Hebburn Town 0-1 Ossett United

Hebburn Town 0-1 Ossett United

Northern Premier League (Division One East)

Tuesday 23rd April 2024

Oh what a night!

Considering everything at stake beforehand, this game was always likely to be defining for one of these teams - and what a night it was for Ossett United as they performed the role of party poopers to perfection and guaranteed their survival at this level for another season.

In front of a bumper crowd of 1,224 - most of whom were no doubt hoping Hebburn would get the win they needed to clinch promotion to Step 3 for the first time ever in their history, this result certainly wasn’t in the pre-match script.

The scoreline - memories of which I’m sure will last for weeks to come, hinged on two penalties.

Hebburn had the first deep into first half stoppage-time but with the home fans holding their breath as Amar Purewal stepped up to face Callum Hiddleston, the ‘keeper dived to his right to make a save and then gobbled up the loose ball to deny the hosts on their big night.

And what Hebburn couldn’t do from the spot, Ossett soon proved they could do.

Just a few minutes after the interval, a visiting striker was fouled inside the box - a definite penalty (even if some of the natives felt otherwise) and up stepped Adam Priestley to stroke the ball past the dive of the Hebburn ‘keeper and give the visitors even more reason to defend - as with victory they knew they’d be safe from relegation!

From that point onwards it was all Hebburn yet for all their possession and territory, and moving the ball from side to side plenty of times as they looked to somehow break Ossett’s lines and create an opening, they couldn’t get an equaliser. Minutes ebbed away, time became precious, the game grew older and older and to be honest I never thought they looked like carving out a golden gilt-edged chance like a one-on-one. Ossett’s defending was magnificent; bodies on the line aplenty, winning things in the air, application, sheer resilience and desire from every player and a collective spirit to cling onto what they had and deal with everything that was thrown at them. 

In the end, Callum Hiddleston wasn’t tested except for mostly routine stops and claiming crosses and arguably Hebburn’s best hope came in injury-time when one of their strikers went tumbling inside the box. It looked dodgy. There were appeals. It wasn’t given and Ossett held on!

The full-time whistle was met with unaltered roars of delight and emotion - none more so than by Cal The Dragon who took pelters all night from the home fans behind his goal with his haircut (quite rightly as his barnet needs a trim) and pink kit (again probably rightly) being drawn to their attention for some jovial banter which I’m sure he absolutely loved.

However, this was it. 

This was the moment. This was the victory that guaranteed Ossett’s survival and, oh boy, what a way to do it in front of a massive crowd (double that of what Hebburn usually get) and away from home in probably the most difficult game of the season.

It could have been all songs in the street for Hebburn. It was nearly complete. It was nearly so sweet - but in the end this was Ossett United’s night and a moment these players will remember for a long, long time to come!

Yet again on this blog, I can’t speak highly enough about Callum Hiddleston and he was tremendous in this game. It didn’t surprise me he saved the penalty as he’s got a decent record saving them anyway - stretching back to his Youth Team days at Sheffield United when he saved three in a shoot-out against Millwall then one in the next round at Goodison Park against Everton. The Man Of The Match award was deserved, and it was brilliant hearing so many people speak so highly of him afterwards and dish out praise - whether it be Ossett’s own fans who made the journey, Hebburn supporters hoping it would be their night or the many neutrals and scouts who popped along just to see a game of football.

The best thing about Callum’s time at Ossett is he’s got his confidence back, has a smile on his face, and is enjoying his football again and Ossett United deserve as much praise for putting their faith in him and giving him a chance to play when others wouldn’t, just as much as Callum deserves praise for his magnificent performances.

Every week, he’s performed so consistently. From his first few games where I was asking about afterwards and getting feedback on him which was always positive, to his first clean-sheet at Winterton, Saturday’s last-gasp save against Bridlington which had his manager purring that he’ll play in the Football League one day in his post-match interview, and this game where he was class from the penalty save to the clean-sheet and all the gamesmanship and bits of time-wasting - he’s been absolutely brilliant at Ossett and pivotal in what they’ve achieved in staying in this league.

He’s excellent at shot-stopping, always kicks the ball cleanly (no shanks - which is some effort on these pitches), good with his distribution (the quick kick and ball over the top to set a counter-attack in motion away at Belper being a personal favourite), his handling has been good and his overall enthusiasm and enjoyment has been plainly evident!

All those traits were on show in this game - and I can’t speak highly enough of him because he’s a top keeper with so much to feel proud and positive about and what a few months he’s had.

Take in the praise, Callum, because you deserve every bit of it.

As for Hebburn, they’ll still be crowned champions if they beat Sheffield on Saturday and good luck to them. I hope they do it because they’ve got their own youngster in Leo Robinson (on loan from Hartlepool United) who has been quality for them in recent weeks. They’ve been good with his development, he’s proving he can cope with mens football - with several goals and direct goal contributions being proof of that, and it would be a brilliant accolade for Leo to get a title winners medal from his first experience of men’s football along with happy memories to look back on in years to come.

And like with Callum, he’s another top lad who is level-headed, humble and grounded, wants to achieve more, and I hope he has a really good career.

But what a night for Ossett United.

Fantastic to be there to witness it (with the added bonus for me of being able to tick off another new ground in this league) and to the tune of a particular Belinda Carlisle song…

Ooooh Hebburn is a place on earth!