Drab affair sees Collingwood take the honours
Photograph by Jason Lozier
FOOTBALL
JAMES COLLEGE 1
COLLINGWOOD COLLEGE 3
As part of James’ weekend of sport against Durham University’s Collingwood College, their football teams went head to head on Saturday afternoon. Collingwood, renowned as Durham’s sporty college, were said to be favourites going in to the game and so it proved as they comfortably overcame a disappointing James side by three goals to one.
It was Collingwood who had the better of the early exchanges, more than once they beat James’ offside trap but failed to put the ball in the back of the net. It seemed it was a matter of time before they broke the deadlock and they spurned a great opportunity to do just that after ten minutes as their impressive number 11 was released, but he fluffed his lines and the score remained nil-nil. James responded well after their poor start, carving out two chances. First of all Ben Cooke fired wide from 25 yards out and then a corner was headed straight at Collingwood’s keeper.
Just after this Collingwood did have the ball in the back of the net but they were deemed to have been offside and surprisingly it was then the home side who took the lead. Some good work down the left meant the ball eventually fell to Cooke who volleyed in from the corner of the area, a great finish, and against the run of play James found themselves in front.
This seemed to spur Collingwood on as they began to pepper the James goal. For the second time they thought they had scored when some poor keeping allowed a tap-in from close range but again the striker had wandered into an offside position. Eventually the Durham side got the goal they deserved, but perhaps not in the style their play had warranted; a corner came in from the right and it was bundled home in an ugly fashion.
Collingwood, in red and black, proved too strong for a James College side consisting largely of second and third team regulars. Photograph by Jason Lozier.
It seemed to be an own goal by but none of the James players wanted to claim it, and the closest player to the mêlée was Collingwood’s left-back Chris Wright, and as York Sport’s budget hasn’t stretched to a dubious goals panel as of yet, he can take the credit for Collingwood’s opener. The half ended with Collingwood well on top, their tall number two dominating everything at the back and the impressive Will Bates commanding the centre of the park.
Following the break it was James who came out with all the confidence and at this point they looked most likely to grab the third goal of the game. However, Collingwood stepped up a gear and they forced a good save out of James’ keeper following more good work from Bates for the visitors.
It was now all Collingwood; James’ confidence had evaporated and they were seemingly unable to get out of their own half. Collingwood’s pressing eventually gave them the lead, Jamie Butler slamming home from six yards out following a game of pinball in the area. Soon after full-back Wright grabbed his second of the game following a corner as he beat his man at the far post with ease.
Physical goalmouth action as James looked for a way back into their game with Collingwood this afternoon. Photograph by Jason Lozier.
The game then petered out as James, instead of searching for an unlikely comeback, seemed to resign themselves to losing. They sat back and allowed wave-upon wave of the visitors’ attacks. Collingwood could have scored three or four more in the final twenty minutes, especially from corners where James seemed incapable of handling the opposition’s height.
The final few minutes resembled a testimonial as referees swapped, and substitutions were brought on, including James College Provost Neil Lunt. The few spectators who had gathered on a cold afternoon were not treated to a classic but the right side won the game as Collingwood were undoubtedly the stronger side, especially at the back where James’ mixture of second and third team players were fragile to say the least. There were no obvious stars in a slightly dull affair but of anyone Collingwood’s Will Bates was probably the stand out player, his obvious skill was matched by a highly intelligent football brain as displayed by his ability to switch to right-back and still play incisive balls through to his forwards. James will have wanted to have played better, but will probably admit they were second best on the day.
James man-of-the-match Huw Harrow commented afterwards: “Given that many of our players had never met each other before, let alone played together, I’m proud of the way we fronted up and gave Collingwood a good game.”
In the day’s other events, honours were shared evenly between James and their visitors from the University of Durham. The netball, staged in the Tent this morning, was closely-fought and ended in a 20-20 draw. James won 3-2 overall in the squash event, but Collingwood’s hockey side proved too powerful in the day’s final event, winning 10-0 on the Astroturf. The scheduled rugby match was postponed after Collingwood failed to raise a team in light of a fixture commitment tomorrow.
Floodlit hockey action from this evening’s match as Alex Muntus goes on the attack for James. Collingwood emerged victorious 10-0. Photograph by Jason Lozier.
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