Robson Taylor Chippenham Sunday League News 2007/08  RSS feed | About

Shane Godsell (20893/4)

WITH the 42nd season of the league nearing its climax, we're set for another action-packed Thursday night of fixtures this evening.

One of the biggest matches for many seasons is being staged at Meriton Avenue, Corsham, at 6.30pm tonight when the two heavyweight clubs from the Premier Division go head-to-head in a match that could decide who wins the title this season.

Biddestone Social top the table with a one point advantage over defending champions Corsham Centre A and if Biddestone Social were to beat the Centre tonight the silverware would be on its way to Yatton Road.

Should the Centre win or take a point from the game the title would then be decided on the final day of the season.

With this being one of the closest title races for many seasons it is hoped that the long awaited rematch between the sides lives up to all the pre-match hype and that it will be a thriller between two outstanding footballing teams.

The Centre defeated Biddestone Social 6-0 in the league earlier in the season, when Shane Godsell bagged a hat-trick, Simon Gray scored two and James Lye one. To date that is Biddestone Social's only defeat in 22 games and they have won 18 on the bounce since that loss.

The Centre may be on a 19 match unbeaten league run, but they were dumped out of the Knockout Cup in the first round by tonight's opponents who won 3-0 thanks to goals from Jamie Lyons (2) and Gary Blackwood which was the second time in three seasons that Biddestone have beaten the Centre in the Knockout Cup.

The outcome tonight could depend on which side has the greater hunger for victory but at this stage of proceedings both camps should be well up for the contest and will put their bodies on the line in a bid for victory.

Probably for the first time ever Biddestone Social will go into a game against their fierce rivals as favourites for victory. It has been said many times before that player for player Biddestone Social possibly have a stronger side than the champions but this is the first season for a while that they have functioned as a unit, for which credit must be given to the management duo of Danny Jones and Dan Lardner who took over earlier in the season from John O'Meara and have taken their team to the brink of glory.

Jones believes he will have a full strength side to pick from as they welcome back defender Ryan Trowbridge from holiday and Ed Drury, who missed Sunday's win over Westbury Rangers, should also be available.

Biddestone Social have sparkled in front of goal this season and have bagged 106 goals to date and they have scorers all over the park. Jamie Lyons is the top scorer with 20 goals and will be a possible match winner tonight as the Centre try to cope with his lightning pace. Dan Lardner, Gary Banks, John O'Meara, Rob Pocock and Danny Jones have all hit double figures, but it could be their defence that holds the key to victory and if the likes of Drury, Trowbridge, Mike Few, Gary Blackwood and Steve Casey are on form then the Centre may find it hard to break down the visitors.

But if Biddestone Social have an achilles heel it might be in the goalkeeping position where Clive Smith has done well since he took over as number one, but he may come under pressure from the Centre's rampant forward line who have just found their goal scoring boots again after going off the boil for a short while.

The Centre, who have not lost a league match at Meriton Avenue since they were beaten 1-0 by Blue Circle Saints in April 2003, will treat the match as a cup final and will know that they will have to be at their very best if they are to have any chance of completing a league double over Biddestone Social in their quest for a third successive Premier Division title.

The Centre has also passed the 100 goal mark for the season and in Simon Gray (21) and James Lye (16) they have a couple of strikers who are returning to form at the right time and even youngster Tom Lye, who have been in the reserves for most of the season, could make his mark if given a chance.

The Centre's hopes of glory could depend on midfield dynamo Ben Moore being available to play. Moore has been an inspiration this term whenever he has featured, as has team captain Craig Gingell who wears his heart on his sleeve and will never give up and has turned defeat into victory on more than one occasion over the years.

If the Centre's forwards are on song their defence will have to be as impressive and in Nick Gingell they have a top goalkeeper and if the likes of Ross Lye, Matt Ralph, Dan King can perform to their best then Biddestone Social could find the going tough.

Centre manager Pete Ralph has doubts over Russell Gibbings, but hopes that Rob Stephens will be fit and he might even be tempted to start Ben Thomson and Scott Lye on the bench for the match that will be as big as their Wiltshire Sunday Cup final meeting with New Century WMC.

With a healthy crowd expected at Meriton Avenue the match should be a great advert for grass roots football and although the result should be a close one, Biddestone Social, who have been awesome this term and more importantly very consistent, are tipped to claim a narrow victory by the odd goal. But the Centre, who have been one of if not the best side in the league since they won the Second Division title in 2004, won't give up their crown without a fight so a victory for the team that seems to thrive on pressure wouldn't come as a surprise.

Westbury Rangers A v Holt

WESTBURY Rangers A will be expecting to beat Holt for a second time this season when the teams meet at Meadow Lane this evening.

Having beaten them 3-1 on the opening day of the season Shaun Gardiner's side will be red-hot favourites to seal a league double and collect their 17th victory of the campaign.

The division's leading scorer, Marc Lanfear, was on target in the earlier encounter as was Sam Tucker and Tim Coombes. Tom Pang, who hasn't featured much for Holt this term, was Holt's scorer.

Although Rangers are predicted to win Holt should prove harder to beat than Rangers would have expected even if they have only won three games in their previous 10 outings. Holt have not played since they suffered a 2-1 loss against Maud Heath Sports just over a fortnight ago and they will be hopeful of finishing the season on a high with victories over Westbury and then Corsham Centre on Sunday.

Holt may get something from Westbury but they are unlikely to beat the Centre so they will see this as a match that they are capable of winning, especially as their hosts have been shaky in defence of late. If they can get Rob O'Harrow and Oli Gee firing on all cylinders in front of goal then they could return home with a surprise win under their belts.

British Lion v Potterne

WITH their being a good possibility that North Bradley will not finish the season as they can't seem to find a date when they can play AFC Calne, the top positions in Division One might end up being juggled around yet.

Hopefully Bradley will fulfill their remaining two fixtures but with time running out it looks unlikely that they will do so.

As things stand at the moment, following Rowde's defeat away at Bradley last Tuesday night, Potterne are runners-up behind The Ship, who won at the weekend to take the title.

But things might be different should Bradley withdraw and Potterne win their two remaining fixtures.

Potterne's penultimate match of the campaign tonight sees them visit British Lion in a game that was originally scheduled for last Sunday but was postponed due to a waterlogged pitch at Green Lane, Devizes, a decision by the council that left many people bemused.

The Lion can still finish in third spot if they win their final two matches and they will want to avenge their 3-0 defeat from a month ago, when goals from Myles Hickton, Jamie Bayes and James Campbell gave the villagers victory.

The match should be a good one as the hosts have suffered just one defeat in 10 matches and that was when they were defeated by their guests.

Over the same period of matches Potterne have lost twice but with three wins on the bounce they will be keen for a fourth straight two pointer, and with a decision on Bradley's future pending both teams will need to go all out for the win.

If Bradley stay the Lion could finish in third spot, but if they go and should Potterne win their two remaining matches they could steal top spot from the Ship.

Coyote v AFC Calne

COYOTE entertain AFC Calne at Southwick this evening and although Chris Carr's side are currently in seventh spot they could climb to fifth place if they beat Calne on home soil.

This season's WG Parr Trophy winners suffered a 5-1 defeat when the teams clashed just over a month ago, when Dean Fry, Mark Dolman, Craig Fry, Ryan Kelleher and Simon Goddard scored to give AFC Calne what was a surprise win at the time.

For Coyote it will be their final match of a campaign that despite bringing a cup final success has been a little bit disappointing for Carr and Co as the young manager was expecting his team to be contesting for a promotion spot.

Although they won't achieve their goal this term, they are starting to show some consistency and Carr is looking forward to the next term as he believes he has the making of a side capable of reaching the top flight.

AFC Calne will be more than happy with their first venture in the division and an eighth place finish is good for them, and if they could beat Coyote for a second time and then defeat North Bradley then it is possible that they could swap places with Coyote.

The hosts are tipped for a revenge victory and with it the two points that will see them finish in the top half of the table, but should they fail to win a draw may be good enough for them to move up the table.

Hullavington v Crown Cosmos

JUST 48 hours after they beat Chippenham Police 10-3, Crown Cosmos are back in action tonight, but this evening's opponents Hullavington, who are currently in fifth spot in Division Two, will prove a lot harder to beat that the police were.

If the match lives up to expectations it should be a thriller and is likely to be a gladiatorial battle as Crown Cosmos, who are at present in second spot, look for a victory that will see them move level on points with Cooper-Avon at the top of the table. If they win by three clear goals they will take over in pole position.

When the sides met in October the match finished all square at 3-3, with Stuart Skinner (2) and Nick Taylor scoring for the Cosmos and James Nation (2) and top scorer Ed Wilkins netting for Hullavington.

Just like then there could be plenty of goals in the reverse match and once again it could finish in stalemate, which is the last thing that Cosmos want.

Crown Cosmos are currently the division's top scorers with 102 goals, which is 11 more that their hosts so it could come down to which strike force is firing on all cylinders or which defence can withstand an onslaught from those forwards.

Cosmos hope to have a full strength side at their disposal and that includes strikers David Lloyd, Dean Potter and Nathan Sheridan, who have been in good form of late. Hullavington also hope to have their first choice strike force of Ed Wilkins and Ben Wright available but it's in defence that they will need to shine if they are going to upset the odds.

With Cosmos currently firing on all cylinders they are tipped to pick up a seventh straight win ahead of their final match of the season at home to FC Bradford.

Pig and Whistle v Horse and Groom

BEFORE last weekend's 4-3 success over Sutton Benger, Westbury-based Horse and Groom looked odds-on for relegation from Division Two, but, with two games still to play before they bring the curtain down on what has been a season of highs and lows, they could still beat the drop if they can somehow pick up two points from the four that are available.

A point might even be good enough to save Tim Beecham's side who are battling to stay in the division with a match away at Pig and Whistle United tonight, which will be followed with one against The Crown Devizes. They will believe that both games are winnable especially if they can play as well as they did last Sunday when they came from behind on two occasions to beat Benger, thanks to goals from Alex Lutskes, Richard Hunt, Dan Cox and an own goal.

Pig and Whistle, who beat Hullavington 4-1 in their previous game thanks to goals from Nathan Mantle, Danny Cole and Tom Drewitt (2), will be favourites to wrap up a league double as they look to follow up their 7-1 victory from early November when Nathan Mantle scored a four timer and Emilio Menghini bagged a hat trick.

However, with so much at stake the Horse and Groom will no doubt put in another massive effort and if they have their scoring boots on again then the visitors to Melksham could return home with would be a much needed but surprise win.

At this crazy stage of the season, shock results are the order of the day and this game could produce another one.

Bromham v AFC Bell

IF AFC Bell defeat Bromham this evening then Craig Townsend's side will be crowned Third Division champions.

The Devizes-based pub side entered the league in 2006, and having won the Division Four title in their first season, to lift the Division Three crown a year later would be a great achievement.

They look on course to do just that as Bromham suffered a 10-2 loss earlier against AFC Bell this month and although the Bell aren't expected to win by as many goals second time around they are predicted to collect maximum points that will see them take the title.

Gareth Evans top scored for Bell in their earlier success with a four timer, Jonathan Couch scored twice and Gareth Veitch, Nathan Moffat, Dave Young all scored one each as did Townsend who also picked up an injury in that game which was expected to keep the 42 goal marksman out of action for the remainder of the season.

However, Townsend played 20 minutes in his team's 3-2 victory over The Crown at the weekend and even though he's not expected to start against Bromham, if he shows no ill effects he could be set for another spot on the bench.

Bromham go into the game on the back of a 3-2 victory over AFC Melksham which was missed by manager Ady Kember, but Kember should be back to help guide his side try to overcome the Bell at the Jubilee Fields, Bromham.

The result should go AFC Bell's way and even if they do slip to a surprise loss that would see their 16 match unbeaten run brought to an end they would still one game left in which to take the title.

However, business should be wrapped up this evening and Townsend and his band of merry men should be popping open the champagne at the final whistle.

5:02am Thursday 8th May 2008

Print   Email this