Ebac Northern League Division 2 - Saturday 27th July 2024 Chester-le-Street United 1 v 2 Sunderland West End
The opening day of the 2024/25 season saw United at their new home for this season of the Ford Quarry Football Hub. The visitors were Sunderland West End who also have 'The Hub' as their home venue although were classified as the visitors for this fixture.
United handed full competitive debuts to Centre Forward Stephen Siyanbola and attacking midfielder Harley Lawton whilst Jamie Frizzel made his first start for The Club at this level.
Chester essentially playing a 3 - 4 - 2 - 1 formation against a West End side that had a mixture of experience and youth and under Steve Cockrill and Steve Patton were a much changed outfit from the one that languished at the foot of the table last season.
United by contrast were largely made up of Park View Academy students with veteran centre back Micky Nelson the First Team Player/Coach in the line up. Dylan Wilkinson also returning for his second season as Club Captain.
With the weather unable to make it's mind up as to whether to drench the players or heat them up, the action on the pitch was similar in the early going with neither side looking very fluent.
West End did make the brighter of the two starts and were on the front foot pressuring the United defence without really creating any real openings. The closest either side came in the first ten minutes was a half chance for West End.
Luke Page sliding a ball through the heart of the Chester defence for Riley Mouat to run on to but Riley Everett was alert to the danger and made a great covering tackle to clear the United lines.
Reyhan Grimaud then fouled Craig Linsel just outside the Chester box but Thomas Goundry's dangerous delivery failed to find a willing West End target to cause James Hughes any issues in the United goal.
Linsel then found Mouat in the left-hand channel with a neat pass but once again Everett was in quickly to block the West Enders effort at the expense of a corner which was subsequently cleared easily by the Chester defence.
Michael Mallaburn instigated United's first real foray into the Sunderland half with a driving run through the centre before spraying a lovely ball out wide right to Dan Robinson whose first team cross was deflected for a corner off Goundry.
Lawton took it playing a short ball into Charlie Loveday who returned it quickly for Lawton but his left-foot cross was just too long for Wilkinson arriving at the far post. On 20 minutes Siyanbola marked his debut with a yellow card for a foul on Kyle Patton.
Patton took the resultant free kick but his 28-yard effort struck Wilkinson as it headed goal wards and Siyanbola cleared the danger. Siyanbola then conceded another free kick inside the West End half.
This time Adam McGuinness played it deep where Linsel placed a great header into the path of George Pinder who struck a cross shot that Frizzel blocked for a corner.
Goundry delivered it deep to the back post and the ball was only half cleared to McGuinness who's angled drive was on target but Hughes saved easily. On 28 minutes there was a controversial incident that had a big bearing on the game.
Mallaburn once again drove forward well from midfield and then slid a superb ball that saw Loveday through on goal. He was cynically taken down just outside the box by McGuinness as he bore down on goal.
It looked a clear scoring opportunity for Loveday but the referee deemed the United forward had too much to do and only brandished a yellow card for the offence when red possibly looked more likely.
Nelson stepped up and curled a beautiful free kick over the West End wall that beat Keeper Ben Charlton but came back down off the bar. Lawton got to the rebound first and headed down inside the six-yard box but Siyanbola on the turn couldn't connect from close range.
Linsel then found a bit of room in the United half and aimed a 25-yarder at goal but Nelson got a half block on the ball and slowed the ball down making Hughes' save an easy one.
United then almost went in front. Mallaburn this time switching the play to the left for Lawton to show good pace and skill to get past Connor McLeod before delivering a great left-wing cross.
The ball looked destined for the unmarked Siyanbola at the back post but Charlton at full stretch just got a hand on it to divert it away from the United No.9 who would have had the goal at his mercy.
Then a long ball from the back from Luke McCabe caught the Chester defence out and Linsel was clear through on goal with only Hughes to beat. Hughes though did brilliantly to stand tall and block the striker's effort.
The ball almost bounced back over Hughes head after ricocheting off Frizzel but United's keeper made another great reaction stop. Back to the other end with the game opening up and United went very close.
Mallaburn again involved picking out Robinson on the right and his excellent deep cross to the back post saw Frizzel arriving late to smash a close range left-foot volley into the side netting from a difficult angle.
Siyanbola then did brilliantly wide left to make room and drive a ball low across the box towards the onrushing Loveday but McCabe did brilliantly to get there first and clear the ball in great style before Loveday could pounce.
With both sides seemingly settling for a goalless first half West End struck seconds before the break. A short corner was worked by the visitors and Patton's ball into the box was not dealt with well by United.
They had three clear chances to clear their lines but the ball fell to Linsel who poked it back towards his skipper McGuinness who struck a sweet 25-yard plus left foot volley high into the top corner beyond the despairing dive of Hughes.
There was barely time for United to kick off again when the half-time whistle went to give West End a real boost with the goal coming from a player that was perhaps fortunate to still be on the pitch.
Unite opened the second half brightly with long spells of possession without really creating a clear cut chance. One Frizzel left wing cross did fall invitingly for Loveday inside the area but he couldn't get his shot away under pressure from the West End defence.
Then Siyanbola looked to have a clear shooting chance on the edge of the area but delayed his shot too long and the defence smothered his effort easily. United's failure to turn pressure into opportunities cost them on 62 minutes.
As they were pushing forward Page did well to find substitute Robbie Lithgo on the right just inside the Chester half. He turned the ball inside finding Linsel in acres of space as Chester struggled to recover their positions.
Linsel showed good awareness to hold up the ball and then release it into the path of the breaking Patton up outpaced the recovering Chester players sped into the box and as Hughes came to meet him fired past the exposed keeper to double the lead.
United responded by withdrawing Siyanbola and Grimaud for Jack Wilson and Dan Walton. Walton's first telling contribution was to win a corner after good play from Lawton almost released him
Lawton worked it short to Mallaburn who crossed a great ball to the back post that evaded, unfortunately, both the West End defence and Frizzel and Wilson at the back post who had both got free.
United pushed skipper Wilkinson further forward as West End sat back and as he looked to play someone in he was fouled 25-yards from goal by Lewis Lukeman. Dead ball expert Nelson once again got his free kick over the wall and on target but Charlton made a comfortable catch at his far post.
United then replaced Loveday with Harry Marr but the substitute's first touch was almost a disastrous one as he gave the ball away to West End substitute Matthew Lewer who found Lithgo inside the box but his shot towards the near post was well saved by Hughes.
Chester were still probing and playing neat football without a real end product until the 89th minute. Frizzel firing in a left-wing cross that Goundry headed out for a corner as Everett came storming in late hoping to get on the end of it.
Lawton delivered a superb in swinging corner to the back post where Wilkinson did brilliantly to guide a volley back into the six-yard box and Walton was on hand to power a header home from three yards to give United a lifeline.
Unfortunately it was too little too late as West End managed to see the rest of the game out under pressure from United to take all three points and claim the Ford Quarry Hub bragging rights.
United may well look back at that first half incident involving the first goal scorer for West End and wonder if McGuinness should still have been on the pitch. But he was and that's football with the irony that he should come up with such a superb strike from a situation that should have been cleared by United.
The second goal saw United's defence split asunder when pushing for an equaliser and although to their credit they did keep going and credit to them for that, it was always going to be difficult from two-down.
With the early season being filled with two games a week Chester will be back in action at The Ford Quarry Hub on Tuesday night when Prudhoe Youth Club Seniors will be the visitor's for a 7;45pm kick off. The Seniors taking a point in their 2 - 2 opening day draw at new boys Grangetown Boys Club.
TEAM : 1. James Hughes 2. Riley Everett 3. Micky Nelson 4. Reyhan Grimaud 5. Dylan Wilkinson (C) 6. Michael Mallaburn 7. Dan Robinson 8. Charlie Loveday 9. Stephen Siyanbola 10. Harley Lawton 11. Jamie Frizzel
SUBS : 12. Harry Marr (for Loveday 86 mins) 14. Leo Fasuan - DNP 15. Dan Walton (for Siyanbola 63 mins) 16. Jude Anderson - DNP 17. Jack Wilson (for Grimaud 63 mins)
SCORER : Walton 89 mins MANAGEMENT MAN OF THE MATCH - Michael Mallaburn
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