TIVVY ARCHIVE

The unofficial archives of Tiverton Town Football Club


Tiverton Town 1 - 2 Worksop Town

Saturday 24/02/2001   FA Trophy
Nigel Davis

To go out at the same stage as giants Rushden & Diamonds and Yeovil Town should not be dismissed lightly and the minnows of this competition certainly did not disgrace themselves against high-flying Worksop Town from the Unibond Premier Division who boast Chris Waddle amongst their ranks. They say "the best laid plans of mice and men..." and no-one could have foreseen the fact that Steve Winter would fall foul of the flu bug flying around Ladysmead - at least not so close to kick-off. His name was even on the team sheet at number 2 and had to be quickly amended to allow Richard Pears to play in his shirt‚ although it was Phil Everett who slotted into the right wing-back role‚ so depriving Tivvy of their top scorer. Pearsy‚ who had done so well on Tuesday‚ was given the chance to shine but found it a frustrating afternoon with him hardly having a touch.

Worksop settled quickly and caught Tivvy cold with the first real chance of the game. It was their leading scorer‚ Kirk Jackson‚ who received the ball in the centre of the Tivvy box and he made no mistake‚ crashing the ball home as Paul Edwards raced off his line to block. It was a killer blow and showed what a lethal finisher he is. On seven minutes‚ following Tivvy´s first corner‚ the ball fell to Scott Rogers who was brought crashing to the ground by a flying tackle by Ryan Davis who was cautioned.

Kevin Nancekivell was then the man in the action. He had a quiet game. Indeed‚ he has not looked the same player since the uncertainty over his future hit home just over a week ago. The sooner something is sorted out‚ the better it is for all parties. Anyway‚ he hit a ground shot but Jamie Holmshaw had plenty of time to cover his near post and gather. Up the other end it was that man Jackson again. He saw a half chance and nipped in but steered the ball into the side netting.

Five minutes later‚ Dave Toomey won a corner. It was played back by Scott Rogers to Steve Daly whose first time cross found Nick Marker´s head and he glanced the ball inches over the bar. On 22 minutes‚ Nance blocked the ball midway inside the Worksop half and he was away. With Toomey steaming in at the far post‚ Nance crossed to him - only to see the ball take a wicked bobble off the pitch‚ hit Toomey´s knee and bounce wide of the goal when‚ with a bit more luck‚ he would have just stroked it home. Seven minutes later‚ Toomers put more pressure on the defence and Holmshaw inadvertently handled the ball a fraction of an inch outside his box near the byeline. Out came the ref´s book once more but Worksop defended the free kick by having nine behind the ball and‚ when they cleared the danger‚ the ball hit their left-wing. Scott went for the ball‚ Chris Waddle tumbled over and‚ incredibly‚ the ref interpreted this as a foul and booked Rogers junior. With the ref also waving away appeals for a penalty after Toomey was tugged to the ground in the box you just thought it wasn´t going to be Tivvy´s day. And then Waddle once more showed his frailty by tumbling to the ground whilst dribbling the ball.

All this time Tivvy had kept up the pressure and‚ lo and behold‚ when Worksop did eventually break away‚ they found Gary Townsend and Kirk Jackson lurking up front. The ball fell to Townsend and with most people believing he would pass the ball inside to Jackson‚ he strode into the box and fired past Paul Edwards to make it 2-0.
The second half saw Steve Ovens on for the hapless Pears and immediately his ext
ra pace caused problems but‚ once more‚ it led to nowt. Indeed‚ Worksop felt aggrieved when Jackson and Edwards collided in the box as the Tivvy keeper blocked a shot. Their appeals for a penalty fell on deaf ears. Twelve minutes into the half and Neil Saunders incurred the wrath of the ref with a booking when Waddle again hit the deck and this was heralded by the introduction of Everett up front with Tivvy dispensing with a right back. On 69 minutes‚ Stuart Smith was booked when he left his leg high on Davis. Frustration was creeping in and it was rare for Tivvy to get the ball inside the box. One such effort‚ by Dave Toomey‚ saw his shot stopped but it was a rare piece of penetration.

However‚ the visitors did make one mistake. The normally reliable Gregg Pearce (a name to watch out for over the next few years)‚ on loan from Chesterfield‚ fouled Ovens on the edge of the box. When they failed to clear the free kick‚ the ball fell to Everett and he had no hesitation in blasting home from a tight angle to set up a storming final ten minutes. With three minutes remaining‚ on came Luke Vinnicombe for Stuart Smith and we then witnessed a remarkable final period.

First Paul Edwards came out of his area to head clear but the ball found Jackson and he let rip from 30 or 40 yards‚ only to see Edwards pull off a wonder save as he back-pedalled into his goal - tipping the ball behind for a corner. Then it was the turn of Steve Daly to hit a rising drive that Holmshaw caught in mid-air just before the ball was about to zip in under the bar. But the final move was to fall to the sponsors´ man-of-the-match‚ Phil Everett‚ who nodded the ball back from the far post only to be denied with another great interception from Holmshaw to bring a pulsating cup tie to a close. As to Waddle, well he played his part in swelling the crowd but ultimately he was a disappointment. "We looked at the pitch when we arrived and were very happy with it. However, it soon cut up and slowed us down - the ball rarely travelled in a straight line and I even fell over a couple of times", said the 'great' man.

Unfortunately for Scott Rogers, the ref didn´t see it that way.


Tiverton Town: Paul Edwards, Richard Pears (Steve Ovens 46), Neil Saunders, Paul Tatterton, Nick Marker, Scott Rogers, Kevin Nancekivell, Dave Toomey, Phil Everett, Steve Daly, Stuart Smith (Luke Vinnicombe 87)

Worksop Town: Jamie Holmshaw, Ryan Ludlam (Carl Smith 46), Richard Mason, Ryan Davis, Gregg Pearce, Steve Johnson, Gavin Smith, Chris Waddle (Chris Betteney, 72), Linden Whitehead, Gary Townsend, Kirk Jackson

Referee: Gary Chapman (Stroud)

Attendance: 1,937


This report ©2001 Nigel Davis