FOLLOWING THE SALTMEN

UhlSport Hellenic League Division One.

12 October 2024

It is usually the case that post-match plaudits go to goalscorers – and that is perfectly understandable. This week, however, I would like to congratulate both teams’ goalkeepers who gave an excellent demonstration of that most noble of arts. Messrs Rogerson and Venables can justifiably make claim for their respective teams’ man of the match award.

Had it not been for a string of fine saves by Zach Venables in the Ludlow goal, the Saltmen could quite conceivably have racked up a double figure score as they piled on the pressure during the second half. That he managed to restrict Spa to just one goal during this period is worthy of top billing. Not to be outdone, while seeing less of the action, Dom Rogerson produced heroics of his own to ensure Spa recorded another clean sheet. It is often difficult for a keeper to maintain concentration when their involvement is restricted to distributing the ball but when called into serious action he responded with a series of fine stops of his own as Ludlow tried to get back into a game in which they fell behind on 16 minutes. Matt Fusco’s tenacity enabled him to exchange passes with Jack Brighton before crossing the ball to Alex Dugmore who did what Alex Dugmore does best and Spa had the lead.

To crown a dominant 40 second spell, Josh Hurdman was given the chance to double the lead when put in by a great ball which dissected the visitors’ back line. He gave Venables no chance, clinically guiding the ball into the River end goal and it was 2-0 Saltmen. Spa kept their collective foot down and created a slew of half chances, narrowly missing the target or being thwarted by Mr Venables.

It is good to see increasing numbers of women officiating at games. Today was no exception with the female assistant referee [thanks Luke] getting a number of close offside calls spot-on during the first half. I know this because I was standing behind her for the opening 45 minutes and I found no reason to offer the same helpful advice I usually bestow upon lesser flag wavers than today’s. For this reason I will gloss over the two stonewall penalty appeals which were easily visible to the assistant and to the referee – to whom I offer my best wishes for his forthcoming GCSEs. Hopefully he will be able to distinguish between nouns and verbs more successfully than he did between a penalty and a booking for simulation.

The second half was dominated for long periods by Droitwich and as the game drew towards its conclusion it looked like the 262 in attendance would have to settle for a 2-0 home win. Fortunately for the majority of the crowd, Charlie Tilley had other ideas. On 86 minutes Venables made another smart save to deny Dugmore but Charlie was able to smash the rebound home.

The game finished with the Saltmen as 3-0 winners but not before our own flourishing footballing dynasty’s attempt to enter football history with J Hurdman replacing J Hurdman from the bench. That has to be a first! I think J Hurdman is marginally better but they are both very talented players. Hopefully their similarly talented brother Sam will be able rejoin them soon following a lengthy injury.

Two cup games coming up for Droitwich. First up, Redditch Borough at Kingys in midweek then our trip to deepest Lincolnshire next Saturday in the FA Vase. Meanwhile they remain undefeated in the league and top of the league!

Cheers

Steve

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