It was a very happy St. David’s Day indeed for the Silkmen as they recorded a hugely impressive 3-1 win at Haverfordwest, to keep their unbeaten Phase 2 run going, and stretch the points difference between themselves and Bala Town to 7 points. The only blemish on an otherwise excellent day was the late sending off of skipper Harry Owen, who was deemed to have denied Corey Shepherd a clear goalscoring opportunity with a foul.
In the early stages of the game they were indebted to keeper Jack Flint who denied the home side with a series of good saves, giving his side the platform to then build on as they took over possession and began to dominate proceedings. Flint was first called into action on 5 minutes as Greg Walters delivered a nice ball in from the right to find the head of Ben Ahmun, whose stooping header was kept out well by the keeper as he pushed it out and away from the danger zone.
Then he was at full stretch to deny Owain Jones who shot from the edge of the area on 9 minutes. A more acrobatic display was required on the quarter of an hour mark, as he sprang to deny Walters, who tried a curling effort from just outside the box.
The Silkmen started to exert their control on the game following that chance, and with Jake Canavan and Ben Hughes pulling the strings in midfield they began to produce one of their best overall team performances of the season so far.
It was Hughes who started, and finished, the move that led to the opening goal on 17 minutes. He won possession in midfield, and drove forward before slipping the ball to Mikey Burke on the left. Burke delivered a low ball into the feet of Darren Stephenson, but under pressure from a defender, the ball ran across to Hughes, whose initial shot was blocked by a combination of goalkeeper Ifan Knott and another defender, but the ball bounced up nicely for him to head towards goal, and his effort skimmed off the head of Jacob Bacon to confuse the defenders stationed on the goal line and give his side the lead.
Flint was called upon once more to deny the home side when he produced a fingertip save to divert a clever improvised flick from Ahmun over the bar.
For the rest of the half, the away side gave an object lesson in controlled passing on the greasy surface, with Lee Jonas looking an assured presence in his first start for the Silkmen. Time and again, the Flint midfield seized on any loose ball played by their opponents and turned over possession to their advantage.
On 27 minutes, Hughes showed a lovely touch to bring a pass played over the top, under his control, before dragging his shot just wide of the goal. A nice flick from Osebi Abadaki then set up Stephenson 10 yards out to the left of the goal. It looked as though a low, drilled shot into the corner, might be the best option, but instead he tried to place it in the top corner, and the shot went horribly off target.
Flint continued to exert pressure, and Jake Phillips put in an excellent cross from the right to seek out Stephenson on the six yard box, but under a heavy challenge he was unable to get the necessary touch. Canavan sent in a skidding low shot from range that zipped along the turf, but Knott got down to collect quite comfortably, as the Silkmen finished the half very much on top.
However, all the good work was undone within 30 seconds of the restart as Haverfordwest were awarded a penalty for handball. From the kick off the Bluebirds attacked, and Rhys Abbruzzese sent in a cross that bounced wickedly in the box, and then struck Owen’s outstretched arm. Ahmun sent the penalty into the net off the underside of the bar to bring parity back to the scoreline.
Earlier in the season, this setback would have definitely unnerved the Silkmen, but there is a growing sense of maturity and self confidence in the team now, and they quickly but that incident behind them and continued where they left off at the end of the first half.
Jack Thorn, one of the unsung heroes in the team, ventured forward and tried his luck from the best part of 30 yards, sending his effort just over the bar.
With a strong wind at their backs, Flint were keeping the home side pinned back, and on 67 minutes, a free kick from the right was met by Owen, who had a free header, but he directed it wide of the target. A Phillips corner also caused chaos, very nearly finding it’s way into the net.
With 10 minutes remaining, Flint retook the lead. Burke did well on the left touchline, earning himself enough space to deliver a telling ball towards Stephenson, who used his strength to shrug aside his marker, before turning smartly to fire a shot past Knott into the goal.
It got even better a couple of minutes later, when Hughes nipped in smartly to win the ball off Abbruzzese and send Ben Woollam away. He played a smart one-two with Phillips before sending a low ball across the 18 yard area to find Abadaki. His shot didn’t look to have the power to unduly trouble Knott, but Stephenson showed great presence of mind to apply a back flick and send the ball spinning wide of the Bluebirds’ custodian into the net.
There was late drama when Owen was shown a straight red for tangling with Corey Shepherd, as he tried to burst through the Flint defensive line. The infringement took place about 25 yards from goal, and Jonas appeared to be coming round to provide cover, but the referee decided it to be the denying of a clear goalscoring opportunity. From the free kick, Jack Flint had the last word as he pushed Shepherd’s shot around his post just as it looked it was creeping inside it.
A victory over Bala in our next home league game should virtually assure us of preserving our Cymru League status, but before that, there is the small matter of the Welsh Cup semi final against Bangor 1876 on Saturday !!
Report by Nigel Sheen
Line Ups :
Haverfordwest County – I. Knott, D. Rees, R. Abbruzzese (A. Watkins 89), K. McCarthy, G. Walters (C. Fox 89), J. Bacon (R. Watts 63), O. Jones (I. Humphreys 73), C. Shepherd, B. Ahmun, D. Hawkins, P Makwiramiti (E. Scotcher 73). Unused Subs – L. Rees (GK), T. Shepherd
Flint Town United – J. Flint, B. Woollam, M. Burke, L. Jonas, H. Owen (c), J. Thorn, J. Phillips, B. Hughes, D. Stephenson, J. Canavan, O. Abadaki (A. Mudimu 87). Unused Subs – D. Szczepaniak (GK), O. Kilner, M. Purvis, E. Reeves, J. Jones
Flint MOM – Darren Stephenson (there were several worthy contenders, but his two late goals gave us 3 vital points in our survival quest)
