Pontefract Collieries 1:0 Yorkshire Amateurs

Pontefract Collieries returned to the top of the NCEL First Division, edging out Yorkshire Amateurs in an enthralling match thanks to a masterly finish by Carl Fothergill.

Following two goal-less draws, the home side started the day as deposed leaders, three points off the league summit in what is an ever-tightening championship race. As manager Simon Houghton sought to find the elusive goal-scoring edge to convert these draws into wins, he rang the changes up front, re-shuffling his pack of four strikers by promoting Carl Fothergill and Lee Garside in place of Craig Stephens and Jason Bentley. The new partnership were spectators in the early minutes of the match, as the visitors started on the offensive. The lively Curtis Bernard put in a teasing cross, which was well cut out by Luke Forgione. Andy Smith capped a nicely constructed Ammers move by shooting over the bar, before a John Cullen free-kick tested Andrew Joburns, the ball bouncing awkwardly in front of the Colls’ keeper. Despite the awkward bounce, the famous “Ponte bobble” from the pitch, and the onrushing horde of Ammers’ players, Joburns was equal to the task, and gathered the ball safely. When Justin Bowler’s shot ricocheted off the referee’s back and out for a goal-kick in the 12^th minute, it represented his side’s fifth effort on goal, whereas the home side had yet to create a single opening.

However, the growing fears of the home fans were unfounded, the opening period representing the Ammers high point of the match in terms of dominance, as Pontefract gradually eased their way back in and started to exert some semblance of control. Their first opening, when it came, resulted from a Matt Wilkinson through-ball releasing Fothergill, who evaded the chasing defender before firing a shot towards the roof of the Ammers’ net. However, the giant keeper Ben Hunter was equal to it, tipping the ball over the bar – although his fine save was missed by both officials, who awarded a goal kick despite the home team’s protestations.

The Ammers were presented with an opportunity when an ill-judged flick from Ryan Poskitt failed to find Wilkinson, instead releasing Curtis, whose shot was blocked by Handley at the cost of a corner. Poskitt redeemed himself immediately, playing a pivotal role in a move that released Fothergill for a second time. This time, the Colls striker aimed low, although his fine strike was again thwarted by Hunter, who did well to get down to save at his near post, particularly impressive for such a tall man. Another good move saw the ball end in the back of the Ammers’ net, only to be ruled out for a harsh offside against the “scorer”, Fothergill. With Fothergill causing the visitors defenders all sorts of worries with his pace, awareness and a series of deft turns, it seemed inevitable that the breakthrough would come, and it was no surprise when it was the Pontefract veteran who provided it.

And what a goal it was! Sensing Hunter rushing off his line as he met a fine through ball, the striker executed a perfectly judged chip, which cleared the onrushing keeper before nestling in the corner of the net. Although the goal signalled another dominant period for the visitors, the Pontefract defence stood firm, marshalled by the commanding Joburns and his skipper, Handley. When Joburns comfortably saved a Thomas Marsden effort that – once again- bounced just in front of him, the team entered their 400^th minute of league football without conceding a goal; a run that dates back to late August.

The second half started in sedate fashion, with lengthy delays for injuries to Poskitt and Hunter – the Ammers keeper being replaced after an awkward fall. However, the slow pace did not last, with both teams playing the last forty minutes with pace and intensity. Pontefract started the stronger, with Joe Thornton growing in influence as he swapped flanks. When the away side threatened, they came up first against Joburns, who reacted quickly to snuff out a measured through-ball, and Forgione, who executed a last-ditch clearance from a horizontal position – both displaying the fierce determination to protect the goal and maintain the run of clean sheets that Houghton has instilled into his team.

When Luke Smith found Thornton free with a classy chip, the winger blasted his shot inches over the bar. Seconds later, the same player blasted his shot hard and low, but well wide of the upright. Thornton had a third effort in as many minutes after Josh Wright broke up an Ammers move and fed the winger, who attempted a delicate chip over the replacement keeper, perhaps encouraged by the substitutes’ lack of inches in comparison to the tall Hunter. However, the keeper back-pedalled to cut out the goal-bound effort. As the game ebbed and flowed, Nicky Handley set a captain’s example to his team-mates, firstly throwing his body in the way of a goal-bound strike from Bernard, before executing a perfectly-timed last ditch tackle as the same player prepared to shoot. Handley was grateful to his keeper, however, when a header back sold Joburns short, and the Colls stopper did well to force the striker wide and away from goal, buying time for the retreating defenders to crowd him out and ensure that the threat came to nothing. The game was becoming a real end-to-end spectacle: the teams taking turns to drive towards the opposition goal. With Josh Wright and Rian Sykes particularly industrious in the midfield, the Colls had the better openings, Wright releasing Fothergill and Craig Stephens, who had replaced Garside as Houghton sought greater control of possession from his team.    

As the second half reached full stride, the game crackled along at a ferocious pace, the temperature – and tempers – of both sides being stoked further by some strange refereeing decisions. When Colls’ Assistant Manager Darren Smith was sent to the stand for responding to abuse from Ammers’ Liam Tuck, the sense of injustice was dampened by disbelief and Smith’s good humour, the “housewives’ favourite” chuckling all the way to his place in the stand. However, the sense of injustice reached new heights when Josh Wright beat three men in the middle of the park: having stumbled after a trip from the second player, he finally succumbed to a clumsy trip by the third, before rising to his feet and driving onwards towards goal. If the dismissal of Smith had been strange, the referee’s decision to show red to Wright – adding a second yellow to an early caution – was completely unfathomable. The referee’s explanation that Wright had dived was not supported by the evidence of clear vision, nor by the two Ammers offenders, who both sportingly informed the referee that they had tripped the Pontefract player, only to find their noble gestures ignored.

Stripped of their most creative midfield influence, the remaining ten Pontefract men steeled themselves for a final Ammers onslaught. Fothergill became an increasingly isolated figure up front, with several breakaways falling apart due to lack of support as he worked the line tirelessly to offer his team an escape route from the intensifying pressure. However, it was the home side who created the clearest goalscoring opportunity, when substitute Jason Bentley beat two men before slipping the ball into the path of Fothergill, presenting his team-mate with a golden chance to put the tie out of the visitor’s reach. However, Fothergill delayed and found the ball stolen off his toe as he shaped to shoot.

When the vociferous Tuck was eventually dismissed in injury time following a second yellow, the Leeds team responded admirably by raising their work-rate for a final push, and creating several chances to level the scores. With Joburns adding a full-stretch tip around the post to his portfolio of fine saves, the away side were again thwarted. And when a 25-yard free-kick was blasted into the Pontefract wall in the 95^th minute, their final bolt had been fired, and the referee’s whistle brought relief to the home crowd.

With five clean sheets in a row in the league, the Pontefract side are showing real defensive discipline and the determination to put their bodies on the line to protect their goal. Although the free-scoring form of the early season has dried up – with only one goal in three games and two goal-less draws included in this sequence – this attitude will ensure that the team are hard to beat and, providing they put their chances away, will see the side’s promotion push gather pace.

Pontefract Collieries:

Andrew Joburns, Matt Wilkinson, Luke Smith, Nicky Handley (captain), Luke Forgione (repl. Johnny Forsyth, 72 mins), Josh Wright, Ryan Poskitt (repl. Jason Bentley, 80 mins), Rian Sykes, Lee Garside (repl. Craig Stephens, 77 mins), Carl Fothergill, Joe Thornton

Subs not used: Paul Staniforth, Dean Twibey

Goals: Carl Fothergill (34)

Bookings: Josh Wright (23), Matt Wikinson (60), Darren Smith (60) Luke Smith (89),
Dismissed: Josh Wright (81)