Rangers 3 v 1 Wetherby Athletic

KDRAFC Media
Apr 22, 2021
4 min read

A second-half brace by Josh Barden, adding to a first-half strike from George Widdows, meant that Deighton picked up their first win of the season against neighbours Wetherby Athletic.

With Jake Little and Jacob Bollan unable to play, Roman Neal and Craig Hall slotted back into the team, and there was a place for both Mason Sheridan-Hawley and Joe Turley on the bench.

Deighton came flying out of the traps, and early pressure saw a stooping Neal header saved comfortably by Darren Hooper in the Athletic goal.

Wetherby soon started to attack, and it needed a sliding tackle by Luke Dubery to stop Anthony Walsh from shooting. Minutes later, Dubery was back in action when he headed a cross behind his own goal.

Showing a lovely turn, Josh Wilson opened up space to shoot, but his effort flew straight at Jonty Smith, who caught it comfortably.

George Widdows opened the scoring for Deighton in the 9th minute when Josh Buckley flicked a corner into his path, and he fired home from close range.

Match Photo — George Widdows scores for Rangers.

A series of free-kicks disrupted the flow of the match, but despite some good balls into the areas, neither team was able to provide the killer touch needed.

Wetherby began fashioning the better chances, and a header in front of the goal went over the crossbar before another Wilson shot from long distance went wide of the post.

Weathering the pressure, Deighton countered, and a one-two between Neal and Hall saw Hall's low shot well saved by Hooper.

Joe Whiteley nearly had the visitor's on level terms, but his shot through a crowd of players was acrobatically turned over the crossbar by Smith.

On 28 minutes, Marshall made his first substitution to replace the injured Dubery with Sheridan-Hawley.

Joe Wilks and Josh Barden were producing some intricate play outside the Wetherby area, and a side pass by Wilks freed Neal to crash a fierce shot against a Wetherby defender.

The match was becoming a real to-and-fro affair. No sooner had Rangers attacked then Rob Holliday produced a superb sliding tackle at the other end to deny Wetherby.

The industrious Mike McCartney, who was instrumental in breaking up Wetherby's attacks through the middle of the pitch, found himself in a shooting position, but his stinging shot was charged down on route to the goal.

The crossbar prevented Hall from doubling Rangers' advantage in the final minutes of the half when he hit a powerful half-volley from outside the area, which flew past Hooper and smashed into the bar, bouncing past Barden, who couldn't react in time.

Half-Time: Kirk Deighton Rangers 1 v 0 Wetherby Athletic

With Widdows joining Dubery on the injured list, Tatler started the second half and straight away was in action when he collected Barden's pass and shot straight at Hooper.

Hooper pulled off a fine save to his right to push away a dipping shot by Neal as the home side looked to try and put the match to bed.

Having had a failed attack down the right-wing, Wetherby switched sides, and some good interplay allowed them to work the ball into Deighton's area. Thankfully for rangers, Smith saw the danger and dived at the striker's feet to stop any shots.

Deighton were knocking on the door, and Hooper produced another fine diving save, this time to his left to deny Tatler from scoring.

It was all square on 54 minutes after James Flynn lashed a shot home from 18 yards through a crowded penalty area that Smith saw late.

Looking to regain the lead, a clearance was headed into Wilks's path by Barden. As the captain tried to cross, Wetherby closed ranks and cleared.

In a similar pattern to the first half, the game ebbed between penalty areas at breakneck speed. Josh Buckley powered a header at Hooper for Deighton while Wetherby saw their headed effort go wide of Smith's post.

Rangers were becoming frustrated by some superb blocks by Wetherby. Both Tatler and Neal saw hard shots charged down, and Barden, Wilks and Conor Buckley were unable to dribble into the area when in good positions.

Sam Murphy entered the fray to replace Neal in the 65th minute as Marshall pushed Hall into a midfield role.

Smith was called upon again to make a superb save to deny Wetherby at close range after a curling cross wasn't dealt with by Deighton's defence.

Barden restored Deighton's lead in the 70th minute with an excellent goal. A long pass from defence fell invitingly for the striker, and he lobbed the stranded Hooper from inside the area.

With the game in the final minutes, Dominic Walton and Joe Turley were introduced in place of Holliday and Hall.

Wetherby fashioned the next attack when Wilson jinked into a shooting position, but his long-shot sailed wide.

It was game, set and match for Deighton when Barden claimed his second goal in the 86th minute. Latching onto a ball into the left channel, he twisted past a defender and floated his cross over Hooper's head and into the top corner of the goal.

The final shot of the match belonged to Turley after he received a pass from Barden. Shaping to shoot, he couldn't get enough power and Hooper collected without issue.

Full-Time: Kirk Deighton Rangers 3 v 1 Wetherby Athletic

Verdict: Finally, a win! It was pleasing to see the team further build upon the good work that they had shown against Otley Town. The rustiness is starting to disappear, although the several injuries that the team picked up will be a worry to Dan Marshall. Josh Barden showed some quality touches upfront and a superb performance by Mike McCartney in the middle of the pitch.

Team: Smith, Hall (Turley, 80), Buckley.C, Buckley.J, Dubery (Sheridan-Hawley, 28), Widdows (Tatler, 45), McCartney, Wilks (c), Holliday (Walton, 75), Neal (Murphy, 65), Barden

Subs: All Used

Yellow Cards: Rangers - Buckley.C

Wetherby Athletic - None

Red Cards: Rangers - None

Wetherby Athletic - None

Bennett & Fountain Electrical Wholesalers Man Of The Match: Mike McCartney