03/04/21 Review: Wyrley Juniors Reserves vs Milton United Development

Wyrley Juniors Reserves 0-2 Milton United Development (Men Unite Division Two League Cup) Long Lane Park, Juniors

It's sad to think that we're a quarter of the way through 2021 and this is my first outing to a game this year, but in this sick and twisted COVID-19 world we live in you've gotta take any opportunity you can to see a game and with the return of the grassroots game my chance to get out of the house for a couple of hours was down at Great Wyrley's Long Lane Park. The big match on display was a County Cup game between Wyrley Juniors Reserves and Milton United's Development team. A proper Easter weekend treat and for me also a belated birthday celebration as I'd turned 30 the day before.

I wonder where the club get their players from... 

Although technically spectators aren't allowed to attend matches yet, I was grateful to be taking advantage of the fact the game today was being played in a public field and so I arrived at Long Lane Park ready to sit at a picnic bench and watch the football unfold next to me. All that was missing was a picnic, but thankfully I thought ahead and brought my own beer. For anyone who has been to watch a game on Long Lane, you may well have done what I did and find out the hard way that there are two grounds on the same road, separated only by a railway bridge and Mercia Way. When I first arrived at the ground I parked up in the busy looking car park and started walking towards the pitch. Despite the fact that there were plenty of people knocking about and the atmosphere felt very footbally, something didn't quite seem right. My suspicions were quickly confirmed as a player wearing a Sikh Hunters shirt approached me and asked who I was looking for. I just said "Wyrley" and was then told to head two-hundred yards down the road and turn right. Surely enough, the lad was right and I arrived in the right place. Considering I had an almost three hour journey by public transport to my last game at Malvern Town, a two hundred yard detour in a car was nothing to moan about in the slightest.

No complaints at all from me

The day's game would be the return of football for both sides and so when it came to making my usual pre-match prediction I really had no idea what to expect. Putting my finger into the windy Wyrley air, I decided to guess for a 2-1 home win between these two second-string sides. Before the Staffs Leagues were curtailed, Wyrley's ressies sat seventh in Division Two having won three and lost three from their 2020 campaign. Their Stoke-on-Trent opponents hadn't managed a win in the league season, gaining two draws and three defeats in their five games, but I suppose the morale of the story I'd learn from this outing is never underestimate a team who are based at the "Hardman Centre". Juniors lined-up with a very young looking squad and I expect that the club uses this branch to give some of their former youth team players the chance to play competitive football with the aim of eventually joining the first team. If that's the case I think it's a very good system for a village like Great Wyrley as many players between 16 and 21 in rural areas often end up giving up on the game or moving straight into pub leagues. Being from the tiny village of Flamborough Head in East Yorkshire I know all about the challenges of pub football and that's the route I went down, but had there been a Reserves/Development club in the village I may well have continued playing with similar aged players rather than being a substitute in a team littered with old alcoholics.

Game time!

As a resident of Stafford it saddens me to say that I haven't been to as many Staffs County League matches as I'd hoped, with Ashbourne FC in pre-season 2020 being my last groundhop in the SCL, but as previous readers will know I do enjoy a county level game as much as the higher reaches of non-league and I'm certainly not a snob about sitting in a cold field to get my football fix. As I've eluded to earlier in the write-up, the ground isn't much more than a fenced-off pitch with a couple of subs benches and seats dotted around one edge, whereas from what I could see of the ground I stumbled on before I think they had a bit more of a substantial stand. I suppose I'll have to give it a go another time, but for now I was here to make the most of the day. The clubhouse was closed, but at least they had decent bogs which was an absolute blessing.

What more could you ask for?

With around 30 other people from the clubs ready to see what the match action would bring, we all watched and observed the one minute silence before the match and shortly after half past two the ball got rolling. Both sides had decent spells in the first-half but without creating too many early chances, however I did remind myself why you never stand behind the goal at a game at this level because naturally you end up being the ballboy. I was happy to help out Wyrley's keeper for the first three or four wayward shots but it soon grew tiring and I decided to carry on walking around the outskirts of the pitch to a less demanding area. Although the football wasn't electrifying, it was at least end-to-end and for every well-worked Wyrley move there was a direct counter always waiting and ready to pounce from Milton. United's kit, it has to be said, is also worth a shout out as it is a truly stunning design. The blue socks and shirt are complemented by a navy set of shorts, but the highlight for me is the badge which is stylishly printed into the bottom part of the shirt, making it standout much like quite a few grassroots clubs have started to try and do these days.

A bit of pressure from Milton during the first-half

The game continued to be closely fought but just after the half-hour mark the hosts fell behind moments after making an early couple of substitutions, as Milton's number 15 opened the scoring. Their right-winger did well to keep the ball in after run down the side, before crossing it to his striker and he took a touch before firing home with a tidy, firm finish. My first goal of 2021, but definitely not the last. Wyrley 0-1 Milton. As half-time approached, there was a crazy end to proceedings as the referee found himself needing to make a very big decision. A Milton player was judged to have taken down his opponent as he ran through on goal and with that there were two things to think about. Was it a red card? And was it a penalty? Initially, the man in the middle looked to have given a spot kick, but he was shouted over by one of his linesmen who then instructed him to go and speak to the other linesman and confirm whether it was in or outside of the box! After a good couple of minutes he eventually called for a free-kick, but did decide that the foul was made by the last defender and therefore produced the red card. Milton's defender took his anger out on the Wyrley goal frame and then again on the dugout, but as well as the light destruction there was also a few rounds of verbals between a couple of the Wyrley folk and the dismissed defender. As with many abusive exchanges, it was quickly ruled out as banter and the game restarted, with Wyrley unable to make the most of their set piece. This meant that the visitors led at the break, but would have to dig deep to hold on with ten men.

A big second-half needed from Juniors

Much like the first-half, the second was fairly end-to-end despite Wyrley having an extra man. As you'd expect, most of the key chances fell to the hosts but unfortunately for them they just couldn't hit the target. Perhaps it would have been a much higher scoring affair had it not been for a lack of match sharpness, but it certainly felt as though Juniors should have at least been testing the keeper more. Credit where its due though and United played out their match plan to perfection. The Stokies sat back, kept calm and when the time was right they doubled their lead on the break and made sure that they would put all of the pressure on the home side. Wyrley 0-2 Milton. I had the pleasure of being joined by my friend Faye for the final half an hour of the game but sadly even the support from a local didn't make the difference and we drew to a close with Milton taking the win. I overheard the Milton gaffer giving his post-match team talk from the pitch and he summarised it perfectly by praising his side's ability to keep calm and disciplined due to being a man light. A good performance all-round, job done for Milton and disappointment on this occasion for Wyrley.

It's good to be back- cheers Long Lane Park!