Tamworth
V
Wealdstone
Tamworth v Mickleover
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Tamworth
3-1
Mickleover
Match Report
Andy Peaks, taking charge of his 50th competitive fixture with his top of the table Lambs, welcomed former player John McGrath’s Mickelover side to the CR MOT Community Stadium for the second of three home games in quick succession.
After the midweek victory over St Ives Town, and with Alex Collard sidelined Peaks brought a couple of players into the squad with Jamie Jellis coming back in on loan from Kings Langley for the remainder of the season and Jamie Willets went straight into the squad, replacing Ben Hart in the starting XI, having signed from Alvechurch on the morning of the game.
So there were two changes to the side that picked up the points on Tuesday night as Gift Mussa replaced Alex Bradley who took a spot on the bench alongside Hart.
With an early start at 2pm, Mickleover kicked off proceedings with The Lambs attacking the Meadow Street End in the first half and when Watt tussled with Creaney on the right of the D it set up Milnes with a 5th minute freekick which curled just around the near post.
A minute later Watt was booked for a challenge on Finn on the left and Milnes set himself up with the deadball and planted it onto the head of Willets who made no mistake at the far post to open his account and put his new team in the lead (1-0, 7 mins)
The visitors responded strongly and tried to move the ball around quickly but without testing Singh and from a left sided corner on 17 Butler rose highest to head wide of the far post.
Warren managed to get a low shot away on 20 which Singh was happy to gather while at the other end Finn picked his spot from the right but his shot rose over the bar.
Good interplay between Milnes and Finn saw the latter burst into the box on 24 and fire at the near post, but former Lambs keeper Hedge was positioned perfectly to deny his strike.
Butler upended Mussa on the edge of the D on 26 and so Milnes got another chance to go for goal but fired high over the away stand.
Finn was then denied by some quick defending at the Mickleover back and Creaney’s follow up was also shut out when it looked odds on one of them would have sneaked in, and from Curley’s resultant throw McKeown forced a corner on the left which Creaney managed to get his head to but only to keep it in play rather than get on target at the far post.
A similar move bore a similar result on 32 with Finn denied again in the left of the area as Tamworth’s pressure was unrelenting.
A high boot against Creaney gave The Lambs another freekick, on the right wing, on 37 but Finn’s deep ball into the box was took much for Cockerill-Mollett to do anything with.
Sports enjoyed some of the ball in the latter stages of the first half, and a foul by Mussa on Trueman allowed Warren to step up and put the freekick into the box on 41 but Willets headed it away and Reeves tried his luck but fired well wide of the target.
HT 1-0
The Lambs restarted the match but had to make a change when Milnes was brought down and couldn’t continue, bringing Bradley into the fray as Mussa took the captains armband.
A penalty was awarded no 54 when the ball appeared to be handled in the area by Wilson, although he claimed he knew little of it, and so Creaney stepped up but saw his low penalty kicked away by Hedge and although Finn followed up his shot went wide.
And then on 56 Fairlmab was adjudged to have handled a cross into the area from the right and the referee pointed at the opposite spot. Warren stepped up and sent Singh the wrong way to level the tie (1-1, 57 mins)
Mussa was booked for his challenge on Beavon in the centre circle on 59, but not until a long passage of play had ended, and the Mickleover player has not got back to his feet by the time the card was shown.
Creaney and Bradley exchanged passes into the area on 63 and forced a right sided corner, which nearly found Creaney, but Mickleover broke forwards and Beavon rattled his cross off Willets for the first of a couple of corners which came to nothing.
Cockerill-Mollett made headway down the left on 68 and found his path blocked but get a corner from his efforts which Bradley put into the danger area, but Mickleover broke upfield and it took a Dolman intervention to get the ball off the attackers and back to Singh.
Creaney forced Hedge into a stop with a powerful low drive on 74 and both sides made a change with 15 remaining and when the ball came in from the right it caused a whole heap of problems for the home defence, and when Deacon’s shot was pushed away by Hedge it fell for Creaney to smash it home from close range and the tension around The Lamb lifted somewhat (2-1, 77 mins)
And then it all but disappeared on 80 when Creaney cut into the box from the left with a shot clearly in mind, and Hedge made a massive error, spilling the strikers effort and could only watch it roll past him into the back of the net (3-1, 80 mins)
Willets powered a far post header from Finn’s left sided corner into the side netting on 84 and he was on had at the other end to clear the danger when Mickleover advanced in the final few minutes, and a loose ball was well struck by Warren on 89 but Singh was in the right place to drop and smother his goalbound strike.
Four minutes added time was shown at the end of the game and Clement replaced Creaney as the clock ticked down.
Finn saw his shot saved by the feet of Hedge from a cut back from McKeown and the final whistle blew on another three points for The Lambs, who could celebrate the victory while the rest of the league fixtures played out elsewhere.
Tamworth
Singh, Curley, Cockerill-Mollett, Mussa, Willets, Dolman, McKeown, Milnes (c.) (Bradley 51), Creaney (Clement 92), Finn, Fairlamb (Deacon 75)
Subs: Hart, Jones
YC: Mussa 59
Mickleover
Hedge, Mann, Wilson, Butler, Watt (c.), Bateman, Dales, Warren, Reeves (Nunn 75), Beavon, Trueman (Dolan 60)
Subs: Bosworth, Marshall, Mills
YC: Watt 6
Referee: Mr. Sam Wesson
Assistants: Mr. Mehul Karia, Mr. Daniel Clenton
Att: 804
MOM: chosen by VIP member Geoff Chadwick - Dan Creaney
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