Wilby Youth 2 v Thrapston Town
2
Has anyone got the remedy for getting rid of the taste of bile from the back of the throat, because harsh as it may sound, Thrapston were cheated of a thoroughly deserved victory today and I can’t get rid of the bitter taste.
It was always going to be a difficult game; a quagmire of a pitch, a sizeable slope, a wind that was to work increasingly to our disadvantage and opponents with a reputation of physicality over finesse – but what was to transpire was a travesty.
Thrapston started brightly enough and took a little while to adjust to the increased pace and “in-your-faceness” of the previous week, but once we appreciated what was required we found our range, our passing and we looked increasingly competent and menacing.
Thrapston’s first goal stemmed from persistence from Cameron Glynn; not to be short-changed in midfield he fobbed off a late tackle from behind and squeezed a pass through to Alex Rutter. Rutter mislead his marker with a trick which left the defender completely hoodwinked and his deft reverse pass allowed Alex Palmer to fleece the defence with his direct running and he diddled his screwed shot into the bottom corner – no rip-off this goal!
Alex Barlow and David Morton merit a special mention for their work down the right hand side as they constantly double-crossed with each other, which mislead Wilby on a merry dance.
Tails up and expectations high Thrapston pressed on. The second goal came via a Liam Carter free kick – his cross grifted on the breeze deceiving the Wilby defence who were to be thwarted by Alex Rutter’s imperious leap and header that fobbed over the duped keeper – no rogue finish this.
So we warned the boys about what to expect the second half against the slope, increasing wind and increasingly anxious opponents – by heck they received a battering, but it was more a case of assault and battering and ultimately aggravated theft.
Was a 2 goal cushion to be enough – ultimately no but for 30 odd minutes it reasonably looked to be under control. We were put under pressure by Wilby but we put ourselves under more pressure by letting the increasingly bad refereeing get to us. We coped with the Wilby threats effectively, however as emotions ran high we lost our focus and we lost our discipline. So with less than 5 minutes to go we conceded what was a suspiciously offside goal and sadly the thought that this could be a very long few minutes to hang on, was to prove right.
Deep into added on time (for which there had been no previous indication) Thrapston were swindled out of the game. Liam Carter shielding the ball near his corner flag was assaulted by 2 Wilby players who stripped him of the ball just as England had done to Wales in the first half of their rugby encounter (same technique) and transferred the ball into the penalty area. Once in the scoring zone the Wilby player ran into the unfortunate Cameron Glynn and fell to the floor. Quicker than the wife at the start of the sales the whistle had gone for the penalty, the penalty taken and dispatched and time called – daylight robbery not seen since Dick Turpin rode around.
Wilby may get done for receiving stolen goods, well a stolen point, but once we have time to reflect the Thrapstonites will realise how much they have learnt from what was a bad experience. Everyone fought hard for the cause, none more so than Liam Carter and David Morton in defence, but sometimes justice is not served. A moral victory is cold comfort but the passion, team spirit and determination is something positive we can and will take forward.
Thanks
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