Report: Rangers Res 0 v 1 Salts FC Res

KDRAFC Media
Sep 20, 2020
3 min read

Salts score the only goal of the game during the first-half.
Rangers hit the post and crossbar during the game.
The management pleased with effort and commitment from the team.

A cross-cum-shot which dipped over keeper's Mitch Moore's head and into the goal via the post settled this game that, for long periods, saw Rangers Reserves produce good football but lack that killer instinct when it mattered.

With the match barely minutes old, there was an inkling of how it was going to pan out when Stevie Mann set up Brad Spencer. Hitting his shot with plenty of power, the post took the impact, and the ball bounced back into play before being cleared.

Salts soon had their first sight of goal when cutting off the left-wing, the midfielder dragged his shot just wide of Moore's back post.

Deighton's defence was seeing more of the ball then they probably wanted in the opening stages, but the partnership of Jake Bollon and Jon Richards were finding it easy to repel what Salts threw at them.

Match Photo — Phil Turner tries to escape from his Salts FC Reserves marker.

Mann was producing some neat touches in midfield and on several occasions, he tried to release Phil Turner, Sam Murphy and Spencer, but Salts' high line was proving effective at catching Deighton offside.

With Rangers pushing forward, it looked like Spencer may have produced the breakthrough in the 30th minute when his curling shot required a superb save from the Salts custodian to tip the ball over.

The deadlock was broken in the 35th minute, and there was a large slice of luck involved as a cross sailed over Moore's head, slammed into the inside of the post and dropped into the goal. The muted celebrations from Salts showed that they were equally surprised by the proceedings as well!

Half-Time: Kirk Deighton Rangers Reserves 0 v 1 Salts FC Reserves

Following a period of midfield play, it was the visitors who broke away, but their shot sailed over Moore's crossbar.

With 57 minutes on the clock, Rangers thought that they had equalised after Mason Sheridan-Hawley's long-range shot crashed down off the crossbar but failed to cross the line. Following up, Turner appeared to be obstructed as he set to shoot, but the referee waved away Deighton's penalty claims.

Another free-kick, following a foul just outside the area, gave the visitor's a chance to shoot, but like before, the ball flew over the crossbar and landed in the allotments behind the goal.

Rangers were yielding too much territory to Salts, and a spell of one-touch passing allowed them to have another shot. This time, however, the shot was snatched at and spun wide of the goal.

With the introduction of Jack Holliday, Rangers seemed to find a bit of a new dimension and his burst into the area was only ended when covering defender poked the ball clear.

Two chances fell to Rangers, but a good block by the keeper robbed Liam Dean (who had replaced Chris Plews) of a shooting chance, and then Holliday's cross was just too high for Dean to turn goalwards.

With the match in the final ten minutes, a good tackle by Dean robbed a Salts defender. Drilling in a low shot, it took a diving save by the keeper to collect the ball.

Holliday was left cursing his luck after racing onto his own header to set up a one-on-one with the keeper, chipping the ball over him, he could only watch as his shot missed the goal by a couple of feet also.

The match ended with Salts having a shot palmed over by Moore, and Richards sending a free-kick over the crossbar after a foul just outside the area.

Full-Time: Kirk Deighton Rangers Reserves 0 v 1 Salts FC Reserves

In review: despite the defeat, Rangers played some very good football, and the Management has every right to feel please with what they saw. There was plenty of commitment on show and Rangers never gave up fighting. In the end, it was a lucky goal that settled the game, but in another match, it could have been Deighton that snatched the winner.

Report by KDRAFC Media

Squad: Moore, Murphy, Richards, Bollon, Sheridan-Hawley, Turner, McCartney, Flynn, Mann, Spencer, Plews.

Subs: Holliday, Dean, Williams

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