A drizzly afternoon and a wet pitch welcomed United and visitors Brinsworth Whitehill for this 1st round meeting of the inaugural Brian Bradley Cup. For those of you who are not aware Brian was a long serving official of the County Senior League and died in a road traffic accident along with his wife a few years ago.
Todays visitors knocked United out of the league cup last season and though they started brightly enough and did hit the post with an early lobbed shot once Joe Hayden opened the scoring with a fine shot from the edge of the penalty area the result never seemed in doubt. Two goals in a couple of minutes, from Aiden Oakley and Neil Spruce just before the break put United firmly in control, indeed Spruce's effort of a chipped floating shot from outside the penalty area (Cantona esque - his words not mine) was probably the pick of all the goals. Spruce might have a couple of others with a free kick turned around the post and a double chance with his first shot being saved by the keeper and the follow up shot going wide. For the visitors they might have had a goal themselves when a shot was spilled by United keeper Pete Adams but with the ball bobbling towards goal he recovered to palm the ball around the post.
Further goals in the second period from Liam Ramsay, Sam Hutton (a fine header from a corner), 2 for Silas Collins, a Steve Ellor success (his 13th of the season and 225 goals for United overall), and a further goal for Aiden Oakley put the gloss on a good United display though the visitors did get 2 goals back (Paul Mills told me to say he wasn't on the pitch when they scored LOL) as United ran out comfortable winners for their biggest victory since a 14-1 success over Bentley Pumas in the Doncaster Challenge Cup in 2013.
United 9-2 Brinsworth Whitehill