Pontefract Collieries Reserves continued their good run of form with a victory over Baris NCEL Premier League side Parkgate in Rotherham last night, with goals from Ryan Poskitt and Duncan Bray.

As always the pitch at Parkgate was first class and both sides were intent on getting the ball down and playing passing football. Some of the passing was excellent especially given the Pontefract side had a mix of players who had never played together.

The opening came from the Parkgate keeper rolling the ball into his defence as they were often playing out from the back. Micky Walpole, Steve Lyons, Andy Broadbent and Paul Haigh pressed them and battled to win the ball back 30 yard from the Parkgate goal.  Haigh then played the ball into Colls’ Assistant Manager Duncan Bray, who turned and passed in between the central defence into the path of Ryan Poskitt. Poskitt calmly slipped the ball into the bottom corner giving the keeper no chance whatsoever.

Parkgate immediately pressed Ponty back and some great defending by the back four along with some superb saves from Rob Poulter – making his first appearance in a Ponte shirt for nearly twelve months – in the goal kept Ponty into the lead going into half time.

The second half saw both sides make changes,  Leon Guest came on for Connor Rollinson, and Karl came on for Jack Hill as manager John Redford sought to give his younger charges playing time on the pitch.

The next few big chances came from good pressure applied by the Ponty midfield and forwards. This time, Ponte debutant Steve Lyons and Bray battled with the centre halves, the ball falling to Mikey Walpole who broke through one-vs-one. However, the Parkgate keeper stood tall and guessed the correct way eventually seeing the ball break for a goal kick in the melee.

Five minutes later the pressure almost paid off again, when Bray latched on to a defensive lapse and cut inside the box and hit the post from a tight angle.

The Parkgate goal came from a freekick on the corner of the Ponty box, a great delivery and a good header through a crowd of players into the top corner.  The disappointing aspect of the goal being that before the free kick was given, play had been stopped to allow the physio onto the pitch to see to an injured Parkgate player. The usual format of giving the ball back to the team whom had possession (in this case Ponty) did not play out and the referee allowed Parkgate to have play and the quick counter-attack resulted in a foul being committed on the edge of the Ponty area.

Despite feeling aggrieved about the nature of the equaliser, the winning goal came after a 40 yards dribbling display from Leon Guest who, after taking on three players, pulled the ball back square to Bray about 15 yards from goal. The Colls’ striker turned inside his man and put it into the far corner of the net.

Ponty much deserved the win on chances and given the number of new faces playing together and the amount of under 19s in the side, this was a very positive performance against a side who finished in the top 3 of the NCEL Premier division last term.

There were many positives from John Redford and the watching Brendon Ormsby to take from this match. Beating a top three Premier League side is no mean feat for a Reserves team, but it is the form of several players that will have pleased Ormsby most. The midfield quartet of Poskitt, Walpole, Broadbent and Haigh were exceptional – these four players could easily line up together across the midfield in many first team games this season – with all showing the sharpness that holidays and injuries have deprived them of in recent weeks. The return to scoring form for Poskitt and Bray following their injuries would have been another cause for delight, as would have been the form of Poulter in between the sticks on his return, and the improving sharpness of Lee Stretton, whose opportunities will clearly increase as his fitness improves, such is the quality of his play. Steve Lyons will clearly be a quality addition to the squad, while several of Redford’s young charges once again trumpeted their claims for consideration for first team duties, with Chapman, Hill, Rollinson, Abbott and Guest all performing well.

Pontefract: Rob Poulter, Grant Chapman, Jack Hill, Lee Stretton, Connor Rollinson, Ryan Poskitt, Mike Walpole, Andy Broadbent, Paul Haigh, Duncan Bray, Steve Lyons

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