The Badgers inflicted the Reserves biggest defeat so far as they go nap at The Sett.
Tuesday 4th October 2022
UHLSPORT UNITED COUNTIES LEAGUE – RESERVE DIVISION
BUGBROOKE ST MICHAELS (3) 5 COGENHOE UNITED (0) 0
Weatherley 17
Eaton 31
King 44
Coulson 47
Doherty 70
Att; 55
On a mild, yet blustery night in Bugbrooke, the Reserves faced a tough test against a young and well organised home team. The Badgers were first to show when Miles Eaton sent Manny Mpambi clear down the left and when he whipped it into the near post and Bailey Weatherly nipped in to get a touch ahead of Cooks debutant Jack Bradshaw, but the keeper did enough to make it tough and the ball went wide. The opening ten minutes was a pretty even affair with the game going from end-to-end, but the next real chance fell to Weatherly when he caught Lee Felgate in possession a few yards outside the Cogenhoe penalty area, but he chose to shoot early and fired his shot the wrong side of the post. Connor Gibbins made a good run down the right flank and although his cross was initially won by a defender, Jamie Hall won the second ball and put his header on target, he couldn’t get enough behind it enough to trouble Billy Panter in the Bugbrooke goal.
The home side broke the deadlock on 17 minutes when Eaton picked out Weatherly inside the box on the left with a good pass and the Badgers forward fired a low shot across Bradshaw and just inside the far post with an excellent finish. A long ball from Felgate was brought down by Glenn Cakebread inside the box on the right and he put his shot on target, but Panter caught it comfortably. Charlie Pearson picked up a yellow card for dissent, although he wasn’t sent to the sin-bin, then Freddie King fizzed a ball across the box from the right but nobody was able to get a touch and then Felgate made a vital challenge inside the box as Bugbrooke pressed.
The Badgers doubled their advantage on 31 minutes when Jake Webster sent a corner to the far post where a totally unmarked Eaton couldn’t believe his luck as he steered the ball home from close range. Down the other end, Hall recovered well inside the box and touched the ball to Sam Giddens, but he could only poke the ball wide under pressure from Ronnie Gibbon. Weatherly made strong run through the middle and Luke Andrews pulled him back for a stonewall yellow card, then on a more positive note, Josh Jones got by his man and despite having his shirt pulled just outside the box, he carried on and got in a shot, but it went just wide of the keeper’s right hand post. Hall then went close with a powerful shot from 20-yards that had the keeper diving full-length, but we were undone a minute before the break with a simple ball over the top. King raced on to it and with Bradshaw outside his box, the striker lifted the ball over his head and ran on to fire high into the net from the centre of the box. Mpambi played a great ball up to King on the right, but Felgate slid in with a great challenge, although the defender needed treatment from Juliette before he could continue.
Half-time; Badgers 3 Cooks 0.
Ian Adcock made a couple of changes at the break with Kieron Mobbs and Regan Aylesbury coming on. What Cogenhoe really needed to avoid was conceding again, but that is exactly what happened within two minutes of the restart. Bradshaw could only parry a shot from the right-side of the box at the near post and Mac Coulson was unchallenged at close range as he fired home.
Hall headed down a Gibbins free-kick, but it wouldn’t fall for Sam Giddens to get in a shot in on the edge of the box, then Mobbs teed up Luke Andrews 25-yards out, but his shot was blocked. Pearson shot wide from outside the box after making a run through the centre, then down the other end Jones made a good run down the left before delivering what should have been a dangerous cross, but no Cogenhoe players attacked and Bugbrooke not only cleared, they broke quickly and King forced Bradshaw to block his powerful shot.
Cakebread played a free-kick into the box from the right that Panter caught cleanly with Aylesbury looking to pounce, then Mobbs robbed a defender and fired in a shot that Panter got down to save. Cakebread broke in from the right and placed a low shot across Panter, but the keeper got down well to make a good save. Cogenhoe’s good spell continued as Aylesbury worked to the edge of the box but put his shot too close to the keeper. Giddens won the ball and Felgate picked out Mobbs, but this decent cross was put behind for a corner by Dimond.
Felgate needed lengthy treatment before being helped from the field to be replaced by Patrick Medan on 66 minutes. On 70 minutes any hope of a Cogenhoe comeback were well and truly put to bed when the Badgers struck for a fifth time. A big ball over the top was judged brilliantly by Alfie Doherty who lifted it on the volley high over the stranded Bradshaw and the ball dropped under the bar and into the net. A spell of pressure from the Cooks saw Aylesbury slice wide from 20-yards, then Jones broke through the middle before being upended by Dimond who subsequently picked up a yellow card.
Mobbs and Morris combined inside the box on the left and forced a good save out of Panter at his near post just before Gibbins was yellow-carded after his challenge was judged to have been to-footed my referee Castleman. A lovely ball from Hall gave Jones a chance from the edge of the box and Panter had to save his low shot, then Hall fired into the side-netting from an angle inside the box on the left. Pearson dug in just outside the box to create a shooting chance that Bradshaw caught at head height and that was that at The Sett.
It was a heavy defeat for the Cooks Reserves, but the first time they have been beaten by more than one goal in a game so hopefully the lads will bounce back quickly and enjoy their Saturday off before heading to Whitworth in the League Cup one week today. Bugbrooke were worthy winners and played some entertaining football tonight, but more importantly they took a high percentage of their chances tonight in front of a healthy home crowd.
Badgers; 1. Billy Panter 2. Manny Mpambi 3. Charlie Hynam 4. Ronnie Gibbon 5. Ben Dimond 6. Miles Eaton 7. Mac Coulson 8. Jake Webster 9. Freddie King 10. Charlie Pearson 11. Bailey Weatherly. Subs all used; 12. George Boniface 14. Will Trueman 15. Pearce Jones 16. Alfie Doherty 17. Toby Jones.
Yellow cards; Pearson, Dimond & P. Jones.
Cooks; 1. Jack Bradshaw 2. Joe Morris 3. Lorenco Soulollari 4. Luke Andrews 5. Sam Harris 6. Lee Felgate © 7. Connor Gibbins 9. Jamie Hall 10. Glenn Cakebread 11. Josh Jones 17. Sam Giddens. Subs used; 8 Regan Aylesbury 14. Patrick Medan 16. Kieron Mobbs. Subs not used; 12. Dylan Carlin 15. Ian Adcock.
Referee; Simon Castleman.
