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Mac
Industries today produced by far the best
display of the last decade today by beating Hove
Old Boys 4-2 at the Hamsters Cage. The victory
was made even more remarkable by the selection
crisis that struck boss Scott McCarthy. Ian
Simpson and Jack Simpson were both unavailable,
while Jamie Jones was ruled out due to his
impending court case about incest relations with
his cousin. Pete Morgan was ill, while Doug Lane
pulled out at the 12th hour with a rectum
problem. It meant that youngster Ben Walmsley
was handed his first start since Scott McCarthy
took charge, partnering brother Tom in midfield.
Kieran Elliott returned on-loan from Mierosoft,
to partner Bert Lloyd at the back, while Peter
Chapman and Dan Collin were re-united in attack.
Scott McCarthy made his return in goal, after
two games played out pitch
A
massive crowd, boosted by the Old Boys large
away following, was packed into the Cage for
this eagerly anticipated clash, and a red hot
atmosphere was in store for the teams as they
entered the arena. The Hamsters, inspired by
chairman Tom McCarthy's first appearance at a
home game since his heart problems, began the
game in typical style, as Bert Lloyd attempted a
back heel across his own goal. Luckily, Kieran
Elliott was alert, and managed to clear it
forward. The visitors are re-knowned for their
attacking, attractive football, but it was the
Hamsters who controlled the game in the early
phases. Despite the play, they were not creating
the chances, and the Old Boys were soon on the
attack. One fault in the last home game was the
sides defence when Mierosoft stole a 3-2 win,
but McCarthy had drilled it into his troops that
a repeat of that would not be tolerated today,
as they defended superbly. Playing the
counter-attacking football that won them so many
plaudits last season, it was Mac Industries who
took the lead. A long ball forward was
controlled by Dan Collin, and his lay-off was
met by captain Tom Walmsley, who coolly stroked
the ball home.
The
goal shocked the Old Boys into a response, as
they pushed forward. The defending of the
Hamsters was top class though, as they
restricted the Visitors to long shots from
outside the area, which were easy for McCarthy
to deal with. The passing and movement of the
Hamsters was yet again superb, and they carved
open a second goal. Bert Lloyd found Ben
Walmsley, who exploited the space and time he
had down the right flank, and played in an inch
perfect ball to Peter Chapman. The veteran
striker connected, and fired the ball home to
make it 2-0 to the Hamsters. The fans at the
Non-Clock End were delighted, as the illustrious
opponents found themselves 2-0 down. It was
almost 3, as another counter attacking piece of
play saw Collin go close, seeing his shot
rebound off the upright. The Old Boys started to
gain the upper hand now though, as they had
chance after chance. However, their finishing
was not sufficient to beat McCarthy, with the
majority of efforts flying wide of the goal or
straight at the keeper. It was after a sustained
period of the visitors pressure that saw the
home side make it 3-0. McCarthy was forced into
a routine save to collect the ball, and his long
kick was expertly bought under control by
Collin. The long-haired striker delivered a
fantastic cross that Tom Walmsley connected with
at the front post to make it 3-0. Hove continued
to create chances, and the Hamsters were
grateful to hear the half time whistle.
After
a stern dressing down at half time from their
management team, Hove returned to the pitch a
different team. McCarthy had set his sides stall
out at defending, but they were slowest out of
the blocks, as within 5 minutes of the restart
the visitors pulled a goal back. A through-ball
was not cut out, and the Old Boys striker coolly
slipped the ball past McCarthy. It was a wake up
call, and the Mac Industries defence tightened
up. Chapman dropped into a deeper role, leaving
Dan Collin as the outlet should they have got
the opportunity to break. Despite Hove
controlling the game, McCarthy was relatively
quiet, as the defence did a superb job,
restricting the play and blocking any route to
goal. They very nearly did pull one back though,
but McCarthy dived full length to his left to
palm away the shot. On the break the Hamsters
looked dangerous, as they broke in numbers,
passing quickly between themselves. Tom Walmsley
embarked on a tricky run, but his effort was
over the bar, when a pass to Collin would've
left the striker in the clear. Down the other
end, and the Old Boys thought they had scored
when the ball beat McCarthy, but Chapman was on
the line to clear it away. Moments later, and
the keeper received a nasty blow to head as he
dived bravely at the feet of an attacker to
thwart another attack.
The
visitors came forward in numbers, and after
dealing with a simple shot, McCarthy launched a
long ball forward. Dan Collin somehow managed to
control it, and beating his man fired the ball
home to all but secure the victory. Another
one-on-one saw Hove make it 4-2, and it was
nearly 4-3, but yet again Peter Chapman cleared
off the line. Despite dominating the remainder
of the game, Hove Old Boys couldn't find a way
past the defence, and the final whistle blew to
secure a fantastic 4-2 victory.
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