Rossington Main 1:2 Pontefract Collieries
Saturday 16th October, 2010

Pontefract Collieries’ thrilling promotion campaign reached new heights on Saturday, when the team came from behind to beat Rossington, with the winner being grabbed by right-back Dean Twibey in the third minute of injury time.

Although the game climaxed in a thrilling finale, in truth the Pontefract team were short of the high standards they have set themselves, particularly in the first half of the match. With Carl Hastie turning the defence in the first minute, Andrew Joburns was called upon to snuff out the early chance for the hosts. As the game settled down, Joe Thornton sent a teasing dink into the Rossington six-yard area, but Jason Bentley was unable to control the ball with his first touch, and Colls’ first chance evaporated. Bentley – starting his second successive game on the right-hand side of midfield after his influential performance against Eccleshill – cut inside from the right, beating two men before shooting left-footed into the arms of Rossington ‘keeper Neil Murray. Despite Andrew Culshaw’s left-footed shot which flew across the face of Joburns’ goal, it was the Pontefract side who created the bulk of the early opportunities, with Fothergill and Bentley proving particularly difficult for the home defence to handle. When Fothergill was fouled 35 yards from goal, Joe Thornton’s rocket flew straight into the midriff of Murray, when a yard either side would surely have seen the ‘keeper beaten, given the power generated by Thornton’s left boot.

An excellent pass from Lee Garside released Fothergill, who slid the ball to Bentley, who was closed down by the defence as he prepared to shoot. At the other end, Culshaw headed over the bar from a corner, the ball slightly too high for him to apply any downward momentum. Meanwhile, Rian Sykes sent a shot from the edge of the box into the ‘keeper’s arms. In an increasingly open game, Nathan Fraser then headed wide from a right-wing cross, with Joburns stranded. The away side responded with a fine, incisive move, setting Garside free from the retreating defenders. Garside selflessly slid the ball into the path of Joe Thornton when he would have been perfectly entitled to shoot, with Thornton passing the invitation on to Fothergill, who completed the circle by sliding the ball into the path of Garside, only to see his strike partner flagged for offside. With manager Simon Houghton imploring his forwards to be more ruthless and selfish in their finishing, the Pontefract side seemed destined to open the scoring, as their overall play started to carve open opportunities. However, he was reckoning without the left boot of the Rossington right-back Shaun Pendleton.

The game changed in dramatic fashion when Pendleton challenged Thornton ten yards inside the Colls half, putting his left boot through the ball. The ball flew a full forty yards into the top corner of Joburns’ net, shocking the away side and delighting the crowd. With Pontefract visibly rattled by falling behind in such spectacular fashion, the Doncaster side had an immediate opportunity to extend their lead, with Fraser shooting inches over the bar from the edge of the box. The same player then beat Luke Smith to open up a further opportunity, which was effectively handled by a desperate lunge from captain Nicky Handley. Disaster was avoided in the final minutes of the first half, when a hand-ball claim against Jason Bentley was waved away by the referee, who ignored the home team’s penalty shouts.

Following a first half in which they had fallen behind to a screamer, Houghton implored his side to re-discover the sharpness and aggression they had showed in their previous outing against Eccleshill United. Their second half performance was much better, with Thornton and Sykes sparking into life after listless first half showings. It was Thornton who created the first opportunity, his left-footed cross sailing inches over the head of an increasingly-influential Fothergill. Following their escape from a penalty claim that fell into the “seen them given” category in the first half, the referee evened the score by denying Fothergill in the opening minutes of the second – this one more clear-cut as the Colls strike ace crumpled under a clumsy challenge from Lee Holmes. At the other end Dean Twibey denied Rossington from one of their few second-half incursions into the Pontefract box, his last ditch tackle coming at the cost of a corner. From the corner, the ball was cleared to Niall Doyle, whose shot was bound for the bottom corner of Joburns’ net before the Pontefract keeper showed why he has made the No 1 jersey his own with a full-stretch save.

Rather than creating edginess in the Pontefract ranks, Joburns’ heroics in keeping his side in the game seemed to steel his team-mates, who responded by re-doubling their efforts to level the scores. With Ryan Poskitt replacing Bentley, Paul Haigh on for the injured Wright, and Craig Stephens replacing Garside, Simon Houghton played his cards, in a statement of intent to win the game. Poskitt had an immediate impact, driving his team forward from the right, with Twibey pushing higher and higher up the pitch to link with his new winger. Poskitt sent a free-kick onto the head of Paul Haigh, who did well to rise above his marker and make contact, but could not direct his header goalwards. Thornton – increasingly threatening as the game drew on – cut inside from his left flank, beating two players before sending a right-foot shot over the cross-bar.

Although the substitutes were having an impact, they were being matched and raised by Rian Sykes, who seemed determined to make up for a quiet first half by taking the game by the scruff of the neck in the second. It was Sykes who set up the equaliser, first robbing the ball in his own half, before driving forward towards the goal, and releasing Craig Stephens with a delightful ball slid between the retreating defenders. Stephens showed the ruthlessness his team-mates had lacked in the first half, lifting the ball over the onrushing keeper, and in off the far post.

It was all Pontefract now. The home side – having retreated deeper and deeper as the second half continued – were now camped in their own half, defending their net against a Pontefract team that had the bit between it’s teeth. As the game entered it’s final ten minutes, Ponte thought they had scored, when a right-sided corner was swung in by Thornton and appeared to have crossed the line before being cleared. The reactions of both sets of players seemed to suggest that the ball had indeed crossed the line, but the referee and his perfectly-placed assistant did not concur. With Thornton and Sykes driving their team forward, and the full-backs Smith and Twibey playing almost as additional wingers, Rossington were pinned down for a final assault as the Colls sought a winner. As four minutes of injury time were announced, the pressure intensified, Fothergill and Twibey being denied. Twibey had a second chance denied when a desperate Rossington defender threw his head in the way of his goal-bound effort, as the final minutes resembled a school-ground game of Attack and Defence.

With both goals coming from left feet  and the “phantom goal” of Thornton’s corner also coming from his left foot, it seemed appropriate that the winner should come from the left boot of Ponte’s right back, Dean Twibey. If his goal was less spectacular than his opposite number’s, it was significantly more important in the context of the season. The winner was set up by Fothergill, who  nicked the ball away from the onrushing Neil Murray, showing a never-say-die spirit to chase an apparently lost cause. As the ball skewed clear, it fell into the path of Twibey, who grasped the invitation with both hands, smashing the ball into the roof of the net before setting off on a fierce celebration with his team-mates.

Despite the fact that Pontefract did not win this match with the irresistible style that had demolished Eccleshill a week earlier, this was surely no less an important victory for the team. What the Eccleshill win owed to style, good passing and lethal finishing, this victory owed to passion, determination and a sheer bloody-mindedness to wring a result out of a match that could have easily slipped away from them. It was this attitude – as much as the left boots of Stephens and Twibey – that delivered the three points to the side.

Next up for Ponte are promotion rivals Handsworth – the team famously backed by actor Sean Bean – and Staveley, who remain a point clear of the Colls after the weekend’s fixtures. With Simon Houghton targeting seven points from these three games – including this one – a win was essential against Rossington. Thanks to the remarkable spirit in the side – and the left foot of Twibey – the team remains on target.

Pontefract Collieries:

Andrew Joburns, Dean Twibey, Luke Smith, Nicky Handley (captain), Luke Forgione, Josh Wright (repl. Paul Haigh, 56 mins), Jason Bentley (repl. Ryan Poskitt, 52 mins), Rian Sykes, Lee Garside (repl. Craig Stephens, 60 mins), Carl Fothergill, Joe Thornton

Subs not used: Johnny Forsyth

Goals: Craig Stephens (73), Dean Twibey (90+3)

Bookings: Nicky Handley (45), Joe Thornton (63), Dean Twibey (88)