Wednesday 4th December 2024
The 1s had a recovery week, so they played the role of the supporter for the other two games.
Both the 2s and 3s were on home (artificial) turf and both entertaining Sheffield under the lights. Having won 2-1 in the away fixture, the 2s were hopeful that, on our big flat pitch, the same outcome was a distinct possibility.
The 3s, having drawn away from home, were hoping that, having improved greatly since that match and, in good form, they'd be able to turn the tide of their fortunes and put pressure on the top of the table.
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Durham (2s) 1 - 0 Sheffield (H): 19:00
Written by George Gompertz
The 2s rocked up to Maiden Castle a little early to show our support for the Netball 1s, who were making light work of their survival decider against Manchester. As we made our way over to the football pitch, we hoped we’d be able to put in an equally fluid attacking performance against Sheffield, as we set our sights on top of the league.
But, before any sight-setting could be actioned, we needed some kit to wear. After sitting in the changing rooms for 10 minutes, it finally arrived. As people scrambled to find the precious few pairs of cut socks, we received news worse than anything sock-related.
“It’s still wet”, someone shouted in a tone of disbelief. Not damp, not soggy, but wet. As people continued to complain, Fred Walton decided to drown out the chat (and Oli’s music choices) in favour of whatever he was blasting through his headphones. Whatever it was, it seemed to work...
Tape was flying all over the room as ankle club held a communal taping session. Ryan was the talk of the group, as he one-upped everybody’s plain white tape with a pirate-themed design; perhaps a foreshadowing for the three points he planned on stealing?
It was only when we went out to warm up that it became apparent how cold it was, with a couple of the lads wishing they’d opted for a pair of tracksuit bottoms. The north-south divide was made evident by the fact that 15 lads were warming up with a mid-layer on, and Booth and Oli were warming-up (or perhaps that phrase isn’t applicable here) in shorts and a t-shirt.
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We headed back inside for some last minute tactics and inspiration, put our playing shirts on, and then headed back out. It may have been cold before but, as we waited for the referee for 10 minutes in wet kit and the driving rain, it didn’t get any warmer.
Now, the less said about the next 45 minutes the better. Sheffield initially decided to sit deep but, after we struggled to hold onto the ball for more than a couple of passes, the visitors grew into the game and had the better of the chances.
We had some decent attacking possession, but struggled to create much from open play. Much like the Arsenal performance against Man Utd that same night, however, we had better chances from set pieces but, unlike that Arsenal performance, we failed to score any of them. I headed the best of the chances wide from 8 yards out.
Sheffield had the clearest of the first-half chances but, having gone through 1-on-1, the attacker could only find the centre of the post, with Marko Porozovs making himself big in goal. We could have added insult to injury just two minutes later as Fred Walton slid a lovely ball in behind for Ben Pearson but, like his Sheffield counterpart, he also found the belly of the post.
Half-Time: Durham (2s) 0 - 0 Sheffield
Having returned to the pitch after half-time, we experienced another five minute wait for the referee. If there’s ever a day to come out of the changing rooms at the last possible opportunity, it’s one where there’s a 2’c wind blowing directly at you.
The second half followed a pattern of play that Durham were much happier with, switching the ball from side to side and choosing when to go forward, as Sheffield had no option but to sit back. Boothroyd was relentless with running, Walton was restless with his movement coming in off the wing, and Williams and Blake offered very little entertainment to the Sheffield attack.
The 3s also played at home to Sheffield and, having kicked off an hour earlier than us, came over to support. After one Sheffield tackle, their 3s - who had also came over to watch - started celebrating it like a goal. So, when we won the ball back, our support did the same, and this continued for longer than anyone thought it would, creating quite the atmosphere.
The atmosphere continued to build until Oscar Schuller lined up a shot from the right hand side, and then the crowd fell silent in suspense and anticipation. As the shot went wide, the Durham support, ready to jump up and cheer, slumped down, and the Sheffield support rose like they’d scored a goal. It was football supportership poetry in motion.
This supporter to-and-fro, and perhaps the game, reached a crescendo when Fred Walton got in behind the defence and was taken down in the box. He claimed the ball, placed it on the spot, and took three steps back.
The silence was loud, the tension was palpable, and then the whistle blew. Walton scored, tension was released, and the Durham fans finally got their chance to celebrate.
From here, the job was to see out the game and, with relatively few scares, we did exactly that.
Full-Time: Durham (2s) 1 - 0 Sheffield
It may not have been fluid and it certainly wasn’t pretty but, at the end of the season when all the points are tallied up, nobody asks how you got them.
As we celebrated the win in the changing room, we voted for our player of the match. Williams and Blake received nominations for resembling a brick wall for the entirety of the match, but the accolade went to the electric Fred Walton who, alongside getting the game’s only goal, created a feeling that something would happen every time he got the ball.
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Player of the Match: Fred Walton
Line-up: Marko Porozovs; George Gompertz; Jonah Blake; Oli Williams; Ryan Cook; Zane Liles; Fin Moore; Anthony Selvadoray; Tom Boothroyd; Ben Pearson; Freddie Walton (Goal 70')
Substitutes: Jasper Gourley; Oscar Cooke; Ben Crew; Oscar Schuller; Max Owen
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Durham (3s) 2 - 2 Sheffield (H): 16:00
Written by Callum Raisborough
Durham vs Sheffield; a massive game for the 3s as we looked to keep our title dreams alive, and make up for points lost following a draw in the away fixture last time we met.
It was a nice change of scenery as we had our first home game in 8 weeks; for many lads this was their first match at the fortress MC.
There was a positive atmosphere amongst the squad upon arrival, with a win and some strong training sessions behind us we were hoping to continue our momentum heading into the new year.
For the first time in a while, we had managed to remember a speaker for the game, so we blasted tunes before heading into the gloomy Durham evening.
The warmup was sharp and intense, setting us up nicely for the game, and then a few last minute words from Mez and Ollie sent us into kick of.
The game started very scrappy, with neither team managing to grab a hold of the game. However, we managed to hold our nerve, with some strong defensive performances keeping us level, particularly a stunning goal line clearance from Maxwell Sanni.
With the 1s watching from the side, we managed to gain some composure and dominated play in the latter stages of the first half. A lack of quality in the final third meant we headed into half time level but feeling that the momentum was in our favour.
Half-Time: Durham (3s) 0 - 0 Sheffield
Despite our dominance towards the end of the first half, the game quickly shifted; a loose ball was not properly cleared and, following a deflection, landed at the feet of the Sheffield striker who clinically put it away, making it 1-0 to the visitors.
However, soon after falling behind a high press forced an error from the Sheffield backline and the loose ball was collected by Caine. It was moved quickly to myself, then rolled into Sacha, who slotted it past the keeper to bring the game level.
Our dominance in the game continued with a myriad of chances including a two disallowed goals; from Caine and later Alex. Soon after, Caine went down with injury, which brought some of our subs into the game, who added some intensity to the fixture.
With time running out in the game, we won a late corner, where Twedds stepped up. We all know he's got a super delivery on him, but I'm not sure anybody expected him to score directly from the corner...
The limbs were ecstatic, so good that Caine forgot he was injured and had to be carried away from the celebrations once things had calmed down.
With minutes to go, we tried to cling onto 3 points, however, a miskicked long ball from the Sheffield centre half managed to squeeze its way through our defensive units. With their striker through on goal, he brought the game level once more with the last kick of the game.
Heartbreak.
The mood was obviously sombre after the game, but Mez reminded us of the positives to take away as we look to continue developing going into next year.
Full-Time: Durham (3s) 2 - 2 Sheffield
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Player of the Match: Oliver Tweddle
Line-up: Florian De Kort; Maxwell Sanni; George Vardon; Jamie Wood; Paddy Harvey; James Webb-Wood; Callum Raisborough; Ethan Woodcock; Oliver Tweddle; Sacha Lee; Caine McCartney
Substitutes: Dan Katsande; Isaac Jowett; Sam Checketts; Alex Wilkinson; Will Kitching
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