Category: First Team

Match Report: Trafford FC (Away)

By Phil Matthews

Trafford 0-1 Mickleover Sports

Trafford: – Holmes, Brownhill, Neville, Langford (Derbyshire 71), Horsfall, Granite, Brown, Williams, Burns, Horrocks (Bott 81), Irakoze (Garner 65).

Subs: – Shuker, Lomax-Newton.

Sports: – Eastwood, Bennett, Turner, McGrath, Mills, Burgin, Broadhead, Schofield, Dales, Baskerville, Belgrave (Litchfield 68)

Subs: – Lansdowne, Dickinson, Ptak, Gilhooly.

Referee J Kenny

Attn: – 206

Mickleover went into their FA Trophy second round qualifying match away to Trafford FC without star striker Zeph Thomas who was away on international duty with Nevis and St Kitts. The forward has been scoring goals for fun since returning from injury and his absence would put a lot of pressure on leading scorer Adam Baskerville.

Baskerville is full of running and he used this ability to great effect with a strike that proved to be the only goal of the game after 7 minutes.

Along through ball split the home defence and the Sports striker was onto it in a flash beating keeper Matt Holmes to guide the ball into the net.

This was a match that swung one way and then the other. The hosts had plenty of possession and fashioned themselves a number of opportunities but found Jake Eastwood in the visitor’s goal in commanding form. He may not have had many saves to make but was always in the right place to gather any crosses or shots, and must have instilled confidence in his defenders.

Sports played with three central defenders and five across the middle including the two wingbacks Ben Turner and Jake Bennett. For Bennett it was his second game in 24 hours have trialled with Sheffield United Under 23s the day before.

Mickleover had their moments throughout the game but never found a finish to equal Baskerville’s goal.

Only a goal to the good against a side as keen to attack as Trafford the visitors nearly paid the price after 52 minutes. A free kick from Aaron Burns was cleared for a corner and though initially dealt with when the ball once again fell to the hosts Burns scored with a peach of a strike only to see the linesman immediately raise his flag for offside.

No one other than the officials were convinced that the goal should be ruled out as apparently the decision was given  against a player who was not clearly interfering with play.

It may have been a lucky break for Sports but it was a definite turning point. Trafford were never able to get that close to scoring again and Mickleover even fashioned a couple of half chances in the closing stages which they were unable to convert.

Manager John McGrath was clearly happy with his team’s effort and performance and could enjoy the weekend and seeing what Monday’s draw would bring.  A feeling in the Mickleover camp was that a home draw would be nice after 2 away ties in the competition to date.

 

Coach Tickets Available: Trafford FC (FA Trophy)

We are pleased to confirm that there are spaces available on the supporters coach for this Saturday’s trip to Trafford FC in the FA Trophy.

The contest promises to be an intriguing one, with a strong lineup promised by manager John McGrath.

The coach leaves at 11.15am for a 3pm kick off at a fare of £15 (return).

Please contact Tony Shaw at tonys@mickleoversportsfc.com to book your place.

Come on Sports!

Match Report: Ashton United (A)

By Tony Shaw

Ashton United 3-2 Mickleover Sports

Ashton United – Smith, Smalley, Mason, Connor, Frost, Moses (Coo 46), Smith, Lees, Gaskell, Knight (Baguley72), Maise (Haining 82). Other subs Murray, Lofthouse

Sports – Eastwood, Bennett, Turner, Schofield, Mills, Lansdowne, Dales, Belgrave (Norcross 82), Morrison, Thomas, Baskerville (Litchfield 72). other subs Ptak, Dickinson.

Attendance 144

Sports were forced into changes with suspensions to player manager John Mcgrath and Tom Burgin and were also without Jack Broadhead.

They led at half time with a fine 22nd minute goal from Zeph Thomas who was found with a long ball down the middle by Danny Schofield and he finished well lobbing the stranded Terry Smith. Sports were well worth their interval lead having played some neat football but badly needed to score another goal that their approach play merited. Ashton were limited to one chance as Mark Lee’s effort from cross was tipped over by Jake Eastwood. Sports were denied a penalty for what seemed an obvious handball when Andy Dales’ chipped pass was stopped by Joe Connor and Dales was then wrongly flagged offside as he broke onto a pass from Lewis Belgrave from a good 10 yards onside.

All the main action came in the second half as Sports were unlucky to fall to defeat.

Ashton equalised on 63 minutes when the referee awarded a free kick for a high foot against Jake Bennett when 10 seconds earlier he waved play on for the same offence on Bennett. The free kick from Lee Gaskell was headed straight for Jake Eastwood but took a wicked deflection off Richard Smith to find the net. Sports took the lead again two minutes later as Dales found Thomas inside the area and his volley flew past Smith from 12 yards.

Step into the spotlight again another bizarre set of decisions from the referee as Sports were again appealing for a penalty with a blatant push on Thomas as waived away and when the ball played into Sports area, Clinton Morrison was clearly brought down, again waived away by the official, and the cross from Smith was headed goal-wards by Domenico Maisse. Eastwood parried the header but Stephen Mason crossed again and the ball hit Albert Lansdowne for an own goal.

The winner came in the 80th minute as Richard Smith scored a fine 20 yard shot that gave Eastwood no chance. Sports came off wondering how they had lost.

Sports Beat Leamington FC To Progress In The FA Trophy

Leamington FC 0-1 Mickleover Sports

By Tony Shaw

Leamington -Breedon, Taundry, Gudger, Pond, Hood, Mace (james 86), Baker-Richardson, Edwards, Rowe (Olukanmi 71), Thompson-Brown (Gittins 73), Obeng.

 

Sports – Eastwood, Bennett, Turner, Mcgrath, Burgin, Broadhead, Dales, Belgrave, Thomas (Baskerville 73), Litchfield, Schofield. Other subs Lansdowne, Norcross, Ptak, Morrison

 

Attendance 352

 

This was a brilliant performance by Sports as they knocked Southern Premier League Premier Division Leaders Leamington. They had not lost for over a year at home but Sports produced a great performance to progress into the next round of the FA Trophy.

 

Sports started the game a little nervously but gradually grew into the game. The home side played a direct game and bombarded Sports with a succession of long balls. Jake Eastwood spilt two shots in the first ten minutes but went on to make a major contribution to the win. In the 17th minute a shot from Andy Dales forced a diving save from Tony Breedon at the expense of a corner.

 

The opening goal came on 22 minutes as the excellent Jake Bennett ran at the defence and passed to Zeph Thomas, making his first full start of the season after injury, and he fired in a 20 yard shot into the bottom corner giving Breedon no chance.

 

Leaminton hit back and thought they had equalised but top scorer Ryan Rowe was flagged offside. Jack Edwards’ shot was held by Eastwood and Jack Broadhead did well to block a goal-bound shot from Rob Thompson-Brown. Ben Turner replied for Sports but his well struck shot was held by Breeden.

 

Sports were well worth their first half lead but the Home side piled on the pressure in the second half as they attempted to protect their unbeaten home record. It was Sports, though who produced the first chance of the half but Zeph Thomas saw his low shot saved by Breedon. Leamington were denied again by the offside flag as Rowe had again strayed offside. Eastwood held a Thompson-Brown free kick and at the other end Brodie Litchfield headed a corner just over the bar.

 

Jake Eastwood kept the lead intact with a sensational one handed save from a deflected free kick from Courtney Baker-Richardson. The home side then hit the post after the ball deflected fortunately into the path of Baker-Richardson who then saw his downward header from a corner pushed over the bar by Eastwood.

 

Special mention should go to Lewis Belgrave, the youngest ever player to captain a Sports side at just 17 – a real prospect for the future.

Sports held out to complete a fine victory.

 

 

Match Report: Grantham Town (Away)

MATCH Report

By Phil Matthews

Mickleover Sports mini revival came to an end away to Grantham.

Sports have played better than much of their performance on this game, but the absence of much of their creative spark due to injury to player/manager John McGrath. With the livewire Will Norcross substituted before the half hour mark the visitors were pretty much reliant on defensively minded players for most of their midfield impetus.

Both sides like to play football, and given Mickleover’s shortcomings it was little surprise that the majority of the first half was spent on the back foot as Grantham did most of the attacking.

Sports reached the half time interval still on terms and even had an opportunity to take the lead with a move started and finished by Andy Dales whose shot was wide.

If the visitors thought that they had weathered the storm they managed to shoot themselves in the foot 4 minutes after the restart.

Dales took the ball deep into the opposition territory but when the ball was lost the visitors were too slow to recover and Barcelos was able to run the ball into the Mickleover box and fire home despite the best efforts of keeper Jake Eastwood.

In an attempt to give his team different options McGrath brought  on Zeph Thomas for his first game of the season following a long term injury.

Dales fired in a dangerous cross after 57 minutes that earned a corner, and Jake Bennett did similar 10 minutes later, with Dales shot being blocked.

Thomas had a shot from distance that flew over the bar as the game entered stoppage time.

Pablo Mills who had given a composed and assured display throughout the entire game denied the hosts the chance to double the lead 2 minutes into stoppage time with a goal line clearance after confusion in the Sports defence.

Manager John McGrath said after the game that after a poor first half his team improved in the second and probably deserved something for their second half display.

 

 

Mickleover Sports Academy 2017-2018 – Apply Now

The hugely successful Sports Academy is now open for applications for next season’s intake, with an open football session being held in the forthcoming half term holidays for any interested young footballers.

We along with our partners the NPL Football Academy are looking for talented, committed and hardworking current Year 11 & Year 12’s who wish to join a semi-professional academy in the Evo-Stik League when you leave school in 2017 where you will study for a BTEC in Sport qualification (Level 2 or 3), train every day with an UEFA qualified coach and play in the NPL Football Academy League and FA Youth Cup.

The Mickleover Sports ‘Education and Football Academy’ is an alternative to college and is ideal for any 16/17 year old who wants to gain a great education and develop as a footballer at the same time. Now in it’s third year, we have already seen success on and off the field with four students making their first team debuts at just 17/18 years of age and a further three being named on the first team bench.

There is an ‘OPEN FOOTBALL SESSION’ during the half term holidays on Friday 28th October, 12pm – 1pm at the Racecourse, St Marks Road, Derby, DE21 6AL that anyone is welcome to attend by registering at nplfa.co.uk/register

At the Mickleover Sports Academy you will study, train and play full time under the coaching partnership of first team manager John McGrath and first team player Andy Dales.

STUDY:
– Alternative to college
– BTEC in Sport Level 3 (equivalent to 2/3 A Levels)
– One/Two year programme
– Study in the classroom with your team mates
– Opportunities to gain experience at the football club

TRAIN:
– Experienced & UEFA qualified coaches
– Train three/four times a week
– Improve technical ability and fitness on a daily basis
– Opportunities to train with the reserves and first team

PLAY:
– In the NPL Football Academy League
– Opportunities to play in the FA Youth Cup
– Games played at Evo-Stik League stadiums
– Opportunities to progress to the first team
– Opportunities to play for the inter-league team against professional clubs

EXTRAS:
– Trips to St George’s Park
– All matches are filmed, analysed and shown in a weekly highlights package online with our video partners FilmMyMatch (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rxY7fOrZWqc)
– Opportunities to study, play and coach in the USA with our pathway partners Soccer Chance USA

Activate your ambition now and apply at http://nplfa.co.uk/register

 

 

Match Report: Corby Town (Home)

Mickleover Sports- EASTWOOD, BENNETT, PTAK, MCGRATH, MILLS, BROADHEAD ( GROCOTT 52), DALES, NORCROSS, MORRISON, BASKERVILLE, SCHOFIELD. other subs BURGIN, TURNER


Corby Town – PARKES, ANTON, KENNEDY, MARSHALL, GASCOIGNE, WEBB, OGILVIE, DRAPER, BALL JOHNSON 64), MILNES (MARTIN 38)


Sports got back to winning ways with a comfortable victory against struggling Corby Town. Sports had Jack Broadhead back after illness and brought in youngster Will Norcross and Elliot Ptak, making his debut.


Ptak went close in the 1st minute firing a chance just wide as Sports dominated the early stages. Jake Bennett did well to get in a cross that Clinton Morrison volleyed first time across goal, the ball just evading Adam Baskerville. Sports took the lead when John Mcgrath’s in-swinging corner was turned into his own net by Monty Parkes.


Baskerville nearly doubled the lead on 30 minutes. A fine run and cross from Jake Bennett was volleyed back first time by Clinton Morrison and Baskerville was inches away from connecting at the far post. Sports were then denied what looked like a goal when Bennett fired in from 10 yards but the referee blew for a foul.


Sports were again denied by the referee on 48 minutes when a pass back was handled by the keeper. Sports took a quick free kick for Danny Schofield to roll in but were pulled back for a reason only the official knew. Five minutes later the all important second goal was scored by Adam Baskerville as Danny Schofield got to the line and his cross was hit in , first time from 8 yards out,


Good control from Clinton Morrison saw him find Schofield but his shot was parried by Parkes. Baskerville was played through but his shot cleared the bar.


The visitors had been very poor and their only shot on target came in the 75th minute when Andre Johnson hit his shot straight at Jake Eastwood.


Att 184


Match Report: Halesowen Town (Home)

By Christian Hile

Sports 0-1 Halesowen Town

Sports just fell short to a frustrating 1-0 defeat at the hands of a resolute and well organised Halesowen side.

Sports got off to an abysmal start, as Halesowen found themselves in front after just 32 seconds, thanks to a long punt forward, which fell all the way to Kaiman Anderson in the Mickleover box, who poked past Jake Eastwood from close range. Sports came close to an equaliser on 13 minutes when a neat link-up play between Baskerville and Morrison found Baskerville one on one with Platty in the opposition goal who saved well from close range. Anderson came close to doubling the score line on 36 minutes when his header at the back post from a corner went just wide. Anderson again threatened the Mickleover goal on 44 minutes as he forces Eastwood into his first save of the match down to his.  Not much was between the two sides, but Halesowen’s early goal separates the two sides.

Mickleover started the second half on the front foot, and came close to levelling the score line on 51 minutes when Richard Sho Silva almost headed into his own net from a Sports corner, and from the resulting corner Pablo Mills headed it straight at Platty. On 70 minutes Clinton Morrison forced Platty into a great after his acrobatic effort from just inside the box.  For the remainder of the match Sports found it very difficult to get past the resolute Halesowen defence to create any clear cut chances at goal, as Halesowen slowed things down to disrupt Mickleover’s tempo.

Sports will feel frustrated that they were unable to anything out of the game, but they have a opportunity to quickly bounce back against Corby Town at the Don Amott Arena on Saturday.

Teams

Sports :Jake Eastwood, Jake Bennett, Ben Turner, John McGrath, Pablo  Mills, Tom Burgin (c ), Andy Dales, Kevin Grocott, Clinton Morrison, Adam Baskerville, Danny  Schofield

Halesowen : Daniel Platty, Kyle Haynes, James Hancocks, Jay Denny (c ), Richard Sho-Silva, Asa Charlton, Kennedy Dieie ,Daniel  Bragoli, Kaiman Anderson, Jordan Goddard, Malcom Melvin

Sub’s

Sports: Lewis Belgrave (Turner 22), Jake Dickinson, Albert Lansdowne, Brodie Litchfield

Halesowen :Eiman Delaney, Kyle Morrison, Aaron Griffiths, Joe Colley

Attendance : 168

Coach To Blyth Spartans – Book Now For A Seat On The MickleRover!

The club are offering coach spaces for supporters wanting to support us at Blyth Spartans this Saturday (October 8th).

The coach (known as the MickleRover!) will depart from the Don Amott Arena on Saturday at 9.00am (£15.00 return).

Please book by calling Tony Shaw on 07966 197246 or emailing him on tonys@mickleoversportsfc.com.

Also, we will be making coaches available for a number of other games this season so please enquire with Tony or send us an email to tonys@mickleoversportsfc.com for more information.