Northern Counties East League (Division One)
Tuesday 6th October 2020
Rossington Main contrived to snatch a defeat from the jaws of victory as Ashley Austin's last minute earned Nostell Miners Welfare three points at Oxford Street.
It was the stereotypical game of two halves with Rozzo being the better, brighter and more adventurous team during the first 45 minutes - taking the lead through Jordan Buckham's low strike, before the visitors were stronger in the second half and bagged twice inside the last 10 minutes through Sam Ford and then Austin to achieve a comeback success.
Though the hosts will be frustrated to have been beaten from a winning position, the overall performance wasn't bad - it was certainly an improvement on the same fixture in the FA Vase only a few weeks ago - and there actually quite a few positives. The fact it ended in defeat will, once the dust settles, be a good learning curve for the numerous younger players who were involved.
On another occasion (and with an element of good fortune), Rozzo would have been out of sight long before the visitors 'upped the ante' and got back into things.
Jack Watson flashed a shot wide in the first couple of minutes as Main started brightly and after plenty of possession and some decent play from both Tyla Bell and loan signing Niall Doran, Buckham (who'd just minutes earlier volleyed wide) bagged the opener just shy of the half-hour mark when he received a pass from Doran, got to the edge of the area and picked out the bottom corner.
Watson should have punished Nostell further when he broke into a one-on-one just moments after the opener, only to be thwarted by the 'keeper, whilst he did well to get on the end of Elliott Walker's deep right-wing cross to the far-post just before half-time though he was unable to direct his subsequent header on target.
Nostell's threat was sporadic during the first 45 minutes; they forced Callum Fielding into routine goalkeeping work on a few occasions whilst Walker also made a crucial interception at one point when they had the ball inside their opponents' area, but in the second half they were the better team - something which coincided with the introduction of Amir Berchill at the interval.
Nevertheless, even though the visitors had the territorial advantage for long swathes, it was Rossington who created further chances to further extended their lead as Doran's twinkle-toed good footwork on the edge of the box culminated with a goalbound, top corner effort that was superbly tipped over by the 'keeper, before Jason Stokes rattled the upright with a shot from a similar distance.
As the game entered the closing stages, the visitors - naturally chasing the game, threw everything forward in search of success and were rewarded for their efforts when Sam Ford looped what appeared to be an angled effort over Fielding to level things up on 81 minutes.
Despite a howling miss immediately after the re-start in play; Nostell's unmarked striker in the six-yard box somehow achieving what seemed impossible by firing an effort over the top with the goal at his mercy, they snatched the points when Ashley Austin converted from a very similar position after another ball came in from Rossington's left-side and a player was left unmarked.
The game was, thankfully, without the aggression or stupidity which ruined the recent FA Vase fixture and Nostell, though fortuitous on this occasion, have proved they aren't a bad side whilst Rozzo can potentially learn so much from this defeat.
Though it's very much still a case of 'work in progress' what is for certain is that the hosts played well in parts, have a lot of good young players in various positions across the pitch, and look like a more cohesive unit than they did only a matter of weeks ago.
Daz Winter's absence turned into a positive as it paved the way for Bobby Faulkner at centre-back and the 16-year-old showed he wasn't overawed - showing some neat touches and good play when put under pressure, whilst Bailey Conway (Masher) put in several tackles in centre-midfield and is clearly a decent player. Niall Doran, on loan, demonstrated why he's played at a higher level and 'upped standards' with some of his individual play at times, whilst Jack Watson, Elliott Walker and Cameron Barnett (who came off the bench late on) have all had a good upbringing at Doncaster Rovers.
The defeat isn't the end of the world. With better finishing, or an element of a good fortune with Stokes and Doran's efforts after half-time, this defeat could easily have been a win. If the lads are able to collude, work out what went wrong to cause them to come under so much pressure late on, where they were exposed and what they need to work on - and get that right, then results will inevitably turn in their favour.
As stated, things are very much still a 'work in progress' but the progress is evident.
This was the 999th competitive match which I've seen in the English football pyramid - spanning two decades, but I don't yet know where I'll reach the four-figure landmark. It's unlikely to be this weekend as I'll be at Cantley Park (probably looking through a fence) watching Donny's Under 18s take on Mansfield's Under 18s.
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