Football 4ths lose uphill battle in first league match

University of Sheffield 4ths 3 - 0 University of York 4ths

Last Wednesday, York University fourths made the eighty-six mile round trip to Sheffield for a cup match against their firsts, a team leading the league four division above York’s. It was no surprise when York suffered a heavy loss, so it was with some trepidation that they made the same trip again this week to take on Sheffield fourths.

York Fourths, captained by Alex Collins, are an inexperienced side – with eight of the eleven starters being first years – but they went into this match with every confidence of emerging with a result, despite Sheffield’s promising start to the season. Whilst Sheffield had scored fourteen goals in their first two matches, York were yet to get their campaign started, and so there was great optimism when two o’clock arrived and the match began.

In a cagey affair, with both sides struggling to keep the ball on the floor, it was Sheffield who drew first blood, taking advantage of their superior knowledge of the ground. Winning the toss and opting to play downhill in the first half, on what was a notable incline, Sheffield sent countless long balls over the York backline and ten minutes in this tactic earned Sheffield a corner. After failing to clear their lines properly from the original cross, the ball trickled its way to the Sheffield number nine, lurking on the edge of the six yard box, who smashed the ball home to send the hosts one nil up.

Only moments after, another long ball saw a Sheffield attacker clean through on goal, after a vehement offside appeal was rejected, and the cool finish saw York two nil down with only fifteen minutes on the clock. At this point, memories of last week’s drubbing were certainly in the minds of the players and it would have been easy for York’s young side to have crumbled.

Surprisingly, it was York who took the initiative from this point onward, taking control of the ball in midfield, while one of the few figures of experience, Sam Gibb, took command of the defence. The chances for Sheffield dried up and it was York’s turn to create. A flowing move down the right hand channel, starting with Nick St George, saw wonderful interplay between Alex Collins and Matt Vermulen; the subsequent cross could not be met by a York head, but the warning signs were certainly there. Moments later, a throw in from the right back saw a brilliant piece of play between York’s strikers as Chris Hammer chested the ball down onto the left boot of the naturally right-footed Collins, who was unlucky to see his swirling volley dip narrowly over the crossbar.

As half-time was called, York had every reason to feel confident of getting a result, being only two goals down and playing downhill in the second half. Sheffield had done their hard work, however. Being two goals to the good they dropped a striker into midfield which congested the centre of the park and made it difficult for York to play the football they wanted to. With no clear cut chances being created York continually probed but to no avail.

After an hour’s play a Sheffield through ball eluded York’s offside trap and the tricky left winger sent a shot straight into the roof of the net. Game over. The game ebbed out after this third goal, as both sides realised that it was somewhat unlikely for the overall result to change, and the game ended a three nil Sheffield win.

It was somewhat disappointing for York to fail to trouble their hosts, but with a home game against Bradford thirds next week, which captain Collins had pinpointed as the place to "kick off the season with a win", it is likely that the fourths promising team is destined for better things.

Add Comment

You must log in to submit a comment.