Lea Hall 5 Hawkins Sports 0
Staffordshire County Senior League Division 2
At: Lea Hall Miners Welfare Centre, Sandy Lane, Rugeley
Kick-off: scheduled 6-30 pm, actual 6-55 pm
Admission: none; Programme: none
Attendance: 15 (headcount)
Weather: cloudy, dry
Duration: first-half: 41:44; second-half: 39:18
The game got underway 25 minutes after the scheduled kick-off time due to the late arrival of the visitors. While the home side had eleven players plus five named substitutes, Hawkins began with ten men and conceded an early goal. The visitors were reduced to nine men after 11 minutes when their goalkeeper was forced off through injury and conceded a second goal from Frankie Wynn in the 17th minute. A substantial victory looked on the cards for Lea Hall before the arrival eight minutes later of Martin Garbitt took their numbers back up to ten. After the break, Hawkins produced a spirited fightback without finding the net and kept Lea Hall on their toes. Three more goals from the home side, including a brace from substitute Stuart Tupper, made the scoreline sound more of a convincing victory than it actually was. The evening didn’t show this league anywhere near its best though I did get the impression that Lea Hall are keen to progress to a higher level. Over the next few years, finance permitting, they could become a real gem. Saying that, it was good to watch the game in the company of Dave ‘Veteran’ Woodings and a traveller from Crewe who recalled he’d previously met me at Brocton last season.
