One battle won with near neighbours....

Published on 4th December 2008 in Sport

Howden Town 0

Vikings Res. 2

On a cold, damp and extremely foggy Saturday the Vikings' second string were happy they had only a short trip to near neighbours Howden Town for their Division Four encounter at the school.

League positions and previous results suggested both sides were evenly matched so it proved a vital three points, especially as the visitors fielded their youngest-ever side, featuring four sixteen-year-olds in the starting  line- up.

Honours were even at half time, with both sides creating few clear-cut opportunities, but from a visiting point and pointed out during the half time team talk there were encouraging signs that Town seemed a little off the pace, their players' body language showing them to be not quite "up" for the battle ahead.

Murray was introduced into the fray at half time, having arrived late, but the performance of Lewis Stannard in the first 45 minutes had been a joy to watch with his skills on the ball.

Liam Hughes eventually forced home a goalmouth scramble to give the Vikings a narrow advantage.

Left back Karl Sutcliffe and Wattam's tough tackling, which bordered on the illegal at times, had clearly tipped the balance into the Goole side's favour, but the latter's over-enthusiastic nature eventually  got the better of him, to leave the Vikings facing a nervous last 15 minutes.

Cook made a fine save to keep the lead intact and when he was finally beaten, Kraig Barnes was on hand to head off the line as Town at last raised their game.

Some Tez Murray 'magic' finally clinched the points for the Vikings as he raced clear, left the last home defender on the floor and coolly slotted home, much to the delight of the Goole contingent.

Kraig Barnes and Nigel Halford were outstanding at centre back, Jordan Masterman had greater responsibility producing excellent deliveries from corners and free kicks.

The star of the show, however, as mentioned earlier, was young Lewis Stannard, who thoroughly enjoyed his full debut, producing a masterclass in running with the ball and continually beating his marker with fine individual skills. His partnership with Murray will certainly be one to watch.

This Saturday the Vikings' second string enter cup action with a home match against Hornsea Town III, with players asked to note the earlier 1.30pm kick off. Meet at West Park at 12.30pm.