Match Report Harwoods Div 1 – COWES SPORTS RESERVES v Pan Sports 26-10-19

Saturday October 26th – HARWOODS Division 1

COWES SPORTS RESERVES 6(2)  PAN SPORTS 1(1)

played at Westwood Park  Referee – BRIAN HAYWOOD

RESERVES CONTINUE FINE SCORING RECORD TO MOVE TO FIFTH IN TABLE

Cowes Sports Reserves were back in League action following their 1 – 3 defeat at Challenge Cup holders Whitecroft & Barton Sports the previous week. Their challenge was a home game against bottom side Pan Sports.

With Player/Manager Max Draper suspended following his red card at W+B, Mitchell Ricketts, Darren Williams, Aedan Coode, Jason Ince and Daniel Pearson either on holiday or away with the 1st XI, several changes were made. Aarun Ince and Billy Pelosi stepped up from the bench, James Wright came in as did Charlie Allen for his 1st game of the season whilst Connor Furmidge was named on the bench as was new signing James Turner. Aiden Bryan also started continuing his comeback from injury.

Team:-

Fraser Law, Max Coshell (c), Jamie Barratt, Charlie Allen, Aidan Bryan, James Wright, Benjamin Holdsworth, Billy Pelosi, Ji Nash, James Cheek, Aarun Ince, Subs; Luke Phillips, James Turner, Connor Furmidge

Steady rain had made the pitch very wet on top and would test the skills of both teams, Surprisingly it was the visitors who had the first chance of the game after jut three minutes when former Cowes player Ross Lacey saw his 22 yards effort saved by young Fraser Law in the home goal. Cowes’ first opportunity came in the 7th minute when a through ball saw Ben Holdsworth send a cross shot inches wide of the right hand post. Pan’s Tony Potts then sent a free kick just over the Cowes crossbar before an Aarun Ince corner saw James Cheek’s header rebound off the left post back to Aidan Bryan whose header back towards the goal was somehow deflected over the bar by Joe Williams in the Pan goal. In the 12th minute a quick break saw James Cheek square the ball to Ji Nash whose shot was superbly diverted over the bar by their keeper. From the resulting corner Aidan Bryan header the ball wide of the left hand post as Cowes were being frustrated by some stubborn defending and poor finishing. Finally, in the 15th minute, the breakthrough for the young Yachtsmen. A Aarun Ince corner from the Cowes left was not dealt with by the Pan defence, Aidan Bryan struggled to control the ball before it fell to BEN HOLDSWORTH who smashed it into the roof of the goal from around eight yards. Aarun Ince then sent a shot into the side netting before Billy Pelosi shot straight at the keeper. Skipper Max Coshell then saw his shot pushed away by their keeper before Tony Potts twice tested Fraser Law who saved the first effort easily then pushed the second shot over the crossbar at full stretch. Ten minutes before the break a measured cross from the left by Aarun Ince was met by the head of BEN HOLDSWORTH to double the home sides lead. Two minutes before half time and Pan somehow found a way back into the game when from a corner skipper SAM WILLIAMS beat Fraser Law to the ball to head home from six yards. So despite dominating the game the Yachtsmen only went into the break one goal ahead.

Luke Phillips replaced Charlie Allen for the second half and had the fist chance of the half when Ji Nash set him up to shoot just over the bar. In the 50th minute Cowes regained their two goal lead when BILLY PELOSI fired home from 8 yards. Ji Nash then had a shot saved before a change for the Yachtsmen saw new signing James Turner replace Billy Pelosi. Cowes were now in total control and it was a case of how many? Unfortunately the final ball was letting them down as Aarun Ince twice fired over the bar before Ben Holdsworth had a shot blocked. In the 68th minute a quick break from Pan’s Ross Lacey saw him lift the ball over Fraser Law but Max Coshell managed to get back to clear the ball off the goal line before the Cowes keeper recovered to push the ball away and the danger was cleared. Billy Pelosi returned to the field and Connor Furmidge came on for his first appearance since September. The latter was straight into the action as Jamie Barratt won the ball wide on the left before setting up the Cowes sub whose shot was somehow blocked by Joe Williams who pushed the ball up and over the bar. Ross Lacey again threatened but sent his shot wide of goal before Connor Furmidge bundled the ball into the net only for the goal to be ruled out for a debatable offside flag. In the 75th minute Ji Nash sent the ball across the six yard box and CONNOR FURMIDGE chested home from around two yards. Two minutes later and it was 5 – 1 when Aarun Ince won the ball in midfield, fed CONNOR FURMIDGE who beat his marker before sending the ball past their keeper into the net. Ben Holdsworth came back on in place of James Wright, Pan also made a couple of substitutions late on. The scoring was completed in the 82nd minute when Ji Nash again crossed for CONNOR FURMIDGE to tap home from 2 yards to finish off a 17 minute hat-trick and send the Cowes second string up to the in the table.