Frickley Athletic v Hallam FC

Recap

Frickley 1 Hallam 5

After holding firm for over 40 minutes, The Azzurri paid the price for not taking early chances as they fell to a 5-1 defeat at the hands of visitors and bogey team, Hallam.

Rieves Boocock, Zak Kersey and Brandon Murillo came into the starting XI for Lloyd Smith, Luke Walker and Zav Elkin, all 3 of whom moved to the bench with El Binno and Fletch.

In the early moments, Matty Hughes showed his attacking prowess with a promising run but hit the keeper with his shot. At the other end, Zak K’s vigilance snuffed out a similar threat from Hallam.

The 11th minute saw Rieves B breaking free, delivering a precise square ball to Hughesy, yet the subsequent shot narrowly missed the target.

Hallam did manage to find the net in the 20th minute but their joy was short-lived as the forward was clearly offside. Undeterred, Hallam continued to apply pressure, with a wayward header and a shot deflected wide.

The 43rd minute marked a turning point as Hallam broke the deadlock, putting a high ball into the mixer, it wasn’t cleared and their number 9 hooked it in from close range as a result.

Within 90 seconds, the visitors had sprung The Azzurri’s offside trap, and capitalised by rounding Bradders for a second goal. HT 0-2.

The second half was less than 3 minutes old 48th minute when Haighy clipped the heels of a Hallam forward who was going nowhere on the edge of the box near the byline. Penalty awarded. Duly dispatched.

A disappointing afternoon for The Blues was further marred when Josh Haigh was stretchered off in considerable pain after sustaining a nasty knee injury. Our thoughts are with you, brother.

The Boys in Blue did their best to raise their game as a 55th minute overlap by The Elk, on as sub, resulted in a promising cross that was met with a powerful shot from Hughesy, only to hit Brandon Murillo on the back.

On the hour, The Azzurri reduced the deficit with a well-crafted goal. A cross from the left was nodded in by Morgan James at the back post.

However, Hallam responded emphatically in the 69th minute, scoring with a speculative effort from 45 yards that soared over Callum Bradbury’s head and into the net.

Then 12 minutes later, Hallam further asserted their dominance with a classic breakaway goal to make it five.

Hallam’s convincing win, already assured, ended with more fortune for them as Blues’ sub, Lloydy, was brought down for a penno in injury time, only to see his spot kick hit the outside of the post. FT 1-5.

After a heavy loss like that, it’s no good feeling sorry for ourselves. We dust ourselves off, chin up, chest out and play for the badge, showing what we’re truly made of. We’ll look for a reaction next week at Emley. It’s the Frickley way.

WEBMASTER MOTM – We’ve had better afternoons but Zak Kersey and Rieves Boocock were a handful in the first half. Keegan Townrow and Varls were committed. Hughesy had defenders worried whenever he had the ball and deserved a goal. And Lloydy showed his quality when he came on, despite missing the penalty. But the Glitterball goes to Morgan James for running for 90 minutes and for sticking the ball in the net. Jubilations, Jamesy!

TWITTER MOTM – Morgan James takes it from Matty Hughes, Rieves Boocock and Zak Kersey. Josh Haigh also polled votes. Thanks to all who voted.

SPONSORS/VOLUNTEERS MOTM – Morgan James and Matty Hughes were jointly chosen by Don Logan. Well done, fellas!

232 through the gate. Thank you all for your super support on a tough day!

To hear the thoughts of manager Pat McGuire, click here.

The Blues are next in action on Saturday 3rd February when we travel to Emley for a 3pm kickoff. Those games just get easier, don’t they? So let’s go be the twelfth man! Hope to see you all there…

#forzafrickley