Wednesday 12th December Brocton v Barnt Green Spartak

It was enormous credit to both sides that his game both went ahead and was played at pace and with good technique, because the conditions could easily have mad the game treacherous. On ground which had absorbed a recent deluge and at zero degrees, the surface was slick to say the least.

Steve Bennett showed his excellent balance and quick feet in the 12th minute when jinking past the Barnt Green back four but being caught on the ankle as he set himself to shoot at goal. The free kick rebounded away from the defensive wall and immediately the visitors were able to show skill of their own in very similar manner as a two footed dribble into Brocton’s penalty area left only Mike Shelper to beat only for the expected shot to be a weak one.

Dave Langston then won the ball almost on the half way line and drove on with it before finding Lee Scott to his right. Scott slipped the ball into Gary Fife’s stride and his shot whistled just wide of the far post.

Barnt Green were then grateful to their alert keeper, who acted as sweeper in almost the whole of his own half, when Mike Shelper cleared their back line for Lee Scott to run on Green’s keeper was quick and just beat Scott to the ball, but the tackle sent the ball wide rather than clear. Scott raced to his right and hit an early lob, whilst the keeper dashed back to his goal. He did not quite make it in time, but the ball drifted just wide of the far post.

The visitors seemed untroubled by the occasional breach of their back line and posed plenty of threat of their own. Once more on the half hour they passed their way through the Brocton rearguard only for the final shot to be directly at a grateful Mike Shelper.

As the half closed and both teams looked forward to an upbeat half time talk with scores and exchanges evenly poised, Andy Harrison almost pinched the lead for the home side. A Richard Reeves throw fell at his feet and he was able to hold off his marker and then turn and shoot from the edge of the box. The ball rebounded from the bar in what was the final action of the half.

It was Barnt Green who came out of the traps the quicker and more determined after the break and for twenty minutes Brocton could do little but hold on. The visitors had their own shot rattle the bar just 5 minutes into the half and then produced an overlap on the left and wicked cross. The volleyed shot was miss hit, but that almost proved to be fortunate as a reaction header, with Shelper still set to save the original shot, whistled wide.

They got their just reward for this period when Campbell finished off the move of the match to date, hitting a smart shot across Shelper to end a five man passing move which Brocton were powerless to prevent.

That was on 68 minutes, but this Brocton side do not lie down and a Gary Fife corner found Steve Bennett’s head minutes later and whilst the effort went just wide, it seemed to lift the whole team.

Another corner soon followed and this time Andy Harrison brought Brocton back into the game. Harrison looked certain to score again in the very next move when he was in on goal following good work from Richard Reeves and Bennett, but an alert keeper arrived just in time to prevent the score.

Harrison did flick on a throw moments before full time, though and James Dyke put the ball into Tom Kent’s path for Kent to bag the winner.

Brocton 2 v 1 Barnt Green Spartak