OH DANNY BOY, WALSH HITS DOUBLE TO WIN CUP FOR AWSWORTH

AWSWORTH VILLA 2 V REAL UTD 1
NOTTINGHAMSHIRE SENIOR LEAGUE CHALLENGE CUP FINAL
@ RON STEEL SPORTS GROUND DUNKIRK FC
14 MAY 2016 --- 3PM

AWSWORTH VILLA NSL LEAGUE CUP WINNERS 2016

Early and late goals from Danny Walsh were just enough for Awsworth to claim the NSL League Cup against a spirited Real Utd who had equalised through Jack Charlton after 33 minutes.  For Walsh the winning goal 5 minutes from time was a blessing after a missed penalty on the half hour mark that drifted wide of the Utd goal.
As the season comes to its conclusion for The Precision Nottinghamshire Senior League with its cup final the blog decided against travelling to The NCEFL final and there was a chance to revisit a ground I must have visited around 25 years ago.  Start from base was by The Comet, basically a bus service not a rocket, to Derby and thankfully we had set off with plenty of time for a look around because on the approach to Derby the traffic was heavy with The Rams having a 1230 kick off for their play off game.  A quick change at the bus station saw the Red Arrow boarded and a swift journey down the A52 saw us depart at the hospital, QMC, just after 1200 noon.

LOOKING BACK TOWARDS THE TURNSTILE AT DUNKIRK FC

Now this ground it has to be said is not really a public transport hoppers delight with little in the way of close by in the form of bus stops etc.  The walk down the A52 Clifton Boulevard would not be pleasant with noisy and busy traffic but with time to spare a detour had been built in which would see us stride out along the Beeston canal to Castle Marina a very pleasant stroll that departed us at the big 'M's' for a lunch break.  We finished off our food and departed outside again and onto Queens Drive heading back on towards our ultimate destination of Dunkirk FC passing along the way by the Pork Farm Pork Pie factory, a name from the past.  Turning up the chance of a river side footpath walk we negotiated the intersection and found ourselves on Lenton Lane on the approach to the ground this lane soon leaves all footpaths behind and while passing Greenwood Meadows ground we found ourselves following the lane to the right and soon we are at the ground.  The Ron Steel Sports Ground is surrounded by the Riber Trent, a golf course and a cricket ground the area is a hive of sporting activity but once again its really fine if you are driving.

SIDE BY SIDE STANDS

Turning into the car park with the ground fenced off to the left at the far end you approach the clubhouse and changing rooms which are external to the ground but on the site.  The clubhouse was functional enough with a snack bar inside but these facilities were outside the ground and I guess limit your spend unusually I didn't spend anything there today because of its location.
Admission paid and programme purchased there was time for a quick greeting from Rob Hornby, registrar of The NSL and of course known to many as the ground hop organiser of this parish.  On return a look at the programme discovers an excellent colour effort for a final, well done NSL!
A quick tour of the ground revealed a tidy facility with hard standing all the way around a port a cabin with an good public address system, again well done here so many host clubs/league don't seem to bother for finals.  While on the praise front a printed team sheet was also additionally produced all very encouraging to take this fixture in again in the future.  By the turnstile entrance a rickety looking scaffold stand and over to the far touchline a high roofed covered terrace quickly followed by a small seated stand.  The dug outs are on the opposite side just below the hospitality cabin.
We met up with Paul a fellow hopper who had travelled from Chesterfield who we had last met at Hemsworth MW for their FA Vase game versus Sunderland RCA earlier in the season, it was a pleasure to swap stories and ground visits.

HERE COME THE THREE TEAMS

Having caught up with Rob on arrival there was the chance to take a few pre match pictures of the cup and of course both teams and as with most League Cup Finals that added touch often makes the game build up look better and once again here The NSL had got it right with a sponsors ball holder for the referee to take the ball from on his entry to the pitch.

AWSWORTH VILLA FC

Awsworth sat slightly higher than Real in the league but there was little to separate the sides with the latter having scored an impressive 115 goals.  Sadly Real appear to have had a few problems with change of manager recently and today were only able to field 11 players which made me a little doubtful of this game, but after a worrying start don't let that affect your reading of the game the lads
representing Real gave everything and played to their strengths defending and battling for every ball.

REAL UTD FC

That early worry was after just 2 minutes when Walsh gave the Villa the lead with a shot through a few players from 10 yards out and I feared for a big score.

DANNY WALSH GIVES VILLA THE LEAD

How wrong you can be although the possession part of the game was massively in favour of Awsworth it was Real who defended the edge of their box with confidence.  Villa did make it into the box on 29 minutes when Ryan Whitehurst was sent a clatter by Nathan Burrows in the Utd goal.  The keeper was cautioned, probably a good decision because the ball had probably been pushed well wide but you would certainly have seen some referees produce red here.

REAL KEEPER NATHAN BURROWS SEES YELLOW

Up stepped soon to be hero Walsh and he pulled his penalty wide the miss galvanised Real and they equalised on 33 minutes when Jack Charlton, I know, rose well to head home a left wing cross.
We arrived at half time all level and you just wondered if the shock of the team with no substitutes could pull off a victory as they continued to look to hit Awsworth on the break.

AN ATTENTIVE AWSWORTH CROWD AWAIT

With 7 minutes remaining extra time was beckoning especially when Matt Goodwin's header crashed back off the underside of the bar to safety.

But the winner did come when Walsh got his second through determination just inside the Real box to get hold of the ball and round keeper Burrows to slot home, cue scenes of joy, 85 minutes.

DANNY WALSH MAKES IT 2-1

There was relief now for Awsworth and a few moments to celebrate before it was time to defend strongly for the remaining minutes.

CELEBRATIONS AFTER THE SECOND GOAL FOR AWSWORTH

Still Real came back at Awsworth trying to prompt a reply around the oppositions penalty area but after a couple of minutes stoppage time referee Ian Smith, who had controlled this game well with his team, blew for full time and The Villa were League Cup winners.

PARTY TIME

The presentation was respectfully done and Real should take credit for their part in making this a close final.  It wasn't a classic but it was well fought box to box and those two goals from Walsh proved to be the deciding factor.
A journey back along the busy A52 and past the various factory and car showrooms found us back at the appropriate bus stop for The Red Arrow service back to Derby and remarkably with The Comet on stand we made it aboard before it pulled away and a return to base was achieved just after 7pm from a well organised final, well done NSL.

REAL MANAGER CHRIS GALLEY SAW HIS TEAM PERFORM ADMIRABLY