10/10/10: Grangetown Florists (11) v (0) The Victory Club
Scorers: None
Team: Swan (GK), Mountford, Bunyan, Davison (c), Rodgers, Harding, Lamb (Hunter), Collins (Jackson), Smiles, Robson, Stores
Unused Subs: None
Yellows: None
Reds: None
An embarrassing second half collapse saw the Victory Club bow out of this season’s Total Sport Challenge Trophy following an 11-0 humiliation at the hands of Premiership leaders, Grangetown Florists.
Faced with the prospect of playing arguably the best Sunday league team in Sunderland, caretaker managers, Alex Rodgers and David White, elected to adopt a defensive minded 4-5-1 formation to try and stifle their opponents. There were two changes made from the eleven which began last week’s game with Steve Jackson and Scott Hunter dropping out to be replaced by returning captain, Greg Davison, and Ben Stores, who would be making his first competitive start for the Victory.
The Premiership side began the game well demonstrating their skills on the ball and the art of possession football. However, they were finding it difficult to break down a Victory side who employed ten men behind the ball whenever they didn’t have it. In fact the best the Florists could muster in the early stages were a couple of efforts from distance which were dealt with comfortably by Lewis Swan in the Victory goal.
Then, on fifteen minutes, Grangetown Florists broke the deadlock. A long ball forward found a Florists attacker who skilfully lobbed the ball over Bunyan to his strike partner and he made no mistake crashing a left footed volley past Swan from ten yards.
The Victory responded well to going a goal behind and they created their first attempt at goal shortly afterwards. A good piece of control followed by a well weighted lay off by Ben Stores gave Stephen Robson a shooting opportunity but his effort with his weaker right foot was straight at the keeper.
The men in red continued to frustrate there more illustrious opponents and Grangetown Florists started to become wasteful in possession trying to play the killer ball every time.
On thirty five minutes, the Florists doubled their advantage. The Florists right winger, sidestepped Rodgers attempted tackle and cut inside before firing in a left footed shot which flashed past Swan at his near post.
More Florist chances came and went but at half time the Victory trailed by just the two goals and their frustration policy was proving to be a success.
First half injuries to touch tacklers, Anth Collins and Graham Lamb, meant the Victory were forced to use both their substitutions at the break with Scott Hunter and Steve Jackson entering the fray. Despite the decent first half performance, the caretaker managers decided to change tactics and switch to a more attack minded 4-4-2 formation for the second half with Hunter joining Stores up top.
The second period began disastrously, however, as within five minutes of the restart Grangetown Florists scored for a third time. The ball broke to a Florists player just outside the edge of the area and he lashed a right footed shot past Swan and into the top left hand corner.
Worse followed three minutes later as Grangetown Florists netted again. The Florists right winger pulled the ball back to one of the strikers and he evaded Davison’s sliding tackle before curling the ball home left footed.
Just before the hour mark, the score line became 5-0 when a cross from the right was headed into the top corner by a midfield runner who had made a beautifully timed surge into the box.
The Victory were now struggling to stem the flow and Grangetown Florists could no doubt sense that this was opportunity for them to boost both their teams and their players own personal goal tallies.
On sixty five minutes, the Victory conceded number six when a Florists player fired the ball in from close range with Bunyan’s attempt to block the ball on the goal line proving fruitless.
Four minutes later and in went number seven. A cross from the right was delivered towards one of the Florists substitutes and despite him falling over just before the cross reached him, the ball cannoned off his right knee and very luckily flew into the corner of the net.
Goal number eight arrived shortly afterwards. Once again a loose ball fell to a Florists midfielder on the edge of the box and as with the third goal, the player crashed in a right footed shot just out of Swan’s reach – the ball going in via the underside of the crossbar.
As the game entered the final fifteen minutes it was very much a case of damaged limitations for the Victory who had managed just the one effort on goal in the second period so far – a tame shot from twenty five yards from Hunter which momentarily forced the Florists goal keeper to get off his deck chair to collect the ball.
The Florists made in 9-0 with twelve minutes remaining when, following Robson’s goal line block from a corner, the Victory failed to deal with the second ball and from the ball back into the box, the tall Florists midfielder was able to waltz in unmarked to glance a header past Swan.
With ten minutes to go, the Victory almost grabbed a consolation goal through Steve Jackson. He pressurised the keeper into making a mess of clearance but when presented with the shooting opportunity he was only able to guide his attempted lob wide of the right hand upright.
Embarrassment was well and truly reached with seven minutes left as the Florists made it double figures. A cross from the right once again found the tall midfielder and he completed a hat-trick of headers by rising high to power the ball back in the direction from which it came.
In the final couple of minutes, Grangetown Florists grabbed an eleventh goal when another cross from the right this time found the little left winger who had ghosted in at the back post and he excellently planted his header out of Swan’s reach and into the top right hand corner of the net.
The final whistle brought to an end a second half of torment for the Victory Club, who despite knowing that things would be extremely difficult against their Premiership opponents, will be disappointed to have conceded so many goals especially after their excellent first half performance had seen them trail by only two at the break. Still, the Victory will have to put this game one side and quickly as they face another tough encounter back in the league next Sunday, against another team from Grangetown in the shape of Grangetown WMC.
