Halifax edge past spirited Wentworth

December 7, 2011 | ONLINE ONLY
Dan Holland

HALIFAX 2-1 WENTWORTH

Images: Philippa Grafton

It took a string of goalkeeping heroics from Jonny Sim for Halifax to scrape a 2-1 victory over Wentworth in the term’s final week of college football.

In a match where both sides were profligate with their finishing, only a superb performance from the Halifax keeper prevented Wentworth from getting the points their display deserved.

Things started badly for Wentworth, however, as right-back Muklu Cukorova turned the ball into his own net with barely two minutes played.

Last year’s College Cup champions were dominant, with Gio Pilardes pulling the strings in midfield, and only the lively Samik Datta providing an effective attacking threat to the Halifax defence.

Datta was twice denied by Sim, but Wentworth’s best chance of the half fell to Dom Green, who prodded his close-range effort straight into the goalkeeper’s arms.

And they were almost made to pay for their missed chances before the half-time whistle, as Conor Meckin put a header wide of the post and Pilardes saw his piledriver saved by Jon Cook.

Wentworth came out for the second half with intent, and this was when Sim showcased his abilities.

First, he was at full stretch to keep out Wayne Paes’ curling shot from the edge of the box, before rushing off his line to close down the same player and tip his shot wide, when a Wentworth equaliser looked inevitable.

From the resulting corner, Sim excelled once again, as he somehow tipped Tom Redhead’s effort over the bar when it seemed destined for the top corner.

And with the Wentworth players pouring forward, Halifax soon doubled their advantage.

Hamish Denham pounced on a loose ball inside the six-yard box to slide it into the bottom corner.

Suddenly, the ‘Fax were in the ascendency once again and Denham should have scored twice more, before he pulled up injured to leave his side with only ten men.

Wentworth soon capitalised on their numerical advantage, as Paes finally found a way past Sim, turning on the edge of the box and rifling a shot into the bottom corner to make it 2-1.

Both sides continued to press for another goal, the best chance falling to Halifax’s Craig Dean, but it ended 2-1, giving Halifax a third win of the campaign and meaning the plucky Wentworth side finished the season bottom of the table and without a win.

At full time, Halifax skipper Jack Beadle was satisfied with his team’s performance, whilst reserving praise for their opponents: “It’s nice to end the season with a win against a very strong Wentworth side. I was particularly impressed with Dom Green and Samik (Datta), but we should be looking to challenge for the title next term.”

Wentworth’s Paes, meanwhile, was optimistic about his side’s chances going into the Spring Term, “Our defence was a bit shaky at the start, but now we seem more cohesive as a team and we’re looking forward to better things.”

Man of the match: Jonny Sim

Halifax: Sim, Lewis, Patrickson, Daly (Jones), Darling, Dean, Pilardes, Stevenson (Williamson), Ragan, Denham, Meckin

Wentworth: Cook, Cukurova, Burns, Han, Townson, Fellgett, Paes, Green, Redhead, Datta, Murray

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