STOPPAGE TIME MISERY IN GODMANCHESTER FOR THE COOKS

Saturday 20^th November 2021

UHLSPORT UNITED COUNTIES LEAGUE-PREMIER DIVISION SOUTH

GODMANCHESTER ROVERS (1) 2 COGENHOE UNITED (1) 1

Goddy;

D. Baulk 2

M. Baulk 90+1

Cooks;

Bates 2

Att; tbc

The Cooks made their first trip to the David Wilson Homes Ground on a gloomy but relatively mild late Autumn afternoon as they met fellow mid-table side Godmanchester Rovers. Darren Long was able to call on fit again skipper Rico Alexander who partnered Jack Riley at the back, with Alex Vaughan the man to drop down to the bench. Also amongst the subs was Archie Elmore who had started the season with us, but had moved up to play for Daventry Town. Hopefully Archie will stick around as he would be a real asset to the team with some match-fitness behind him once more, whilst Tom Wakley lined up against his former club in the starting eleven.

The Cooks got off to the worst possible start as we were caught open as the back through the centre and a simple pass left Danny Baulk completely unmarked inside our box and all he had to do was roll the ball into the corner of the net to put his team 1-0 with less than two minutes played. Possibly the softest goal we have conceded this season, but at least we had 88 minutes to get back into the game. In fact it took just two of those minutes, but we had luck on our side with the equaliser. The officials missed a hand-ball by a Cooks player before Dylan Wilson was fouled and the Cooks were awarded a free-kick in a central position around 28-yards from goal. Will Bates stepped up and struck it low around the wall and the keeper couldn’t get his hands to it as it bounced past him and it was 1-1 with just four minutes played.

Wakley made a run down the left and earned the Cooks a corner which Archie Culley swung in, but Jamie Greygoose punched it out of his area where Bates drilled it back in, but was successfully blocked and cleared. Bates looped a high cross into the box that Wakley headed down for Jack Norman. He laid it right to Bates who drilled a low ball into the near post looking for Wakley, but it was cut out by the boot of either Greygoose or Alfie Warman and the chance was gone. Bates went up for an aerial challenge in the centre with James Dickerson and the collision left the Goody no.3 with a head injury that required treatment. It looked like it was probably a cut above the eye and he was forced to go off with just 15 minutes played and an early chance for Matty Allan to impress. Referee Stuart Lathan assumedly ruled that Bates had been the guilty party in the challenge as he brandished the game’s first yellow card which was a little unlucky on the Cooks player as there wasn’t anything malicious in his challenge, just a determined effort to win the ball by both players, at least that is how it looked from where I stood. Hopefully Jack is OK now and can enjoy his Saturday night.

A lovely cross from Michael Baulk saw Archie Culley win a vital header inside his own box with Josh Adams tidying things up at the back post. Wilson cut in from the right and sent in a shot that the keeper dived rather theatrically to his right to save, then a long ball found D. Baulk in space down our left and he was able to play it in low across the box, but luckily for us his support was slow getting forward and the ball continued harmlessly across the pitch. Goddy’s first sub Allan was subbed off on 25 minutes, just ten minutes after entering the field, but I’m not sure if this was tactical or he had perhaps been carrying an injury already. The huge figure of Jamie Judge took his place and looked like he might be a tough one to mark.

Wakley managed to get to the ball and poke it into Wilson’s run don the left and he had the pace of   his marker before getting into the box and clipping the ball over the keeper’s head, but agonisingly it also dropped over the top of the bar as well. Very unlucky for the Cooks leading scorer and would have been a superb goal. Good play from D. Baulk saw him play the ball into the near post where Craig Foxall and the striker both go there at the same time with the Cooks getting the benefit of the doubt with a goal-kick given as the home side called out for a corner. Ryan Archer did really well to hold off a challenge and lift the ball over for Wilson, who despite being under pressure from two blue shirted players, still managed to lift the ball over the keeper from the edge of the box, but his volley was again just too late coming back down.

Alexander played a good ball up to Wakley who cut back and crossed, but Michael King headed it away, then we had the rub of the green once more as a low ball in from the left appeared to be handled by Riley, who despite now laying on his back, managed to scoop the ball away for a corner. Wakley battled hard to win the ball and Culley rolled it under his foot before releasing Wilson on the left, but his cross drifted into the hands of Greygoose. Adams blocked a M. Baulk shot from the edge of the area at the expense of a corner, then a swirling shot from Simon Unwin changed direction in flight, but Foxall managed to get his body behind it despite being originally wrong-footed. 1-1 at the break with both sides probably feeling they could, or even should, have been in the lead.

Half Time; Goddy 1 Cooks 1

First chance of the second half fell to the Cooks as Foxall’s kick out was well controlled by Wilson allowing Culley to send over a good cross that Wakley won in the air, but he couldn’t get his looping header to drop in time. Riley won a vital header at the back and Norman battled hard to keep possession before being fouled by Ross Munro. He stayed down and Steve Ganley had to come on for the first time to try and get him back shipshape, but despite trying to run it off he was forced to concede and Chief Boateng took his place with 53 minutes gone.

Baulk went into the book after tripping Paddy Cichosz just before we held our breath again as Adams went into the back of his man inside the box for what could well have been a penalty, but again the officials saw nothing untoward out there. Alexander got a flick header from Culley’s free-kick to win a corner just before the yellow-carded Bates made way for the returning Elmore on 54 minutes. Culley clattered into his man to pick up a yellow card for the third match running just before the hour, then Wakley rose well to head the ball on for Wilson to chase, but Reece King matched him all the way and cleared the danger. Good play from Boateng saw him pick out Elmore on the left and he sent Adams down the line on the overlap with a lovely flick, but he couldn’t get in a cross as the home defence covered well.

A dangerous cross from the right by D. Baulk had to be headed away from just in front of the line by Archer, whilst a great ball from Alexander dropped just over the last defender’s head to meet Wakley on the right and his volley flew across the goal and wide of the far post. Culley, also on a yellow card, was replaced by Ivandro Monteiro with 65 minutes played, then Judge found himself totally clear down our left, but his ball across the box failed to pick out a teammate and can be classed as a real let off for the Cooks. Cichosz found Elmore beyond the far post with a good free-kick and the sub did well to control it and lift it back into the centre, but it was headed away unchallenged by a defender.

A vital block by Riley as Judge turned and shot inside the box kept things level, then Foxall had to come off his line quickly to deny D. Baulk after Isaac Moss had sent him through with a great ball. Riley was caught out on the right side of the box, but Foxall saved the incoming shot, then a Wakley run was stopped by a good challenge on the edge of the box as we went from end to end. Boateng was fouled 20-yards out and Elmore stepped up to take the free-kick and his effort was heading for the far corner had Greygoose not dived to his right to push the ball away. A nice ball from Boateng to Wakley saw him play it in low from the right, but this was cut out and cleared, then Wilson made a good run down the right before sending over a cross that Moss did really well to head away from the danger zone.

Monteiro battled well to win the ball before releasing Wilson down the right and this time the striker came inside and went for goal from just outside the box, but he got neither the height or the direction right and it sailed into the undergrowth behind the goal for the ‘Goddy Ultras’ to try and find. Not entirely sure why they stayed down that end when they were attacking the other, but perhaps their drum has fallen foul of the older fans sheltering in the cover before now. Monteiro had almost played Elmore in down the left, but play was soon down the other end as we gave the ball away and allowed the home side to break through Judge and his dangerous low cross just evaded the incoming striker, but it fell nicely for Michael Baulk inside the box on the left and he fired a low shot past Foxall to give his side the lead a minute into stoppage time. A strong run by Judge won a late, late corner that came to nothing and then the final sub of the day saw Junior Augusto get a cameo in place of Danny Baulk as Goddy ran the clock down.

This one was a definitely a case of three points lost in a game against one of the sides around us in the table and the result was a disappointing one for the Cooks in truth. It’s always hard to swallow losing to an injury time goal and we should really have looked after the ball and taken the away point at that stage, but it’s so much easier from the other side of the barrier. We weren’t as fluent as we can be and the pitch wasn’t conducive to football on the deck and we started going long more and more as the second half went on, resulting in the opportunities for Wilson and Wakley all but dried up. Fair play to Godmanchester who battled hard for 90+ minutes and gave us very little time on the ball with their high-octane play, but in games like this you need to let the ball do the work a little more and create that extra yard of space/second of time.

Not a classic by any means, but a long way off being the worst game I have ever watched either. All the Cooks gave their all again today on a difficult surface against hard working opponents, but there were no real stand-out performances over the whole game. Ryan Archer is a player who just gets on with his game and isn’t perhaps as noticeable as some of the others in doing so, but his hard work, calm passing and covering at the back earns him my man-of-the-match today.

Don’t forget we are at home again on Tuesday night as we replay the Potton game after being mislead by the referee in the original match. We of course won the first game, so what better place is there to start another winning run. Also, we will only be using three subs maximum for this game and not trying to outdo Exeter’s six last week.

Goddy; 1. Jamie Greygoose 2. Reece King 3. Jack Dickerson (sub 12. Matty Allan 15) (sub 16. Jamie Judge 25) 4. Isaac Moss 5. Alfie Warman 6. Michael King 7. Danny Baulk (sub 14. Junior Augusto 90+4) 8. Simon Unwin © 9. Ross Munro 10. Michael Baulk 11. CJ Lewis. Subs not used 15. George Holman 17. Ollie Butler.

Cooks.; 1. Craig Foxall 2. Paddy Cichosz 3. Josh Adams 4. Ryan Archer 5. Jack Riley 6. Rico Alexander © 7. Will Bates (sub 12. Chief Boateng 54) 8. Archie Culley (sub 15. Ivandro Monteiro 65) 9. Dylan Wilson 10. Jack Norman (sub 14. Archie Elmore 54) 11. Tom Wakley. Sub not used. 16. Alex Vaughan.

Referee; Stuart Lathan

Assts; Don MacLarty & Arek Piotrowski.

UNITED COUNTIES LEAGUE-RESERVE DIVISION

COGENHOE UNITED Reserves (1) 3 NEWPORT PAGNELL TOWN Reserves (1) 2

Cooks;

Obeng 14

Gyamfi 89

Mason 90+2

The Cooks Reserves faced a tough game against high-flying Newport today, but with 89 minutes gone the visitors were leading 2-1 and it looked like being a brave performance but no reward. The lads showed great character though and turned it around with two very late goals to end the losing streak with an excellent win. Jessi Obeng was back from university and he opened our account on 14 minutes, shame he can’t play every week. It was going the way of the Swans though until the 89^th minute when sub and potential basketball player Kelvin Gyamfi levelled the scores and then in stoppage time Ben Mason stepped up with the winning goal. Superb spirit to the very end for the Cooks and a great result for the lads.

Cooks line-up.

1 – Alexander Kalorros

2 – Lorenco Soulollari

3 – Ben Short

4 – Many Asante

5 – Jake Walpole ©

6 – Sam Russell

7 – Luca Iaciofano

8 – Nick Fleming

9 – Jessi Obeng

10 – Ben Mason

11 – Shad Reza

Subs;

12 – Nat Allam (for Russell)

14 – Kelvin Gyamfi (for Iaciofano)

15 – Tanea Simon (for Reza)

16 – Mark Mensah (for Walpole)

17 – Isaac Appiah (for Fleming)