Wellingborough Whitworth U18 4 AFC Rushden & Diamonds U18 1

Wellingborough Whitworth 4-1 AFC Rushden & Diamonds

Northants Senior Youth League

A first half horror show from the Diamonds U18s saw them slump to defeat at the hands of league leaders Wellingborough Whitworths.

After an uneventful start to the game, in which Ryan Archer and Matty Foster exchanged wayward shots from distance, the game came to life after 15 minutes. A defence splitting pass from midfield allowed Taylor Orosz the chance to burst through on goal, but although Connor Brown did well to save his initial shot, the ball ricocheted back off Orosz again and trickled towards the goal. It looked as though Alex Peters would get back in time to hook the ball off the line, but it took a wicked bobble just as he attempted to clear it, bouncing up over his foot and into the back of the net.

Shortly after, the game was interrupted for around 10 minutes due to a floodlight failure, but when the teams took to the pitch again and the game was restarted, Rushden were caught napping and found themselves 2-0 down almost immediately. Nathan Bobowicz beat stand-in right back Omar Ghavami, deputising for the suspended Tommy Messinger, and put a low cross into the 6 yard box where Taylor Orosz was on hand to tap home his second of the game.

The Diamonds were all over the place by now, and Orosz should have had his hattrick on 36 minutes when released by Bobowicz again, but this time he sliced his shot well wide of the post. He didn’t have to wait long for his third though as another defence splitting ball found him in space once more, and this time Orosz neatly curled the ball around Brown and into the bottom corner.

Rushden then had a rare chance to pull a goal back when the ball was fed through to Joe Holmes in the right hand side of the Whitworth penalty area, but he screwed his shot wide of the far post. Jake Reynolds then had the Diamonds best chance of the half following an excellent move down the left flank, but he fired over the bar from 6 yards.

Rushden were made to pay for the missed chances, as Whitworth added a fourth deep into first half stoppage time. Diamonds conceded possession cheaply and then failed to pick up Jack Ash inside the penalty area, but although Brown made an excellent save to keep out the first effort, the ball rebounded to Taylor Orosz who had the simple task of tapping home.

HT: Wellingborough Whitworth 4-0 AFC Rushden & Diamonds

Rushden manager Mark Walsh tweaked the formation slightly at half time, and it turned into a real “game of two halves” as the visitors dominated the second period.

The Diamonds pulled a goal back just 6 minutes after the restart, as a Conor Collins corner was headed goalward by Reynolds, but although his effort was cleared off the line, Holmes was on hand to volley home.

Matty Smith then replaced Collins, with Kyron Walsh taking over the corner duties, and the two combined to see Smith crash a superb header against the Whitworth crossbar.

Walsh’s set piece deliveries were causing all sorts of problems for the home defence, but on several occasions the ball just evaded a Rushden player for a simple tap in.

Ghavami was playing a more advanced role in the second half, and a good run and cross presented a half chance for Noah Bryant, but his shot was just wide of the post. Another Walsh corner saw a Smith shot blocked, before Ryan Chamberlain volleyed over.

With time running out, the hosts went close to a fifth goal with a rare second half attack, Brown making a good save from a near post shot by Ash, and the same player then headed over from the resulting corner.

Despite more Diamonds pressure in the closing stages, the Whitworth defence just about held on without conceding a second goal.

FT: Wellingborough Whitworth 4-1 AFC Rushden & Diamonds

The Diamonds U18s are back in action on Thursday 12^th December, when they take on Cogenhoe United at the Dog & Duck.

Man of the Match: Matty Foster

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