The good side of Marple celebrated yesterday after Cobden beat Kinder in the annual football match at Linnet Clough to retain the Easter title for the third year in succession. Kinder, who had great expectations before the game, were left to sit and rue what might have been. Their team, who had looked world-beaters on the Friday in one of the many warm-up games to the event, spurned chances and possession before eventually finishing up on the wrong side of the 8 - 5 result. Yet further misery for Kinder came when it emerged their enigmatic midfielder, Tom Ridgway, will be out for their big European cup tie this Wednesday. Even a two-hour delay of kick-off due to crowd (Or more specifically, player) troubles was not enough to tarnish this spectacle. Indeed, it was worth the wait. The game started brightly before Cobden took an early lead, Thomas Tognarelli the eventual scorer from one of many goalmouth scrambles in the Kinder penalty area. Before both teams had managed to get their breath back, Cobden scored again. This time Daniel Fidler linked up well with the magnificent Michael Findlow, supplying him with a through-ball that required the merest of touches to find the net. Whilst every Cobden fan was still whooping with delight, Chris Plumb latched onto an innocuous through-ball from the Cobden midfield, and it was 3 - 0. Cobden were launched into a situation they hadn't even dared dream about. Just before half-time Kinder surged forward to steal a goal that would give them hope for the second half, Tom Ridgway blasting home a shot from close range that left the Cobden keeper Paul Amphlett stranded. The pitch was kinder to Kinder in the second half, allowing them their chance to shoot down-hill, and with a healthy wind behind them. After ten minutes of steady pressure on the Cobden goal Kinder managed to beat the keeper again. Graham Jones had all day to apply the simplest of finishes to a well worked Kinder move. His shot found the bottom right hand corner of the net, rekindling the hopes and passions of the Kinder-boys. The game resided at 3 - 2 for some time, as the midfield battled for supremacy. Cobden, marshalled by the commanding Andrew Tognarelli, with the dependable Statham brothers, Alex Williams, Chris Plumb, John Bintliff, Ian Corbishley, the marauding Daniel Hopwood, and the outstanding 'scout of the game' Alan Ross, were slowly losing ground to Stewart Fletcher, Andrew Hayman, Andi Makin, Tom and Mark Ridgway, and the indomitable Spreckley brothers. The pressure cranked up as Kinder attacked again and again. Kinder were a hairs-breadth away from the equaliser through Steev Spreckley before a counter attack allowed Findlow to back-heel the ball through Kinder keeper Andy Thorpe's legs. Cobden raced on to a four goal lead with two superb Adrian Tognarelli goals. The first came when the ball found him lurking at the edge of the area from a Cobden corner. The ball was swiftly dispatched to the top left hand corner of the goal. His second, of similar quality, was a low drive past the keeper from 8 yards out after robbing Andrew Spreckley of the ball in midfield. Andrew Spreckley more than made up for his mistakes with a well taken goal on the hour. After drifting past the Cobden defence, he found himself enough space to drive the ball clinically past the Cobden keeper. Kinder could be forgiven for giving up when it was 6 - 3 with twenty minutes to play, but instead they rallied forward to convert a corner with seeming ease. Richard Sanchez poked his shot skilfully through a crowd of players and past an unsighted Amphlett. The smile back on their faces, Kinder started to play with a flair and style matched only by the destructiveness of Cobden's defensive display. They heaped the pressure on, but struggled to make much of their intense possession - partly due to the brilliance of Amphlett in goal, partly to the strength in Cobden's defence, and partly to sheer luck! They pushed men forward, but, in doing so, left holes at the back. Hayman, and the Williams twits were outnumbered in the Kinder area, and Thomas Tognarelli was the one who finally broke through to slot the ball home. Almost immediately, Kinder struck back through Tom Ridgway, who ghosted past three Cobden defenders before sending the ball into the back of the net. 7 - 5. When Thomas Tognarelli found himself in space again, he slotted the ball home to complete not only a poachers hat-trick, but to effectively end the battle. With minutes to go, only the frustrated Tom Ridgway found the will to keep fighting for Kinder. His fighting spirit may have also proved to be his downfall, though - he bruised his ribs when challenging for a 50-50 ball, and his injury caused full-time to be announced two minutes early. Cobden 8 v 5 Kinder |
THE BIG MATCH '03 |
