South Normanton 4-1 Shepshed Dynamo

Shepshed Dynamo ended their season in disappointing fashion as they slumped to a heavy 4-1 defeat away to South Normanton Athletic.

By Lucas Monk

Shepshed competed fairly well in the first period despite the absences of key players such as Liam Hurst, Niall Prenderville and Karl Whymark.

But a determined South Normanton stormed to victory in the second half. Josh King netted a hat-trick before substitute Benjie Robinson scored their fourth and final goal as Dynamo floundered on an overcast and blustery afternoon in Derbyshire.

The result means that Shepshed finish the campaign in seventh place in the Midland Football League table, equalling their placing last season. They will also have to wait until the start of the new campaign to secure a first away victory of the year.

A tepid first half passed mostly without event, but Dynamo were, perhaps, marginally the better team. Sam Moore saw a shot deflected wide after good build-up play involving Matt Melbourne and Josh Thomas. Sean Phillips then scuffed an effort wide from a Melbourne cross before having an inswinging corner punched clear by home ‘keeper Curtis Hall.

Shepshed’s only scare arose midway through the first half. A sliced clearance threatened to loop over Brandon Ganley and into the net, but Dynamo’s shot-stopper held firm.

With that alarming moment in mind, one could have been forgiven for thinking that the wind was doing its utmost to preclude any kind of fluent football from either side. However, South Normanton came out firing after the interval despite the gusts’ refusal to abate.

King put them into the lead just two minutes into the second half. Ganley then had to be alert to parry away Dylan Garnett’s low drive.

The hosts were rampant, and doubled their lead in the 61st minute. King bore down on goal, tormented his marker, pulling him this way and that, before crashing a powerful shot high into the net.

Shepshed enjoyed some brief respite five minutes later. Melbourne made a Herculean surge into the box and produced a thumping shot that struck the woodwork before going into the net. The visitors, it seemed, were back in the match.

But the impressive King soon killed off the match and completed his hat-trick just minutes later. Garnett did well to fashion a pocket of space on the left. He delivered a low cross into the area. King was first to pounce, and he tucked the ball home to restore his side’s two-goal cushion on 73 minutes.

That was King’s final contribution. Dynamo, one sensed, were probably glad to see the back of him. But his replacement, Robinson, was in no mood to let them off the hook.

No fewer than five minutes after coming onto the field, Robinson was on the scoresheet himself. Richard Hanslow’s killer pass split the slipshod Shepshed defence open, and Robinson surged onto it before hammering an excellent shot into the far corner to put the result beyond doubt.

South Normanton’s margin of victory would have been greater if not for Ganley, who denied Hanslow and Garnett with good saves as the game drew to a close. The last notable action of the match saw Hall spill Chris Acott’s right-footed drive behind for a corner in a positive Shepshed attack, but this was ultimately a disappointing end to what has been a largely productive season for Damion Beckford-Quailey’s side.

Dynamo: Ganley, Wakeling, Doy (Pole 76’), Pheasant, Betts, Acott, Thomas, Phillips (Hill 66’), Conteh (Patrocinio 58’), Moore, Melbourne.

Unused substitutes: Potter.

South Normanton: Hall, Cashmore, Guy (Crosby 63’), Strzyzewski, Allen, Cox, Garnett, Tyson, Smyth, Graves (Hanslow 25’), King (Robinson 74’).

Unused substitutes: White, Kellog.