Cinderford Town 1-4 Sholing
Scorers : Dylan Jones 73 / Dan Mason (pen) 79, Stu Green 84, 88 & 91
Date: Saturday 9th April 2022, 3pm – Southern League South Division 1
Venue: The Causeway Ground
Cinderford Town: Nick Jones, Marcel McIntosh, Tristan Haswell, Mitch McCann, Dion Molyneux ©, Jack Bartman, Dylan Jones, Jack Freeman, Lewis Bamford (Ben Brooks 60), Owen Taylor (Zach Drew 82), Harry Emmett. Unused subs : Harrison Lea, William Morford & Jamie Bremmer
Yellow Card: Nick Jones
Sholing: Luke Deacon, Ryan Cluett, Marv McLean, Owen Roundell, Dan Miller, Rob Nicholls, Conor Whiteley (Stu Green 62), Byron Mason ©, Dan Mason, Sami Makhloufi (Jack Mann 67), Charlie Wagstaffe. Unused subs : Tomasz Gruzewski, Dean Frampton & Ryan Gosney
Yellow Card :
Referee: S Fudge Assistants: M Loughlin & V Pomfret
Attendance: 127
Stu Green came off the bench to score a 7 minute hat-trick as Sholing came from behind to score 4 goals in a crazy final 12 minutes.
Team News : Luke Deacon continued in goal with Gosney still not 100%. Brad Targett missed out with a recurrence of a groin injury that's been plaguing him all season. Stu Green returned to the bench after missing the previous 7 games through injury.
The weather was either balearic or baltic, depending on when the sun was out at a characterful Cinderford ground. The pitch looked flat and in good condition, with the home side looking to continue their recent good form that has seen them win 4 of their last 6 games, to pull them out of the relegation places. The ground is cut into the side of a hill, so if you stand on the terrace next to where the players enter the pitch, your head is pretty much at ground level.
Cinderford started by forcing a couple of early corners, but they were dealt without any dramas by the Boatmen. We should have taken the lead on 6 minutes when Dan Mason closed down the keeper as he came out the box, with the ball ballooning high into the air, but Dan seemed to lose his bearings as he waited for the ball to drop and nodded wide of an open goal from 12 yards.
Sholing were having luck down either flank, especially the left with Marv twice getting into good positions to cross into the area. His first fell to D-Dan whose shot was blocked and the striker then took the ball off the head of the arriving Cluett at the far post. The home side forced Luke Deacon into a good save to his right as the game remained quite evenly contested. A nice one-two between Wagstaffe and Marv saw the left wing-back put a cross in that was just too far ahead of the arriving Whiteley.
Boatmen were continuing to have luck breaking through Cinderford's high line, with Charlie Wagstaffe making a deep run to go clear in behind, the ball sat up as he lifted it over the advancing keeper, but also over the crossbar. HT 0-0
Cinderford came out on the attack after the restart, with Luke Deacon having to tip a rasping shot from the edge of the box over his bar. Then Dan Miller headed away from near the line, before Luke again pulled off a good save, this one down to tip round the post as we came under heavy pressure.
Sholing continue to use what worked in the first half by working down the flanks, with Marv again beating the right back, but his ball towards the near post evaded Dan & Conor and deflected just wide off a defender. Down the other flank, Ryan Cluett swung in a great cross that Conor headed wide when well placed. It was his last action, as Stu Green came on just after the hour mark.
It looked like it wasn't to be our day when Cinderford took the lead with a very familiar goal. It was almost a carbon copy of the goal we conceded at Paulton last week (same minute of the match too) when Dylan Jones cut in from the left and aimed a shot towards the far corner, but it took a massive deflection to give Luke Deacon no hope as it went inside the near post. Cinderford almost doubled their lead, but put a shot wide.
There were 12 minutes left for us to get something from the game and the manic end to the game began when Stu Green ran clear, knocked the ball past the keeper who clattered into him for a penalty. The ever-moaning keeper was booked under the double-jeopardy rule and DAN MASON sent him the wrong way from the spot to equalise.
Jack Mann had come on and was involved with our second goal on 84 mins, winning a header to feed Dan Mason, who muscled past a defender to run into the right side of the box and put it on a plate for STU GREEN to knock the ball between the keeper's legs. The same three players played a part in our 3rd on 88 mins. A long clearance towards the Cinderford corner flag was chased down by D-Dan, who crossed into the box where a defender sliced his clearance to Jack Mann, whose shot was deflected into the path of STU GREEN to calmly slot past the exposed keeper.
A clearly shell-shocked Cinderford were all over the place as the Boatmen cut through them with ease to grab a fourth goal in the 91st minute. Marv ran into the area and tried to place a right foot shot from an angle, that the keeper could only palm straight to an unmarked STU GREEN to score the easiest goal of his career and complete a remarkable 7 minute hat-trick ! An incredible end to the game and no one could have seen that coming when Cinderford took the lead. FT 1-4
Alex Sykes (Cinderford manager) : Disappointed & frustrated, but all credit to Dave Diaper & Sholing in their ruthless last 12 mins. Showed their class & league position. Dave Diaper : Thanks Alex, I thought the only difference between both teams was Greener. We’ve missed him for the last 7 games. Thought you guys going forward were a real threat, as always pleasure to have a chat with you, Cinderford are in safe hands with you at the helm.
Stu Green : Nice to be back!
Next Game :Slimbridge v Sholing - Southern League - Tuesday 12 April 7:45pm
Next Home Game : Sholing v Willand Rovers - Southern League - Saturday 16 April 3pm
Photos courtesy of EspieJaz (swipe to view pics)
