Saturday 26th April
INVITATION CUP FINAL
Durkar Devils 1 Wrenthorpe Rangers 1
Only
three weeks ago Durkar beat the Wrens 5-0 and 3-0 and earlier in the season gave
them a 12-1 thrashing at home. For anyone who likes a flutter it would be fair
to say that if you looked at the form book Wrenthorpe went into this match as
the underdogs. However you often hear it said that there is a certain magic
about cup competitions and so it proved on this occasion. Wrenthorpe came out
with real determination as soon as the whistle blew and every player seemed to
raise their game for the occasion. In goals, keeper Joe Holley made some great
saves whilst Josh Stretton and Harry Griffiths kept the defence shut tight at
the back. In midfield Will Best ran his socks off and was in the thick of all
the action whilst Matthew Lumb and Dane Tintor kept pressing forward causing the
Durkar defence huge problems. The relentless Wrenthorpe pressure eventually paid
off when they were awarded a free kick just outside of the Durkar area and
Thomas Bragg stepped up to lift the ball over the two man wall and into the top
of the net, sending the Wrenthorpe mums and dads wild. The Wrens continued to
battle for every ball and through sheer determination went in at half time one
up. As expected after the restart Durkar came out with all guns blazing and
really put the Wrens under pressure. For a while the solid formation that had
held up so well in the first half started to look shaky and Durkar punished the
Wrens with a well taken goal. However, this was the Cup Final and the Wrens
weren’t going to lie down! Instead they pulled themselves back into the game and
started to press forward again whilst still soaking up the pressure. Changes
were made for the Wrens as Frazier Worthington came on to bolster the defence
and Zain Murshid to spice up the midfield. Despite their best efforts Durkar
just couldn’t find a way through and the game ended all square at 1-1. This was
such a memorable performance for Wrenthorpe with every player giving everything
they had and with everything still to play for in the second match.
Durkar Devils 1 Wrenthorpe Rangers 2
Fired up
by the battling true grit performance in the first match the Wrenthorpe players
in the second game really took the match to their opponents. Right from the
start the Wrens pushed forward. The back door was kept tightly shut with
Lawrence Kirkley doing the business in the nets and Brandon Blunt and Sam Holley
thwarting every attack that Durkar could muster. The breakthrough came when a
free kick from Blunt found Yosef Abebe who laid off a lovely through ball to
allow Will Steele to turn in the box and fire home for the Wrens. Wrenthorpe
continued to press forward for the rest of the half with James Osborne
performing well in midfield and Durkar struggling to make any impression on the
game. After the break it was more of the same as Wrenthorpe looked to put the
game beyond doubt. Emily Caines and Jason Davies came on for the Wrens and made
there presence felt straight away with both of them causing problems for Durkar
in the centre of the park. At the back Aidan Cosimini slotted well into the
defence and performed like a terrier snapping at the Durkar forward's heels.
Eventually the breakthrough came for the Wrens when Abebe passed to Steele who
drove a low ball into the box for quick footed Joe Davies to tap home and double
the Wrenthorpe lead. The unbelievable was coming true and by now there was a
distinct lack of fingernails on the touchline. The cup drama still had one twist
left however when with only minutes to go Durkar pushed forward again and
managed to score from close range. The time taken from the restart to the ref
blowing the whistle to end the match was probably only sixty seconds but it
seemed like forever. When he did blow it was the sweetest sound for Wrenthorpe
ears. Against all the odds and playing a team with a goal difference in the
league of +134 the underdogs had done it. Well done to all the players and
coaches and the mums and dads who have been through the ups and downs of the
season…C’mon you Wrens!!!…See Kev I told you we could do it!!
More Stuff
| Movie 1 | Movie 2 | Movie 3 |
| Picture 1 | Picture 2 | Picture 3 |
| Picture 4 | Picture 5 | Picture 6 |
| Picture 7 | Picture 8 | Picture 9 |
| Picture 10 | Picture 11 | Picture 12 |
| Picture 13 | Picture 14 |
