell turned well, but his shot was much too high to trouble the keeper.
Dove cut inside from the right of the box and placed his shot inside the keeper’s dive, but the ball hit the base of the post and came back into play. Dove’s determination saw him get to the rebound first and attempt to play the ball into the middle, but this time a green shirt was there first to clear. Sleaford made the game’s first change twenty minutes into the half with Couzens making way for Liam Harris but it was Cogenhoe who continued to press. A lovely cross from Long saw Dove get up to go for goal with his head, but it went just the wrong side of the post, then Worthington did well to cut out Dan Smith’s cross as Johnson looked to pounce behind him.
A couple more changes with Jamie Inwood replacing Gartland in the centre of the park, then an enforced one for the visitor’s as Fenton limped off to be replaced by Mike Hayden with fifteen minutes left to play. Fisher saw a shot on the turn go wide and then Ansell broke down the left and got into the box, but his attempted cross hit the head of Hollingworth and went off for a corner. Ansell took it himself and played it in to the danger area, but a great punch under pressure by Doran cleared the ball to safety.
Matt Johnson made way for Tom Brazier with ten minutes remaining, while a long throw into the Cooks box again caused a slight moment of worry, but the ball ended up safely in the hands of Patching, although one or two Sleaford players were appealing for hand-ball before the keeper claimed it. Sleaford’s final change saw Machin go off for Liam Hargrave shortly before a Fisher cross saw Dove do well to get his foot too at the near post in front of a visiting forward.
Matt Long went down holding his knee and after treatment from Roy, he was forced off to be replaced by Joe Shanley with three minutes remaining of the ninety. Dove was first to a loose ball on the edge of the box, but his shot flew over, while only a great tackle stopped Ansell getting in on goal as he broke through the middle.
As we went into stoppage time, Dove cut inside from the by-line in the box and was tripped from behind as he got away from his man. No disputing the penalty and Dove picked himself up to fire it low to the keeper’s right and put the icing on a very slick performance from the Cooks.
Dove’s hard work almost forced an error at the back, but they survived the scare and Cogenhoe will have been very happy with their display and their 3-0 win today.

A lovely day, three goals, a clean sheet and three points in the bag, all topped off by Jake Stone’s first managerial award. Could well be the perfect Saturday afternoon for a Cooks fan. This was a solid team performance all-round with nobody head-and-shoulders above the rest on today’s performance. Callum Patching made a very impressive debut and the back four of George Barnell, Dan Stevenson, Josh Melling and Dan Smith barely put a foot wrong all game. Jacob Gartland is a real gem for any team, despite struggling with an ankle injury he slotted into an unfamiliar role and you would have thought he’d been playing their all his life. Calm and composed on the ball, a natural footballer. Ryan Ansell gave the gaffer the perfect response to being left out of the starting line-up with a great performance. His opening goal was superbly taken and of course his cross made the second. Matt Johnson and Harry Chipchase worked hard in the centre, breaking down potential attacks against us and starting them at the other end. Matt Long again looked sharp and worked hard, thoroughly deserving his seventeenth goal of the season, but my man-of-the-match today goes to Ryan Dove. Worked so hard even though he had been feeling his ankle since relatively early in the first half. Was back in his own area and won the ball more than once from Sleaford set pieces, while so often holding the front line on his own at the other end. All three subs got a run and got involved. Jamie Inwood in an unusual centre-midfield role, Tom Brazier was a real handful for the Sleaford full-back and even though he only had a few minutes on the park, Joe Shanley had plenty of touches and looked eager from the moment he crossed the touchline.
No midweek game as such this week, but it’s off to O.N Chenecks on Friday night for the first team. The Reserves do play though as they entertain Newport Pagnell Town on Wednesday night. The weather is looking great next week so a good excuse to get off the couch and get out to get in a couple of games before the weekend.
Finally best wishes to Sleaford Town for the last few games. Not at their best today I feel, but I really admired Jamie Shaw as a player and hope he finds success the other side of the touchline. Always a very friendly crew from the Lincolnshire town too.

Cogenhoe United; 1. Callum Patching 2. Josh Melling 3. Dan Smith 4. Jacob Gartland (sub 12. Jamie Inwood 73) 5. George Barnell 6. Dan Stevenson 7. Matt Johnson (sub 14. Tom Brazier 80) 8. Harry Chipchase 9. Matt Long (sub 15. Joe Shanley 87) 10. Ryan Dove © 11. Ryan Ansell.

Sleaford Town; 1. Garry Doran 2. Dan Worthington 3. Luke Hollingworth 4. Ben Machin (sub 12. Liam Hargrave 83) 5. Leigh Warman 6. Harrison Allen 7. Tom Fisher 8. Archie Moyes 9. Jacob Fenton (sub 15. Mike Hayden 75) 10. Simon Bolland 11. George Couzens (sub 14. Liam Harris 65). Subs not used; 17, Jamie Shaw GK. Regan Start.

Referee; Luke Scott.

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