By Dick Sturch
Millwey Rise 1st X1 5, Amory Green Rovers 1st X1 0
Kicking off against a bitterly cold North wind sweeping down the pitch and into the faces of their hardy supporters on the Tea Hut terrace, Millwey Rise were soon on the attack.
They kept their visitors' goal under constant pressure but it was not until the tenth minute that they had a strike in anger when an Owen Enticott shot was pushed around the post.. It then came as a wake up call when an Amory forward cleverly worked himself into a one on one with Rise keeper Flynn Smith only to put the ball wide of the goal.
The opening goal for Millwey came in the 25th minute via a corner, a foul in the area and the resulting penalty calmly stroked home by Nathan Womersley.
Although Rise kept their opponents under constant pressure it did not stop Amory providing the occasional threat on goal from corners and free kicks. Womersley came close with a 'thunderbolt' that flashed over the bar and a Ty Allen strike curled the wrong side of the upright. In the 35th minute Allen fed the ball through to Sam Dibling to add Millwey's second. Minutes later Dibling latched onto a Sam Turner pass to score again and Rise went into the break with a comfortable three goal lead.
With the wind at their backs Millwey pinned their opponents into their own half for long periods and Smith in the home goal was left a lonely figure for long stretches of the game. This was unlike his counterpart who saved chance after chance as he kept Rise at bay which earned the admiration and applause of the Tea Hut terrace contingent.
The injured Dibling gave way to Luke Thurlow and Turner was replaced by Jack Farrant. Allen and Matt Lewis then had good scoring opportunities before Joe Osborne was brought on in place of Allen. Thurlow soon made his presence felt when he fired in Rise's fourth goal. Dave Bridges and Osborne had further opportunities to increase the lead before the insuppressible Bridges gave way to Bailey Hall. Thurlow was again in the thick of the action when he added his second and Millwey's fifth and final goal.
This win continues Millwey's current run of victories without conceding any goals. Central defender Leigh Beer had a great game together with the other members of the back four and manager Shane Featherstone was delighted with his team's performance. He selected Sam Dibling as his man-of-the-match for setting the standard to which the team responded.
Next week's visitors to Cloakham are St Martins 2nd X1 (kick-off 3pm).
Amory Green Rovers 2nd X1 2, Millwey Rise 2nd X1 8
Millwey's 2nd X1 travelled to face Amory Green Rovers 2nd X1 hoping to carry on their current rich vein of form but it was the hosts who started the brightest putting early pressure on the Millwey goal.
'Rise' began to up their game and went close to an opener a couple of times but chances that, on another day would of been put away, were wasted.
In the tenth minute Millwey broke the deadlock with a Cameron Board strike. Shortly after they were three goals up from a Jack Bennett header and Alex Osborne netting when he slid the ball home at the back post.
Although Millwey continued to press they missed several good chances in the process and found themselves being pegged back. This led to a rare Amory chance which beat keeper Bearpark's finger tips and went in off the the post. 'Rise' once more increased their lead when Board's second of the game followed soon after for Millwey's fourth and final goal of the half.
Rise started the second period on the front foot and quickly found themselves 1-5 up with a goal from Jess Langdon. This was his first goal in a Millwey shirt after several years away. Amory were awarded, and scored their second goal from a dubious penalty decision. Osborne was adjudged to have fouled a Rover's striker who himself admitted it wasn't a foul. This was the last time Amory really threatened.
Millwey turned the screw even further adding three more goals with Bennett getting his second from the spot. Josh Marlow grabbing another and young Taylor Briggs getting his first senior goal with an excellent touch and powerful finish.
The management team of Terry Male and James Morgan, although happy with the win, were very critical of the overall scrappy performance of their team. Jess Langdon had a great game in the centre of the park but Man of the Match went to veteran Wayne Jenkins who had an unfaltering game in the back four..
No game this week for Millwey 2nds. The following week they play Hemyock at Cloakham in their final home match of the season.
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