Welton booked their place in the semi-final of the Kelly Reed Trophy today with a 5-1 victory away at Division 1 side Crows Athletic.
Big Al decided to start the game in the favoured 3-5-2 formation with the usual back three of Carter, Clifford and Taylor behind a midfield consisting of L.Clifford, Stocks, Gordon, Bowey and Coupland with Ward and Drabble up front. The main suprise in that line-up was Gordon out wide and Bowey in an unfamiliar cenral role. The Welton bench was Curtis, T.Wilkinson and Jaz 'Ledley Dhing' Dhindsa.
Despite the emphatic scoreline, the game was far from easy for the Premiership high flierers and from the first whistle Crows seemed to want the game more. Welton looked far too casual and sloppy and were being caught out wide, especially on the right with Gordon and Bowey looking uncomfortable with the strange set-up. There were gaping holes in the midfield which meant the Social CLub defence were working overtime. Despite this Welton had several chances, namely from James Drabble who fired over from 8yards, but the visitors fell behind in a bizarre fashion. Simon Clifford played a ridiculous short freekick into Sam Gordon who was surrounded by three men. Possession was lost almost immediately and the Crows striker broke down the left and cooly slotted in. It looked like another 'South Clifton (A)' was on the cards but Welton fought back well with Bowey and Coupland looking sharp. It was the latter who pulled the scores level with a sublime chip over the onrushing goalkeeper. A long ball over the top by Ross Taylor was met by the sidesweeped midfielder who casually dinked the ball over the keeper from 18yards.
HALF TIME: CROWS ATHLETIC 1 - 1 WELTON S&S
Big Al was not happy at half time and withdrew the injured Bowey for Mark Curtis. Welton then began the second half slowly and were given an immediate wake-up call when the Crows winger broke down the right and rounded Wilkinson but failed to finish his good work. The miss seemed critical as Welton then went ahead. Curtis broke down the right and was felled on the right of the penalty area. Gordon took the free-kick and landed the ball straight onto the head of Drabble who nodded home in fine fashion. The visitors should have used this as a springboard but several chances went astray before Crows gave Welton a massive scare. L.Clifford went to sleep on the left and his man was free to cross and cause a mele in the 6-yard box with only instinctive reactions from Wilkinson and an incredible tackle from Carter keeping the visitors in front. Big Al sent on former pro Tom Wilkinson and he had a great impact from the bench. The next goal was going to be crucial and it came via a moment of class from Gordon that set the two sides apart. The battling Tom Wilkinson was fouled in the edge of the 18-yard box and Gordon dispatched a fine freekick into the top corner to make it 3-1 in the 80th minute. It then became the Mark Curtis show as he hit 2 goals in 5 minutes to give the scoreline a rather flattering look. Gordon's shot was spilled by the Crow's keeper and Curtis pounced for his first, firing the ball under the keeper from 5yards. His second was a fantastic bit of individual determination. The Crow's winger attempted to cut inside the Welton substitute who stuck to his task and won the ball on the half-way line. Skipping past a tackle he cut inside the defender and unleashed a 25yard screamer into the top right corner of the goal for his 9th of the season. It was time to shut-up shop as Jaz Dhindsa came on in the 'Ledley King' role to sure things up and win the headers.
In a game where Welton's character showed through they were handed a suprise after the final whistle when news filtered through that Metheringham had lost and Welton would face a eagerly-anticipated semi-final against rivals Nettleham at Mulsanne Park in two weeks time.
FINAL SCORE: CROWS ATHLETIC 1 -5 WELTON S&S
PLAYER RATINGS
Wilkinson 6(7) - Not too much to do but pulled off some great saves.
Carter 6(8) - World class tackles, looked off-colour in the first half.
Clifford 5 (6) - Awful free-kick for the first goal. Recovered well.
Taylor 7 (7) - Solid as a rock. Like a brick wall in the defence.
Bowey 6 - Injured, withdrawn at half-time.
Gordon 6 (7) - More influential in second half. Great goal.
Stocks 6 (7) - Usual quality, works hard and sticks to the task.
Coupland 7 (7) - Great goal, created chances all game.
L.Clifford 6 (5) - Looked jaded in the second half after starting brightly.
Ward 6 (6) - Struggled against the big centre backs.
Drabble 7 (7) - Competed for everything. Did well against a physical defence.
SUBS
Curtis (8) - Great goal, worked hard and got involved in all attacking plays.
T.Wilkinson (8) - Showed strength and character all game.
Dhindsa (7) - Made a claim for regular spot with some great headers and tackles.