On a terrible Greenleas pitch CCK FC were edged out 3-2 by AFC Stanley. The result leaves CCK anxiously watching other results as they hope to avoid the drop.
Several key members of the team were missing and with goalkeeper Paul Muzzall arriving late, CCK could be forgiven for starting the game in a less than convincing manner. AFC applied pressure without testing hero of the day Mark Edwards in the CCK goal. Muzzall did then turn up, and a standing ovation greeted Mark Edwards as he left the field to be replaced by the stopper. Muzzall’s first touch two touches were to be retrieving the ball from the net. Both occasions the defensive line of the back four had huge question marks surrounding it, in fact it probably greater resembled the shape of a question mark rather than a straight line. Two decent finished gave Stanley a comfortable early lead. The travelling support feared the worst as AFC Stanley didn’t look like they were satisfied with the two goal advantage. Muzzall was forced into some brilliant saves, while Ben Tucker and Dan Shotton produced some fine defending. One passage of play saw fantastic defensive determination from both Muzzall and Shotton, as a player went through on goal only for Muzzall to force him wide and then save a low shot. The rebound fell kindly to the Stanley striker whose shot was cleared off the line by Shotton. It was clear that the pitch was not allowing for a pretty game full of passing, and this perhaps had been CCK’s problem in the opening exchanges. Play became more direct and the Badgers created a few chances. Most notably were Matt Carvel’s two long range strikes that stung the hands of the Stanley keeper. Ivan Sambles then almost flicked a header into the net after a free kick from Dave Jones. The ball was by-passing the midfield on most occasions, however, when called upon Tim Rose seemed to be winning many of the midfield tussles. Dan Harnden and Ivan Sambles were looking to get down the wings and supply the forwards with crosses. Tom Powell, and Pete Coggan looked sharp when they had the ball, which was perhaps too infrequent. CCK did grab a late lifeline at the end of the first half. Dave Jones’ long throw in was met with a shot by Dan Shotton, which was blocked into the path of Dan Harnden. The winger’s finish was clinical as he placed the ball in the bottom left corner and brought CCK back into the game.
The Badgers hoped that this would inspire them to an historic comeback. They were made to wait due to Stanley’s forward play. They showed a great determination to add to their not so comfortable lead. They would have done so if Paul Muzzall wasn’t in such fine form. He tipped shots round the post and over the bar, one aided by the bar. His defence was helping as Dan Harnden and Matt Carvel made goal-line clearances. Dan Shotton and Ben Tucker continued to dominate physically and aerially as they continued to frustrate Stanley’s efforts. At the other end Pete Coggan and Tom Powell had efforts threaten to level the scores. The AFC keeper was proving difficult to beat. If the game had been direct in the first half, it had now become all out “route one”. Few touches for midfielders, with defenders predicting the need for copious amounts of headache tablets as a result of the sheer volume of headers in the game. It wasn’t pleasing on the eye, nor was it a game that you could take your eyes off. CCK needed the points drastically and Stanley were determined to beat the impressive CCK defence. As the game reached the closing stages, CCK applied greater pressure. Mike Preston made several runs down the left from his defensive position and crosses were swung into the box more frequently. Tom Powell then had a great left footed effort tipped over as he manoeuvred shooting space inside the Stanley area. The corner was to prove prosperous for the Badgers, as Dave Jones’ delivery was met with a bullet header from Ivan Sambles. The net bulged as the CCK crowd roared. Ten minutes or so to find a winner it seemed. Neither side looked capable as the game returned to its scrappy format. That was until the Stanley right winger found space inside the area. Dan Shotton made a desperate lunge clipping the midfielder, who took an exaggerated tumble which culminated in an agonising blow of the ref’s whistle. Penalty to AFC Stanley in the last minute of the game. The fouled player stepped up and coolly slotted the penalty to Paul Muzzall’s left as the blue shirts swarmed around him. CCK had battled hard, only to go away with nothing from a game that could have all but guaranteed their survival.
Manager Tim Rose was clearly disappointed with the result although he d his pride at the show of character the Badgers showed to get back in the game, “At 2-0 we looked out of the game, and it’s a real show of mental strength from the boys that we managed to fight our way back into the game. Obviously it’s devastating to lose in the last minute like we did, having worked so hard, but we now need to wait and see where we stand going into the last game of the season. Hopefully it’ll still be in our hands and we can stay in this league.” Paul Muzzall was also upset with the defeat, “We got back to 2-2 and I could only see us going onto win the game, so it’s a big blow to have lost it, gutting. We need to keep believing and make sure we win our last game, then we can look around at other results and hopefully celebrate survival.” The Badgers will take a massive step towards that if they beat Hikers BHA at Wish Park on April 17th, although with just a three point gap between them and the two teams in the drop zone, who have two games in hand, they are relying on a few results going their way.
