MATCH OFFICIALS: Referee – KRASIMIR PETROV
Assistants – Alistair Taylor + Elliott Bracken-Lamb
With Aidan Bryan away and Finley Phillips injure, Steve Hunt faced a Sholing side widely tipped for the League title this season. However. in his first competitive game since his appointment, his team turned in an impressive performance that bodes well for the future.
With no less than four of the line-up making their Wessex League debuts, Cowes were first to threaten as Connor Furmidge screwed an early chance just wide. Sholing looked dangerous but two headers went wide while Ed Hatt made three excellent saves. Another Sholing header came back off of the post, but the visitors would not be denied as LEE WORT saw his header finally brake the deadlock in first half injury time.
H-t 0 – 1
Early in the second half Jimmy Wykes and Gareth Bricknell combined brilliantly on the edge of the box but Jimmy’s shot was blocked by the Sholing keeper.
The impressive debutant, Callum Chase then spoilt his evening when he was penalized on the edge of the box and received a second yellow card followed by red and an early bath. From the resulting free kick former Newport player CONNOR KELLY sent the ball, via a deflection, past Ed Hatt into the right corner of the Cowes goal to double Sholing’s lead and virtually clinch the three points
Cowes substitute Tom Dye’s appearance was then cut short after just a few minutes when he received a bad cut to his face and had to be taken to hospital where he received twenty stitches to the cut.
Another substitute, Darren Williams almost rounded off a great move when his close range effort was brilliantly tipped round the post.
Fifteen minutes from time and Westwood park was plunged into darkness as the lights went out, following a break of around fifteen minutes the game resumed with Sholing twice going close but Ed Hatt’s save and then the post kept the final score down.
Teams:- COWES SPORTS – Ed Hatt, Max Draper, Jason Malcolmson, Craig Insley (c), Ewan Cranwell, Callum Chase S/O, Leigh Mackenzie, Oliver McArthur, Connor Furmidge, Gareth Bricknell, James Wykes Subs; Darren Williams, Thomas Dye, George Turner
SHOLING – Ryan Gosney, Jamie Bulpitt, Terry Cuthbertson, Michael Hubberd, Connor Kelly, Byron Mason, Dan Mason, Marvin Maclean, Daniel Miller, Lee Wort, Alex Sawyer, Subs:- Barry Mason, Bradley Norton, Owen Royl