Darlaston Town (1874) vs Stafford Town Mens 1sts
0 - 0
06 July 2021 · North West Counties<br>South
Away friendly match played on 06 July 2021.
Kicked off at 7:30 PM
0-0
vs Darlaston Town (1874)
Away friendly match
Having suffered a six goal drubbing at the hands of a very good Darlo side as recently as the back end of May, the Town lads welcomed the opportunity of another visit to a cracking set up to try and restore some credibility. As goalless draws go this one was a pretty decent encounter played on Darlos 2nd pitch whilst their main one benefits from some off season renovations. Credit must go to the grounds staff as the 2nd pitch was as decent and if not better than a lot of clubs main playing surface.
The evenings rain provided a slick tempo to proceedings from the outset with players from both sides choosing to go to ground and slide in to tackles when the opportunity afforded them. The hosts dictated the initial ten minutes enjoying the lions share of possession, moving the ball well trying to disrupt Towns shape and create gaps to exploit. Henry Smith in the away goal had to be on his metal a few times early on to keep the strong Darlo attack at bay. He was left somewhat dazed and with a broken nose following a collision with the right winger halfway through the first half. The alert keeper darted from his box to meet a ball that had been clipped down the line, he slid it out of play and received the challenging wingers knee to the bridge of his nose. Our Henry is made of stern stuff and was soon back between the stick where he'd be needed to make some superb reflex saves later in the contest.
Again Dom and Steve rang the changes at HT giving all players in attendance a decent opportunity to get into the game and express themselves. Darlo went closest to breaking the deadlock with a quarter of an hour remaining. A corner was initially dealt with but the second phase was recycled to the edge of the box resulting in a smart snap shot being palmed onto the crossbar and over via the superb reflexes of Smith.
The sausage, chips and curry sauce complimented with a budweiser went down a treat as both squads and management watched the ending of the Spain v Italy euros game in the clubhouse. All associated with Darlo are a credit to their club and run a fantastic set up.
We wish you a successful season and look forward to hosting you at ours pre season.