Beeston Hornets 1 - 4 Duke of St. Albans

Beeston were looking to win straight league games for the first time this season, and came up against a resurgent Duke of St. Albans who after a slow start to the campaign, have really started to impress and put pressure on the leaders in the league.

With a few players turning up later than expected, and another player not turning up at all, Beeston were forced to make a couple of changes just minutes before kick-off and as a result were not able to prepare as the manager would have hoped. However the team selected was still a strong one, and they were hopeful of picking up all 3 points in what would be their only home game of October.

Injury & absence news;

Brooks: Personal issues
T. Caine: Virus
Cowlishaw: Injured (Foot)
Davis: Injured (Foot)
Holland: Unavailable
Jarvis: Working
Le Couteur: Other engagements
Maqsood: Away
Shaw: Working
White: Working

00' - Beeston start with a 4-3-3 formation today in a tactical change designed to get the most out of wide men Joe Nottingham & Elliott Caine who will support central striker Jake Dickerson. Manager Ablott has made the team aware of the threat posed by the opposition no.14, Conor Scott, who has real pace up top for Duke of St. Albans today and will no doubt be looking to cause problems for the Beeston backline at every opportunity.

GOAL*
15' - And it's Duke of St. Albans who take the lead! After an opening quarter of an hour which has been tentative to say the least, we've been treated to a rare moment of quality here by the Duke no. 20, Dale Hatton, who picks the ball up left of centre and 25 yards out. He isn't closed down at all by the Beeston midfield and so he decides to take a pop at goal, which arrows straight into the far bottom corner of Porter's net. It was a good strike, but a soft goal to concede as there was no pressure on the ball form the Beeston team. 0-1

25' - A great save by the Duke goalkeeper here! It was a ball that came in from the left side and it bounces up behind Liam McDonald at the edge of the box, which inspires him to try an audacious overhead kick! It was sneaking in at the far bottom corner but the 'keeper dives down low to his left and gets a big paw to it and tips it wide for a Beeston corner. Great attempt!

30' - Beeston switch to their more familiar 4-4-2 formation in a bid to try and create a few more chances here. Caine & Nottingham go back out to their more regular wide positions, whilst Ablott moves from a midfield 3 to join Dickerson up top.

35' - A great chance to equalise here! And it's Ablott, who nicks the ball away form the Duke centre back and bears down on goal with the 'keeper running out at him, he hits it early and the goalkeeper makes another smart save down to his left. It would have brought the game bacl to level terms, but as it stands Beeston still trail 0-1.

GOAL*
40' - And Duke of St. Albans double their lead! It's a disaster for Beeston, who have really been pushing in the last 15 minutes, and it's a really poor goal to concede as well. The Duke right winger knocks a ball in from out wide which doesn't look at all threatening, but a communication error between Porter & Cowling inside their own 6-yard box results in neither of them clearing the ball, and it drops to Conor Scott who taps in from close range. Scott has been a threat all half, but hasn't been able to really test Porter in goal, however he wasn't going to miss this one and Beeston can be hugley disappointed in that one. 0-2

HALF TIME 0-2 - It's been a fairly even half of football here, with Duke of St. Albans probably just edging it, but Beeston will be disappointed at the 0-2 scoreline especially as the Duke goalkeeper has had to pull out a couple of really top drawer saves to deny them. There's work to be done in this second half if Beeston are to get back into this one.

52' - Good early chance here for Beeston, as Ablott has possession of the ball about 25 yards out and after hearing the call from his strike partner, he slides the ball to the left which puts Dickerson clean through at goal. He decides to hit it first time from just inside the box and it flies harmlessly over the bar. Should have hit the target there!

GOAL*
55' - And Beeston have pulled one back! It's their captain Tom Cowling who rises highest from an Elliott Caine corner from the right, and his header eludes the goalkeeper and the man on the line before it hits the back of the net. Can Beeston now push on and get anything form this game?! 1-2

62' - A great chance squandered for Beeston! They've been by far the better team since half time, and after grabbing that goal back early on, they've now had a golden chance to equalise. It was a ball in from the left by Elliott Caine, which makes it's way across the 6-yard box and finds Jake Dickerson who's totally unmarked and faces an empty net. However he doesn't make any real contact on his shot and it continues to roll harmlessly out of play. Will Beeston regret that miss?

70' - Substitution here by Beeston as Dickerson makes way for Paul Searle. Searle slots in at right back as Ireson moves to right wing and Nottingham joins Ablott up front.

GOAL*
72' - Duke of St. Albans score again here, catching Beeston on the break as they try to grab that equaliser. It was Conor Scott who gets away down the Beeston right who looks to his left and sees his partner Dale Hatton, who opened the proceedings today with his first half strike from 25 yards. This time he's only a few yards out, but the result is the same at the all important 4th goal swings Duke's way. 1-3

75' - Another chance for Beeston missed here as Elliott Caine does brilliantly well to get away down the left and as he faces up to the Duke 'keeper from a tight angle, he opts to shoot instead of square to the unmarked Ablott. His shot is off target and Ablott doesn't look at all pleased in the centre.. Good chance gone begging again, and that could be that for Beeston here today.

82' - It's almost a carbon copy of Caine's attempt just a few minutes before, as he shows his pace once more down the left and again opts to shoot from a tight angle instead of squaring it to Ablott in the box. In fairness, Ablott wasn't entirely unmarked on this occassion so the shot could be forgiven, but Beeston still can't find a way back into this match.

GOAL*
85' - And Duke of St. Albans have killed the game off here for Beeston. Again caught on the counter attack, it's that man Conor Scott who has been a constant threat all day who finds himslef one on one with Porter after a simple ball over the top, and he keeps his cool by slotting it in at the near post as he seals all three points for his team. 1-4

FULL TIME 1-4 - The scoreline may not be a true reflection of the order of play here this morning at Chilwell Olympia, but Beeston will have to quickly learn that in the big games if they don't take their chances, they will get punished. There were some real pivotal moments during the game, with Ablott missing a chance to take the score to 1-1, a mix up at the back to let Duke double their lead before half time, and Dickerson missing an open goal which would have brought it back to 2-2.

Nevertheless, Beeston will have to work on their mistakes in their training session next week, and quickly back to winning ways.

Nobody really stood out today for Beeston, in what was a pretty flat performance all round, but we'll still pick out 3 players who deserve a special mention:

Elliott Caine didn't really affect the game too much in the first half today, but once he was out on that favoured left side early in the second half, he really started to show what he's all about. His pace was at times too much for the Duke defence to deal with, and even though he might have done a little better with his first chance in the 75th minute, he still finished the game with yet another assist when he provided the cross form the corner for Cowling's 55th minute strike. Rating - 7.5

Tom Cowling was part of a defence which conceded 4 goals today, and he played his part in the mix up which resulted in Duke scoring their crucial second goal just before half time. However he was an absolute powerhouse again in the air all day today, and got his head on the end of Caine's 2nd half corner to grab his second goal of the season. He will now be missing for the next 3 games as he serves his suspension for his red card last week, and Beeston will certainly have a huge hole to fill without their captain on the field. Rating - 7.5

Michael Oxley may not have been at his creative best today, but he never gave up on anything in the centre of the pitch and often forced Duke to go out wide or direct over the top. His partnership with Liam McDonald looked solid again today, and they continue to compliment each other well. He recieved the opposition manager's vote for man of the match today which bumps his rating up and acts as a tie break, and means that he wins his second award in as many games this month. Rating - 7.5

Goals: Cowling (55)

Assists: E. Caine (55)

Man of the Match: Michael Oxley