JULY
8th
Caversham 5 v Spirit FC 0;
Caversham
showed why it is leading the Soccersouth premier league points table and is at
the quarter final stage of the Chatham cup competition with a comprehensive
5-nil win over Spirit FC in Dunedin on Saturday.
On
another day Spirit’s effort might have got a result from most other teams, but
the skill and pace of the Steve Fleming coached Caversham unit cancelled out
that prospect with a clinical first half display which resulted in a 4-nil half
time lead.
In the opening minutes Caversham signalled its intention as it camped in the Spirit defensive zone and inevitably took the lead when Tim Cook was on hand to finish of a good move down its left flank.
Spirit
had its moments following the early setback and when a cheeky Tobi Reid volley
missed the goal by millimetres with Caversham’s keeper Daryl Putt in no mans
land its effort might well have had a just reward.
Sadly
the opposite happened and Caversham rocked the Spirit FC spirit with a
three-goal barrage in the next eight minutes.
Otago development team youngster Patrick Fleming netted a fine free kick through the Spirit defensive wall to put his team 2-nil ahead before Ryley Webster chimed in with two goals to give the home team an unassailable 4-nil advantage.
Webster’s
first goal a gift from a terrible Spirit defensive mix up but his second a
sweetly struck volley that nestled well away from the outstretched arms of hard
working Shane Elliott in the Spirit FC goal.
Spirit appeared to be heading for an embarrassing score line when Tim Cook grabbed his second goal 10 minutes into the second half to increase the lead to 5 goals.
However
the game reached a turning point when Caversham’s Rhys Henderson reacted badly
to a strong Spirit tackle and was sent from the field by the referee.
Spirit’s play lifted markedly following the incident and while it was never going to win the game some of its attacking moves between the Kent brothers Stu and Tom and Hamish Low gave it hope of bringing some respectability to the scoreline.
John
Schol, Stu Kent and Tobi Reid all tested the Caversham keeper with strong shots
on target but all were safely dealt with by Putt who ensured the scoring was
ended for the day.
Locally
the inclement weather affected the day’s programme with some games being
played some abandoned and in some cases teams mutually agreeing not to start
play.
Southend
United was the biggest benefactor of the day with a 7-2 win against the Waihopai
masters team, retaining the Larry O’Rorke cup and moving three points clear of
arch rival Queens Park whose game was not played.
At Alexandra the local team regained the Quinny Cup and added three valuable points to its Fletcher Cup tally at the expense of and with some help from its Waihopai opponent.
The
sending off of Waihopai’s Brendon Lloyd and an own goal by its defender Matty
Burgess both contributing to Alexandra’s 2-nil win.