SATURDAY 4TH DECEMBER 2004
COVENTRY MARCONI 1 V 3 COLESHILL TOWN
Scorers: Craig Davies, Danny Carter, Chris Gee.
Manager Mick Beadle was down to the bare bones as his squad was depleted with injuries, work commitments and even a baby. Regulars Howard, Thompson, Wilkes and Farrington were all missing, Wagstaff and Smith were carrying injuries and Tim Lane was at his wife's side following the birth of their first child. Congratulations Tim.
Coventry Marconi were still smarting after their defeat at the hands of Coleshill in the Challenge Cup and manager Paul Mills had his side wound up from the start but as his team over reacted to some refereeing decisions, four yellow cards were handed out in the first 45 minutes to try and calm down a game which was always in danger of boiling over.
MIDFIELD ACTION: MARCONI V COLESHILL
Coleshill took the most of the chances that came their way and Marconi wasted most of theirs with a culmination of poor finishing, and another inspired performance from keeper Craig Jones.
Town took the lead after only 5 minutes when Danny Carter chased a through ball from Craig Davies. When the defender and keeper hesitated Carter nipped in between the pair and was left with the goal at his mercy but he still needed the help of the cross bar for the effort to finally cross the line. The home teams first effort on goal was a gift as Frank Woodburn headed into the path of their leading scorer Chris Partridge but as he bore down on goal Jones quickly came out and parried his shot away for a corner. Marconi enjoyed the majority of possession in the first half but came up against a resolute defence and Davies and Carter always looked dangerous on the break. Coleshill increased their lead just before the break as Lee Dempster ran at the defence from deep in his own half. He fed Craig Davies who just beat the onrushing keeper to the ball but his touch had taken him well wide of goal. Town's leading scorer had time to look up and place his shot into the far corner somehow missing defenders who were racing back to clear.
The home team threw everything at Town in the opening twenty minutes of the second half but with, at times, some desperate defending the Coleshill goal remained intact. Coleshill had mainly relied on the big boot to clear their lines but as the weathered the early storm, and with a two goal cushion, they started to play some football. Davies chased down a long ball and blocked the keeper's attempted clearance, but with the ball slowly heading for the net the keeper scrambled the ball away, Chris Gee firing the rebound wide. Davies took a bending free kick that the keeper saved at the foot of the post. Coleshill won a disputed free kick wide on the right and as Chris Gee swung in the cross Craig Davies dummied, leaving everyone flat footed and the ball sailed into the net for 3-0 to Town. Marconi hit back with some sustained pressure but were thwarted by some desperate defending. Carter broke away but saw his effort saved by the keeper's feet then Jones made the save of the game. A good move resulted in a four yard tap in but Jones flung himself at the ball from point blank range and cleared for a corner. With time running out the home team got a consulation with a soft goal. A harmless looking cross slung in from the left eluded both defenders and attackers and snook into the far corner of the net.
THE THREE GOALSCORERS AGAINST MARCONI
Mick Beadle thought that against Highgate midweek we played too much football and at times the big boot was necessary. Well this game showed that Coleshill can battle and grind out a result when the going gets tough. Unfortunately we seem to be able to do it against the top teams but not the one?s in the lower half of the table.
Team;- Craig Jones, Steve Lees, Frank Woodburn, Matt Ward, Chris Gee, Josh McPherson, Carl Smith (Matt Phipps), Chris Davies, Craig Davies, Danny Carter, Lee Dempster.
Sub not used Kevin Wagstaff.