by Peter Scherer
It turned into a goal fest at the Don Amott Arena last night, as Mickleover Reserves beat Dearne and District JFC 9-0 in the Abacus Lighting Floodlit Cup.
Starting line-up: 1-Josh Bull 2-Mason Hoult 3-Brad Britten 4-Harry Atwal 5-Toby Smith 6-Hamza Konane 7-Mikey Mandimutsira 8-Ted Stevenson 9-Lamar Okunkwo 15-Brodie Carter 11-Luke Thompson. Subs: Josh Carter, Liam Carter, Josh Powell, Morad Shweikh, Josh Maher.
Straight from the kick off Mickleover were on the attack, but Konane’s opening shot after three minutes was well over the bar. But two minutes later Hoult’s first charge down the right wing, saw his cross go out of play and relieve the pressure on our visitors.
Sports won the first corner after nine minutes, but Konane’s shot was deflected out for another corner, which then came to nought.
Dearne’s first real attack came 10 minutes in, but the cross from the Mickleover went out for a throw.
Mandimutsira was next to take a run at the visitors defence, having outpaced the challengers, his initial shot was blocked, before Thompson sent the rebound over the bar.
A series of corners then followed, with some goal mouth scramble’s as Dearne were just holding on. But 14 minutes in and Konane’s first effort came back to Thompson off the woodwork, who fired the ball into the roof of the net, 1-0.
Okunkwo could have made it two three minutes later, but he shot was just wide of the left-hand post, but some very sloppy defending from the visitors and poor clearance’s kept the pressure on.
Dearne had their keeper to thank for stopping Mandimutsira after 20 minutes, following another poor clearance. Then after Okunkwo had fired over from a Thompson cross after a deflection, the ball fell to Atwal in a crowded box and he made it 2-0 after 27 minutes.
Both Hoult and Brittan had the freedom of the overlap and on the half hour mark, Brittan’s telling cross from the left was intercepted.
Dearne then made a rare attack to win a corner, but that was easily dealt with by Atwal and Smith, but Atwal’s break came to end when he was fouled on the halfway line.
Thompson’s jinking runs on the left earned another corner, but Brittan’s kick went straight out of play. But Sports keeper Bull then had a rare touch, when Dearne had a shot after 35 minutes.
It was soon goal number three though, when a great run by Hoult down the right, leaping some lurid tackles to cross for Brodie Carter to tap home, 3-0.
Dearne managed to reach the Mickleover box a minute later, but Hoult cleared, before he found Thompson in the next attack, but his path was blocked.
A fourth goal looked almost inevitable, but with a minute left, Mandimutsira ran in to have a shot blocked, before Carter’s rebound was blocked too.
Finally Thompson broke free on the right, but his cross beat everyone and it remained 3-0.
Early into the second half Mickleover made a triple substitution, with Josh and Liam Carter and Josh Powell, replacing Brodie Carter, Mandmutsira and Okunkwo.
Josh Carter had only been on the pitch four minutes, when he fired home number four from the edge of the box, 4-0. While on the hour Liam Carter crossed from the right, with brother Josh just missing out.
One minute later the Dearne keeper made a good save from Josh Carter, before Liam outpaced the defence on the right to set up number five for Josh Powell, 5-0 after 64 minutes.
The visitors went close though a minute later, with Smith having to clear off the line with Bull beaten. Josh Carter and Konane then combined and had the defence in knots, before the final shot went wide.
Stevenson then came off to make way for Shweikh, but Powell went close again, after cutting in from the right.
Smith then made it 6-0 poking home a cross from Josh Carter and just a minute later Shweikh made it 7-0, as the visitors were finding it hard to break from their own box.
76 minutes and the keeper tipped over another shot from Josh Carter, but a minute later he made it 8-0 and Sports youngsters still weren’t finished.
Josh Carter had lost out on a one on with the keeper after 79 minutes, but right on full-time Liam Carter made it 9-0 after some good work from Thompson.
Mickleover now move on to the next round, where they are due to host Harworth Colliery.
