The Vale
of Aylesbury SUNDAY Challenge Cup
This
afternoons Vale Challenge Cup Final was played in very windy conditions.
The first half
commenced with New Zealand playing into the wind and both teams appeared very
evenly matched through the early exchanges. The first incident occurred after 10
minutes when Lee PARRACK of New Zealand ran onto a left wing pass, PARRACK
lobbed the keeper but a Supernovas defender was on hand to clear off the line.
Two minutes later Alex WOODFINE of New Zealand drove a dangerous ball from the
left wing to the edge of the 6 yard box but was tidied up by the keeper Kevin
HIGBY before and on coming forward could make contact. On 21 minutes Grant
KAWAZINSKI of New Zealand received the first caution of the game when he
produced a reckless challenge on an opponent 30 yards from goal. From the
resulting free kick, Supernovas Drew ROBERTS wind assisted free kick dipped over
the New Zealand crossbar. On 27 minutes we witnessed the second caution of the
game and for New Zealand when PARRACK was penalised for a reckless challenge on
the halfway line. The first real Supernovas chance came in the 36th
minute when a poor clearance was headed to the edge of the New Zealand penalty
area by a defender and the resulting lob by Paolo AQUILA looped over the
keeper’s crossbar. Six minutes later came the next Supernovas chance when a
whipped shot from the left wing was diverted by a defender which just avoided
the far post. On half time New Zealand came strong and a twisting run by
KAWAZINSKI which caused problems for the opposition defense, saw his shot sail
over the crossbar. Both teams went into the interval with the game well
balanced.
On 53 minutes
PARRACK broke free down the left hand side, the keeper for Supernovas HIGBY,
came out to narrow the angle but then changed his mind at the last minute,
luckily the resulting shot was disappointing. The crowd then had to wait a
further 7 minutes until the next goal scoring opportunity arrived, when Luke
NORRIS shot from 20 yards and once again the ball looped over the bar. We had
now played an hours football and none of the keepers had truly been tested.
Finally on 62 minutes PARRACK ran on to a through ball from WOODFINE and his
clinical finishing saw a low drive give HIGBY no chance in the Supernovas goal.
Supernova tried to respond immediately when 2 minutes later ROBERTS ran clear of
the defense and slotted home Supernovas first goal or they thought they had.
Assistant Referee Vince TORRE had immediately raised his flag prior to the ball
finishing in the back of the net. Referee Paul Bateman gave the goal initially
before seeing that his colleague required his attention. After a short
discussion it was clear that ROBERTS had handled the ball deliberately when he
received the ball which the assistant observed and made a correct decision in
disallowing the goal. To be honest, there were little if no complaints from any
of the players which are a credit to Vince TORRE’S observations. With the game
still at 1-0, Supernovas replaced Richard SLATTER with Dale HOUSDEN and New
Zealand took the opportunity to replace Paul FOLEY with Ben STEVENS. Supernovas
had a free kick on the edge of the box on 70 minutes but the shot by Stuart
DINNINE was well off target. Three minutes later New Zealand replaced Colin
NAPPIN with Chris DAVIES, minutes later veteran defender Nigel SIBLEY who was a
rock at the back, was unfairly challenged by AQUILA for Supernovas with a late
challenge. AQUILA was cautioned by referee Paul BATEMAN who had a terrific game,
using his experience to gain the respect of the players and the viewing public,
AQUILA was immediately substituted for Roland GAVIN. Two minutes later New
Zealand’s Luke NORRIS was late with his challenge on the Supernovas keeper, he
may have been lucky not to have received a caution from the referee. On 82
minutes GAVIN tried to pull the game level when his pass found ROBERTS but the
shot from the edge of the box was diverted for a corner with some last ditch
defending. The resulting corner was gathered safely by Gary WILTSHIRE in the New
Zealand goal who hadn’t been troubled all afternoon. Another chance went
begging for Supernova who was denied when an excellent tackle by SIBLEY denied a
shot on goal. A minute later Supernova collected their second caution when a
reckless challenge saw Nick COPPOCK go into Mr BATEMAN’S book, which to be
fair wasn’t a dirty game but the cautions were justified to keep control of
this competitive match. In the 85th minute the game came alive, when
PARRACK ran onto a pass and with the outside of his right foot, he steered the
ball into the net giving HIGBY no chance. It was an excellent finish. With the
score at 2-0 the game was as good as over, with only 5 minutes remaining on the
referee’s watch. On 87 minutes the hat trick was completed when WOODFINE
chipped a ball through for PARRACK to volley from 25 yards. The ball flew into
the goal past HIGBY who again had no chance. PARRACK was then replaced on 89
minutes by veteran Paul CORCORAN, PARRACK received a deserved ovation from the
sporting crowd. Finally on 90 minutes DINNINE scored Supernovas consolation goal
when he slotted home the ball from close range.
At the
conclusion of the game a trophy and bottle of champagne was awarded to the Man
of the Match. The award was sponsored by Jan & Tom JAMES of FOLKSPUR
FLOORING LTD and presented to hat trick hero Lee PARRACK of New Zealand F.C.
The individual
trophies for The Vale of Aylesbury Challenge Cup were presented by Mr Ray READING
who is The Division One Secretary for The Berks & Bucks Football
Association.
S.L.N.
Aylesbury Sunday Football Combination committee would like to take this
opportunity in thanking Aylesbury United Football Club for the use of their
facilities and to congratulate the groundsman on the superb playing surface.
Our next Cup
Final is on Sunday 23rd April 2006 K.O. 03.00pm when F.C. Aristocrat
take on Unique F.C. in this years final of the Chris Payne Trophy Final at
Aylesbury United Football Club, Buckingham Road, Aylesbury.
Thanks
to Darren Pennery for this match report
Referee Paul Bateman leads out the teams with his
assistants Peter Rice (left) and Vince Torre who has one last check to make sure
his equipment is as it should be!!
A large following of supporters made the short 200 yard
trip from the New Zealand public house to the stadium.
A quick cuddle early on just to feel each other out!
The Supernovas player is having trouble getting the ball off his opponent and
with his barber it would seem!!
As you can see from the flags in the distance, the windy
conditions produced very few chances in a close first half.
Ref Paul Bateman and his assistant Vince Torre restore
order to the New Zealand dugout as boss Mick Ainger and his assistant Frank
Williams start to feel the pressure of the afternoon.
Lee Parrack opens the scoring for New Zealand...
...and his teammates join him in the celebrations as the
Supernovas keeper looks despondent.
Moments later and Supernovas think they've equalized only
to have the goal correctly disallowed for handball.
The Supernovas keeper looks back to see Lee Parrack's
second hit the back of the net to make it 2-0.
Moments later he completes his hat-trick in spectacular
style to make it 3-0.
Lee Parrack (left) and New Zealand captain Paul Foley
receive the Cup from Berks & Bucks FA's Ray Reading and SLN Aylesbury Sunday
Football Combination Chairman Roland Simmons.
New Zealand FC
The Vale of Aylesbury Sunday Challenge Cup winners 2005-06.
The Folkspur Flooring Ltd man of the match without any
doubt.
New Zealand star Lee Parrack with his award from the sponsors.
