NO GOALS BUT PROMISING
Friendly Yeltz 0 WBA 2
21 July 2004
Despite going down 2-0 to an early and a late goal, the mighty Yeltz put on a promising display in our annual friendly against the Albion. Full details in Dave's match report .
On Saturday Worcester are the visitors to The Grove before we host Walsall next week.
Match Report from DJ
Halesowen Town: Sheils; Cooper, Haywood, Preston, Pope, Charlton, Cowley, Skidmore, Steane, Moore, Burgess. Used Subs: D. Jones, Baker, Haarhoff, Forsdick, Colwell, Williams(GK).
West Bromwich Albion: M. Jones; Midworth, Holmes, A. Chambers, Berthe, J. Chambers, Julian, Wallwork, Nicholson, Hughes, Kelleher. Used Subs: Patterson, Tomlinson, Paszkowec, Barnett, Clarke, Smikle, Forsyth, Pringle, Humphrey, Hodgkiss, Daniels (GK).
Referee: A. Hendley (Dudley) Attendance: 866 Sponsors' Man of the Match: Alex Cowley
Halesowen were beaten by two goals in the opening and dying minutes and were left still searching for their first goal of the pre-season campaign despite producing some attractive football.
Lee HUGHES caught Halesowen cold by lifting the ball over Mark Sheils for the first Albion goal in the second minute.
The home side then settled into some neat play with Philip Midworth turning away Jason Moore's cross on 8 minutes. Ben Steane's 18th minute corner was cleared off Nicky Preston's head and Alex Cowley's shot forced the second of three consecutive corner kicks. Goalkeeper Matthew Jones then grabbed a deep Dave Haywood free-kick in the 23rd minute. Clever footwork out of defence by home man-of-the-match Cowley inspired a lightning 26th minute break with Moore's cross inches from conversion by Richard Burgess.
Late in the first half Mark Sheils touched a 20-yard Hughes drive over the crossbar and then made a superb point-blank save from Stuart Nicholson's header after a Hughes cross.
Halesowen's best chance of the game fell three minutes into the second half with Simon Forsdick heading against the underside off the Baggies' crossbar from Haywood's right-wing free-kick. Tom Barnett then headed over his own goal under pressure from Moore as the Yeltz forced two 62nd minute corners against a totally changed second half line-up from the visitors. The hosts employed rolling substitutions and Burgess hit wide in the 68th minute from a Moore break.
With 9 minutes remaining Brain Smikle headed inches wide of substitute goalkeeper Richard Williams but SMIKLE wrapped up the game in the final minute by chipping over the goalkeeper from the edge of the area.